Found

by Todd Rigney

Marty is the ideal fifth grader. He gets good grades, listens to his teachers, and doesn't start trouble in class.But there's a darkness settling over Marty's life.The kids at school won't stop picking on him, his family life lacks any sort of structure, and his estranged older brother collects severed heads in his bedroom closet. And when Marty's not working on countless comic books of his own design, he's filling his head with the lessons only low-budget horror movies can provide. Join Marty as he attempts to find himself amidst the chaos of his everyday life, where severed heads roll like bowling balls and horror movies might just save your life.

Genres: Horror, Thriller, Dark, Coming Of Age, Horror Thriller

136 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 17, 2015

About the author

Author of the acclaimed coming-of-age horror novel FOUND, which was adapted into an award-winning independent film by groundbreaking director Scott Schirmer. Other books include M'RTH, TWELVE, TASTE LEVEL ZERO, and DANCING ON THE EDGE OF A BLADE. His story "Old Glory" was adapted into the Shudder exclusive GLORIOUS in 2022. STIMULATE THE GOBLIN coming soon.

Reviews

[Vicki Herbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Storm Was Brewing...

FOUND
by Todd Rigney

No spoilers. 4 1/2 stars. Everyone in Marty's family worked. Mom, Dad, and his brother Steve...

Marty was a snoop...

He went through everyone's personal things while they were at work because he was the first one home when school let out...

One day...

While Marty was snooping in his brother's closet, he found a human head in Steve's bowling bag...

Since then...

Marty discovered that his brother Steve had a different head in the bag every few days, usually the head of a black woman...

Marty was an over-achiever at school, but he was still relentlessly bullied by two of the black boys in his class...

Other things bothered Marty...

His teacher didn't like him, and his best friend David wanted to distance himself from Marty because his own reputation with classmates was at stake...

David was Marty's only friend at school, and without his friendship, Marty would be an outcast and totally alone...

At home...

Marty's father was a vocal, unabashed racist who hated black people, and his mother wouldn't allow him to watch horror movies, which were his passion...

Adding to his misery...

Marty was a nervous child who let everything bother him until his stomach was constantly upset...

A storm was brewing in the household that promised to be ugly, and Marty was unable to stop the onslaught of events that would change the course of his life forever...

This is an excellent story about a young boy's effort to just get by in life with the cards (family) he'd been dealt. It was heartbreaking as well as terrifying. The events in Marty's life were out of control and spiraling to a horrific conclusion.

The story is told from Marty's POV and was a bit juvenile until 30% into it, then events rushed along like a derailed train.

Warning to some readers: murder, mayhem, incest, and racist comments are part of the story. Graphic schoolyard bullying is also depicted.

[Peter Topside · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very emotional and intense dive into the troubled life of our lead, Marty. He’s bullied, lives with a serial killer brother, parents that can’t find a good balance with him, etc. Far from the most wholesome upbringing one could imagine. So the author kept the focus on Marty throughout, which I really enjoyed. A simple, direct, and focused narrative. It added such a lovely depth to his story and experiences that it hooked me and reeled me in. And, aside from his brother’s psychopathic behaviors, anyone could relate to his struggles as they were kept grounded. So I really enjoyed almost everything in this book. There were a few patches where things dragged, which maybe could have been an opportunity to explore Steve, Marty’s brother, a bit further, to break things up. But, overall, this was a great experience and I’m eager to see more from Todd Rigney.

[হাসান মাহবুব · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have never read a book that chilling as this one. There are a lot of books about serial killing, but nothing like this. A world of murder and violence through the eyes of an 11-year-old boy who is obsessed by horror movies, the degradation of his mind, and the collapse of the daily comfortable life, all is put in such a slow and gripping manner, that it will stay with you forever. I am starting to think that the author really had a serial killer brother who keeps heads in his room!

[Kesa · Rating 3 out of 5]

That was - frankly speaking - just fucked up.
I don't see how people can watch these kind of horror films. My sister once told me that her friend watched a torture horror film on her 13th birthday. A few had nightmares following for days after it. These films aren't even enjoyable, not even one second of them. Sick.
Good book. His brother is a head collecting racist.

[renee w · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️This book had a good premise but the end left me with way too many ?’s.

[Ingmar Weyland · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very good book. I find it difficult to relate it in certain genre, this is can be coming-of-age, horror, contemporary prose or even extreme horror but most important that all true in his own hearts.

