Snuff-Chuck Palahniuk

I can't decide whether or not Chuck Palahniuk's writing fascinates me or disgusts me. It's usually a mixture of both. I've read a couple of his books (Haunted, Choke-which is now a movie, and Diary), and I always have the same reaction. It's the old "can't look away from the scene of an accident" cliche.

Of course, the subject of this book doesn't help matters. As you may guess from the title and the cover, Snuff deals with the porn industry. Specifically Cassie Wright, who is looking to break the all-time gang bang record by taking on 600 men. An open casting call is announced via magazines and internet ads, and the story is told from the point of view of three "actors", Mr. 72, who believes he is the son that Cassie gave up for adoption and wants to save her, Mr. 137, a washed-up TV actor who is trying to prove he is not homosexual, and Mr. 600, a washed-up porn star who may or may not be the father of the son Cassie gave up for adoption. We also get narratives from Sheila, AKA the talent wrangler. She mostly tells Cassie's story.

Right off the bat, the description of the men waiting to be called is enough to put you off your feed. Picture if you will half naked men wandering around a dingy basement, grazing the cheese popcorn and potato chip buffet with the same hands they're using to keep themselves primed. Only Chuck's description is much better. Or worse.....There is also the threat of death in the air. Cassie could potentially die from a vaginal embolism. Will she? Or is Mr. 72 going to save her in time?

The one problem I had is with the characters. They all seemed to have the same voice. I kept having to flip to the beginning of the chapter to figure out whose point of view I was getting. They all also seemed to know a lot of trivia about movies and sex. At one point, I thought the book was written just so Chuck could show off some knowledge.

Overall, while this wasn't the best one he's written, this was a pretty good book. If you can't find Lullaby or Hauted, pick this one up instead.