Wrath James White is one of the most awesomely depraved, entertainingly twisted, blatantly sexual and creatively gifted writers in the horror genre today. In “Like Porno for Psychos,” the author takes readers on a wild ride full of torn flesh, dark desires and untamed sex. The result is a marvelous book with enough gore to satisfy any gorehound, enough soft tissues to excite anyone and sufficient underlying discourses to keep a scholar on his or her toes. Also, the book might just make you want to wash your hands after every story.
The collection kicks off with a poem, “Sex and Slaughter.” It works as a perfect intro to the tales that follow and opens the door to the wicked universe that is White’s writing.
“Like Peyote For Pimps” gets the book rolling in earnest and packs as much action and truth as Iceberg Slim’s “Pimp” along with a story that puts a new spin on both pimping, drug use, family and cannibalism.
“Joy,” the second story in the collection, is a beautiful tale of vengeance and redemption that just happens to be splattered with the right touch of blood, hatred, abuse, injustice and syphilis. While the gore and brutal sex can make you cringe, the way White constructs Shana, the main character, is almost uplifting. From the danger and revulsion, Shana emerges as a powerful being and the epic ending is sweet enough to obliterate the taste of stale sweat and blood that the rest of the story puts in your mouth.
“Kids” takes creepiness to new heights because the story is rooted in the everyday normalcy of a married couple. However, the wife in this story is the type of woman that you meet, like her husband Jeff did, on a graveyard at midnight on Christmas Eve. As with the rest of the tales in the collection, White starts with a bang and sets up the story with a bit of sexual mayhem that’s very, very real. However, things quickly go south and soon what could be considered normal in any other marriage turns into a very bad situation.
“Feeding Time,” the fourth tale in the book, is one of the best in the collection. What begins as an alienated and ignored wife with strange fantasies quickly turns into a story about loathing, cruelty and infidelity. White’s usual dose of sex is here, but this time around, instead of a supernatural element, the King of the Jungle takes center stage. Also, the story works as a perfect study of the dangers of unrestrained lust and the way humans act based on one of our most basic instinct: self preservation.
“Rottweiler” shares some elements with “Joy” and is a quick read that keeps the fast pace going.
“Nothing Better To Do” is a very close second to “Feeding Time.” If you’re a fan of serial killers, psychological horror, gore and raw, unadulterated weirdness, this will definitely make your list of top stories of the year. Freddy is bored again, but there’s a dog in the house that will keep him somewhat entertained. That dog has some historic connections and proves to be very hard to kill. The Albert Fish and David Berkowitz mentions are a treat. White is probably the only author out there who can get a smile out of a reader on a story that includes foreskin being shredded by a cheese grater.
“House Cleaning” is like “Rottweiler”: a quick stab to the brain that’s sharp, violent, deadly and somehow a lot of fun to read.
The eighth story on the collection is “Fatter,” a tale that’s just as brutal as those that came before but on which the social critique is so blatant not even casual, distracted readers will be able to miss it.
“The Strange Lusts Of Hypocrites” rides the wave that “Fatter” started and should actually be required reading in schools all across the country. Poetic, honest, raw and carrying the undeniable strength of truth, this one definitely puts “Like Porno for Psychos” above the rest.
After all that precedes it, “After The Cure,” the tenth story in the collection, works really well and seems to have stemmed from White’s imagining of a STD-free future coupled with his knowledge of human desires. While the story’s beginning is easily the happiest one in the collection, the end will probably depress many readers.
Just like the beginning, the book ends with a poem, “Make Love To Me,” which feels like a celebration of the crushing, impaling, screaming, burning, gnawing, slashing and tearing that came before.
“Like Porno for Psychos” is a very strong collection from a man that stands at the top of the heap when it comes to bodily fluids and cringe-inducing tales. However, there’s much more to celebrate here. For starters, there’s a social and racial awareness that’s hard to ignore. The stories work well precisely because they happen to folks that are a certain color or come from a certain background. In White’s work, race is an element, not an accident. Also, the gore barely covers up the great deal of satire, dark humor and social critique that underline the author’s work. “Like Porno for Psychos” deserves a read. Pick up a copy now.
– Gabino Iglesias
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
