Clive Barker

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HollyGolightly

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Sep 6, 2013
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Heart of the South
Devoured everything Clive wrote up to around Imajica. He went alittle too much into fantasy for my liking. I thought 'Hellraiser' was one of those films that really pushed the envelope. I thought it was better than the story it was based on and I liked the story! His story 'In The Hills, The Cities' is a mind-blowing classic. His novel The Damnation Game is my favorite. He started getting a bit too 'high-falutin' (and fantasy driven) with his writing after a while so I stopped reading him.
What was the one that opened with angels dangling from trees? I was so confused before the first chapter ended I had to give up. It was just too intense or too smart for me. I couldn't figure out what was going on. But I'm going to give him another try. I trust you all.
 

EMARX

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Feb 27, 2009
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When it comes to comparing Barker to King, it's apples and oranges. Barker's early work is more straight on horror but his color pallet is much wider than King's and more visceral and he explores our more primitive and secret desires. Damnation Game, The Great And Secret Show, Everville and Coldheart Canyon are more traditional horror, Sacrament and Galilee fall somewhere between horror and the fantastic. The Thief of Always and his Abarat series are aimed toward a younger audience. The opening 30 or so pages of The Scarlet Gospels are a bloodbath. My faves are Coldheart Canyon and Galilee.
 

Dana Jean

Dirty Pirate Hooker, The Return
Moderator
Apr 11, 2006
53,634
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When it comes to comparing Barker to King, it's apples and oranges. Barker's early work is more straight on horror but his color pallet is much wider than King's and more visceral and he explores our more primitive and secret desires. Damnation Game, The Great And Secret Show, Everville and Coldheart Canyon are more traditional horror, Sacrament and Galilee fall somewhere between horror and the fantastic. The Thief of Always and his Abarat series are aimed toward a younger audience. The opening 30 or so pages of The Scarlet Gospels are a bloodbath. My faves are Coldheart Canyon and Galilee.
I loved The Thief of Always.
 

muskrat

Dis-Member
Nov 8, 2010
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Under your bed
I got off on his early stuff in my early teens. Books of Blood, Damnation Game, Cabal, etc. Kinda lost track of him over the years. I tried doing Coldheart Canyon some time ago--was liking it, but then the story just went from 0 to 60 in terms of supernatural elements; just too far out, too fast.

But there's a whole bunch of Barker out there, and I need to get some more.

...Imajica, is one I enjoyed-and it shares a concept with the DT series....

Might try that one. It better be really, really good, oh Tender Titan.
 

ghost19

"Have I run too far to get home?"
Sep 25, 2011
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Arkansas
When it comes to comparing Barker to King, it's apples and oranges. Barker's early work is more straight on horror but his color pallet is much wider than King's and more visceral and he explores our more primitive and secret desires. Damnation Game, The Great And Secret Show, Everville and Coldheart Canyon are more traditional horror, Sacrament and Galilee fall somewhere between horror and the fantastic. The Thief of Always and his Abarat series are aimed toward a younger audience. The opening 30 or so pages of The Scarlet Gospels are a bloodbath. My faves are Coldheart Canyon and Galilee.
I've honestly never been able to classify Weaveworld. I guess Fantasy would be the closest thing, but there's a LOT going on in that book.
 
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GNTLGNT

The idiot is IN
Jun 15, 2007
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Cambridge, Ohio
I got off on his early stuff in my early teens. Books of Blood, Damnation Game, Cabal, etc. Kinda lost track of him over the years. I tried doing Coldheart Canyon some time ago--was liking it, but then the story just went from 0 to 60 in terms of supernatural elements; just too far out, too fast.

But there's a whole bunch of Barker out there, and I need to get some more.



