What do you think?
Rate this book
Guinea Pigs
Guinea Pigs is the follow-up to James Howell's infamous Disturbed Girl trilogy.
This dark collection of short stories examines three seemingly unconnected people as they slide along separate paths towards chaos and tragedy. Will any of them find salvation, or will they all be destroyed by the terrible deception that unites them?
Guinea Pig 1 - The Man Who Couldn't Laugh
Colin Jones is a neurotic suburban nobody who has a serious problem with his new neighbours. Spurred on by what he reads in the tabloid press, how far will he go to get them evicted?
Guinea Pig 2 - A Wild Life
A damaged woman travels to Africa to escape from her life of sex and violence. As she touches down in the Gambia, she has no idea that her nightmare is just beginning.
Guinea Pig 3 - Red Demon
Detective Josh Brody works in the bleak underbelly of south London trying to protect victims of hate crime. It is a grim world, and he might be closer to the misery than he realises.
This dark collection of short stories examines three seemingly unconnected people as they slide along separate paths towards chaos and tragedy. Will any of them find salvation, or will they all be destroyed by the terrible deception that unites them?
Guinea Pig 1 - The Man Who Couldn't Laugh
Colin Jones is a neurotic suburban nobody who has a serious problem with his new neighbours. Spurred on by what he reads in the tabloid press, how far will he go to get them evicted?
Guinea Pig 2 - A Wild Life
A damaged woman travels to Africa to escape from her life of sex and violence. As she touches down in the Gambia, she has no idea that her nightmare is just beginning.
Guinea Pig 3 - Red Demon
Detective Josh Brody works in the bleak underbelly of south London trying to protect victims of hate crime. It is a grim world, and he might be closer to the misery than he realises.
ebook
First published March 1, 2016
16 people want to read
About the author
James Howell
9 books30 followersJames Howell (born 1978) is a former journalist and author of the Disturbed Girl series of novels.
His experiences while working on a local newspaper in Essex, England, and on national newspapers in London, inspired the adventures of anti-hero Hannah Harker in the novels.
Howell’s debut novel, A Disturbed Girl's Guide to Curing Boredom, follows the story of local reporter Harker as she gradually grows insane in her quest to find excitement at all costs.
Published by Amygdala Press in June 2011, the debut is a "harrowing, savage and sexual exploration of a broken mind" and has attracted nearly 50,000 fans on the official Facebook page. In January 2013 it was named 7th in Really TV's top 10 must-read erotic novels of all time.
The sequel, A Disturbed Girl Implodes, continues Hannah's demented adventures and was published by Amygdala Press in May 2012.
The final part of the trilogy, A Disturbed Girl’s Redemption, was published in autumn 2013.
In late 2012, London-based electronic music artist Mush No Candy collaborated with Howell to produce a unique soundtrack to accompany the novels, which was the subject of a BBC radio programme.
Howell recently launched "Disturbed Girl Productions" to develop screenplays into short films. The debut presentation is "Amber's Haunt", which was released in 2015.
In another example of Disturbed Girl's multi-media appeal, leading Dutch photographer Look J Boden has recently created a unique portfolio of portraits depicting Hannah Harker in various scenes from the novel A Disturbed Girl’s Guide to Curing Boredom.
Back at the keyboard, Howell is currently working on an anthology of short stories called "Guinea Pigs".
Aside from writing, Howell is a keen diver, amateur sailor, abysmal skier and occasional romantic. He has travelled extensively in the pursuit of fortune and glory, with extended periods in South America, India and Asia, but finds himself always returning home to the shores of Southend-on-Sea in the UK.
He would like the track Avril 14th by Aphex Twin to be played at his funeral.
His experiences while working on a local newspaper in Essex, England, and on national newspapers in London, inspired the adventures of anti-hero Hannah Harker in the novels.
Howell’s debut novel, A Disturbed Girl's Guide to Curing Boredom, follows the story of local reporter Harker as she gradually grows insane in her quest to find excitement at all costs.
Published by Amygdala Press in June 2011, the debut is a "harrowing, savage and sexual exploration of a broken mind" and has attracted nearly 50,000 fans on the official Facebook page. In January 2013 it was named 7th in Really TV's top 10 must-read erotic novels of all time.
The sequel, A Disturbed Girl Implodes, continues Hannah's demented adventures and was published by Amygdala Press in May 2012.
The final part of the trilogy, A Disturbed Girl’s Redemption, was published in autumn 2013.
In late 2012, London-based electronic music artist Mush No Candy collaborated with Howell to produce a unique soundtrack to accompany the novels, which was the subject of a BBC radio programme.
Howell recently launched "Disturbed Girl Productions" to develop screenplays into short films. The debut presentation is "Amber's Haunt", which was released in 2015.
In another example of Disturbed Girl's multi-media appeal, leading Dutch photographer Look J Boden has recently created a unique portfolio of portraits depicting Hannah Harker in various scenes from the novel A Disturbed Girl’s Guide to Curing Boredom.
Back at the keyboard, Howell is currently working on an anthology of short stories called "Guinea Pigs".
Aside from writing, Howell is a keen diver, amateur sailor, abysmal skier and occasional romantic. He has travelled extensively in the pursuit of fortune and glory, with extended periods in South America, India and Asia, but finds himself always returning home to the shores of Southend-on-Sea in the UK.
He would like the track Avril 14th by Aphex Twin to be played at his funeral.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 15, 2016
If you like stories that will take you out your comfort zone, Howell's your man. He is a true master at weaving captivating tales fuelled by depravity, sex and violence. There is no subject he won't touch and when he does, there's no cotton wool to protect you. I shouldn't like his work. It's not my genre, not written in a POV I normally read and yet I just can't help myself. Every time I read his work I am 100% sucked in, drawn into a world full of characters I should hate and be repulsed by and yet I do neither. Quite the opposite. I power through his stories desperate for more. Howell dares to say and write the unthinkable and each and every time he does it makes me love the stories that little bit more.
Guinea pigs is a set of 3 short stories each covering a different protagonist and culminating in a finale where the stories come together. All three of Howell's characters grip you. Each story is more graphic, more perverse and more violent and yet, he covers each theme more brilliantly than the last. My only criticism, is that the 'ta da' moment was left right to the end. I would have liked a little more of the reveal trickled out. But that did not detract from what was once again an amazing set of stories, from one hell of an author. The only problem now is I've read all his books! More please!
Guinea pigs is a set of 3 short stories each covering a different protagonist and culminating in a finale where the stories come together. All three of Howell's characters grip you. Each story is more graphic, more perverse and more violent and yet, he covers each theme more brilliantly than the last. My only criticism, is that the 'ta da' moment was left right to the end. I would have liked a little more of the reveal trickled out. But that did not detract from what was once again an amazing set of stories, from one hell of an author. The only problem now is I've read all his books! More please!
March 30, 2016
I'm a huge fan of Howell's Disturbed Girl books and the central character Hannah Harker, so was intrigued to find out what he'd do with different stories and characters (Guinea Pigs is three short stories, with different characters, unrelated to Disturbed Girl). I wasn't let down. All the ingredients from Disturbed Girl are there, like the sex and violence and general anarchy, but he's crafted three very different worlds inhabited by very different people, but with a fascinating thread connecting them all. As with Hannah Harker, the main characters in Guinea Pigs aren't people you should like, yet Howell manages to portray them in such a way that you can't help rooting for them and empathising with them on some level. Top marks also for originality and all in all a brilliant read.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews