Damned by Chuck Palahniuk

Damned

by Chuck Palahniuk

'Are you there, Satan? It's me, Madison'

Meet Madison, whip-tongued daughter of a narcissistic film star and a billionaire, abandoned at a Swiss boarding school over Christmas while her parents are off adopting more orphans. Madison dies of a marijuana overdose and awakes to find herself in Hell, sharing her cell with a motley crew of young sinners that's almost too good to be true.

Welcome to the afterlife as only Palahniuk could imagine it - he makes eternal torment, well, simply divine.

Reviewed by mary on

2 of 5 stars

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Not my favorite of his by any means. I thought this book was boring (how much can happen in hell, honestly?) and I disliked the voice of the protagonist. For some reason, I’m of the mind that this read would have been much more effective if the protagonist had been an 18-year-old male instead of a 13-year-old female. I found her defensive nature extremely grating (“yes, I know what XYZ” is became a very redundant phrase very quickly), and lacking the gravitas that an older character with more experience might have brought to the story.

I would recommend starting with Fight Club if you plan on reading Palahniuk.

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  • 6 December, 2013: Reviewed