I love horror movies. I was in my teens for the grindhouse movies of the 70s, in my twenties for the slashers of the 80s. My friends and I worked our way methodically through the horror section of our local indy video rental store (and a special shoutout to the late, lamented B-Ware Video in Lakewood, Ohio, an entire store devoted to horror, horror adjacent, and just plain weird videos). All of this is to say that I feel like I know at least a little bit about slasher films—at least I thought I did, before reading My Heart Is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones. I was wrong.

Jade Daniels is the town outcast of the tiny mountain lake town of Proofrock. She exists on the margins—the margins of her abusive family, the margins of her high school, the margins of life. The only thing keeping her from disappearing completely, and it’s touch and go, is her love, no, her obsession, with slasher films. Jade looks at life, at everything, through the prism of her beloved slashers. She believes fervently in the hard and fast rules they are guided by, in the life lessons they teach. She clings to them like a lifeline. The trope of The Final Girl is real to her.

Proofrock, and the lake it’s built around, Indian Lake, has seen more than its share of tragedy and murder, both depressingly human and supernatural. So it’s not a far stretch for Jade to see a new slasher cycle playing out in real time, and to seek a final girl (it can’t be her, she’s not worthy) she can impart her wisdom to, in the hopes of stopping the mayhem to come. Jones makes Proofrock, Indian Lake, and the people who live there feel achingly real. It feels lived in. We get to know them all, so that when bad things start to happen, it hits hard.

Where Jones truly excels, however, is in Jade’s voice. She narrates the story in a breathless, compulsively readable stream of description, snark, and above all slasher history. Everything that happens, every scene, has an antecedent in the slashers, and Jade is happy to expound at length. Her knowledge (Jone’s knowledge) is encyclopedic and endlessly entertaining. With Jade, Jones has created one of my favorite characters of all time. She uses slasher films as a way to keep the world at arm’s length, as armor against being hurt. The thing is, she’s also using it to hide. Behind the slashers, behind the dyed hair, combat boots, petty crime, and universal fuck you to the world, is, I think, a girl yearning for love and acceptance. She wants to belong, just on her terms. Jade is so achingly real, and so heartbreaking, that My Heart Is a Chainsaw is sometimes painful to read, but the story is so compelling that you won’t be able to put it down. The final quarter of the novel moves with unrelenting fury toward an ending so surprising, yet so perfectly right, that I can’t imagine it ending any other way.

One other thing. For the one teacher Jade seems to actually like, her history teacher, she has written a series of papers the define and explain slasher films, a real history of the genre as seen through her eyes. Those treatises are sprinkled throughout My Heart Is a Chainsaw, and I found myself looking forward to each one. Through them, we get a crash course in slashers, but perhaps more importantly, we get to know Jade better.

I only discovered Jones a couple of years ago, but he’s quickly become one of my favorite horror writers. Hell, one of my favorite writers, period. After Mongrels, The Only Good Indians, and now My Heart Is a Chainsaw, he has confirmed his position as one of the very best in the field. Jones writes with heart, passion, and a brutal lyricality of language and voice that is always distinct, and always just right for the story he’s telling. My Heart Is a Chainsaw debuts on August 31, 2021. Pre-order it today, and be prepared to fall in love with Jade.

I knew I’d be giving this book 5 stars before I was even finished with the first few chapters. Jade quickly became one of my favorite literary characters to date—not because she’s particularly likable, but because she’s quite the opposite. Put bluntly, this girl is insufferable, but in the most heartbreakingly endearing way. She has built a defense mechanism out of nightmares—how can you not love her for that? Her tireless passion for horror movies (excuse me, SLASHERS), sardonic wit, and sudden moments of vulnerability had me both laughing out loud and crying internally. For every time I cringed at her incessant recitals of horror facts (to people who most definitely did not care), there were at least two other times I had to admire her humor and earnesty. She is an incredibly realistic character, especially for a teen/new adult. She’s annoying, holier-than-thou, misguided, and shortsighted—but she is also intelligent, perceptive, brave, and sensitive. She sees through adults in a way only the young typically can. She hasn’t lost her childlike ability to call things what they are. Nor has she forgotten, as so many of us do as we move through adulthood, that grown-ups aren’t smarter simply because they’re older. TL;DR: I love this damn kid.

