In Mad Hands – Jon Athan

4 stars

In Mad Hands was really hard to get through, and not for the reason I thought it would be.

A large part of me wants to feel sorry for Kristine. She was just a young girl who got deluded by a TV religious cult that twisted her up in the head. She never stood a chance, but her actions were so absolutely horrifying that the sympathy is struggling to make it through.

I don’t have kids, but this novella definitely would have me questioning ever letting my child out of my sight. This story did bring up some interesting ideas about things you just don’t think about daily unless you’re a parent, and I enjoyed the different perspectives that I got from the alternating POVs.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to find every piece of protective eye gear I can (Jay Bower, you’ve got some competition in the eyeball horror department) and make sure any peelers, graters, and bottle openers are kept under the strictest of locks and keys!