Loaded

by Joe Hill

190 pages, ebook

About the author

Joe Hill's debut, Heart-Shaped Box, won the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel. His second, Horns, was made into a film freakfest starring Daniel Radcliffe. His other novels include NOS4A2, and his #1 New York Times Best-Seller, The Fireman... which was also the winner of a 2016 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Horror Novel.

He writes short stories too. Some of them were gathered together in his prize-winning collection, 20th Century Ghosts.

He won the Eisner Award for Best Writer for his long running comic book series, Locke & Key, co-created with illustrator and art wizard Gabriel Rodriguez.

He lives in New Hampshire with a corgi named McMurtry after a certain beloved writer of cowboy tales. His next book, Strange Weather, a collection of novellas, storms into bookstores in October of 2017.

Reviews

[LindyStar]

Just no. He wrote the horror we can see any night on the news, zero paranormal fun reading, no escaping the real world with this book, just flat out HORRIBLE racist, sexist terror that really DOES happen each day. I avoid the news and turn to books for a reason, this is the last thing I want to read in my escape. Sick to my stomach, was hoping to finish it and at least learn something, be enlightened, come away a better human somehow but no, I'm just sick and sad at the reminder of the true terror in the world.

[Nganka]

the starting portion is boring b/w Aisha and Colson (like most joe hill stories ) and not much relevant to the story (along with some other portions which could've been chalked off) , but after that it picks up and becomes a very good moral thriller whose end packs a punch . really liked it.



one of my fav novellas

[Nick Katenkamp]

Loaded is a great novella. This story covers controversial issues including gun violence and the over policing of the black community. I know what Joe Hill's political beliefs are, but he does a good job of avoiding making this too overly political. The ending is particularly shocking and made me question what Joe Hill was trying to convey through the novella.

[Luke C]

Was not a big fan of this one. I appreciated the issues it touched on and it did have some thrilling moments but that didn’t make for an overly interesting story and it was far too dragged out for what it was.

[Baby Monster #563]

Hard to pick a favorite joe hill story. But this one i often think back to. This is probably my favorite. For now. Intense as hell. I think for some this hits as anti gun. But it left me more pro gun. I thinks thats the one the marks of a great story. Hitting on both sides of an issue

[Ramey Zamora]

Joe is a good writer, one of the best modern authors & it's disappointing to see him fail - just barely - with this effort. Hill is attempting to develop a deep bond between the reader & the characters in the story. This is critical to the impact he's going for. Unfortunately in my view the writing falls short in this department; it's unclear whether it's because the build up is too lengthy or Hill's skill at creating empathy through the use of dialogue is lacking. Joe has many excellent stories left to tell & time enough to polish his techniques. "Loaded" is well worth the listen/read to enjoy watching a good writer on his way to becoming a great writer.

[Kelly]

3.75, but rounding up. I read this short story as a part of Joe Hill’s Strange Weather collection. I will say it was my second most liked of the four short stories. This one really was quite ugly and touched on some serious topics. I generally read to escape reality, but I realize the gravity of turning a blind cheek so I was glad to have read this. I realize why some wouldn’t like the ending, but I was glad that it cut off where it did. My only issue was the fluidity between the beginning sequence to the remainder of the story, but my brain quickly caught up. I just wish there had been a smoother transition.

[Andrew kutz]

This story is dark man after finishing it. I was in shock. It starts soft dark and it ends dark, which is ironic since it deals with a forest fire, but it was so well written and the twist and turns and shocking material were not there just for shock valueit reminds me why I think that Joe Hills one of the best authors that is alive today.

[Jeremy]

I was fully prepared to give this 1 star, as I found it to be poorly written and full of characters that are nothing more than clichés, but the ending is genuinely shocking and somewhat thought provoking. It’s an excellent ending tacked onto a below average story.

[Rambling Irishman]

The story was a little slow gwtting to the punch, however it was well written.
4/5 from me.

[Kate]

Absolutely terrifying. The first bit didn't seem to connect well for me. I feel like it could have been left out, eluded to, and it would have had the same impact.

[J.]

Great short story. Relevant to our world...the crazy, judgemental, unhinged feelings...all alive and well (portrayed) in much of it's ugliness.

[N. E. Rule]

well written but did not like the ending. i guess it was more realistic than not tho. but sad.

[Simon S]

Bored the balls off me

[Angela Smith]

Super compelling but, man, that ending!

[Wendy]

5 hours 19 minutes on Audio: Description taken from Strange Weather by Joe Hill.

In Loaded, a mall security guard in a coastal Florida town courageously stops a mass shooting and becomes a hero to the modern gun rights movement. But under the glare of the spotlights, his story begins to unravel, taking his sanity with it. When an out-of-control summer blaze approaches the town, he will reach for the gun again and embark on one last day of reckoning.

Yea, this book seemed to hit on every hot topic in today's news world. Possibly a little too close for comfort. I happen to read mostly murder and mayhem and I was not bothered by the violence or hate in this story.