I found this book’s narrative style (third-person narrative interspersed with first-person essays written by Jade) surprisingly effective. Somehow, I felt more immersed in Jade’s own mind reading about her in third-person than I have while reading other books actually written in first-person. There is something about this book that doesn’t just “tell” or “show;” it makes you feel. I felt like I was experiencing Jade’s thoughts in real time, right there along with her. I think this is partially due to the stream-of-consciousness-esque vibe much of the book has, punctuated by pop culture references/slasher film facts/town history retellings that felt quite random and confusing at times. I felt like I was bouncing around Jade’s thoughts right along with her, in the often disorganized and nebulous way we actually think in real life. It was disconcerting and even frustrating at times, but it was real. As someone who has experienced depression, I felt a haunting sense of familiarity with how confused I felt at times while reading. I didn’t always understand how we got from Point A to Point B in Jade’s head, which is *exactly* how I feel when I am lost, depressed, and searching for comfort wherever I can find it (just like Jade). I think it’s absolutely beautiful how Jones was able to recreate that sensation on paper.

The story itself was interesting, well-paced, and unlike anything I’ve seen before (which is saying something, seeing as it’s based around slasher flicks and I’m a major horror book/movie fan). There were some times the story felt like it was dragging, but as Jade herself says, that’s what experiencing a slasher movie is like in real life. You see all the in-between scenes and stages of the story unfolding. I enjoyed every minute I got to spend with Jade, even the “boring” ones where she was picking up trash while imagining how she would kill people or wandering around annoying the adults of Proofrock out of their tired little minds.

I will say I didn’t *love* the ending; it was a little too fantastical for my tastes and there were some loose ends I desperately wanted to be tied up. However, I loved the first 90% of the book to offset my disappointment.

In conclusion: As our lord Lady Gaga once said, “talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before, unafraid to reference or not reference, put it in a blender, shit on it, vomit on it, eat it, give birth to it.” That is how I feel about this book and I would like to lodge a formal complaint against Stephen Graham Jones because I am angry I have to just go back to reading books that AREN’T this one now.

Deepest gratitude to Netgalley for providing me the opportunity to read this book in advance.

Synopsis & Quick Thoughts
My Heart is a Chainsaw is the latest horror novel by author Stephen Graham Jones. Jade Daniels is an outcast in the gentrifying rural lakeside town of Proofrock. She lives her life through the lens of a horror film, relishing in the comfort they bring her as she imagines there’s a killer seeking revenge in her community. But when blood is shed in the waters of Indian Lake, Jade puts her encyclopedic knowledge of horror to work, predicating plots and trying to help her final girl to victory.

Gah, Stephen Graham Jones does it AGAIN ladies and gents and everyone in between! He’s absolutely solidified himself as an auto-buy author for me for any of this upcoming works. This is both a violent and poignant read. Admittedly, it was slow starting off and I didn’t fully understand the reveal, but Jones writes such good horror that the negatives didn’t impact me too much.

Positives
I feel like it may be hard for you to believe me when I tell you this book is a beautiful blend of horror and a moving story of self-discovery. This book demands a lot from its readers and I wouldn’t be surprised if it ends up being pretty polarizing. If you’ve been following along with me and my horror recommendations, you’ll know they tend to be a little against the grain of what’s popular on Goodreads. I suspect book will follow that trend. This book left me tired, a little grossed out, and rereading the last page or so multiple times.

Strangely, this book is strange in that I’m having a hard time pinpointing an exact list of positive things. It was just good. If you’ve liked my horror recommendations in the past, or you read and enjoyed The Only Good Indians, I really don’t think you’ll regret picking this one up.

Negatives
Much like his other recent novel, The Only Good Indians, this book too struggles with a pacing problem. The first chapter/prologue brings the horror hard and fast, and then the action grinds to a halt for the next 60% of the book. Don’t get me wrong, the last 40% of the book is fast and gory and everything I want in a horror, but it does take a while to get there and I could see some people not having the patience to keep going with this one. While I’ve grown accustomed to Jone’s writing style by now, it’s much the same as his previous novel, and that was a negative for me then.

On a very short and small plot related note, I didn’t fully understand the slasher reveal at the end of the novel. It’s probably a metaphor and I’m just not big brained enough to understand it. Maybe there are more paranormal/supernatural elements in this book than I picked up on. Anyways, it wasn’t my favorite thing.

Rating & Final Thoughts
I’m going to give My Heart is a Chainsaw 3.5 out of 5 stars. I think if you’re wanting to try a Stephen Graham Jones book, start with The Only Good Indians. If you vibe with that, give this one a go. I think this novel definitely takes a certain personality type to enjoy it. I really did; I just wouldn’t recommend it to everyone.

