Island

You really need to check your brain at the door with Richard Laymon's "Island." If you're willing to, though, you will be reasonably entertained by this shallow, slasher-film-esque novel.The plot, as is often the case with Laymon, is pretty basic: vacationers get stranded on a deserted island, discover someone is out to get them, and get killed one by one.The book is written as the diary of a horny teenage boy named Rupert.One of the things that always amuses me about Laymon's books is that the characters never act remotely human. He puts his characters in these fantastic situations and then has them react to them like no one ever would. Normally I get a kick out of this, but I think it went overboard in "Island." I get that Rupert is a sex-starved kid, but no matter what situation he finds himself in, he always finds a chance to talk about how cool it is to see a girl in a bikini or to feel female flesh. There are scenes where he's minutes removed from death and he's gee-whiz-ing about the idea that a girl might like him. Also, the other characters, who don't have the excuse of being so young, similarly act bizarrely: they watch their husband or father die a violent death and then joke around two seconds later.With such a simplistic plot, there's no excuse for this book to be over 500 pages. Laymon himself has Rupert mention that he has to "stop being so detailed," and I agree. There's a point in this book -- before the restart of the ending -- where it becomes completely flat.The ending is both totally entertaining and totally absurd. Sort of like this book, actually. But that's the thing about Laymon -- he's not really a good writer, his plots are anemic, his characters are almost cartoons, but the pace is so fast, the gore so much like bright-red paint splattered spectacularly on an actor, the characters so prone to preposterous behavior. His novels really are the equivalent of B-movie slasher films. I love those and I love Laymon's books. I don't consider this one of his better ones (he's usually able to build more suspense than he does here), but it's yet another fine little dessert.I'm not one of those people who take Laymon seriously. Frankly, I find it impossible. To me, this is deliberate schlock. Sometimes it works beautifully (as in "Come Out Tonight") and sometimes it borders on parody (as it does here).If you know Laymon and accept him for what he is, this is a quick little read that won't bore you (for long, anyway). I wish the plot wasn't so basic -- it pretty much follows an ABC strand from beginning to end -- but there are more than a few fun scenarios to be found here, even if the characters do often feel like they're from another planet.

You can always count on certain things with Richard Laymon. One thing is that even if men get killed in his novels, women get it far worse, often being tortured and raped. There will also be a healthy dose of descriptions of women's bodies, to the point where there almost seems to be a reference to female anatomy on almost every page. Beyond this borderline misogyny, however, is one other thing you can count on with Laymon: he is a good storyteller.Island tells the tale of several shipwrecked people on a deserted island in the Bahamas. There are Andrew and his second (and younger) wife Billie; daughters Kimberly, Connie and Thelma; Kimberly's husband, Keith; Thelma's husband, Wesley, and Connie's boyfriend (and the narrator), Rupert. Actually, as the story begins, Wesley is apparently killed when the group's yacht explodes. The others were onshore having a picnic.At first, things don't seem so bad (except for the widowed Thelma). They have enough resources to survive until they are rescued. Unfortunately, there is also a killer on the island. It doesn't take too long to figure out who the killer is, but by then, Andrew and Keith are dead and Rupert is alone with four women, three of whom he is very attracted to (only Thelma is unappealing to him). Of course, Kimberly and Billie are both recent widows and Connie is rather belligerent, so romance seems out of the equation.Much of the book is a cat-and-mouse game between the killer (who soon gains a partner) and the survivors, all narrated by the sex-obsessed Rupert. Beyond sex, however, Rupert has other concerns, since the killer seems mostly intent on killing the men, leaving him as the only possible prey.Given the tone of this novel (and Laymon's other books), you'd think the author was a lonely guy living out his dark fantasies, which makes Dean Koontz's introduction all the more interesting: Laymon was apparently a loving husband and father; it just goes to show you have to separate the art from the artist. Overall, I enjoyed this book, even if - like his other novels - it is a bit sordid. Laymon is not for everyone, but if you can stand the sadism, Island is a decent, entertaining read.

While at parts seeming a little obvious, the scenes and writing make up for that in the best possible ways. The story won’t exactly leave you guessing but you’ll want to know what happens from the very first page.

I'm a new reader for Richard Laymon and I've decided to check this author out being an avid horror fan. I ordered this e-book to my Kindle due to the reviews I've read and decided to give Laymon a go.First of all, I would like to point out that "Island" isn't really a horror book. It's more suspense or thriller, but definitely not horror. I wasn't scared at all reading this book throughout compared to the other horror books I've read. If you're looking for a spine tingling horror, then my advice is to check out other books.I agree with a lot of points reviewed by other readers. This story is narrated by a young man named Rupert into a series of diary entries. Rupert is young, immature, oversexed and ninety percent of the time only thinking about women and their body parts. It was amusing especially at the beginning of the book. It kept me turning the pages to keep the story going. He is stranded in an island with his girlfriend and her family and one by one, the other males in their group is being killed off. The book becomes a story of cat and mouse and trying to find the killer and get off the island. After a few failed attempts to lure out the killer, Rupert finds himself into a whole lot more trouble when the rest of the women goes missing and it's up to him to play hero and find them.I won't spoil anything in my review but the ending was totally unexpected. I'm still reeling over it. The only thing that I hated about this book and completely bothered me was the graphic use of sexual assault on women. As a fan of horror, rated R stuff are usually included, but torture and rape is something that is disgusting and something the story could do without. Especially rape of young girls. That was just wrong. That is just one thing I'm completely against.This book is an amusing read. However, if you're looking for more of a horror book, I suggest reading "Castaways" by Brian Keene. It has the same synopsis of people trapped in an island and trying to survive cannibalistic humanoids.Rating - three and a half stars

This story is a pretty good size but is so disturbing and well-written (in a simple style) that it is a real page-turner. It was my first by Laymon and I have to try others to see if his style changes and to see if I am left with any other haunting images.

A absolute must read so well put together you really feel like one of the characters in the book and so hard to put it down !!

Another look into the depraved fantasies of Richard Laymon. It's easy to understand why purists or puritans don't like it, his style leaves something to be desired and some of the content is a bit near the knuckle... to say the least. In keeping with some of his other works, the protagonist rambles on to himself needlessly and makes a lot of stupid decisions, but perhaps Laymon was just reminding the reader he was a silly boy (not Laymon, the protagonist lol). Certainly not for everyone, but joyful and effortless reading for those who take novels for what they are and are glad of it.