Didn't remember how exactly I stumble upon this book, it not in "to-read" in any of my goodreads friends, neither it too popular like author by oneself mentioned in his amazon:

Although a moderate critical success, the book never really found (cough) it's audience, due in part to my embarrassing lack of promotional skills.

or in somebody lists.

Anyway, when I started read it, I can't put it aside. Thus, it deserve much more readers than it have now.

Donald and Trevor's mom are looking at me. They're looking at me like I'm some sort of demented little monster that goes around bashing people's heads into the walls all the time. That's not true. I try to stay out of everyone's way so that stuff like this won't happen. I always seem to find myself surrounded by mean, ugly people. Like right now. Donald is ugly and mean. Trevor's mom is ugly and mean. And even though Mom's not that ugly, she certainly is mean sometimes.

[Bradley Noell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick, brutal (in a good way) read.

Found is the story of a boy who finds a severed head in his older brother's closet. It is at times terrifying, disturbing, and disgusting. It balance's extreme horror imagery with tension and outright terror at times. At times it almost feels like a thriller until the next horrific moment comes and you realize that this author is not playing around. It's a great book, though some of the more horrific moments are probably not for everyone (hell I'm still trying to decide if they were something I even enjoyed), and this is a very dark book. If you have a sensitive stomach or don't enjoy depressing stories, than this probably isn't for you, but if any of this sounds interesting to you, than it's worth a read. It's quick and if you're looking to be scared, disgusted, or disturbed (in the best sense) than this will fit the bill.

[George Billions · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fifth grade was a much darker time for a lot of kids than we usually like to admit. The bullies were vicious, friends could turn on you without warning, and the people who were supposed to protect you didn't have a clue and only ever seemed to make things worse. Marty is one of the unlucky ones just trying to figure out how to live in what seems to be an unbearably hate-filled world. Oh, and his brother enjoys chopping off peoples' heads. Written in a believable kid's voice, Found manages to take the bleakness of childhood and ramp it up a few notches.

[Melisa Carrasco · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the MOST disturbing book I have ever read.
It’s really well written, made me feel the story deeply and I honestly couldn’t put the book down after starting it. It has one of the best opening lines ever.
I am just in shock. Not sure if I will ever recover or forget this extremely sick story.
I need a spiritual retirement, to read only books for kids for a whole year and to start singing Christmas carols right now just to try to overcome this story.

I feel weird giving 5 stars to such a disturbing and traumatic story but I think the book is genuinely good and it really accomplishes the objective of making you feel and live the story.

[Gavin McHugh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apart from some of the themes in this, it is the voice of 10 year old Marty that makes this book. It really does feel like you're in his head and get all his realistic hopes and fears.
Some of the themes and moments are quite extreme but it doesn't just come out of nowhere, you are well prepared for the things that come as the book slowly puts the pieces into place.
Hard to say that I enjoyed this book but it is a riveting, quick read.

[Russell Gray · Rating 5 out of 5]

I planned on reading this years ago and somehow only now got to it. This definitely won't be for everyone, but it's a fantastic horror read.

I actually saw the movie adaptation first, I think 7 years ago. The director is from my city and the movie was mostly filmed here as well. There's a certain novelty to recognizing the video store where the character rent the videos from. Rest in Peace to "Video to Go". It's a tombstone store now, not even joking. There's probably an allegory there if you look for it. Likewise, I got a kick out of the stone mill used to film the movie within a movie Headless. The movie is low-budget, but really packs some surprising punches. And I can't exaggerate. It hit me hard since I saw the movie first and had no idea what was coming. For those who read the book, just know that Headless went hard.

But back to the book.

I think the author did a great job of really capturing the perspective of a 5th grader for the main character. He really captured the way the kid would think and describe things and the various quick tangents kids go off on when explaining things.

While I differed from Marty as a kid, we shared many experiences. Maybe it's also something that happened growing up in the 80s and 90s in the Midwest that a lot of us shared. It brought back memories of staring at the movie rental covers at the grocery store. Yes, the grocery store had movie rentals and the entire wall opposite the checkout registers had shelves of movies. I remember always staring at the cover for Ghoulies, the one with the gremlin coming out of the toilet, for a long time every time I waited for my parents to pay for groceries.

This was a great, short horror read that I'd recommend to most. If you enjoy it, then try to track down the movie adaptation as well. Just prepare your body. I wasn't joking. Certain scenes were way more than I expected.