This novel is about a senior high schooler named Jade. Jade is an outcast, the ‘weird’ girl. She self describes as the horror girl. Jade lives in a horror movie, every experience she turns into part of a slasher film. So it’s difficult for the reader to know what is real and what is Jade’s imagination. I did enjoy reading this story, however, I think it ran a little long. Perhaps cutting out a fee of those extra credit papers would make it more readable. I found them a distraction, although, I know some of the info is pertinent. A very readable story.

I love how the author rehashed all the slasher films into one book. I realized I have seen a lot of them and I found it very interesting how the MC Jade found a way interpret all the 80s movies into her school work. This comes in handy since she has been waiting for a slasher to take over her town.

I struggled with the blending of the movie summaries with the plotline. Sometimes the summaries overtook the book and the story was lost in translation. There were so many scenes that were glazed over. I found myself rereading so many parts since all of a sudden someone would have been murdered in two sentences and no one reacted to it. So I kept thinking maybe I read it wrong or maybe jade envisioned it. Then there were times Jade would just find a dead body and not react that someone was massacred.

The concept was great and I feel like this could have been a great slasher book if a little more attention was given to the murder scenes.

Caution: child rape.

Thanks Netgalley and publisher for the digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for a copy of this book !

My Heart is a Chainsaw
by Stephen Graham Jones


This was truly an original and unique book. I have not ever read anything similar. Unfortunately, I did not care for it at all.

Stephen Graham Jones is a well known author and has written a couple very popular books. I am sorry that I cannot say something better about this one.
I really did try to get into it, came back to it several times in various moods and times of day and night but still felt the same.
Since we are provided these books for an honest review, my honest opinion is, although I feel the author is a very good writer, I absolutely did not like this book.

"My Heart is a Chainsaw" is a good book, it just wasn't for me. The story at its core is compelling and the characters endearing. Really appreciated all the horror references However, it all ended up bogging down the book to the point that it all felt disjointed and a bit overwritten. I enjoyed it in retrospect, but, while reading it, I repeatedly had to push myself to keep going as it lost my interest. It requires a patient reader willing to see it through to the end for the payoff.

Thank you to NetGalley and Saga/Gallery Press for this advanced reader's copy of My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones.

My Heart is a Chainsaw is the story of slasher-film fan Jade, her life in small-town Proofrock, Idaho and her belief that her dream of a slasher film come to life is about to occur. Jade is facing many changes in her life as she graduates high school and faces her eighteenth birthday. The one thing that won't change, the one constant in Jade's life is her love of slasher films. When Jade sees the signs of an impending slasher film come to life occuring in her own hometown she starts looking for all of the necessary ingredients of a good slasher; a holiday, a big party and the most important piece, the Final Girl. Is Jade really prepping for her dream come true or hiding from the reality of her life in Proofrock? Good question that only readers of My Heart is a Chainsaw will get to know the answer to.

I've been struggling to write this review all day because what do you say about a near-perfect book? All I can really say is that I loved it, from page one to the very end. Stephen Graham Jones takes every detail about slasher films that any human could possibly know and turns that knowledge into a portrait of a damaged young woman trying desperately to come to terms with her past and face her future head on. I sincerely hope that My Heart is a Chainsaw gets made into a movie, which I would watch through my fingers, cringing at the gore and loving the jumpscares.

When I was almost through with this book, I realized that the book that it reminded me of was not a horror book. Well, not a traditional horror book. It made me think of D.M. Thomas's The White Hotel in that it seems kind of dense at first, almost opaque--like I can't get a handle on the story. Slowly, though, it reveals itself, or rather, it reveals the true horror at the heart of the book. And like The Only Good Indians, it ends with the power of love, but love as a verb, a thing you do. I be cry now.

I really wanted to love this book, but this was unfortunately the toughest read I’ve had to date. I’m a huge horror fan myself and love the guts and gore, so I naturally had high hopes after reading the description. The first chapter was thrilling and I was extremely excited for the rest of the book... and then it just fizzled out until about halfway through, and then fizzled again, and then the end of the book was a whirlwind of things happening all at once, and then it's over.

The writing style was very odd to me, switching from Jade’s point of view in one chapter and in the next chapter we are reading her high school extra credit essays to her teacher about a certain component of slasher films. It was very jarring and just not my cup of tea. Jade is also very hard to like and her obsession with slashers is borderline neurotic. I can appreciate, though, the trauma she’s endured and I recognize that her slasher obsession is a coping mechanism for her emotionally abusive childhood and the need to feel accepted and appreciated was fulfilled through this obsession. Nonetheless, Jade was a less than memorable character and made the book that much more difficult to get through.

