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Re: Mine too! Danae al'Thor Send a noteboard - 14/09/2010 06:34:25 PM
I'd argue that it's not a thriller, since it doesn't rely quite as heavily on certain specific thriller tropes - but the lack of certain horror tropes makes it harder to be fanatical about it. :)

If the scary comes purely from people, without any suggestion of something supernatural, I call it a thriller. If not, horror. Though admittedly that leaves me with movies like "Scream" that one would be inclined to call horror even though it's all just people. But people wearing that freaky inhuman mask, so it still kind of works.

What thriller tropes would you say are missing?
Read it anyway, Rebekah, and make sure Tim's around to give you hugs after!

Indeed.


I'd say that a thriller tends to have a plan, which is slightly different from horror - in true horror, the existence of the source of horror fuels the book - as in Misery or that car thing - there're things that can be found out, but very little in the way that can be solved - unless we mean the wholesale destruction of said horrific thing.

Thrillers tend to have their plots fuelled by the plan of some person, thing, organisation - I think of thrillers as more organised sort of plots in general. And thus, when stopping the bad thing that is happening in the thriller, I tend to think there's more mopping up to do (whether we see it or not) after the bad guy/person/institution/thing is stopped. If you survive the horror, you walk away, end of story.

Which is very vague of me, and King himself has loads of books that overlap between both definitions, except they're not always as scary. Senseless things are always more frightening, since we can rationalise them. <is huddled in blanket>
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~Roh
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Who's up for a wee challenge? - 12/09/2010 06:11:38 PM 2158 Views
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One of my favourites - 23/09/2010 05:13:38 PM 1360 Views
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Sounds good. Sci Fi / Fantasy *NM* - 12/09/2010 10:34:31 PM 820 Views
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I just read that. - 15/09/2010 12:48:06 AM 1483 Views
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Haven't read it yet - 14/09/2010 05:40:37 AM 1489 Views
I win! - 14/09/2010 06:27:12 PM 1487 Views
why not? - 13/09/2010 02:32:37 AM 1644 Views
OK. The Collector by John Fowles. - 13/09/2010 06:26:58 PM 1397 Views
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Sweet - 13/09/2010 02:30:15 PM 1438 Views
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I'm sure I can find it. - 14/09/2010 12:51:41 AM 1299 Views
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I swear posted to tell you that I found it. - 05/10/2010 08:44:00 PM 1345 Views
I have a book you might like. - 13/09/2010 06:42:50 PM 1433 Views
Thanks. - 14/09/2010 12:50:16 AM 1421 Views
Dude. - 05/10/2010 08:44:33 PM 1518 Views
Re: Dude. - 05/10/2010 08:48:33 PM 1675 Views
Found it, and am reading it. - 18/07/2011 08:07:48 PM 1591 Views
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A short book for you, then. - 13/09/2010 06:29:41 PM 1429 Views
Sure, could be fun. - 13/09/2010 03:39:19 PM 1484 Views
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Need a mental break? - 14/09/2010 01:12:08 AM 1434 Views
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The Bone People by Keri Hulme. - 13/09/2010 10:05:59 PM 1456 Views
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I realize this is the cliché suggestion, but there's a good reason for that... - 13/09/2010 10:18:17 PM 1229 Views
Oh yes. I've read that. - 13/09/2010 10:19:50 PM 1351 Views
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You should totally read it. - 14/09/2010 10:21:36 AM 1404 Views
Oh, I know the perfect sort of book for you then - 13/09/2010 10:18:54 PM 1220 Views
Pffft! Reading stuff other people haven't heard of isn't outside my comfort zone! - 13/09/2010 10:26:13 PM 1395 Views
Both are Penguin Classics - 13/09/2010 10:30:22 PM 1403 Views
Re: Stephen King's Misery. - 14/09/2010 05:37:51 PM 1350 Views
Good call. Great book. - 14/09/2010 06:17:21 PM 1386 Views
Re: It is scary. Scarier than most of his others. - 14/09/2010 06:21:48 PM 1506 Views
The line in my head between thriller and horror is fairly simple... - 14/09/2010 06:28:36 PM 1359 Views
Re: Mine too! - 14/09/2010 06:34:25 PM 1296 Views
Dunno if it counts as Horror per se - 22/09/2010 07:37:17 PM 1273 Views
The Stress of Her Regard by Tom Powers *NM* - 29/09/2010 05:13:32 PM 755 Views
I like the title. - 29/09/2010 09:34:29 PM 1471 Views
OK then - 14/09/2010 02:55:58 AM 1442 Views
How romance is romance? - 15/09/2010 06:13:21 PM 1285 Views
You tell me. - 15/09/2010 08:57:58 PM 1517 Views
I don't read romance either, so I'm having trouble. - 15/09/2010 09:23:04 PM 1480 Views
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Yes, I love that book. - 23/09/2010 05:03:29 PM 1223 Views
Ok, I now have Persuasion! - 24/09/2010 03:16:41 AM 1348 Views
I don't read them either, but I did once read a Danielle Steel book - 23/09/2010 11:51:52 PM 1418 Views
I might do that sometime - 24/09/2010 03:19:27 AM 1355 Views
Re: I might do that sometime - 24/09/2010 05:55:20 PM 1435 Views
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Two options, then. - 21/09/2010 06:30:38 PM 1493 Views
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Re: Two options, then. - 23/09/2010 05:06:31 PM 1322 Views
I've begun Holmes. Read the first two or three "Adventures" so far. I've been liking it. *NM* - 28/09/2010 06:53:38 PM 747 Views
That's fabulous. - 29/09/2010 04:50:34 PM 1297 Views
I've completed my assignment. - 04/10/2010 08:57:49 PM 1385 Views
Re: I've completed my assignment. - 04/10/2010 11:42:46 PM 1259 Views
I might just do that. As long as it doesn't lead to any more 3 digit expenditures. *NM* - 05/10/2010 07:29:03 PM 775 Views
3 digit expenditures? - 05/10/2010 07:30:17 PM 1438 Views
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