“Books of Blood” by Clive Barker – Sinister Beginnings of a Legend

The horror genre is one that definitely sees its fair share of innovation attempts, with every author dreaming of being able to instill in the reader the kind of cold and gripping fear very few writers are capable of producing.

Clive Barker is today known as perhaps one of the most acclaimed icons in horror literature, walking right alongside giants such as Stephen King himself.

However, every author, even the legendary ones, have a beginning at some point in time, and Barker's was the Books of Blood, a collection of short stories that changed the landscape of horror literature.

In this edition of the book, the first three volumes are brought together in a single work, including classic stories such as The Midnight Meat Train, Pig Blood Blues, In the Hills, The Cities , Dread, The Skins of the Fathers, New Murders in the Rue Morgue, Son of Celluloid, Rawhead Rex , Scape-Goats, Human Remains, and a few others.

For those who are unfamiliar with the works of Clive Barker, the stories he tells mix both physical and psychological horror, albeit often concentrating a bit more on the former one.

Whereas authors like Lovecraft prefer to slowly torture their characters with ominous mysteries and the unknown, Barker doesn't shy away from depicting horrifying and gruesome scenes in all of their terrifying glory. Rest assured, there is quite a bit of cruelty, violence, and general hatred to be found across Barker's stories, and they definitely aren't for the faint of heart. Various inhuman monsters and disgusting yet powerful creatures make of the main antagonists of his stories, at least for the most part.

One of the greatest strengths of this short story collection lies in the variety of themes and locations we get to visit. We explore the untold depths of the metro system, a demon who can't haunt a man out of his nonchalance, a school with a primal secret, the acting industry, small towns in the hills that have very original death matches, the American desert filled with monsters, an isolated desolate island, and even hell itself, just to name a few.

The stories all take their own directions, each one memorable for the originality of the evil it brings to the table. While the grand majority of the characters end up being detestable, or at best uninspiring in their life choices whether they be protagonists or antagonists, they still make for interesting people, or at least, ripe victims for whatever monstrosities lurk around them.

From a writing perspective there isn't much to reproach, if anything at all. The language used is rather simple and Barker doesn't tarry around with fancy techniques or lengthy expositions.

Instead he goes straight to the point, and the few times we do get long descriptions, they are used to portray otherworldly monstrosities whose features can hardly be described in a sentence or two. The pacing is fantastic, slowing down and picking up in all the right moments, keeping the reader aware at all times, wary for the characters' fates.

To conclude, it is quite understandable how the Books of Blood came to be known as a milestone in horror literature. Each story has its own original soul, having pushed the boundaries and taken the reader to places they didn't know existed.

It still holds up very well today, being as captivating as the day it came out, definitely worth owning for anyone who is even a little bit into the genre.

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Clive Barker Personal site Clive Barker is an English writer and film director who is best-known for his visceral horror fiction. He came to prominence with his series of short stories that came to be known as the Books of Blood. Much of his fiction has been adapted to the silver-screen, including cult classics such as Hellraiser and Candyman.