Many thanks for the advance digital copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review!

This is the third book by Stephen Graham Jones that I’ve read, and it’s time for me to realize that, horror lover that I am, Jones’ slasher style just isn’t for me. Chainsaw has a compelling, creepy start that devolves into a bit of a ramble, and culminates in an over-the-top, violent bloodbath. Maybe if I was still a teen reader?

Jade Daniels is a half-Native American poor 17 year old living in a small town with a very abusive father while a mentally ill mother lives and works in the same town without recognizing her. Her home life is painful to witness. It's no surprise that she retreats into her obsession with serial killer movies and stories from the 80's.

As we meet the cast and characters of small town Proofrock, a new very wealthy development rises up the other side of very "Friday the 13th" town lake. As the wealthy infiltrate the town, Jade becomes more and more convinced that she is IN an actual slasher film and may be one of the fated "Final Girls" or "Final Girl Adjacent."

Feverish and action packed in the last third of the novel, you won't believe your eyes! Very original voice and concept. Recommend!

While problematic at times, My Heart is a Chainsaw could be an amazing movie (with a few tweaks). I can even picture the entire first-drop trailer... Seriously, some good stuff. But it dragged too many times.

But like I said perfect movie stuff. If some studio got ahold of this and got ahold of a killer *wink wink* screenplay writer, this could be better than Scream. But they’d need either the money or scope to include licenses for the myriad movies that Jade talks about and references and watches throughout. THAT would truly make this horror mastery.

Anyway. I loved the movie references. Probably because I’ve seen almost every one she referenced. Movies, especially horror, are my expertise and I thought it started out a little corny, but about 25% in, I was loving every second of it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this book early. Hopefully we see it on the big screen sometime soon!

Overall, very good. There is a strong slasher background that may be needed if an individual does not causally or have knowledge of these films and horror films. The book comes out with a bang and has a great impact and storyline.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for providing me a copy of this book.

3.5 stars

This book, in a way, is a love letter to slasher movies and slasher movies fans! There are so many references to slasher movies, characters, scenes, etc. I LOVED the Horror facts! Plus, the entire book played out in my mind as an 80's horror movie (those being my favorites).

The opening scene grabbed me right away! I wanted to yell, what you are doing is a recipe for disaster....

Jade, the main character was an interesting character in that sometimes I liked her, other times not so much. But she had some great lines and was a horror film expert who lives in her own world. Her father is abusive (to put it mildly), she has an absent mother and the town, well, I do not think they know how to take her let alone know what to do with her. She is an expert on horror, final girls (don't' confuse her with one) and what makes a killer tick (injustice).

But when bad things begin to happen on Indian Lake (not to be confused with Camp Crystal Lake), her extensive knowledge of horror films helps her predict how things are going to unfold. Through this we learn more about Jade, her past and her vulnerabilities.

Horror. Revenge. Triumph

So, this one is a hard one to rate and I wanted to sit with this book to think things over. So, after the beginning, which was fantastic, things got slow...as in really slow. I am not one for slow burns so this could be the case of it was me and not the book. But it took some hanging in there. I also had to get acclimated to the author's style of writing. I desperately wanted something to hurry up and happen. But I had to bide my time. Not everything in horror films happens off the bat, sometimes you must wait for it. So, I waited, and waited, and waited...and then you-know-what hit the fan!

That later part of the book is where the magic (blood) begins to flow. Who will be safe? Who is the killer? Final Girl?

So, how to rate this book???? Parts were too slow for my liking, then there were these mesmerizing passages, the horror trivia that put a smile on this horror film lover's face, and the killer last part of the book.... what a dilemma. Originally, I gave this book a 3-star rating, but I have decided to go with 3.5 stars rounded up. The ending really did make up for the slowness.


Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.

Stephen Graham Jones is a phenomenal author with a voice that is just as unique as his stories. It's hard not to get completely lost in the delicious mystery he creates in My Heart is a Chainsaw. In fact, I spent pages and pages questioning where we might end up, only to be completely surprised by the eventual Big Reveal. I'm looking forward to reading any and everything Jones creates in the future.

I received a copy of this novel through netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This is the second SGJ novel I have read, and I loved this one the most out of the two. I found myself getting sucked into the storytelling from the beginning…finding myself lost at times in the characters and the actions. I honestly loved the growth of the characters throughout the novel blended so well with the narrative being put in front of us.

