ONCE IN A LIFETIME Three low-income families have been given a handsome retainer to join Geraldine Borden for a day at her cliffside estate. All the parents must do to collect the rest of their money is allow their children to test out the revolutionary playground equipment Geraldine has been working on for decades. But there’s a reason the structures in the bowels of her gothic castle have taken so long to develop—they were never meant to see the light of day. Years ago I was going through a movie slump, when I saw the preview for a new movie during a coffee break while doing night shift, which made me sit up and go: Why you should buy this: If you’re a fan of Aron’s you probably have already snagged this and most likely have read it. If you’re new to extreme horror and want to see what it’s all about, this is an excellent place to dive in and discover how these novels will contain really well done plots with fantastic writing and some of the most horrific gore-filled scenes you’ll ever read. Geraldine and Fuchs are character's that are completely evil and unlikable, disgusting in all their enjoyment they have in living out their dream of watching the suffering of the children. There is a reason Geraldine is doing what she is, and it is somewhat sad, but clearly not justifiable. What I didn’t like: You’ll need to go into this fully allowing yourself to just believe. Sure the scope/scale of these indoor rooms is insane. And so are the elaborate punishment devices that have been booby-trapped within each one to decimate the participants, but that’s part of the joy of reading something to just read and have fun. If you struggle to suspend belief for any amount of time, you’ll most likely want to stay clear of this one.

You will see some parallels with that movie when you read this one, but it is hard to imagine how far the author went with this one. If this was made into a movie, it would never see the light of day. It is SAW on steroids to the AAHHHHH degree. If you are at all familiar with Aron's writing, then you should be well prepared for the darkness that lies within his storytelling. But you should also be expecting superb character developement, well developed plots, and unique settings. What I liked: I mean, the cover should give you some solid indication what you’re in for. If you require ANY sort of Trigger Warnings, you way want to stay away from this one. If you, however, enjoy the brand of brutality Beauregard delivers, this one will make you smile from ear to ear. Three low-income families have been given a handsome retainer to join Geraldine Borden for a day at her cliffside estate. All the parents must do to collect the rest of their money is allow their children to test out the revolutionary playground equipment Geraldine has been working on for decades. But there’s a reason the structures in the bowels of her gothic castle have taken so long to develop—they were never meant to see the light of day. I did not like this book. I wanted to, I could see that there was a point haunting the edges of the book. But I just, I just couldn't.

Of course there is also the bloody, disgusting gore and putridness. Yes, there are descriptions of smells that will possibly engage that gag reflex.

At the heart of this story, one can't help but develop a connection and just feel every gut wrenching punch as each child must make their choices. Authors, if you are a member of the Goodreads Author Program, you can edit information about your own books. Find out how in this guide. The children have been chosen for a reason. Geraldine feels that the parents are undeserving of the lives they are living and the children they have. Somewhat broken families, the daily life struggles of parenthood, and the product the children are becoming because of those parental choices.

My Book Notes

Goodreads Librarians are volunteers who help ensure the accuracy of information about books and authors in the Goodreads' catalog. The Goodreads Libra Goodreads Librarians are volunteers who help ensure the accuracy of information about books and authors in the Goodreads' catalog. The Goodreads Librarians Group is the official group for requesting additions or updates to the catalog, including: The story follows a crazy old lady, Geraldine, who gets sexual gratification from others misery. The worse that happens to them, the more turned on she gets. So, as one does, she creates this insanely intricate indoor playground and invites three low-income families with kids to test it out. They just don’t realize this is more ‘Saw’ meets ‘Hostel’ meets ’31’ than Sesame Street. Over the last number of years, Aron Beauregard has emerged as one of Extreme/Splatterpunk Horror’s true Heavy Weights. His books are hotly anticipated by his ever-growing throng of fans and he has been raking up the accolades as well – becoming Splatterpunk Award nominated and Splatterpunk Award winning during that time. With Playground, Aron Beauregard transcends himself, delivering a genuinely chilling, uncomfortable novel that will make even the most jaded horror fan squirm. A harrowing, relentless read that left me breathless."

The narrator hired for the novel was honestly the highlight. Likewise the children in the book are written pretty accurately to their ages. I think those two things are about all the positive things I can say about it though. The thing about Playground though that I appreciate about it is the way it doesn't shy away from abuse. That's what this book is about. Abuse. Objectively that is what this is about.

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Beauregard has set this up as an escape room story for kids – with the only difference being each room is literally live or die – and the dying part is always a carnage filled paragraph of viscera. It also shows how some of the kids will band together and work to survive, while others are singularly focused on themselves and that typically doesn’t work out so well.

When a band of dysfunctional children is suddenly thrust into a diabolical realm of violence, they must grow up instantly to have a chance at survival. Will they find a way to put their differences aside, or be swallowed up by the insidious architecture all around them? splatterpunk is a genre with potential. unfortunately, there was no compelling story underneath the salacious gore of playground. the gore was decently written, but everything else was subpar. I think the ending worked really well and followed how the reader sees the events played out. Beauregard does a great job of showcasing the hurt that was created with Geraldine’s actions as well as how this directly impacted the various characters in the novel. The children will surprise you as your going on this vile and twisted adventure right along with them. The choices they will have to make, the choices some of them do make, and the consequences of thier actions. The familiarity of their childhood is captured really well. The soft hearted, the hard hearted, the shy and meek, the conformed and the broken. I loved them all and was routing for them no matter their character, after all they are just kids.

i about lost all interest when a nazi showed up. it has a good premise, and i felt it had the promise of exploring how low-income families are exploited at the hands of the rich. unfortunately, there was no social commentary. the characters were evil just to be evil. as a jewish person, it's uncomfortable to read about a nazi in this light; the forced german accent was just plain strange. I did, and it became one of my top 5 movies ever. The concept, while simple, was utterly brilliant and superbly executed.