Monstrosity

by Edward Lee

Blue skies, palm trees, and flawless white-sand beaches. Clare Prentiss thinks her new home is paradise, and her brand-new job as security chief at the clinic almost seems too good to be true. It is. But the truth is worse than she could ever imagine.

Lurid dreams, erotic obsessions, and twisted fantasies aren't the only things that abruptly invade Clare's life. Is someone really peeping into her windows at night? Yes. Could those grotesque things in the woods possibly be real? Yes. Is Clare being stalked? Yes. But not by anything human. By a monstrosity.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Splatterpunk, Science Fiction, Monsters, Aliens, Horror Thriller

373 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2002

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Edward Lee is an American novelist specializing in the field of horror, and has authored 40 books, more than half of which have been published by mass-market New York paperback companies such as Leisure/Dorchester, Berkley, and Zebra/Kensington. He is a Bram Stoker award nominee for his story "Mr. Torso," and his short stories have appeared in over a dozen mass-market anthologies, including THE BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES OF 2000, Pocket's HOT BLOOD series, and the award-wining 999. Several of his novels have sold translation rights to Germany, Greece, and Romania. He also publishes quite actively in the small-press/limited-edition hardcover market; many of his books in this category have become collector's items. While a number of Lee's projects have been optioned for film, only one has been made, HEADER, which was released on DVD to mixed reviews in June, 2009, by Synapse Films.

Lee is particularly known for over-the-top occult concepts and an accelerated treatment of erotic and/or morbid sexual imagery and visceral violence.

He was born on May 25, 1957 in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Bowie, Maryland. In the late-70s he served in the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Division, in Erlangen, West Germany, then, for a short time, was a municipal police officer in Cottage City, Maryland. Lee also attended the University of Maryland as an English major but quit in his last semester to pursue his dream of being a horror novelist. For over 15 years, he worked as the night manager for a security company in Annapolis, Maryland, while writing in his spare time. In 1997, however, he became a full-time writer, first spending several years in Seattle and then moving to St. Pete Beach, Florida, where he currently resides.

Of note, the author cites as his strongest influence horror legend H. P. Lovecraft; in 2007, Lee embarked on what he calls his "Lovecraft kick" and wrote a spate of novels and novellas which tribute Lovecraft and his famous Cthulhu Mythos. Among these projects are THE INNSWICH HORROR, "Trolley No. 1852," HAUNTER OF THE THRESHOLD, GOING MONSTERING, "Pages Torn From A Travel Journal," and "You Are My Everything." Lee promises more Lovecraftian work on the horizon.

Reviews

[Karl]

This Cemetery Dance hardcover is one of 1000 produced and is signed by Edward Lee.

Clare Prentiss thinks her new home and her new job as security chief at at Fort Alachua Park, a Florida wild lands preserve, seems too good to be true. But the truth is worse than she could ever imagine as Clare is soon stalked by monstrous creations of genetic mutation.

Science intersects with supernatural phenomena. The book has a couple of story threads,

[MadameD · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story 3.5/5
Narration 5/5

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading every summer one Edward Lee's extreme horror/splatterpunk novel is a guilty pleasure of mine... and I can't really recommend them to anyone without someone calling the cops or a sanitarium.
This one too is not going to win a feminist award because of the high (explicit)sex/ (luckly not explicit) rape count, but it was a thrilling action packed gory creature feature... like reading a Resident Evil screenplay made by a Troma (try watching Slither and some older flicks by James Gunn, now famous Guardians of the Galaxy movies director, just to say...) author under alcohol and drugs, and some characters and their names seem just inspired by the RE franchise: Clare=Claire; Joice=Jill; Winster=Wesker. Chance coincidence or easter eggs? Who knows.
A must read for fans of Lee and gut wrenching horror... stay far away everybody else, be warned!!!

[11811 (Eleven) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was gross. Not sure I recommend it but I do know that I loved it. I can still feel something crawling under my skin. Fun stuff! I may need to go on an Edward Lee binge this year.