[Rachel]

Written like a diary of a middle schooler named Marty.

Marty is severely bullied and has a very dysfunctional home life. I thought it was excellently written and disturbingly believable.

No rating. I’m not quite sure how to rate it.

[Fallan Bendewald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Struggled to get through. Harder to grasp the cadence of Marty. The ending very good.

[L. Rambit · Rating 1 out of 5]

I SHOULD have DNF'd Found by Todd Rigney. I saw the 2012 horror movie a while ago, and it did that Thing where it sent my ADHD-brain into an obsessive spiral. (It wasn't even a good movie! The acting was terrible, and I think it had a budget of 18 cents.) The book was worse! I'm not just talking about the constant typos. The story had a strong beginning and an intense, gory ending... And about 130 pages of filler. It's told entirely in short, choppy sentences — I get that it was a stylistic choice, putting us into the mind of our fifth-grade protagonist as he struggles to cope with his serial killer older brother, but it got old fast. And the repetition! And the contradicting! This must've been written in a single sitting as the author tried to hit a wordcount, and he didn't go back to proof-read anything. Did we really need pages of "I hate church. Church sucks. Everyone is mean. I don't want to go to church because I hate it."? Or graphic descriptions of Marty's bowel movements? Perhaps most galling was the book's poor handling of racism. Steve kills black women because he hates black people... And that's it! That's as deep as it gets. Is that really a reason to drop multiple N-bombs? IMHO, white authors can write about racism and hate crimes, but we should put more effort/depth into it than just "dang, racists sure are bad!" My final gripe: It praises the horror genre and condemns it at the same time. Horror is great! Consuming horror media might cause you, reader, to become a killer! Which one is it, Todd?! My conclusion: this book needed to be sliced in half and edited with a fine-toothed comb. There was an interesting short story in there, somewhere, but it was buried beneath a mountain of trash.

[Nilchance · Rating 2 out of 5]

Deeply unpleasant in unnecessary ways, including rape, racism, homophobia, multiple uses of slurs, bullying, child abuse... all it's missing is some gratuitous animal harm and you've got the creepypasta shock-in-place-of-horror trifecta.

The summary of the book and the movie it inspired list it as a coming-of-age story where horror movies can save you, but the story itself doesn't reflect that. Horror doesn't save anyone. It's implied (without much deconstruction) that horror films desensitized the brother to violence, inspired his killings, and combined with his father's abuse and racism, drove him to commit atrocities. The fact that the protagonist watched the same films and came away with basic empathy is somewhat marred by him ultimately coming to hate his parents and to attempt to kill one of his bullies. (Which was a high point of the story for me, the cathartic release of the protagonist standing up for himself and refusing to let the adults around him tell him that they would've solved the conflict, after they'd turned a blind eye to the bullying all story long.)

Also, the horror film that inspired the brother disgusted the protagonist, resulting in a mixed message: horror can save you, but not THAT kind of horror. THAT kind of horror will make you a crazed killer.

Rigney is a good author and I enjoyed 75% of this story, but the use of slurs and bigotry to shock the reader was lazy. I wish he'd told his story without them.

[Rex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally fucked up

Holy shit what a book! If you want to know the true depth of depravity, sickness, and perversion, look no further! This one has it all.

Told from the perspective of a 10 or 11 year old boy who has a seriously dysfunctional family. Two parents who are clueless. A mental nut of an older brother who has some serious racial hangups and thinks he's the next Jason Vorhees. The younger sibling, our main protagonist, well he's fed up with all the school and church bullies and being made to feel less than, he's got some issues too.

I was so entranced with the book I read it entirely in one sitting. This book is very easy to read and accessible. I would strongly discourage you from reading it if you're easily offended by topics like rape, incest, excessive violence, blood, gore, the n bomb being dropped several times, etc. This isn't one of the goriest splatterpunk novels out there as I've seen much worse but it'll still have you gasping for some much needed air by the 3rd or 4th hour when you've finished the book.



One of the best, if not the best short splatterpunk novels I've ever read.

[Undomiel Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

An "enjoyable" read, definitely fucked up. Unsure of who the audience is supposed to be as the MC is a child, and the tone of writing very much suits middle-grade but the content is certainly not designed for children. Also, I think the author could have presented the brother's racial motive to kill in a more nuanced way than the overuse of the N word. I think this could have definitely been illustrated in an equally as depraved way, without just using the slur over and over .

