Hitchers
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Found an old photo while rummaging. Strachan by The Hitchers. Niall Quinn has continued to write, record and perform since The Hitchers split in The single is less than a minute in duration. An LP to be titled the Return of the Living Dead was recorded in with Dutch punk rock band Cooper performing on the bulk of the tracks. A track list was published on the Theme Tune Boy fb page but no release date, label or other information was given. Following a crowd-funding campaign wherein Quinn offered the front cover of the album among the rewards that could be claimed, [22] Quinn announced on social media that Return of the Living Dead would be released on 19 January This was confirmed on the alternative music blog Louder Than War which featured an extensive review of the album.
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Retrieved 16 February Archived from the original on 18 July Retrieved 13 August The "what if" issues appear one at a time, increasing in complexity in way that we can easily accept as the way the protagonist is learning it. A little blip as we see that two years after his wife's death our hero still has her car as well as his own. I guess they don't pay outrageous insurance rates in that state. But then it's the same state where a man can bully his way into buying a Maserati without any paperwork and the huge briefcase the cash must have been in was never mentioned. When we meet the aging rock star "Mick Mercury" I stop and ask myself, "Surely he's breaking the fourth wall here?
I expected to read later that the president was Barack Romney. But we move on. I was a bit disturbed that view spoiler [Summer hide spoiler ] turned out to be view spoiler [the pancake waitress hide spoiler ] but McIntosh has established that what's going on is NOT random so I'm OK with it.
And the complications develop, in an interesting and adequately plausible way. No, really, despite my complaints. I didn't care for our hero's melodramatic ocean solution, and in a first-person novel it's hard to think that he's not going to get through it. But I accept that it did set up the closing scenes, in which the whole thing is resolved very well indeed. Rob Sawyer has tackled this sort of "what if" in several of his novels, and they too have overcome some little WTFs in the execution.
I'll read another McIntosh. Jan 11, Bibliotropic rated it it was amazing Shelves: I could rate this novel highly solely due to the fact that McIntosh referenced steampunk rock band Abney Park who, by the way, do some seriously awesome music, and if you haven't listened to them before then you're missing out , but that would involve ignoring all the other talent that McIntosh presented as the plot of Hitchers developped.
The premise for the novel is a fairly simple one. The souls of the dead have come back, are possessing people, and now these people have to figure out how to I could rate this novel highly solely due to the fact that McIntosh referenced steampunk rock band Abney Park who, by the way, do some seriously awesome music, and if you haven't listened to them before then you're missing out , but that would involve ignoring all the other talent that McIntosh presented as the plot of Hitchers developped.
The souls of the dead have come back, are possessing people, and now these people have to figure out how to either stop it or live with it. McIntosh layers on the intrigue by adding time constraints the spirits are taking control more and more, sometimes to the point where the original personality is being driven out entirely , and some very interested character interactions and conflicts, and when it all adds up you get a book that compells you to keep turning pages just to see what happens next. The story brings up the interesting quesion of the ethics of body-sharing, and the conflicts that can arise from it.
Finn, the main character, lost his wife in a boating accident, and during the possession incident, the spirit comes back in the body of the woman who Finn realizes he's getting a crush on. Meanwhile, Finn is possessed by the spirit of his angry drunken grandfather, who is annoyed that Finn went against his final wishes. This is a story built upon layers, all of them wonderfully and finely detailed so that you truly feel as though you're reading about real people instead of merely characters in a book.
This is the kind of book that can appeal not only to those who tend to enjoy speculative fiction but also those whose tastes run a bit more to the mainstream. It was an excellent introduction to McIntosh's writing, and I can't wait to see what else he's done, or what he will do, because after this I think he's got me hooked as a fan for a long time to come. Mar 14, Jessica rated it liked it Shelves: In general I really liked this book - really inventive and new premise, and a well-executed and enjoyable read. I'm not sure this one will stick with me as much as the author's first book did Soft Apocalypse , but it might.
There's something about the way he depicts casual murder by armed thugs that's really haunting, which doesn't sound like I'm saying something nice but I do mean it that way. Nobody here would ever call it that - locals refer to the highways by their numbers alone. Or the Perimeter, for Although in this book that's actually at one point a real military perimeter, so I could see where that could get confusing.
Also, The Buckhead Diner is the name of a restaurant, not a generic term, so the entire thing should be capitalized. None of this would have been noticeable to a non-resident, I'm sure. But my advice to any aspiring authors would be that if you're not writing about the city where you live and your characters are natives, have someone from that city read it.