[Vicki Willis · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my kind of horror book! I thought it was great all the way though. I loved the story, the characters and the setting. This was the first book I have read by this author, but I will definitely read him again. The ending (epilogue) was somewhat out in left field for me, but otherwise I would recommend this book to anyone who likes their horror gross and gorey.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first Lee novel and I chose it as I live in Central Florida, where it was set. Ketchum blurbed that 'Edward Lee's writing is fast and mean as a chain saw revved to full-tilt boogie' and I have to agree. Visceral and relentless, Lee can tell a mean story. The bulk of this takes place on a Gulf island off St. Pete at a research facility run by the US Air Force. Our main lead Clare was an MP in the Air Force and after suffering a horrible rape, gets railroaded out of the Air Force as the attacker was the base Commandant's own son and coordinated a cover up that led to her being guilty of purgery and dishonorably discharged. Clare, now homeless in St. Pete meets a man who wants her to run security at the research base on the island. Clare, shocked at first, settles in to what seems like a dream job, with a rent-free apartment and lots of perks. Something weird, however, is going on at the base and island and this is no slow burn, but a feat of relentless pacing until the conclusion.

I am sure Lee set off a number of triggers here, so be warned. Many nasty rape scenes, horrible mutant bugs and other uglies, a truly nasty villain, and so forth populate the story. Expect to be shocked and appalled! Clare gives us a likeable character and a great supporting cast, however. I still feel that I need to take a shower after reading it. 4.5 stars.

[Jychelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh I love my splatterpunk. Even though there are many accounts of gore and rape the absolute worst part of the book was being naked and covered in bugs that are attracted to "moist" places. Ugh. I actually had a nightmare about that part!
Overall this is one of the best horror books I've read. Gorey, sex, violence, experiments, weird frog human babies. What's not to love?

[Kathrin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es war spannend und hat Spaß gemacht zu lesen!
Ich finde, dass es weniger banal war, als der Klappentext es vermuten lässt.

[Benjamin Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Edward Lee horror novel and based on this one, likely not my last. Nice plot, good pacing and nicely done horror mixed with a lot of over-the-top craziness. Sort of like watching a car crash...repulsive in many ways but I can't look away. Reminds me a lot of Richard Laymon and since I've read most of his books, Lee might serve well as a replacement.

One problem with this novel, however, which struck me a lot more than it will most readers. The author's biography tells of some time served in the US Army. However, his characters in this book are almost all ex-Air Force security forces people. Unfortunately, the author made quite a few assumptions that the AF is the same as the Army. It's not. For example, his AF characters refer to shopping at the PX ("Post Exchange" in Army terms) instead of the "BX ("Base Exchange for AF). He references security platoons (sorry, no platoons in the AF). I could list more examples but you get the idea. Minor points to be sure but it represents lazy writing. These are all easily researched items, even way back in 2003 when this was published.

I intend to sample more of Lee's work from time to time.

[charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

i love you Edlee i hope i get reincarnated as an edlee female protagonist someday

[Brian Steele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perhaps you're looking for some good, straight out horror? Edward Lee has impressed me with his previous novels, and he didn't disappoint with "Monstrosity." Almost reckless in its atrocities, Lee's work is NOT for the casual reader, not for the lite King fan. We find a disgrace military officer discover a new life in the Florida Keys working at a mysterious cancer research lab as head of security. As she begins to notice more and more strange things occur, the woods beyond the perimeter are filling with bloodied savaged and violated bodies. There's rape and cannibalism, sadism and unnatural abominations. Gore at its finest. Lee is world class story teller, but his tales are definitely for those with a strong stomach.

[Charlene (Char)🍁☕️📚 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monsters and the Unknown

I had this book marked on my TBR pile in 2017 and I can mark this book as completed. Edward Lee never disappoints me he is one of those authors that can’t do no wrong in my eyes. This book is about a woman name Clare who had a trouble past that has now found herself homeless until one day everything changes. She finds herself being head of security at a clinic that has made a breakthrough with clinical studies. From here a web of deceit, disappearances, and sexual activities that need not be mentioned.
This book was very hard to put down. It has kept me up past my bedtime. If you want a nice read with a side of depravity this is the book for you.
Story- 5/5
Character Development- 5/5

[Angela Occhino · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5⭐️

[Ravenskya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Apart from the ending, this book was a very fun fast paced read. True it's filled with sex and quite a bit of gore and more than a handful of rapes, but as with Flesh Gothic, for some reason the sex and rapes didn't bother me as much as they do in other horror writer's books. Perhaps it is because of the lack of detail and description in Lee's writing.

