Book Review: Exquisite Corspe

Title: Exquiste Corpse

Author: Poppy Z. Brite

Copyright Date: 1996

Genre: Psychological Horror

Review by: Seth Ryan

Andrew Compton is a man who finds art in murder. He kill twenty three men before being caught by a neighbor and being sentenced to life in prison. He's given a chance to escape when he is diagnosed with HIV. He fakes his own death and then heads to America where he plans on continuing his art. While he is there he encounters another serial killer named Jay Bryne. While Andrew sleeps with the corpses of he loves, Jay has another way of fulfilling his desires and he shows Andrew just how to do it. The two find they have a common prey, a runaway Vietnamese boy named Tran. There is also Tran's ex-boyfriend Luke who has is a radio host. They all have issues in the novel and as they meet each other things begin to unravel and in the end it really is amazing book that you can't put down.

 There is so much imagery in this, an example of it being:

The heat of freshly exposed organs wafted up at him. Jay lowered his face into the visceral stink, and the stew of blood and shit and secret gases, and the innards' rare perfume.

From Andrew describing how he cut his victims up to him illustrating death from his perspective. There is lot of figurative language, angst, sex, and murder is if you're under eighteen than this isn't for you. This book is un-apologetically morbid and in every sense of the phrase and I fell in love with Poppy z. Brite because of it. She is not afraid of being morbid, not afraid of writing about Aids, Cannibalism,  and Mass murder in the same book. The dark humor in this was also funny as hell. This is one of my favorite lines from Luke:

Goddamn RIGHT I got fucked, you got fucked, everyone who ever got fucked...got fucked! You tested negative last week? Congratulations! You don't have to worry about it again for another six months! doesn't that just that a load off your chest? Doesn't that just gladden your heart?

The book talks some serious things and handles them in an amazing way. Not only that but it's not trying to judge anyone who is like this. It's not trying to anything but entertain and that is one reason I love this book so much.

I first found this book in the library when I was looking for fiction with cannibalism (yes I have queer hobbies). I was super happy that it was a gay kinda love story too. I don't want to take too much away from the book's awesomeness so I'll just shut the fuck the up and show you where to find the author's website, buy the book and get reading.

I really hope you give this book a try and get reading!