Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill
If you buy a ghost online, you’re gonna have a bad time...
Judas Coyne is a middle-aged rock star that has everything someone of his position might possibly desire: a sprawling ranch complete with an in-house recording studio and a devoted all-purpose assistant, an endless parade of goth groupies-turned-girlfriends, a fully-restored 1965 Ford Mustang, and money besides to burn on frivolous novelties of the macabre variety.
It’s only natural, then, that when he comes upon an eBay listing for a real-life ghost, he makes an impulse purchase for shits and giggles. He didn’t really expect to receive anything. And he certainly never imagined that the auction was an elaborate ruse to ruin his life and exact a very specific revenge on him and all those he held dear. Big mistake.
Those goth girlfriends I mentioned? Judas didn’t even bother calling them by their real names. Rather, he gave them each a nickname based on their states of origin. One recent ex was from and called Florida. She was a weird kid who constantly asked weird questions and who shared precious little of her life before meeting Judas.
Near the end of their relationship, Florida became increasingly preoccupied and depressed. Eventually, Judas put her on a bus and sent her home, worried about her well-being. But not worried enough to answer her countless letters or check in on her at all. His life moved on.
Not Florida’s. Her life ended. Mere months after being abandoned by Judas, Floria committed suicide. The ghost that Judas was tricked into buying is her family’s vengeance.
Turns out Florida’s stepfather, Craddock, was something of a psychic medium and conjuror. As his own life fizzled out, he concocted a plotted with Florida’s sister to get revenge on Judas for (as they saw it) killing Florida.
It is Craddock’s ghost that Judas unwittingly purchased — and now that he’s in Judas’ home, he will stop at nothing to drive the poor man insane, kill everyone near to him, and ultimately drive Judas to death himself.
And he’d’ve succeeded too if it wasn’t for that pesky kid…
I’m talking about Georgia. AKA Judas’ latest live-in girlfriend.
Mature beyond her years, Georgia is the level-headed adult that Judas desperately needs in his life — and it’s her who might just save it (his life, that is).
Neither of them may be perfect individuals, but Georgia’s love for Judas is an excellent realization of a sane adult relationship. It is only thanks to Georgia that Judas is able to escape his ranch with his life. But their escape is only temporary — and just the beginning of their trials and troubles… Now, the two of them must travel across the country to pay a visit to Florida’s sister and try to put an end to this whole horrible mess.
Heart-Shaped Box is a thoroughly entertaining and engrossing read. This was my first Joe Hill novel (I know, I know) but I will certainly be back for more.
Action unfolds naturally and often. This is a page-turner that never lets up. And yet, for all the narrative momentum and pleasurable horrors that abound throughout this book, the one scene that stuck with me was during a hiatus in Judas and Georgia’s hair-raising road trip where they spend a few hours at Georgia’s grandmother’s house. Safe for a moment, they take advantage of a comfy bed and a nap together while the afternoon sunshine wafts in through the curtains. It is such a delicate yet evocatively luminous scene, it stopped me cold.
Folks, this guy knows how to write!
If I had one criticism, it’s that the third act deviates into an almost metaphysical, dreamlike plain (something which rarely resonates with me) but the novel still packs a punch and is a virtuoso accomplishment of exciting horror storytelling with depth and levels and nuance. I really, truly enjoyed it.
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