Reviews
I thought that the book within a book concept was interesting, and I was intrigued enough by the story’s premise to ignore the slightly cringy author’s note in the beginning humble bragging about how scary and disturbing this book is. When armed commandos storm an elite boarding school, the police think it’s a plot for ransom, or an attempt to extort favors from the teens’ powerful parents. This is a school for the richest of the rich, and the most powerful people in the world have children there. Sounds like a great way to extort some money from these moguls, senators, and businessmen, doesn’t it? But that’s not what this group is after. Here, we are treated to the viewpoints of a number of different people: a reporter, “Teacher,” (the head of the kidnapping group), and a police detective. Sometimes the reader is privy to what is going to happen next, and sometimes the reader is left blind, depending upon whose viewpoint we’re in at the time. This book did a good job at setting up how unique Reina High School was compared to other schools. We immediately learn that the kids are the children of some of the wealthiest and most powerful people in the world. I was immediately grossed out by how the gym teacher was openly sexualizing the students and how the other teachers let him do it, but this does establish the tone of the story and the kind of people this story will follow. We immediately learn of the kids’ personalities and the high school power dynamics at this particular school, and it’s some of the slimiest characterization you could get out of high school characters. I liked how the author quickly introduced the landscape of the high school and these characters and immediately jumps into the heart of the action. The pacing of the story is excellent and does well to keep the reader in the heat of the action as the story unfolds. This book would make for a great horror action/thriller movie if it was ever adapted for the screen. I like how the action begins so soon that the reader is left wondering where the story is going to go and how far this group will go to get what they want. I love how we immediately see that the group descending upon the school already knows the names and lives of everyone in the building, and seeing them kill certain people while saving certain people makes the reader ponder what their motive or plan could possibly be. The last third of the story and the climax were so effective and twisted. I loved the many plot twists and how all the different plot threads came together. I loved how Teacher’s plan came to fruition and how everything was revealed, the grand plan was written well and was satisfying. It was so interesting how I originally thought there was no justification possible for what Teacher was doing, only to later come to see why he did what he did and even empathize with him. This story did a great job at showing the darkest part of the sex industry and the sex trade and how it corrupts people, adults and children, in more ways than one. I would have never expected for this book’s message to be what it was, but I’m so glad that it went in that particular direction and made me think about the way we consume adult entertainment. While I do have complex feelings about sex work and the pornography industry and don’t necessarily agree with all the ideas presented in this novel, I did love the main idea of how humans dehumanize each other and profit off of that corruption. I love how the tagline of the book came back in the end and had multiple meanings. I loved how the main architects of the hostage taking were fleshed out in the end and how the reader will easily side with them by the novel’s end. I think it’s important to read the author’s note to fully understand the author’s message. I think that in essence I agree with what the author is saying, but a big part of me doesn’t want to agree because my mind has been so easily desensitized to adult entertainment that I end up turning a blind eye to the darker side effects of the industry. Overall, I believe that adult entertainment is too big to be brought down, it is a billion dollar industry after all. However, I do think the way we talk about sex and adult entertainment needs to change, as well as sexual education overall. This is one of the cases where I feel like money ends up being the root of all evil more than anything, and the power and corruption that comes with it. I highly recommend this book for fans of thrillers and action in horror, and I like how the themes and overall message will star a conversation about sex and the adult entertainment industry.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. From the moment I read the introduction, I expected Malignant to take me on an intense journey. It did not disappoint. The level of intensity went beyond my expectation. Malignant is one of those books where it’s best for the reader to go in blind. I have read several thrillers since the start of the year, but none like this one. From the moment I began reading, I was hooked, and this was before the actual story began.Malignant is told through the eyes of ace reporter Connie Kendall. The author, with his descriptive writing style, pulled me into the story. I felt every emotion the characters experienced. Their fears, pain, sadness and despair. Some scenes literally sent chills down my spine. I tried putting the book aside a few times, but it proved difficult, despite the gruesomeness of some scenes.Teacher intrigued me. I wondered at his motives. The most macabre story of revenge I have read. Teacher came to teach and taught he did. It’s a lesson no one would soon forget. I know I will not be forgetting this story soon. I may not agree with his actions, but grief can lead to irrational actions, which is what happened in this case. His emotional turmoil led to diabolical actions. I wondered what lesson teacher was trying to impart. Malignant had me guessing a mile a minute, but then I realized I was wasting time trying to figure it all out. Teacher had no plans to reveal his hand until he was good and ready. He left me in the dark just like he did the reporters and law enforcement officials.As the story progressed, the reasoning behind his actions became clear. At that moment I found understood why he did what he did and I could not help but empathize with him. If placed in a similar position, I don’t what I would do. I can safely say I know I would not have had the guts to do what he did. Malignant touched on topics that have been plaguing society for a while. It was dark, chilling, gruesome and shows how dark and desperate the human heart can be. We see how people in high positions abuse their power because of greed. The story further shows the domino effect of a single act of evil. This was my first Michaelbrent Collings book and I look forward to reading more of his work. Love chilling. twisted and dark stories hen Malignant would be perfect for your library. This review was originally posted on Totally Addicted to Reading