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Skin by Ted Dekker
Hardcover: 400 pages
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (April 3, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1595542779
From the back cover:
A freak storm has spawned three tornadoes that are bearing down on the town of Summerville. Yet under the cover of the storm looms a much more ominous threat: A vindictive killer known as Red who’s left a string of victims in his wake and is now bent on exacting his final revenge on the unsuspecting town. But there is an enigma surrounding Red that the FBI is unwilling to admit-closely guarded secrets of something gone terribly wrong beneath the skin of Summerville. Secrets that will destroy far more than one small town. Wendy Davidson is caught in the middle. She’s a recovering cult survivor who takes refuge in Summerville on her way to visit her estranged mother. And with her, four strangers, any of whom could be the next victim . . . or the killer.
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This book gave me nightmares. No, I’m not kidding. It was chilling, gruesome and bloody.
HOWEVER, I wanted to keep reading the story. I wanted to see what happened to Wendy, Colt, Pinkus, Nicole, and Carey. I also wanted to find out the identity of the killer named Red.
Five people are drawn together, being influenced by an evil killer named Red. Red is obsessed with ugliness…The five people are forced to decide which one of them is the ugliest…therefore deciding which one of them will die next. Red gives the five ultimatums throughout the book.
This isn’t the usual genre that I read, and in order for me to tell you my full thoughts about the story, I’ll have to give spoilers. If you want a chilling story that’ll keep you reading, this book is for you. But, if you’re somewhat squeamish, I wouldn’t recommend this novel. See below for my further thoughts….
SPOILER BELOW
I read this novel very quickly. I’ve been reading it the last few nights before going to bed. The book somehow crept into my mind and stayed there…I had bad dreams for two nights. My husband told me to stop reading the book, but I told him that the book was written in a way that made me want to finish.
Wait a second…
If you like religious, wholesome fiction, then read my novel Shades of Chocolate! Over 150 Amazon 5-star reviews! Join my email list and receive fantastic updates about new releases! Now, back to Skin…
This book was filled with so much darkness, sadness and evil…I felt that Dekker could have placed more light into the story…more goodness. It may have been in the story…hidden…and I just didn’t “see” it. I caught a glimpse of truth and goodness at the end, but that’s about it.
I wanted to rewrite the novel and take out some of the blood and gore! Chopped-off fingers, chopped-off hand, hanging deaths, shooting deaths, beautiful face disfigured with a knife, beautiful face disfigured with a blow torch…death, death, death….It was like the streets were swimming with blood…and I just wanted to say, “Stop, enough already!”
It was a bit of a relief to find out that the town was not real and the whole thing was a game. I’m not the most scientifically-minded person, but I found the ending a little bit confusing. Even though it was a game, the events physically affected the players…sometimes. For example, Pinkus’s fingers were severed during the game, but, when they came out of the game, his fingers were intact. Yet, brother and sister Nicole and Carey both died during the game and they were really dead when the game was over. [SEE MY ADDITIONAL INSIGHT BELOW. I THOUGHT OF SOMETHING ELSE ON 11/23/09.]
When the killer is revealed, it’s definitely a shock.
I won’t rant that I didn’t see much of an inspirational message since I’ve heard that this was marketed as a secular book. If I could rewrite this story, I’d place some light into it. [SEE MY ADDITIONAL INSIGHT BELOW. I THOUGHT OF SOMETHING ELSE ON 11/23/09.] Show them praying, calling out to Jesus. It didn’t appear that any of the characters were Christians. I know Carey dealt with the occult, using his pentagram and candles and stuff.
I think this book will stay in my mind for a long time. I didn’t purchase this title. After I read Three and Black, my sister heard me raving about how much I enjoyed Dekker’s work. She found this book in the discount bin at Barnes and Noble and called me, wanting to know if I wanted it. I told her to purchase it for me and she did. I haven’t read all of his books because his genre is not my usual preference, but, his genre (at least the older books) are something I can read and enjoy occasionally.
Parts of this novel reminded me of the following three movies:
It (Stephen King wrote the book. I can’t read King, either. I tried to read a King novel when I was in my early twenties and I didn’t make it past chapter one. The novel was well-written, but, he gave me nightmares, so I stopped reading and never tried again.)
