Horns is the story of Ig, who wakes up one morning and finds that he has a pair of devil horns growing out of his head. He soon figures put that they have a very odd effect on people, in that they can't really seem to see them, however being in front of Ig seems to make the, want to confess their deepest and most horrible desires. Ig is somewhat of a pariah after the unsolved murder of his girlfriend the year before, and with the horns he finds out that everyone around him has secretly been hating him. He also finds out other weird things, like that his local priest has been shagging all the desperate housewives in the town, and that his two local redneck cops are gay for each other. The horns also seem to make people want to act on their horrible desires, and they ask Ig for permission, however he can't force them into doing something they don't already want to do.
One of the things he finds out from his brother is the he knows who killed his girlfriend, and he makes it his mission to kill him.
The book did a really good job of switching between the past and the present, and there was also a little time loop thing that was really cool and a little sad. I guess it's about getting in touch with and embracing your darker side, but also a lot about love. It touched on lots of things that stuck with me, like early relationships and how intense they are when you're really young. There is one particular part of the book set in a treehouse that I actually found really sad and it made me shed a little tear. Very good.
I've bought Joe Hill's other book of short stories to read, and if he's anything like his dad then they will be excellent.
Next: Sweet Tooth by Ian McEwan
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