Mandibles

Enough with the whinin’, back to business:

A lot of people who realized there is a connection between humor and horror, but few have embraced the concept as effectively as Jeff Strand. In Mandibles, he takes a horror concept that is inherently ludicrous (giant bugs – in this case, ants) and milks it for all its worth. In a testament to how well he pulls it off, the book works as either a gonzo horror novel or a straight out comedy.

The book jumps straight into the action, as Tampa, Florida is overrun with overly large fire ants (Southerners know they are scary enough in their normal form). The book follows the actions of various people, including two psychotic criminals and a visiting ant expert as they try to escape the onslaught, and find a way to put an end to it. As the book progresses, the ants become larger and larger, until the finally approach the size of the ants who gave James Whitmore hell in the 1954 movie THEM!.

I don’t know what else needs to be said. It’s a humorous horror novel about giant ants, for Cthulhu’s sake. If that interests you, go read it.

P.S. I would point out that there can’t possibly be ants as large as in the novel, since this would be prohibited by the square-cubed law, but everyone thinks I’m a geek, and I’m trying to be just a regular guy. A regular guy who reads books about giant ants, that is.