I'm happy to volunteer as an Atlanta locale editor. Oh, and at one point one character is talking of places she's visited and says "And Nashville. Mar 18, Elizabeth rated it liked it. Did anyone else notice the inconsistencies with the dates? In , Finn is in his late 20s. So in he'd be about He talks about taking photos on his cell phone when he was in high school, but they wouldn't have camera phones when he was in high school. There's also a part in the story where Finn's mom received a cell phone call when Finn was 12 - which would be around and very unlikely that she would own a cell phone.
Positive reviews —notably in Kerrang! Ivan Daly Art Artist. You'll be hearing more from McIntosh. The protagonist is a cartoonist whose colossal prick of a dead grandfather begins taking over his body. An LP to be titled the Return of the Living Dead was recorded in with Dutch punk rock band Cooper performing on the bulk of the tracks.
At one point Finn says he and his twin sister are 12 when an acci Did anyone else notice the inconsistencies with the dates? At one point Finn says he and his twin sister are 12 when an accident happened and later says they were He says many times that the accident was 19 years ago, but later says it was 16 years ago. Lastly, Summer is supposed to be about She has a 4 year old daughter and says she had to drop out of high school to raise her daughter. Last I checked 24 year-olds her approximate age when she had her daughter are already out of high school. Not a big deal when it comes to the actual story, but I just thought it was odd that the writer wouldn't consider this.
Dec 15, Stefan rated it really liked it Shelves: It was easily one of my favorite novels of Read the full review at my site Far Beyond Reality! View all 10 comments. Mar 27, Jeff Raymond rated it it was amazing Shelves: When a terrorist attack hits Atlanta, killing over k people, something strange starts happening to a man who has continued his grandfather's daily comic.
Specifically, he's channeling the voice of his dead grandfather. And this is also happening to other people in Atlanta as well. They're trying to take over these people. The premise sounds a lot more ominous than the book is, which is more of a fun conceptual story about possession and the afterlife. I grabbed it because of th When a terrorist attack hits Atlanta, killing over k people, something strange starts happening to a man who has continued his grandfather's daily comic.
I grabbed it because of the plotline, and I came to enjoy it more because of how well it was put together on a whole. A pretty different book, one I really enjoyed but don't have a ton to say about. Sep 05, Lauren Smith rated it it was ok Shelves: Tom Darby created Toy Shop, a long-running newspaper comic strip, and refused to ever let Finn — an aspiring cartoonist — have anything to do with it.
Eventually he realises that his grandfather is speaking through him, and that the terrorist attack has somehow allowed the dead to return by inhabiting the bodies of the living. Finn quickly realises that he can contact his dead wife, and he finds her in the body of a waitress named Summer. Together with Summer and an ageing British rocker named Mick Mercury a combination of Mick Jagger and Freddie Mercury, I assume , Finn tries to understand the hitchers and the afterlife they come from. Also, it features Toy Shop cartoons that all suck.
What bugged me more was that everything the characters need to understand about the ghosts and the afterlife come from one book. Summer is a hippy who just so happens to have this book — a tome by an Indian mystic named J. And Krishnapuma is spot-on about everything. The situations that the hitchers create are much more serious though, and McIntosh plays around with some interesting and disturbing ideas. The ghosts are basically always present in the bodies they inhabit. After a while, instead of just blurting out a few words, they take full possession of the body.
Neither the ghost nor its host can control when the ghost speaks, when it takes over the body, or for how long.
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A body that Lorena is involuntarily hijacking. Finn and Summer become friends, so Summer is at least understanding and co-operative when it comes to giving Finn a chance to spend time with his wife, but this quickly becomes far more complicated. Yes, the characters agonise over it, but it feels a bit superficial. At the end, the whole thing is dealt with in a way that I found far too easy and dismissive. The plot as a whole suffers from a similar problem. The Krishnapuma book that explains everything the main characters need to know about the hitchers and the afterlife is one example of this.
McIntosh also avoids the most interesting complexities of hitcher possession. This is the best thing about the hitchers, but also the most morally conflictual because of the way it affects relationships. Why then, is this most interesting of plot points restricted to Finn, Lorena and Summer? After a night out, Finn and Summer are attacked and nearly murdered by religious fanatics who believe that people with hitchers are evil. At the end, the main plot is resolved far too quickly and conveniently, giving the impression that the author had just gotten tired of the whole thing.