Might try that one. It better be really, really good, oh Tender Titan.
....I am aquiver with trepidation oh scented rodent....
 

kingricefan

All-being, keeper of Space, Time & Dimension.
Jul 11, 2006
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Spokane, WA
What was the one that opened with angels dangling from trees? I was so confused before the first chapter ended I had to give up. It was just too intense or too smart for me. I couldn't figure out what was going on. But I'm going to give him another try. I trust you all.
I honestly don't remember the opening sequence, but by the end of the story there is a 20 story tall creature made up of hundreds of human bodies walking towards a town. It boggled my mind.....
 

kingricefan

All-being, keeper of Space, Time & Dimension.
Jul 11, 2006
30,011
127,446
Spokane, WA
I got off on his early stuff in my early teens. Books of Blood, Damnation Game, Cabal, etc. Kinda lost track of him over the years. I tried doing Coldheart Canyon some time ago--was liking it, but then the story just went from 0 to 60 in terms of supernatural elements; just too far out, too fast.

But there's a whole bunch of Barker out there, and I need to get some more.



Might try that one. It better be really, really good, oh Tender Titan.

....I am aquiver with trepidation oh scented rodent....

You two better get a room......;;D
 

skimom2

Just moseyin' through...
Oct 9, 2013
15,683
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USA
Liked Books of Blood; Weaveworld killed his work for me. His American street kid that spoke like an Oxford don and complete misunderstanding of Mormon hierarchy and terminology irritated me. If he wasn't willing to do the research, he shouldn't have based the book in the US.
 

HollyGolightly

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Sep 6, 2013
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Heart of the South
I honestly don't remember the opening sequence, but by the end of the story there is a 20 story tall creature made up of hundreds of human bodies walking towards a town. It boggled my mind.....
Good heavens - that's terrifying. I remember the Books of Blood being very literal, organic - if you will, like that - things that you can't even imagine happening -
weren't the books actually written on someone's flesh?

I think he'd scare the hell out of me now.
 

HollyGolightly

Well-Known Member
Sep 6, 2013
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Heart of the South
Books of Blood and The Great and Secret Show are the only others of his that I've read, and I liked them all right :) I'm considering checking out The Secret Gospels, as well.
I think it might have been The Great and Secret Show that I tried to read. Was there something about angel like beings? I'm going to go try and find out via google. For some reason, that title rings a bell.
 

stacy270

Keep On Floatin' On
Aug 2, 2006
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He is my third favorite writer (of horror).I think I have read all his stuff and have saved most of his books(I lost my paperbacks of The Books Of Blood somewhere). My favorite of his was Coldheart Canyon.I think my least favorite of his books is The Scarlett Gospels.
 

Steffen

Well-Known Member
Aug 9, 2015
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12,800
I love Clive Barker as much as I love Stephen King. Stephen King is the blue-collar, everyman type guy - his writing is easy to fall into and you feel like you're having a conversation with a friend. Barker to me is Gothic Oscar Wilde - his prose is dark, delicious, and he has a gift for conjuring distinct imagery in a handful of sentences. They are the only two writers that no matter how busy I get, I make time in my schedule to keep up with their works.
 

MadBoJangles

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Jan 6, 2015
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I love Clive Barker as much as I love Stephen King. Stephen King is the blue-collar, everyman type guy - his writing is easy to fall into and you feel like you're having a conversation with a friend. Barker to me is Gothic Oscar Wilde - his prose is dark, delicious, and he has a gift for conjuring distinct imagery in a handful of sentences. They are the only two writers that no matter how busy I get, I make time in my schedule to keep up with their works.
Yes, this, exactly this.

I too love Barker, I have read all of his work over the years.
I would highly recommend Cabal, The Great and Secret Show, Damnation Game and Imajica to anyone.
Some of his other work can be a bit out there, and more of an acquired taste as it were....

I may have to revisit Coldheart Canyon, I can't remember much about it.
Though My Dark Tower reread(on book 4) and hopefully soon to start the Abarat books again may slow me down a tad!
 

Steffen

Well-Known Member
Aug 9, 2015
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12,800
I'm almost done with Abarat book 1. Thief of Always is one of my favourites. Barker really has a unique voice.
 
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