One of the most outrageous, original and insightful books ever written on the subject of alienation and societal decay, Cows is a violent, blood soaked nightmare – a scatological tale of love, self-empowerment and probably the most extreme novel you’ll ever read. Hailed around the world as a cult classic, Matthew Stokoe’s novel set the bar for gritty urban horror.
Mother’s corpse in pieces, dead dog on the roof, girlfriend in a coma, baby nailed to the wall, and a hundred tons of homicidal beef stampeding through the subway system. And Steven thought the slaughterhouse was bad . . .
“If you enjoy the sensation of your jaw dropping to the floor in a combination of stupefaction, hilarity, and shock, Cows is your book. Matthew Stokoe has written a novel like no other I’ve ever read–appalling, funny, and possessed of a sense of outre violence that makes Joris-Karl Huysmans read like Louisa May Alcott.”
–Scott Phillips, author of The Ice Harvest
“Underground literary shock-rocker Stokoe (Empty Mile, 2010, etc.) slaps his readers in the face with this bloody, truly disgusting diatribe against normalcy. On the bright side, there’s absolutely no pretense about what the book is aiming for…”
–Kirkus Review
I have no idea how I’m going to review this book. I don’t even know how to rate it. This will be a book that I’ll think about for a long time. So for that alone, I’ll rate it 5 stars.
Warning: This book is NOT for the faint of heart and if you have a weak stomach, I suggest not reading this.
So I’m new to the horror genre and this year, I’ve found myself reading extreme horror. As a horror movie fan, I figured I’d give horror books a shot and I haven’t been disappointed yet.
Cows by Matthew Stokoe has left my head reeling. I really have no words to describe what I just read but here goes nothing.
This book is highly graphic. Definitely the most graphic book I’ve ever read. So for that alone, I’m giving it a high rating. This was like a train wreck that you can’t look away from. I had to know how it was going to end, so I forced myself to get through the graphic and nauseating scenes.
The writing was so descriptive, I could see the scenes play out in my mind. Lots of reviewers said that the writing was awful, maybe it’s because I’m new to this genre, but I thought the writing was some of the best I’ve ever read. But art is subjective, that’s what makes it exciting.
I am left feeling a little confused but at the same time, I don’t mind that so much. I think maybe the author wrote it that way, so we could all come up with our own theories regarding Stephen and his…um…issues.
After reading this book, a part of me never wants to eat beef ever again.
Available in Kindle Unlimited – https://amzn.to/3RUq4wp