Manos: The Hands of Fate

by Oscar Brady

The cult classic film is now an extreme horror novelization! You'll never look at a zucchini the same way again!

67 pages, ebook

Published October 1, 2026

About the author

Oscar Brady (he/they) is the award-winning and best-selling author of Bunny Room, Potato, Oops! All George! and other weird stuff. He is originally from Richmond, Virginia, where most of his stories are set.

Reviews

[Oscar Brady]

The author ruins the film by making it perverted! If I could rate lower, I would!

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Manos: The Hands of Fate
Alright! Where to start unpacking this masterpiece! First, I just have to say that I LOVE cheesy cheap horror movies. The worse, the better! Also, I used to love watching MST3K, but I must have missed or forgotten the episode that showed this movie by the same name! This is definitely the first time that I've ever read a cheesy cheap novella knock-off of a cheesy cheap horror movie! I must say, I was NOT disappointed! Also, this story just validated an age-old belief I've had since the 90s. NO ONE gets the car in a "win a free car" contest at the mall!

Being that this story is so short, I dont want to talk about the actual plot and give away the ending to this 60+ year old story. But I will say it was so entertaining! I enjoyed every silly moment! Of course, with extreme horror, there are those scenes (naturally), but the story did not take itself too seriously. My favorite characters very well may have been the 4 non main characters that the story randomly shifts to for brief moments.

If you want some gross, cheesy, adult content, bad acting, and a raging good time,...read this book! Or watch the original movie instead! I don't think the author cares how you choose to enjoy it, just that you do! Hopefully, as much as he does!

[✩｡°⋆ Lala ⋆｡°✩ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well that was one hell of a reading experience lol.

I went into this knowing nothing at all about the original 1966 movie, nor the fact that it had somehow become this incredibly obscure cult horror oddity, so I actually had a lot of fun learning about the film while reading this. The fact that this is the story Oscar Brady decided to turn into an extreme horror book makes the whole thing even more bizarre.

And yeah, this book gets gross. There were definitely moments where I had to pause and think, "Did I really just read that?" It's disturbing, weird, and somehow manages to be a genuinely entertaining read at the same time.

I don't think you necessarily need to know the original movie to enjoy this, but knowing what it's based on definitely made the experience more interesting for me. There's something so strange about taking such an obscure piece of 60s horror history and turning it into this.

Wild book. Definitely glad I picked this one up.

⚠️ Please Check TW!

Transparency disclosure: I am a member of Oscar Brady's street team, though all opinions are my own and entirely honest.

This review is cross‑posted across multiple platforms.

[Kazoo Mazoo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oscar Brady takes Manos: The Hands of Fate, already one of the strangest movies ever made, and asks the obvious question: “What if we made this even more messed up?”

And yes, he does.

The story keeps the basic DNA of the movie but adds a lot more detail, especially around Torgo, the Master, and the whole bizarre Manos mythology. The desert atmosphere works, the weirdness works, and there is plenty of gore for readers who came here expecting things to get ugly.

What worked for me was Brady's willingness to embrace just how bizarre this material is. What didn't work quite as well was the occasional overindulgence. Some scenes go on longer than they need to, and a little trimming would have made the nastiest moments hit harder.

Still, this is exactly the kind of gloriously strange horror experiment I was hoping it would be.

I received a copy of this novella and chose to review it honestly.

[Dani Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went into this blind as I hadn’t watched the cult classic, 1966 horror movie of the same name that this Novelisation came from. Dubbed ‘the worst movie ever made’ by Rotten Tomatoes and IMBD I was curious as to what Oscar could do to it, would this be the worst book ever written?

It wasn’t! It was a great take on the story with added gore, extremities and zucchini. He took the bizarre and made it even weirder and gave it his extreme horror edge which I love.

It was grotesque and dark but it was pretty funny too, I had a few giggles along the way. Thigh pies was a great quip.

I wouldn’t say you have to have seen the movie to appreciate the book, I enjoyed it as it is but it made me want to see just how terrible the movie is, albeit lacking the perversion in the book.

This was a fun, short read from your favourite Splatterpunk authors favourite Splatterpunk author

Thank you for the ARC 🖤

[Jasmine Plaunt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly had no idea what I was getting myself into with starting this book. I was told it's based on the worst movie ever made (which is intriguing and need to watch now). With that being said, this was one bizarre book, filled with people making bad decisions, one stop that changed the course of a families life, and a weird ass mansion. It's definitely a quick read, finished it in one setting. Brady's books have never disappointed me. So if you're looking for a book that leaves you with the feeling of why the fuck did I read this and how was this a movie? Definitely pick this one up!

[Casey Louise · Rating 5 out of 5]

What the hell did I just read 😂 and there's a film of this from the 60's?! It's so messed up but I thought it was really well done and I thought it was unintentionally (or maybe intentionally?) funny at times! It's very short and I think a great use of my time 😂 if you want to read something the makes you think *wtf* while laughing... defo check this out!

[Irvin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received an arc review of this book by Oscar Brady. One I never knew it was a movie and even tho the movies ratings are terrible I’ll probably give it a watch just because the book was that entertaining. Oscar makes the characters very vivid and it’s hard not to picture some of the things mentioned in the story.

[K D Davies · Rating 5 out of 5]

A road trip goes awry when Michael and his family bump into a Satyr at their lodgings. What unfolds is demonic, sexy and a battle for survival! This is a movie I’d like to see. For me it felt like Lampoons vacation cross ready of not 2! Loved it!

[Robbie ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

What in the fresh hell fever dream did I just read?! 😂 All I know is I can’t believe I haven’t seen this movie and I can’t wait to watch it! Great writing as usual with Oscar, very immersive and descriptive. I love this bizarre telling!

Thank you so much for my ARC!

[C. Gorman · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

WAY better than the boring ass movie. I mean, how often does a novelization surpass the OG? When the bar is low and the author goes sky-high, THERE IS NO LIMIT. This was weird, wild stuff. I loved it!

[Jill E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do you need a book that leaves you asking, "WTF did I just read?" Of course you do! Read *Manos: The Hands of Fate* by Oscar Brady. I went into this blind, per usual, and loved every bit of the book. It's a quick, gory, disgusting read. I'm definitely checking out the movie now!

[Thomas Alberter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very slow pace and odd but if 60s / 70s cult movies are your thing this might be right up your alley as long as you like nudity lol

[Eva Wachala · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

Oscar Brady has taken a terrible movie and made it a brilliant book. The satyr is such a brilliant mess and the characterization of these (on screen) flat characters was nothing short of epic!