[Eric Kapitan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first discovered Found when I saw the film that it was based on. This was an excellent read with interesting characters and a story that just gets more twisted with each page. A very brutal coming of age horror tale.

[Ashley Twardy · Rating 5 out of 5]

"My brother keeps a human head in his closet." When a book's opening line is this, you know you're in for a dark read. Found is in the top 10 most f**ked up books I have read (and believe me, I've read quite a few). However dark it became though; I couldn't stop reading. There is a story beneath all the gory bits, and I found it quite good. Marty is narrating the whole story. He's 11 years old and has discovered his brother's darkest secret; he's a serial killer. While trying to cope with the truth about his brother, he also goes through tumultuous times at school; he's bullied, he doesn't really have friends and he's tired of being treated like a baby by his parents. He's addicted to horror movies and violent games; probably due to the fact that nothing could ever be as scary as what he has witnessed in 'real-life'. Marty goes through a lot of changes through the book, and I found myself really worried about this fictional character. I couldn't help but wonder how his parents could be so unaware at everything that was happening under their roof. I also found myself feeling sad for Marty that nobody seemed to understand that something was deeply disturbing him. All that said, Steve's character scared the sh*t out of me. His character was well written and very deranged. I felt extremely uneasy from the first page, and the tension just continued to build each chapter until the explosive ending. I never watched the movie, but somehow, I don't think it could ever tell the story the way this book did (do movies ever really live up to the books anyhow?). Found is a well-written, deeply disturbing book. I can't really place it in a particular genre, but if I had to sum it up, I'd say it's these: coming-of-age, horror, extreme horror, extreme and thriller.

There are plenty of triggers in this book, so if you decide to read; proceed with caution.

[Lass_Carrotop_Cassandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

One day you wake up and realise that your elder brother is keeping severed heads in a bowling bag under his bed, what would you do, what will be your first reaction

Todd Rigney has pulled out a brutal, slasher, horror and a gore novel. It leaves you in thoughts, about how capable is your mind of committing a crime (crime as thought by others). Every person has a potential of being a killer, a madness that lurks deep in our mind that jumps every now and then in a form of concept, concept of right and wrong. It just takes a moment of aggression and it pops out like a little mole from the ground if we hold back it slides back again, but what if we don't, what if we let it slip way. In a way its the same person but in a different form a form that maybe we aren't aware of. It gives a power a power of being stronger than others.

A must read for all the horror and gore fans out there. The ending of the novel is gripping and you scorch for more.

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vibes: Brothers. Heads are rolling. Bowling ball bag. Coming of age.

My Review:
Hands down, this has become a favorite. In fact, I bought the paperback immediately after because I NEEDED to have it on my bookshelf. Why was it a favorite? It’s odd.

Marty is our narrator through this life. He’s 11, he’s a prepubescent boy guiding us as readers through his day-to-day with bullies, and family life…and his brother’s head obsession. And yes, you read that right. Marty’s brother Steven likes to decapitate women and keep their heads in his bowling ball bag. And you might be thinking a variety of things, “why” being one of them. The why is pretty awful.

This book is mainly tame, looking through the eyes of a child, until it’s not and you’re left gasping. This is one of those horror books that stays with you after, and you don’t forget it. Life just isn’t the same until you know all of Marty’s family secrets.

Absolutely, positively loved this one.

[Göksel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Önce filmi izleyip sonra kitabı okuduğum nadir eserlerden birisi. (Neredeyse) her zaman olduğu gibi kitabı tercih ediyorum. Bir çocuğun ağzından anlatılan eserler genellikle çocuk kitapları olduğu için bunu korkuya uyarlamak bence emek ve beceri istiyor. Yazarın bunu başarması beni şaşırttı çünkü ana karakterin ağzından kitabı dinlerken kopukluk yaşamadım, ayrıca beni irite eden bir kısım da olmadı. Bununla birlikte basit bir konunun böylesine heyecanlı ve akıcı anlatılması hoşuma gitti. Kitabın başlangıcı ve hikayenin ortasına sizi bomba gibi atışı çok kaliteli. Ayrıca kitap ilerledikçe nabzınız da hızlanıyor. Filmi izlediğim için ne olduğunu maalesef bilsem bile bu heyecanla okumamı engellemedi. Çünkü kitabın tabiatında bu var. Etkileyici bir eser. En sevdiğim kısımda Marty'nin üstüne yüklenen bu kadar büyük stresin üstüne "sanırım ilaç içmeliyim, çocuklar bu kadar streslenmemeli. Bu büyüklerin işi." demesiydi. Bu kitabı en iyi özetleyen kısımdı.