Jumangi – Just Google it to find out what this movie’s about. Not sure if I spelled it right. Robin Williams starred in it and he was swept into a board game as a child, but returns from the game once he’s an adult.
The Matrix
As time goes by, and if the mood permits, I’ll probably read some more of Dekker’s older stuff within the next year or so, like the rest of the Circle series. If he has other titles as gruesome as this one, I don’t think I’ll read them.
***Additional thoughts…this book is still heavy on my mind and I just wish it would go away! I did come up with a thought on the inspirational aspect of this story this evening (11/23/09). Carey was involved with the occult and I’m assuming his sister Nicole was, too, therefore making them evil/bad as far as God is concerned. The killer, Red, is also evil, for obvious reasons. All three of these people end up dead while the good people, Wendy, Colt, and Pinkus, manage to live throughout the game. The “goodness” of Wendy, Cold, and Pinkus is portrayed by the fact that they are now alive and there was no physical damage – that’s why Pinkus still has his fingers. It’s the goodness protecting him and this protection obviously didn’t cover Nicole, Carey, or the killer? I’m rambling now, not sure if I’m on the right track…but that’s all I have to say about this novel. Now, hopefully it’ll leave my mind, allowing me to focus on something more positive and uplifting!
I read this book a few months ago and found it to be typical Ted Dekker. By that I mean, a page-turning thriller that keeps me reading until the end. After which, I’m completely disappointed. I love his style, I love how he’s no-holds-barred on the “thriller” part. I actually like the gruesomeness–I can read that stuff but not watch it on a screen–and his is more psychological and creepy, not slasher.
What I hate is that his endings always flop for me. In this one, the ending turns out to be a game. To me, that is tantamount to waking up and discovering the whole thing was a dream.
I also do get tired of feeling like a ping-pong ball when I read his books. There seems to be a lot of going back and forth between places and situations–I gave up in his Circle series after reading only Black because I was so sick of going back and forth between the two worlds. In Skin, it was the world is real, no it’s not, yes it is, not it’s not…
BUT–there are three Dekker books I loved, ending included, and closed the books without feeling like I’ve been bopped back and forth: Three, Kiss, and Boneman’s Daughter.
He’s a bad writer. He’s sloppy and editors seem to just let him go, because hes the newest Frank Perritti. (From a review I read once.)
I gave up on his stuff after the 2nd or 3rd book. Gave them away to a nice who seemed to like him, but now even she says no thanks.
Graphic is ONE way to stand out, but for a person marketing his books to Christians he’s missing his market by being so vivid with the gore.
The spiritual messages of “IT” were clear and amazingly well written. The spiritual message of Skin is cloudy at best. If Stephen King can show truth despite his darkness, why can’t Dekker, with the aid of the Spirit of Truth?
Okay, so I know it’s like against the rules to ask, but can someone please just give me a total spoiler on Skin and tell me who Red was, and what’s up with Nicole and Carey… I would read it, but I just can’t anymore. I freaked out and had to physically leave the room the book was in right after Pinkus was forced to take a bite of his own severed finger… I just can’t. But it’s driving me crazy! What happened? Who was Red?? What’s Nicole’s deal? Please. Anyone. I just need to know, and I can’t read it anymore for myself.
Caroline, I read this book five years ago, so, the details are kind of fuzzy. I felt kind of felt cheated because at the end, you discover the whole story is a GAME! It’s not even real! But, I do recall that the main characters, a woman and a man – weren’t they youngish? They end up together. The evil people? Can’t recall if they’re real, or fabrications from the game. I haven’t read a Ted Dekker book in years. I did go and see him when he was in my area awhile back, about a year ago. Had a great time meeting him. Here’s a link showing pics of when I met him:
http://ceceliadowdy.com/blog/2013/10/the-outlaw-tour.html
Oh… so it’s all fake, and the bad guys lose… Thank you so much haha The game thing is really disappointing, but I’m glad the good guys ended up together 😀
Hi, Caroline! Yes, it’s always great when the good guys end up together! I’m so glad you visited my blog and I hope you and your family have a nice Thanksgiving!