Highly recommend

Stephen Graham Jones never, ever disappoints. I always relate to his stories so we'll, coming from Native American heritage myself. I absolutely got a kick out of this one. They just keep getting better and better.

A unique literary slasher.

First off, there is a reason Stephen Graham Jones just won two Stokers. His writing has such a unique sense of voice, I would describe it as lawless and punk rock. Marching to the beat of his own drum with diction that feels both real and immensely thought-provoking. In My Heart is a Chainsaw, it’s the voice of Jade that is on vibrant display.

Half-Indian, living with her alcoholic father, Jade is the self-proclaimed “horror-chick” with an encyclopedic knowledge of slasher films. Jones has somehow made the entire slasher genre a living, breathing character. One that will perk up any horror fan while reading. When people start dying in her hometown, Jade sees these patterns where no one else does. She is easy to identify with and sympathize with. An outcast, and at times chaotic, but her unusual life outlook, and tragic existence, is something to behold.

The pacing in this is slow. Very slow. Such that it does not allow a passive reading experience. Each page requires careful consideration, and while Jones touches on various deep issues throughout, he does it in a way with being in your face about it. It’s a thoughtfulness told through Jade's eyes, and it’s as bizarre as it is beautiful.

The story ramps up in the third act, giving readers the blood and gore they had been craving throughout the first two. While the pacing is defiantly faster there, it’s still slow in comparison to others in the genre. Everything does tie together, however, giving readers a satisfying, blood-soaked, and slightly poetic ending.

This is a novel that I could see many different people being attracted to, for many different reasons. Some may like the thought-provoking takes on certain issues. Some may like the slow build and gorgeous prose. Some may be attracted to the language and delivery. Some may just want to come out soaked in blood and madness. Whatever your reason, (perhaps all the above) there is something to love about this novel.

SGJ is quickly becoming one of my favorite writers. The Only Good Indians was the very first book I was approved for on NetGalley (and won a Stoker award a few days ago; I highly recommend if you haven't picked that one up yet, do so), and his work has held a special place in my heart since. I was thrilled to be approved for this and quickly dove in.

In the last weeks of her senior year of high school, Jade grows increasingly anxious about what she'll do with her life. Terra Nova, a millionaire neighborhood is being constructed across the lake, which doesn't help her opinions about her living situation, her family, or her own goals. But she loves slashers, and when Letha Mondragon walks into the bathroom one day, Jade knows she's met the Final Girl--the one who will outlast them all. She's convinced a slasher is coming for her town, and Jade feels a purpose like never before.

I would give this a hundred stars if I could.

To start, Jones' writing is spectacular. The alternating essay analyses of the slasher genre juxtaposed with Jade's internal reflection and attempts to connect with Letha are well-structured, interesting, and nuanced. Jade is a wonderful protagonist. Admittedly, she's nothing like a Final Girl, but that only works to her advantage. We get a thorough understanding of her circumstances, and because of that, her passion for slashers becomes that much more important.

That's one of the things I love best about this book. It's not just a campy, meta, ode to slashers. It is an in-depth study of slashers, don't get me wrong, but it's not just a break down of what sets the genre apart from the rest of horror. One of the first papers I remember writing in college was focused on why people love horror, and Jones uses that as a jumping off point, giving us this wonderful, flawed, powerful character who isn't just creepy or strange because she loves slashers. There's so much more beneath the surface. The psychology of horror isn't just the blood and gore, but for Jade--for many readers who will relate to her struggles--it is a belief that there is a bigger purpose, an order, or a meaning that may be lacking in everyday life.

Additionally, there is a wonderful layer of mythology, legend, and oral storytelling tradition here, adding to Jade's expert cinematic knowledge of slashers--all of which ties into the larger themes at play of identity, community, and spirituality. Jade's Native American identity is pivotal to her understanding of her place in the slasher, and yet, Jones breaks the tropes and creates these beautiful moments of hope and symbolism. No spoilers, of course, but this is a book for everyone who has ever felt alone, out of place, or outcast. This is a book about finding courage and confidence, about forging your own path, and I loved every freaking page of Jade's journey.

One final note, I'd be remiss if I didn't talk about the moments of pure terror. There's one scene in particular that knocked the breath out of me. I had to put it down because it was *that good*. Jones' writing is as vivid and cinematic as one of Jade's movies, and I think many readers are going to love these moments the best.

Overall, My Heart Is a Chainsaw is a beautiful, terrifying, gritty story that you absolutely do not want to miss.

Huge thanks to Gallery and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for honest review consideration.