[Jasmin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a great read. Well-paced, told in the perspective of a 12-year old, not sure if the writing style was intentionally abrupt and jumpy as a 12 year old would write it, or if it’s just the author’s writing style (this is the first book I’ve read by him) but it’s definitely fitting.
It’s quite devastating, horrific, somewhat relatable and funny at parts. I haven’t seen the movie but I can see why it wasn’t well-received and controversial because without Marty’s thoughts it can be seen as gratuitous violence (which it is but Marty is the voice of reason here)
This could have been 5 stars but I knocked down one star because detailing Marty’s flatulence and bowel movements was pretty unnecessary.

[kenny gemmoon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Psychological, very dynamic and telling of the family lives of less fortunate children. I have watched a movie before I read the book; only after did I learn that it had been based on this short story. The film is actually a pretty word to word adaptation to the original, with very slight additions and alterations.
Found was refreshing in terms of distribution of violence. Also, I’m curious whether the typos and errors were just that, or an element of author’s style - the whole story is an account of a ten year old boy.

Reminded me of the story of Kevin Katchadourian - in fewer pages and words, of course, and of different depth.
I would recommend to watch “Super dark times” to those who liked Found. The vibe is very similar.

[Wendy Del Toro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Horror is not a genre I ever read but I took a chance with this one. I was hesitant due to the warnings of graphic content but I found the slasher/gore to be minimal and not that bad; also necessary to the plot. I thought the author really nailed the voice and character of a 10 year boy and liked the ease of the storytelling which I found very accessible. Not all authors can pull this off without it sounding amateurish. Marty really came to life for me. I thought the story was engrossing and I appreciated that the author didn't go in a different direction with young Marty at the end. I did wish the hatred Steve felt towards their parents was explored a bit more but over all, a good story.

[Darren Fisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

A story of brotherly love..

Ten year old Marty loves his brother Steve. But Steve has been acting very weird recently and Marty is about to reveal the shocking truth as to why...
Written from the perspective of Marty this is a well written and gruesome little novel of how situations can quickly escalate and spiral out of control. Fast paced, the darkest of humour and plenty of blood and gore keep this twisted story going at full pelt for its brief 137pages. Highly recommended for those that have a strong disposition and cast iron gut...!!! 10/10
Now where did I leave my bowling bag...?

[Dana Laird · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of those books that after you finish it, you asked yourself, “What the hell did I just read?”

Found. is written from the perspective of Marty, a ten year old boy. He’s a good kid and very likable to the reader. What’s a kid to do when his classmates won’t stop picking on him, feels like he has mean parents, and then discovers his older brother keeps severed heads in his closet?

This was a captivating, quick read. I couldn’t put it down, just wanting to know what happens next. I wouldn’t classify this as extreme horror, but wouldn’t recommend it for those that are easily offended.

[Riya Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some things are better when they are darker like chocolate, coffee, humour and the best one ladies and gentlemen, Horror.
"Found "is the darkest, disturbing, depraved book by far in all the horror books i have read till date.

I was so invested in the protagonist, "Marty", the 11 year old boy who accidentally discovers his brother is a serial killer and how. This is a scary novella which will do a number on you.. If you are looking for a good 'old horror read this winter taking you back to the 90s era pick this up right away.

Cons: The book entails quite a fee triggering and disturbing topics , so absolutely not for the weak hearted

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is all sorts of messed up (in a good way because it’s fiction). It starts out weird and a bit gross (severed heads in a bowling ball bag) and escalates from there. The last few chapters had me literally gasping. Certainly didn’t end the way I expected. Leaves a lot of questions… not necessarily in a bad way.

Not sure if it was self-published as there are a number of typos - annoying but didn’t bother as much as it normally would, probably because the narrator is a kid.. The writing style is also sort of choppy, but that could be the child narrator too.

[Adri Dren]

I read a lot of dark stuff but this book really struck me. I think it's because it's being told from the perspective of a little kid and you cant help but hear his little voice which makes reading the story that much darker. This book is more sad than anything. Anyone who has been bullied can relate. As an adult its hard to really recall our elementary school days because it's so far in the past but this book made you feel like you were 10 years old again looking through Marty's eyes. Rigney really makes you *feel* everything that happens in this story. Heavy stuff.