Short Synopsis- Two concurrent stories run through the book, one is about an archeology dig and the second (and main story) follows Clair, who had just been hired to run security for a science lab in the middle of nowhere Florida. Unfortunately the locals are disappearing, the wild life is mutating into large ugly fanged beasts, and something fishy is going on at the lab.

The book is gory, but the gore takes second seat to the sex... there is a LOT of it in this book, rapes, fantasies, threesomes, peeping toms, all kinds of naughty things are going on. The simple fact that Lee rarely describes anything that is going on is the only thing that keeps this book from being pornographic. The words "she was violated" sum up about all you're going to get as far as deep description and he repeats the fact that just about every female character introduced gets "violated" at some point.

But back to the story... this was really fun for most of the book, it was fast paced, bad things were going on, there were lots of possible bad guys to pick from, everyone seems suspicious and Clare is having a rough time anyway. The book keeps your interest from beginning to end... and then I was disappointed. I don't think I've read a book ends so tidily. The end might just as well have been ripped out of a Hollywood blockbuster with everyone riding off into the sunset on horses (I'm being facetious, there aren't any horses). In all honesty it was just TOO neat and tidy... like in the end of "Jaws" when Richard Dryfuss pops back out of the water and basically announces "I wasn't dead, I was just pretending" that's basically the ending you have here.

But if you're in the mood for a trashy horror novel, this can be a really fun time waster as long as you don't expect excellent writing. Oh, and whoever edited the book needs to be shot because several two letter words are missing (as, to, etc) the first time I was confused, then I started noticing, it happens quite often (I think I counted 5 or more instances of it) so if you're a grammar nazi, this book will probably drive you crazy.

Fun read that goes by fast, just don't expect a genius ending. It'll all play out just like you expected it to.

[Not Now...Mommy's Reading · Rating 2 out of 5]

Edward Lee is one of my favorite horror authors. I had just finished "Flesh Gothic" and was looking forward to the same chills and stomach-turning images in "Monstrosity". Unfortunately, I spent the majority of my time flipping through the pages thinking, "What the *%^$ is going on?" and then when all was revealed - let's just say the ending was a major letdown. Definitely not your typical Edward Lee.

I gave it two stars because the side bits with the 'necks and other minor characters were rather good. Mutant roaches? Giant eels? Loved it! Too bad the rest of the story flopped.

Needless to say, this will not keep me from reading another Edward Lee novel.

[William III · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lee definitely has a talent for grossing out readers with his brutal descriptions of terror and violence, but overall this particular story was too slowly paced. I have a few other Lee books on my shelf that I am eager to dig into, though. I just hope his others don't take 200 pages before it starts to get interesting.

[Paula Brandon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clare Prentiss, formerly in the Army, is now homeless. She was raped by the commander's son, and the whole thing was covered up and she was dishonourably discharged for being a liar. However, salvation comes in the form of a new security chief job at a cancer clinic that has developed an exciting cure for an aggressive form of cancer. The job comes with a much-needed salary and its own cottage on the beach.

Sound too good to be true? Of course it is. There are frogs, snakes and cockroaches all far bigger than they're supposed to be - some with fangs! Clare wonders what happened to three employees who used to work at the clinic who suddenly vanished. She starts experiencing erotic thoughts and dreams, and becomes lustful for Dellin, the guy who recruited her. And there seems to be a deformed rapist monster picking off local rednecks who trespass on the facility's grounds!

This was a decent horror romp, with something always going on, so it was never boring. It isn't inundated with new characters every chapter. I also appreciated that while there was rape in this novel, it never came across as lurid and exploitative, as it usually does with an author like, say, Richard Laymon, whose work I otherwise quite like. It is never described in any detail and generally actually has relevance to the plot. There was plenty of gore and violence, like any good horror book!

However, as much as things were happening, it still felt like the book was spinning its wheels for most of its length. The explanation as to what is going on only comes in the last 50 pages or so. Up until then, it's just characters seeing mutated creatures and animals, and the hulking monster creature going after the locals. It felt somewhat repetitive at times, and I occasionally just wished for the book to get to the point!

Other than that, there's nothing remarkable here, but it does offer a decent helping of horror and manages to be consistently entertaining.

