Book Review Haunted - Foot Work Autobook

 
Title: Haunted  - Foot Work
Author: Chuck Palahniuk
Stars: 4 out of 5

Review:
A Friend suggested this book to me but because I was back log with so many other books she had me listen to the Foot Work one day.  I was blown away but this story it was so haunting and tragic. I haven't read the book from the beginning only the synopsis. The premise is very much a macabre parody of human endeavor. Life, suffer and death in some of the most horrific ways.
Foot Work is about two women who learned that aromatherapy, feng shui,reflexology, acupuncture and aura can kill people if done right or wrong. One woman Lentil used her gifts to enhance sexual pleasure without having to anything but massage feet. Making thousands of dollar. She brings in her friend who hasn't earned a lot of money from just practicing "traditional" reflexology. Soon it goes from sexual pleasure to killing people for the Russian Mob. When Lentil decides she is done with this path in life the writer Mother Nature learns her friend was killed with a bullet.
  The story is dark but at the same time pulls the reader in with every descriptive word. 
I never listen to autobooks because my mind becomes easily distracted however this story pulled me in and I couldn't stop listening. 
I have read that each story gets darker and human nature we all hold back comes alive in horrific and deadly ways. I don't think I will read the book as a whole but find certain stories to read.

Synopsis: 
Haunted is a novel made up of stories: twenty-three of the most horrifying, hilarious, mind-blowing, stomach-churning tales you'll ever encounter.

They are told by the people who have all answered an ad headlined 'Artists Retreat: Abandon your life for three months'. They are led to believe that here they will leave behind all the distractions of 'real life' that are keeping them from creating the masterpiece that is in them. But 'here' turns out to be a cavernous and ornate old theater where they are utterly isolated from the outside world - and where heat and power and, most importantly, food are in increasingly short supply. And the more desperate the circumstances become, the more desperate the stories they tell - and the more devious their machinations to make themselves the hero of the inevitable play/movie/non-fiction blockbuster that will certainly be made from their plight.

About The Author:

Written in stolen moments under truck chassis and on park benches to a soundtrack of The Downward Spiral and Pablo Honey, Fight Club came into existence. The adaptation of Fight Club was a flop at the box office, but achieved cult status on DVD. The film’s popularity drove sales of the novel. Chuck put out two novels in 1999, Survivor and Invisible Monsters. Choke, published in 2001, became Chuck’s first New York Times bestseller. Chuck’s work has always been infused with personal experience, and his next novel, Lullaby, was no exception. Chuck credits writing Lullaby with helping him cope with the tragic death of his father. Diary and the non-fiction guide to Portland, Fugitives and Refugees, were released in 2003. While on the road in support of Diary, Chuck began reading a short story entitled 'Guts,' which would eventually become part of the novel Haunted.

In the years that followed, he continued to write, publishing the bestselling Rant, Snuff, Pygmy, Tell-All, a 'remix' of Invisible Monsters, Damned, and most recently, Doomed.

Chuck also enjoys giving back to his fans, and teaching the art of storytelling has been an important part of that. In 2004, Chuck began submitting essays to ChuckPalahniuk.net on the craft of writing. These were 'How To' pieces, straight out of Chuck's personal bag of tricks, based on the tenants of minimalism he learned from Tom Spanbauer. Every month, a “Homework Assignment” would accompany the lesson, so Workshop members could apply what they had learned. (all 36 of these essays can currently be found on The Cult's sister-site, LitReactor.com).

Then, in 2009, Chuck increased his involvement by committing to read and review a selection of fan-written stories each month. The best stories are currently set to be published in Burnt Tongues, a forthcoming anthology, with an introduction written by Chuck himself.

His next novel, Beautiful You, is due out in October 2014.