I never even heard of snuff films until I read this book. Atfer I read the book I did more research on snuff films and to my horror it really does exsits. Well what i read they say it did exsits but not anymore. yeah right!

I never even heard of snuff films until I read this book. Atfer I read the book I did more research on snuff films and to my horror it really does exsits. Well what i read they say it did exsits but not anymore. yeah right!

I read Survivor last month and it's one of my favorite books of all time. Yes, it's occasionally disgusting, and very shocking. But chances are it wouldn't have kept me on the edge of my seat and terrified the entire time if they had censored anything.

Though chances are if the part with Alicia and her baby had been written in any kind of detail, I don't know whereas I would have liked it as much. Probably not. That book treaded the line between shocker and completely poor taste, and that inclusion would have caused it to cross the line.

Maya,

Hoping you come back over here and can tell me how to get to where  Gonzalez talks about the book over at Dorchester pub as I spent about an hour over there searching and couldn't find it.  Probably just me (well I know it is, lol)  Hoping you could post the link here.  Thanks!!

Cindy here is what he said:

Survivor

Hey there,

I was just made aware of this thread and thought I'd chime in. First...I agree, Survivor is not for everyone. This is probably the most disturbing novel I've ever written and while it was originally conceived to be an entertaining thriller, it quickly became more than that. Some people are entertained by more brutal no-holds-barred fiction than others. For instance, I love the movie Se7en, but the first time I saw it it bothered the hell out of me. It truly disturbed me. Ketchum's The Girl Next Door and King's Pet Semetery had a similar effect. People either have love/hate relationships with those kind of books and films, and the same will probably go with Survivor and that's okay. Again, it's not for everyone. (for those interested, my next Leisure novel The Beloved is totally different from Survivor and is nowhere near is graphic or intense).

I just published a short non-fiction piece on Survivor that you can check out on the Dorchester site --
http://www.dorchesterpub.com/Dorch/...Special_ID=2063

It might give you a little insight on how the book was originally conceived and what sparked me to write it.

As far as underlying messages or intent, well, the intent was to hold up a mirror to the reader. Many readers report being bothered by this book. It's supposed to bother you. By making you feel empathy toward Lisa, the main character, so much to the effect that when she makes the choices she makes, most readers are bothered by it because they feel if they were in a similar position they might react the same way and are ashamed because of it. I wanted to pose the question, how far would you go to save the life of a loved one? More important, would you be able to live with yourself knowing the choice you made?

That's it in a nutshell, guys. I appreciate the banter on the book either way. H3YD00 -- thanks for the comments and hope you took a shower after reading it! TTZUMA - I appreciate the comments and like I said earlier, Survivor is not everyone's cup of tea. I'm kind of all over the place with my fiction. My next Leisure release is nowhere near as graphic and disturbing as Survivor, so you might want to give that a try when it comes out next year.

Best,

J. F. Gonzalez

Oh, here is the link to the whole post about the book:

forums.dorchesterpub.com/showthread.php

Thank you Mona, both for the comments he posted on the book and the link on the discussion.  I don't know why I kept missing the search on it, cept I stink on searches, lol.  I really appreciate it, thanks!!

Thanks for posting that, Mona. I haven't been on here for a while so I missed the request.

Ok, someone  who has read this, help me out. Do I want to read this or not ? I dont mind King or Brian Keene books. I like zombie and King movies, but have no time for movies like Saw or slasher films. So what do I do ? I dont want to throw up or be afraid to go outside.  It is intriguing me and also making me not want to read it. Help!

I loved Survivor, but it sounds as if you might not care for it.  Gonzalez really went an extreme route for this book, and I don't think there has been anything written by King or Keene that comes close (BTW Keene and Gonzalez are friends, and have written a  novel together).  As much as Saw comes across as gore-for-gore's sake, I like the "suffer and live" type scenarios they come up with, sort of like the Bene Gesserit's box from the Dune books (stick your hand in a box, and it feels as if it is on fire, and you can visualize the flesh cooking off.  If you keep your hand in and conquer the pain, you live, if you remove it, you are an animal and should be put down).  Survivor is sort of like that with the choice that is made during the course of the book's story.  Later this year, Clickers will be rereleased as a TPB (previously available as a TPB and limited HC), which Gonzalez co-wrote with Mark Williams, and then Clickers II, co-written with Brian Keene (previously available only as a limited HC) will be available as well.  I think that you will find this much more enjoyable, they are both homages to Guy Smith's Crab books (giant killer crabs), and are a little more fun.

--steve

Thanks so much for your input. I think maybe I'll steer clear of it for now. And Thanks for the info on the other books.

It was the baby that really bothered me in Survivor. 

And interestingly, he didn't give any details about it. Yet it sticks out.

Ugh Me too Maya.That was just too much for me! I love Clive Barker and he is pretty gruesome but Survivor was just too much for me:(

Stacy

Just finished this one and reposted it. 

It was well-written, and I have to say that I found Lisa's choice more disturbing than all the violence (the baby was over the top, though).  However, my vote for the most disturbing still goes to THE GIRL NEXT DOOR by Jack Ketchum.  That one I was just anxious to get out of my house, regardless of what I did with it.  I do enjoy the horror that doesn't have supernatural elements, though.

I think I must just be jaded.  I read the book and while yeah, the baby thing had my mouth wide open in a "wtf" kind of way...it didn't scare me.  I didn't have nightmares.  I am sleeping just fine and honestly...yeah, it just wasn't THAT BAD to me.

I need to stop reading and watching things like this...too desensitized now.

Wow, very interesting to read the link about why he wrote the book.  Thanks to the person who posted it!

Just finished Survivor and posted my copy to the system a few minutes ago.  Frankly, I don't see what the big deal is.  The whodunit aspect was predictible and attempts to throw the reader off were a bit lame.  The aforementioned baby scene was disturbing, but I've been far more disturbed by scenes I've read in books by Bentley Little and R. Patrick Gates.  Mabel added more comic relief than any actual terror; I actually chuckled at her first scene, but I have a macabre sense of humor.  Lisa's choice was probably the most unsettling part of the story, but once made, you had to know how things would ultimately turn out.  Overall, it was a pretty good read.

I really need to get this book. And see what the big deal is!

When I hear about a book being disgusting and such I have to read it to see what its about and putting my too sence in, lol.

I was glad to get it out of my house. I agree with whoever else said it made them feel "dirty" after they read it. Which is weird, because I ADORE Richard Laymon, and he has written some pretty gross and cruel things.