Book Review: Hater

Book Review: Hater (2009/2006)
Author: David Moody
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

I’m always late on books. I have a huge stack at my apartment that I’ve been meaning to get around to for the last, oh, ten years or so. I get caught up in a cycle of reading an author’s entire output all in a row, and then forget about the many other books I meant to crack open. Oddly, I don’t have as many horror titles in that pile as I would like, so I’m trying to remedy that.

I picked up British author David Moody’s Hater on a whim because the blood spattered artwork hooked me, and then a blurb about Guillermo Del Toro working on a film version reeled me in. So, good job marketing people! You caught a fish that just happened to have a few extra bucks in his wallet that day. Since I’m more of a “read the book first” person, I had to pick it up. I’m glad I did.

Moody first self-published Hater online, and thanks to positive feedback from critics and fans, it became a hit. I'm always more than a little willing to support artists taking the do-it-yourself route. At the end of the book, I was a little disappointed to find out it’s part of a trilogy. I really wanted to find out what was going on, and it stops on a hummer of a cliff hanger. Oh well, I guess since I’ve successfully avoided so many book series’, I can let it slide. Besides, it shows how compelling a read it is that I’m even considering picking up the rest of the series.

The story isn’t too complicated: We follow disgruntled and aggravated parking violation clerk Danny McCoyne as he trudges through his day-to- day contending with escalating bills, putting food on the table for his family, dealing with his shitty boss. You know, the usual. His mundane existence is something most of us can relate to, and when placed in the context of the violent events about to unfold, makes it that much more terrifying. Danny can’t seem to catch a break, and now he finds his daily life littered with increasing violent situations that soon paralyze the unnamed city in which he lives (Anywhere, UK).

With most apocalypse-themed books, we mostly experience the aftermath as groups of people attempt survival in the wake of devastation. Refreshingly, Hater starts at the beginning of a catastrophe, one that is very plausible if you’re picking up what your nightly news is throwing down. Seemingly normal people have started attacking people in an irrational and completely arbitrary way, usually killing with no remorse. They even seem to be relieved once they’ve killed. What starts out as isolated incidences become more commonplace as more and more people, dubbed “haters” by the media, are prone to violent outbursts. It finally escalates to the point that everyone is urged by the authorities to stay inside, lock themselves in, and wait for further instruction. The city is on lockdown and military units patrol the streets looking for haters lurking about. The big problem is there's no way to tell who will be a hater or when they will strike.

Hater plays with typical themes of the genre and breaks a few while commenting on such issues as misplaced and repressed anger, sensationalism in the media, emergency preparedness, and family trust. The premise is very intriguing and Moody creates some very tense moments by placing sudden violence in mundane places. Terror can and does strike in the most ordinary of places, and at any time. Even family members can’t be trusted. Moody cuts to the chase, and doesn’t spend much time waxing philosophically in lengthy, poetic passages. Instead, he goes for the throat and the gut in a visceral, but still thought-provoking manner. A good, brisk read, but you'll find yourself looking around at the rampant violence of every day life and wonder if this isn't already happening.