Geek Book Review: Inside the Outside by Martin Lastrapes

I have a reputation for reading anything.  Some books I read tend to leave me cold; I go through the whole book not caring about anyone in it.  Other books catch my attention and I am thinking about reading the book when I’m going about my daily life.  Inside the Outside is truly the latter.  With dark thoughts and an ever increasing sense of dread, Inside the Outside is a book I can read over and over again.

Here is a synopsis to get you going:

By the time Timber Marlow is fifteen years old, she has already killed three men. Despite the bloody and violent nature of their deaths, Timber is hardly a murderer, at least not in the traditional sense of the word. She has lived her entire life as a cannibal within a cult tucked away in the San Bernardino Mountains called the Divinity of Feminine Reproach. The Divinity keeps itself isolated from the Outside, which is the mainstream society beyond its invisible borders. When the opportunity presents itself, Timber escapes into the Outside, bearing witness to some dark and unsettling truths about the world around her and the integral role she plays in it. And no matter how long she stays away, Timber finds out the past isn’t as far away as she thinks it is. In this debut novel, laced with scenes of horrific violence and uplifting humanity, Martin Lastrapes has written a one-of-a-kind story about love, friendship, sacrifice, and cannibalism.

 

Martin Lastrapes shows me that not only can you make the main character in a story a killer, but you can make her a killer that people root for.  The character of Timber Marlow is lovable because of her youth and her love for others; yet she is a person who kills without remorse and this makes her one of the more interesting characters I’ve encountered lately.  There are also endless bouts of fun with the rag-tag group of friends that Timber encounters along the way.  The detail that Lastrapes uses to describe the cult that Timber is a part of makes you truly believe that cults like this could exist and probably do.  The story is told by a narrator recounting the events of Timber’s life from Timber’s viewpoint (making the recollection of the events “innocent” and naive) and the identity of the narrator makes for a great reveal in the book (no spoilers).

Overall, I found Inside the Outside to be a great book for thriller fans and fans of “fiction that could be real”.  I really am happy that I was able to review this title and I think you should head out and get the novel for your own.  If you like great characters, crimes, and cannibalism, you can’t go wrong with a book that’s all shadows and plot turns; Inside the Outside by Martin Lastrapes.

This is Martin Lastrapes debut novel and I for one can’t wait to read more of his work.

Inside the outside was courtesy of Martin Lastrapes.  Thanks.

About Jesse (The Pen of Doom)

A small time blogger with big time dreams and a love for everything geek.
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