The Iron Giant was the first fiction book that I read completely on my own.
Just finished The Pet by Charles L. Grant
It's a Carrie-esque story about a teenager who can summon a demonic horse that protects him from his tormenters. The horse of course cannot tell between true hatred and intense frustration with loved ones and chaos ensues.
Being an 80s book it's very King-like, but I think CLG is actually a better writer than King. Although the book is reasonable length CLG feels more economical in his style and avoids King's tendency to over-write things. The high school milieu is well rendered, with for the most part believable teens and the usual flawed adults.
Debits were that it was sometimes hard to empathise with the main character who didn't seem to have it that bad compared to a lot of bullied teens I knew and despite his best efforts it's hard to buy into a horse being scary, even one that strikes green sparks from it's hooves and is continuously swathed in mist.
Overall an entertaining read, but I'm not sure it deserves it's place in Kim Newman and Stephen Jones's 100 best horror books list?
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