[ᴍᴀᴛsᴀғɪ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Książka "Potworność" autorstwa Edwarda Lee to horror opowiadający o Clare Prentiss, która myśli, że jej nowy dom jest rajem, a nowa posada jako szefowej ochrony szpitala - spełnieniem marzeń. Niestety prawda jest zupełnie inna. Ponure sny, erotyczne obsesje i pokręcone fantazje nie są jedynymi rzeczami, które nagle nawiedzają Clare.

Czy ktoś naprawdę podgląda ją w nocy przez okno? Czy te groteskowe rzeczy w lesie mogą być prawdziwe?
Czy Clare jest prześladowana?
TAK, ale nie przez człowieka … a przez monstrum!

[Sharon Leung · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Another great read from Mr Lee. The storyline and characters were captivating. You think the story is going one way adventures a sudden twist and it goes opposite. The mutations were disgusting and the description of them was so good you could picture them in all there gross abominations. Good read with gross parts and freakishly horrible mutations. I really enjoyed it and would recommend.

[Caleb · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Edward Lee. It certainly won't be my last. His brand of gore and grotesqueness is pitch perfect. Layered and sympathetic protagonist here, with Clare Prentiss. Lee also captures Florida's unsettling, creepy backwoods to a T. Excellent storytelling.

[Nate Dawg · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another awesome book by Edward Lee. Full of action, blood, gore and sex and super entertaining.

[Marek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surely not that bad as others say, but I would say it is mild for Ed's standard.

[Scott Holstad · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been reading (and writing some) all sorts of different horror books and authors since I was a kid. I've met some, known some, hung out with some, been published with some but during my whole life, while I have enjoyed the macabre, the surreal, psychological horror, the masters, the fringe and everything in-between, and while I have admired a writer's imagination, mastery of their craft, ability to suspend disbelief, etc., Edward Lee is the only writer I can think of who has actually scared the shit out of me -- and not just once, but consistently with every single work of his I've read. I've been fortunate to meet or know tons and tons of people prominent for all sorts of reasons, whether as politicians, entertainers, athletes, military leaders, researchers, religious leaders, writers, artists, etc. And I've been fortunate enough to have been published with a number of Pulitzer and Nobel winners as well as tons of city, state and US Poet Laureates, and some other surprisingly famous people not necessarily known primarily for their writing [If interested, it remains a work in progress, but I began a webpage on my site compiling a list of names of "famous" writers/people I've been published with -- in the SAME publication issue, not just a magazine series, etc. You'll probably find some surprising names: https://hankrules2011.com/my-famous-w...] I've been delighted to meet and get to know, if not have true friendships with many, but there are few out there I would seek out to meet -- I'm not desperate nor easily impressed. Edward Lee, though, to me is such a uniquely gifted horror writer, a genius IMO, that he is certainly a person I'd wouldn't mind running across, saying hello to, etc., because he really differentiates himself from the field and that is seriously hard to do. Plaudits. This book isn't his highest rated book. Don't care. Even his lesser loved stuff beats the hell out of the competition. I've heard and read some people make comments expressing concern about excessive violence or blood n' gore or whatever. Well, if guilty, he does it well. I've never viewed him as a slasher porn horror writer and I don't know why anyone would. Some people have a difficult time taking a literary punch to the gut. If you think that can't happen in every genre, try poetry. Just for kicks, here's a question I faced some time ago from one interviewer: "Your most recent book, The Napalmed Soul, is frequently described as “disturbing.” What kind of people do you think your work attracts?" [Question asked of Holstad in an interview with Jonathan Penton, Publisher Sick Puppy Press (2000).] Then there was this reader review regarding the same book: "This poetry is about laughing in death’s face, begging it to play Russian Roulette with you.” [When reading], “my stomach became twisted in knots…and [I] became nauseous toward the middle… [But] I could not put this book down…It’s the same feeling I got when I read American Psycho, though the subject matter is different… You can’t read this book and not be greatly affected." I'm sure my mother would have been proud had she seen her son's 14+ years of higher education reduced to that. LOL! That was far from the only one. Lummox Press published an infamous series based on City Lights' Pocket Poets series called the Little Red Book series. My Hang Gliding on X was LRB13. In 2009, they published an anthology of the 10-year series called The Long Way Home: The Best Of the Little Red Book Series, 1998-2008. The late, long esteemed, Todd Moore wrote a long review in one of his Outlaw Poetry sections and this little gem has been one I've long been proud of: “This is the kind of anthology which appeals to the primal instincts beginning with cover design and following through with the contents. And if you think that’s an exaggeration, try this poem by Scott Holstad [“Time To Fly” — reprinted in its entirety]. Some poems contain within them the ability to inflict serious damage to the reader...this kind of poetry inflicts the deepest of psychic wounds.” Disturbing. Psychic wounds. Many people might not like that. Me? I dig it. The irony is I never intentionally set out to write such things, much less any books of horror poetry I would later find identified as "horror poetry" (No one bothered telling me I wrote a genre I didn't know existed until I found myself in The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror, Volume 11, 2000.) While a lot of people preferred my earlier, younger Bukowski-compared raunchy gutter stuff and my social activist material, I think my later blood and guts stuff really impacted more people, and if it was painful for anyone, life can be tough. Sometimes we need to be reminded of that.

