The Last Days Of Jack Sparks - Jason Arnopp 5/5 stars
Once in while you come across a novel that totally messes with your head in such a way you become absorbed in it to the point where you almost become obsessed. The Last Days Of Jack Sparks is one such novel. You can't call this a horror novel despite the horror elements, and you can't really call it a black comedy either. So what exactly is it? It's a seamless blending of genres that takes you on a trip. It's not always a pleasant trip, but it's a trip nonetheless. The thing is, we already know that Jack Sparks is going to die, but the how and the why are up to us to find out. It all starts at an exorcism, and all goes downhill from there. Sounds pretty simple right? No, actually it's not.
Jack Sparks isn't a nice man at all, and Arnopp makes it pretty easy to dislike Jack. At the core is one man's journey, and also his decline into madness. The novel takes a lot of twists and turns along the way but doesn't lose it's focus on Jack and there are even some parts of the novel that go against Jack's story so we get the truth. Jack is a bit of a jerk, and it's easy to dislike him until he begins to slowly unravel. We see just how vulnerable he is, and it's easy to question whether we would go to the same extremes as he does to prove that ghosts truly exist.
This is one of those novels that you have to read to fully experience what's going on. A review doesn't do it any justice. Arnopp is a great story teller that has created something unique. There's a dark comedy element running throughout, but it's the attention to detail that really grabs your attention. Simply put, once you start reading there's just no stopping. You become engrossed in Jack's story that you have to find out how it all ends. Then we can also add tragedy to the list of sub genres that are no doubt affiliated this book. No matter how much I say, the end is the same. The Last Days Of Jack Sparks is the kind of book you have to read to believe. All the reviews in the world can only tell you how great it is, but the experience of reading it is a personal one.
Once in while you come across a novel that totally messes with your head in such a way you become absorbed in it to the point where you almost become obsessed. The Last Days Of Jack Sparks is one such novel. You can't call this a horror novel despite the horror elements, and you can't really call it a black comedy either. So what exactly is it? It's a seamless blending of genres that takes you on a trip. It's not always a pleasant trip, but it's a trip nonetheless. The thing is, we already know that Jack Sparks is going to die, but the how and the why are up to us to find out. It all starts at an exorcism, and all goes downhill from there. Sounds pretty simple right? No, actually it's not.
Jack Sparks isn't a nice man at all, and Arnopp makes it pretty easy to dislike Jack. At the core is one man's journey, and also his decline into madness. The novel takes a lot of twists and turns along the way but doesn't lose it's focus on Jack and there are even some parts of the novel that go against Jack's story so we get the truth. Jack is a bit of a jerk, and it's easy to dislike him until he begins to slowly unravel. We see just how vulnerable he is, and it's easy to question whether we would go to the same extremes as he does to prove that ghosts truly exist.
This is one of those novels that you have to read to fully experience what's going on. A review doesn't do it any justice. Arnopp is a great story teller that has created something unique. There's a dark comedy element running throughout, but it's the attention to detail that really grabs your attention. Simply put, once you start reading there's just no stopping. You become engrossed in Jack's story that you have to find out how it all ends. Then we can also add tragedy to the list of sub genres that are no doubt affiliated this book. No matter how much I say, the end is the same. The Last Days Of Jack Sparks is the kind of book you have to read to believe. All the reviews in the world can only tell you how great it is, but the experience of reading it is a personal one.
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