Easy reads are great, but not when it feels like an easy way out.
For more reviews, check out my blog Violin in a Void May 30, Kacey rated it it was ok. This was a weird, quirky book. That's honestly the best way I can describe it. It has an interesting premise and some of the concepts it introduces are pretty interesting as well. The comic strip art was nice to look at and honestly, I kind of wish there was more of it. Overall it wasn't anything great, but there were some bits I really enjoyed. I think the biggest flaw of this book would have to be the character development.
We're told a lot of things, but it's really hard to gauge who these cha This was a weird, quirky book. We're told a lot of things, but it's really hard to gauge who these characters are. Finn's grandfather, for example, felt too much like an overused archetype. Of course the bias of Finn's perspective does weaken the character already, but even so it didn't really feel like he was a fully realized person. The same could be said about pretty much all the characters, actually. None of them feel like they're fleshed out and it was hard to care about any of them.
It feels like the author had the concept fully realized, but not the people. Because the concept was done in a pretty unique way. The Deadland was an eerie place whenever Finn went there. In a way, I think this might've worked better as a comic book. The concept would lend itself to some really good visuals.
- The Hitchers (Irish band);
- La Ville sans nom (Fiction) (French Edition)?
- The Robertsons, the Sutherlands, and the Making of Texas.
- See a Problem?.
- Truth or Consequences?
- ?
It isn't fair for me to be critical of what I wanted this book to be rather than what it was. I was honestly hoping for some psychological horror, or maybe just more of a struggle of identity and life versus death. What I got wasn't bad, it was just weird. Sometimes funny, mostly lacking in depth.
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It did bring up one great thought on if art should go on after an artist has died, but other than that, it was pretty mediocre. I'm not sorry I read it, but I do feel like more could be done with this.
Mar 03, Violet Laflamme rated it liked it Shelves: I don't know what to say about this book. I gave it three stars but only because the end came back so strongly from such a weak beginning and middle. The writing and story could have been a lot more believable and engaging.
It's telling that I spent a lot of time while reading this book thinking about the bad review I would give it on Goodreads. This book is a weird ghost story that is told from the POV of yet another young heterosexual male writer who finds an interesting woman at a low point in his life that then becomes one of the main characters. The tropes are a real bore, but the take on the ghost story thing was a new one on me. Jun 03, Sean Whatshisface rated it really liked it Shelves: This was really well-done!
I was a little unsure at first, worried we were going to deal with some fridged ladies -- which, I mean they technically were, but I can forgive it in light of everything else. Good, complex characters with an excellent storyline. The way the author describes people's reactions to the events taking place is just so realistic, it was so easy to get swept up in this one. I'm awful at writing good reviews, but I can honestly say I'm going to be buying this one for my own This was really well-done! I'm awful at writing good reviews, but I can honestly say I'm going to be buying this one for my own bookshelves, it's just so good.
Dec 03, Aly rated it liked it. Drags a bit in the middle, but comes together in the end. Not one of my favorites of Will McIntosh's, but an interesting concept and quirky, quick read. Nov 30, E. Mikel Brown rated it really liked it. Will be checking out McIntosh's other books.
Apr 07, Michelle rated it liked it Shelves: It is a capable and lovely science fiction story that is about letting go. There's really good plotting and it all weaves together conveniently. The characters aren't well rounded, but they're okay. Nov 21, Hollowspine rated it it was amazing Shelves: Another wonderful story from Will McIntosh. Seriously, if you like sci-fi or if you don't but want to try it out, or if you did but got tired of all the stereotypical characters, done to death haha plots and overused phrases rife in the genre, start reading anything by McIntosh.
Hitchers: Will McIntosh: www.farmersmarketmusic.com: Books
Everything I've read by him is top notch and genre defying. Great original stories, wonderful empathy-inducing characters, and all of it very well written. So, Hitchers is the story of Finn I just finished Sideways Miles which also stars a guy named Finn weirdly who has had some bad times in his life, but at least he has his best friend Annie. Oh, wait, with the Anthrax attack that has hit Atlanta, he may not even have her anymore.
Finn's life has been a series of tragic losses, when he was a kid, his twin sister died. As an adult he lost his wife. Both times he felt that he was responsible. Now the attack on Atlanta has taken care of the few friends he had left. Half a million people are dead, but some of them aren't staying that way. Something else is happening.