So at the risk of being accused of hijacking Mr. Lee's review for self-promotion purposes, please forgive. My books have been out of print for a long time and the two I mentioned are literally impossible to find anywhere and are considered collector's items. Just examples to serve my purpose here. My point is that THOSE are the type of words and feelings I would and do use when I read Edward Lee, and as I tried to indicate, when I use such words in this context, it's meant as a major compliment because so much stuff out there is meaningless pap -- including some of mine, no doubt. And while not everything has to be Kierkegaard, and good escapist books can be awesome, sometimes I like some stuff with substance. Sometimes I want to end a book feeling like I got punched in the gut relentlessly and survived, all the better for it. And in saying that, I hope should Edward Lee ever see this review, he will understand its intent and not take offense because I say such things rarely and about few. If one enjoys the horror genre or if one were simply interested in exploring it, you might want to be prepared (which I just tried to do), but I can't recommend any writer more strongly than Edward Lee.

[Mikepottz · Rating 4 out of 5]

An archaeological dig discovers heads torn off bodies from 10000 years before. Clare raped, humiliated, dragged through shit by the Air Force, cover ups, no justice, now homeless, can't even find a job cleaning shithouses. In the dark woods, two drug crazed rednecks fucking, the man gets his head ripped off, his innards ripped out falling over the girls head. The girl dragged by the hair, raped repeatedly. Clare gets a job in a secret medical facility. The job too good to be true. Another girl strangled, her neck wringed out like a dish rag, she rips off a scrotum with her hands. The riverways have two headed snakes, cockroaches the sizes of cats, rats the size of dogs, mutate animals. A millipede a metre long digs its way into a guys urethra. Cover ups and mutate medical horror of gene splitting terror.

[Robert Reiner · Rating 4 out of 5]

So after reading six books of 600 plus pages this year so far I needed a simple read. A guilty pleasure if you will. A straight up, in your face horror novel that doesn't attempt to overdo it but is a solid story all the same. Thanks Ed Lee for fulfilling that desire. I never read your stuff prior to this and clearly I've been missing out. Great lead character, lots of gore, some good scares and a solid ending (despite what some other reviewers are saying about the end). The fact that I read it in less than 24 hours says it all. This would make for an entertaining movie and I'd pay ten bucks to see it on the big screen. Question is...what Ed Lee novel do I pick up next?

[Joshua Hair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Back in the yonder years this book was my first foray into Ed Lee. Now, ten years later, I can say that it’s disgusting, sadistic, somewhat poorly written, and fairly fun. Despite being four hundred pages the writing is simple and succinct enough that it feels shorter. There are moments of great writing generally marred by stupidity a few sentences later. All that said, if you’re looking for a quick, dirty, nasty read and don’t mind a bit of senselessness then give Monstrosity a try.

[R.W. Ridley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hardcore creature feature of a novel. I was eager to get back to it in the evenings after getting my work done. Not for the timid. This isn't just about things that go bump in the night. This is much, much more frightening and beastly.

[Adamus (Like Adonis, but with a M) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought the book was a pretty descent read for my first Edward Lee book. I kind of wished I read one of his more gorey books but for the most part I enjoyed it and it was a page turner with one of the biggest twists I've seen in a ending. I will def be reading more from him.

[Tammi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I guess I liked it... I just wish there wasn't so much to do about rape!

[Latasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

to much sex & rape.