I was torn between recommending and not recommending Dollhouse by Tim Miller. I will be honest, my problem wasn't with the writing, mostly. The story revolves around Jodi, a woman who has a bad attitude at times, and a needy, or strong attitude at other. Ernie Lester is a man on a mission, to build a dollhouse full of his new family. He loves his family, and he believes that his family loves him, even though they can't respond to his questions or advances. Ernie meets Jodi one day and can't get her out of his mind, so he decides to make Jodi one more addition to his dollhouse.
This is registered as extreme horror, and I expected a little more graphic violence throughout. I wondered if it was extreme because of how many "fucks" were said throughout, but even the rape scenes seemed a little toned down, especially if you have read authors like Edward Lee and Richard Laymon. I honestly would have like a little more direct and explicit violence, and I would have liked a little more brutality. In the book there were three main characters, Jodi, Ernie, and Bob. Bob adds an element of brutality, but he doesn't quite go there enough. I also would have liked a little more backstory to the characters. Parts of the story were just a little confusing as Ernie states that all of his issues started when there was a death in his family, but another minor character states that it was a different death that changed who he was, and so we never really know what started him collecting his dolls. We never really know why he chooses Bob to be his buddy after a time either.
That being said, my big issues with this were the bad grammar and wording throughout. I hate the continuous use of the word "just" as it often doesn't need to be there, or can be replaced with "only." There were several misspelled words. or the use of the wrong word. The characters all spoke the same, so the dialogue started to run together and it didn't differentiate the characters enough from one another. In fact, I wished that one or the other would use a word besides "fuck." Ernie kept saying that he had been doing this for a long time, but the reader is never given any insight as to how long. However, even with all of this, I could have read the book and not had issue with it. My main issue with this book is that the spacing was double or triple per page, and the end of each chapter was like three to five lines in the middle of a separate page, which made this a fast and frustrating read. I feel like, for this version, it was a waste of money as a book that claims to be 206, if formatted properly, would have been under 100 pages. This type of formatting doesn't make indie authors look good, and it causes people not to by a book written by an indie author.
Now I know Tim Miller has done well for himself, and this is in no way meant to cut him down. He has been successful, and continues to be successful, making sure he continues to write a new book as often as he can, and going to as many conventions to help stay known and relevant. I admire him for that. And, this book was not a bad read, although I could have used a little more depth, and less of a predictable ending.
I really wasn't a fan of the formatting, and I personally found the errors and the formatting very distracting. I can't say I do or don't recommend book by Tim Miller, as several of them sound interesting. I, personally, might let this book percolate before picking up another.
This is registered as extreme horror, and I expected a little more graphic violence throughout. I wondered if it was extreme because of how many "fucks" were said throughout, but even the rape scenes seemed a little toned down, especially if you have read authors like Edward Lee and Richard Laymon. I honestly would have like a little more direct and explicit violence, and I would have liked a little more brutality. In the book there were three main characters, Jodi, Ernie, and Bob. Bob adds an element of brutality, but he doesn't quite go there enough. I also would have liked a little more backstory to the characters. Parts of the story were just a little confusing as Ernie states that all of his issues started when there was a death in his family, but another minor character states that it was a different death that changed who he was, and so we never really know what started him collecting his dolls. We never really know why he chooses Bob to be his buddy after a time either.
That being said, my big issues with this were the bad grammar and wording throughout. I hate the continuous use of the word "just" as it often doesn't need to be there, or can be replaced with "only." There were several misspelled words. or the use of the wrong word. The characters all spoke the same, so the dialogue started to run together and it didn't differentiate the characters enough from one another. In fact, I wished that one or the other would use a word besides "fuck." Ernie kept saying that he had been doing this for a long time, but the reader is never given any insight as to how long. However, even with all of this, I could have read the book and not had issue with it. My main issue with this book is that the spacing was double or triple per page, and the end of each chapter was like three to five lines in the middle of a separate page, which made this a fast and frustrating read. I feel like, for this version, it was a waste of money as a book that claims to be 206, if formatted properly, would have been under 100 pages. This type of formatting doesn't make indie authors look good, and it causes people not to by a book written by an indie author.
Now I know Tim Miller has done well for himself, and this is in no way meant to cut him down. He has been successful, and continues to be successful, making sure he continues to write a new book as often as he can, and going to as many conventions to help stay known and relevant. I admire him for that. And, this book was not a bad read, although I could have used a little more depth, and less of a predictable ending.
I really wasn't a fan of the formatting, and I personally found the errors and the formatting very distracting. I can't say I do or don't recommend book by Tim Miller, as several of them sound interesting. I, personally, might let this book percolate before picking up another.
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