Though THE CIPHER didn’t tick off all the boxes for me, I do look forward to reading what Koja comes up with next. Or Comedy, depending, all depending on your personal true-blue bent and if you’re benter than most this’ll be a thigh slapper. I do, however, like Koja’s writing style here's a sample: The narrative felt stalled as the reader bears witness to the main characters physically fighting with each other, get drunk, take drugs, have sex, experience a bit of horror (love the imagery), go to work, and rinse and repeat. Unfortunately, around the forty percent mark is where I decided this book isn’t for me and had to call it quits-a decision made mainly due to the repetition. I love the beginning of the book, the mystery of the strange hole and the horror within had me gleefully wanting more with every turn of a page. ’When a strange hole materializes in a storage room, would-be poet Nicholas and his feral lover Nakota allow their curiosity to lead them into the depths of terror.’ This book is culty, it’s super goopy, it’s bleak, and strange and I absolutely loved it. Also, I hope you’re paying attention because the Funhole causes there to be DIVERGENT BANDS OF SYCOPHANTS. Although all of the divergent bands of sycophants are nearly as bad. “Nakota would rot differently from other people she would be the first to admit it.” I just love those unhinged, pointy, mean little DIY Trash Queens so god damned much. I also love Marla (who came to be a few years later than Nakota, so I’m solely making a comparison here – not throwing shade, ftr), so I guess in literary settings, I totally have a type.

She even has the whole thrift-store extraordinaire thing going on. She’s like a bony, violently psychotic Marla Singer. He’s just some listless dude working at a video store. Nicholas is one of those people who is basically just existing – there’s nothing particularly interesting or likeable about him.

I love that there is almost nobody here that you want to root for. I love inescapable, indescribable, indifferent horror, and this one is definitely all of that.

But I couldn’t/didn’t want to put it down. It was never going to beat that original one (I mean, Dell is kind of known for solid horror novel cover art), but it is a good cover. And now we’re here: 2020’s Meerkat Press Edition. It was later picked up and re-published by Roadswell Editions July 13, 2012, and got that second, less-whelming cover. To start off, this is a reprint of a Dell book which was first published January 5th, 1991 with that phenomenally gorgeous/bizarre cover.

The cipher kathe koja summary