Splatterpunk Books - The Genre of Books that BookTok won't stop sperging about.

Dr. Arinsu

Dr. Arinsu

Queen of The Hell Known As Q&A.
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Dec 5, 2024
It is time to talk about books made by authors that may get you thinking they were most certainly shitposting.

From book series made by Aaron Bauregarde to some other indie author here is where we talk about. Let's start with The Playground which got a bit of a reputation amongst people who were shocked.
 
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Ged! said:
I remain convinced "Splatterpunk" was little more than a marketing term invented to convince otherwise well-meaning idiots that Clive Barker was some kind of under-appreciated genius.
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Honestly. Booktok overblown the works of Aaron it feels like troll works or even Trollfics. Now the playground is fucked up but it feels like bait.
 
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The Girl next door I'm guessing is probably the most well known one, I dunno how to really feel about it given it is basically just a fetished up version of Sylvia Likens murder which is honestly really depressing if you know anything about it.

I enjoyed The Black Farm and it's sequel a few years back and recommend those though. other than that I can't think of much else I've read, maybe some books by Bentley little count? Pretty sure I've read a couple books by Edward Lee not that I remember them so that should say enough about them I guess.
 
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Ged! said:
I remain convinced "Splatterpunk" was little more than a marketing term invented to convince otherwise well-meaning idiots that Clive Barker was some kind of under-appreciated genius.
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I would argue that Clive Barker is an under-appreciated genius. And, to be honest, I actually think it's tragic that he gets labelled as 'splatterpunk' at all, because that term seems to be used interchangeably with 'extreme horror', and if you read one of Barker's books, then read some of the gratuitous, juvenile shit that makes up that genre, he's clearly leagues ahead of them.

There is an artistry and a beauty in Barker's prose, and his books are about more than just trying to shock or nauseate the reader for the sake of it.
 
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Miriam Margoyles said:
I would argue that Clive Barker is an under-appreciated genius. And, to be honest, I actually think it's tragic that he gets labelled as 'splatterpunk' at all, because that term seems to be used interchangeably with 'extreme horror', and if you read one of Barker's books, then read some of the gratuitous, juvenile shit that makes up that genre, he's clearly leagues ahead of them.

There is an artistry and a beauty in Barker's prose, and his books are about more than just trying to shock or nauseate the reader for the sake of it.
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Barker always got lumped in with the splatterpunk authors, but he was always a better writer and his books simply weren't as gory as the others, And of course, he kind of moved away from straight-up horror early on in his career.

I always associated splatterpunk with Richard Laymon, Ray Garton, David Schow, John Skipp and Craig and Spector and authors like that. Some of them were ok, but again the better ones started moving into less graphic territory.

I've read Playground by Aaron Beuregard and Manhunt by Gretchen Falkner-Martin and both of those were terrible. There's a lot of "extreme horror" authors now. They're mostly self-published, and I have no idea if any of them are any good.
 
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I haven't read it, so I can't speak for its quality, but having looked at the plot synopsis for The Cuck by Aron Beauregard, as well as the twist, I think that sounds quite creepy and good fun.

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I also really like the cover, because it reminds me nostalgically of the old paperback horror covers I used to read growing up, which always had really cool, creepy (and arguably a bit lurid) artwork on the front, which has since been shoved by the wayside nowadays in favour of more modern, minimalist styles of covers. Which all suck.
 
My sister bought The Slob, I already listened to a recap and warned her. Weeks later she called me in shock. She said she was gonna give it to me. After she read the book to her husband
 
I wonder if in 20 years people will treat Baby Fights like 1984 is treated now.

"It was supposed to be a warning, not step by step instructions!!!"

I certainly hope so.
 
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