Rating: 
Summary: Fantastic Novel, Great Characters
Review: I found this to be an awesome novel that explored serious issues in an honest, forthright way. Rather than being sad and depressing, I found the book quite fulfilling and uplifting. It is beautifully written, and the characters are wrestling with serious but neither uncomon nor unsurmountable sexual experiences. Congratulations to Scott Heim, an exceptionaly talented writer who is willing to earnestly explore the impacts of childhood sexual experiences in an honest fashion rather than the typical politically correct, "shocked and horrified" perspective.
Rating: 
Summary: This novel brings some serious issues to light!
Review: I had trouble starting Mysterious Skin as for some reason, I was confused by the narrative so I automatically assumed it was a fairly perfunctory read. However, half way into the novel I was pleasantly suprised. Heim has written a lyrical, beautiful and quite eloquent first novel and the suject matter of chilhood molestaton and the subsequent denial certainly packs a wallop! I loved Heim's use of similie and metaphor and his descriptions of the natural landscape of Kansas are breathtaking and wonderfully realised. He captures the constant eb and flow of the world that Brian and Neil wonder in; a world that keeps them a prisoner. This novel makes you change the way you view the world. Also fascinating is the portrayal of small town life and the adolescent gay angst that builds up in such a small "close" community. I too grew up in a small community so I could definitely relate to many of Brian's and Neil's yearnings, frustrations and fears. The time period - the early 1980's - the age of "new wave" music, dyed hair, back mascara etc, encapsulates and captures the isolationism and loneliness of growing up being "different" in a small, provincial community. Heim is also an expert at bringing the different narrative threads together and he keeps us guessing right up to the climax of the novel where Brian and Neil meet and confront the horrific childhood injustices done to them. Life in Mysterious Skin is hard, gritty, realistic - witness Neil's sexual escapades in Manhattan towards the end of the novel. This is gay New York at its best and the author shows his keen eye for understanding and observing the wilder, racier side of gay life. Heim never compromises and weaves a wonderful tapestry of mid western life with remarkable candor. A great piece of work and one of the best gay novels to encapsulate the trials and tribulations of small town life. This is a gay novel that not only deals with serious issues but also portrays the all enveloping angst of a disenfanchised generation. I await more work with eagerness!
Rating:
Summary: disturbing and sad. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Review: I just finished reading Scott Heim's first novel. It was one of those books I just couldn't put down. I cared about the characters and found myself anxious to discover the outcome of the hideous deeds done to them. It sparked many internal discussions, such as the validity of "alien abduction" tales and repressed memories. I also enjoyed the open ending: Were the two main characters now going to have to tell others the secret they had managed to keep for so long? It's the sign of a great novel when it leaves you pondering the future of the fictional characters.
Rating:
Summary: Extremely moving, powerful, story
Review: I must admit that passages of this book were very hard to read because I found the subject matter to be repellent. However, I think the root of my feelings stems from the fact that Scott describes an uncomfortable situation so beautifully, that you almost feel guilty enjoying the prose that describes such horrible acts.Brian and Neil are two young men forever linked by their past experiences, but could not have interpreted the experience any more differently. Brian searches for answers in the hull of a spaceship, convinced he was abducted by aliens, while Neil moves from trick to trick, leading a risky lifestyle and coming to some difficult realizations along the way. I thought this was a wonderful story of two people looking for answers and closure. It is beautifully written and takes us to a place that is uncomfortable to look at, but gives us two different perspectives to view it from. I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: Extremely moving, powerful, story
Review: I must admit that passages of this book were very hard to read because I found the subject matter to be repellent. However, I think the root of my feelings stems from the fact that Scott describes an uncomfortable situation so beautifully, that you almost feel guilty enjoying the prose that describes such horrible acts. Brian and Neil are two young men forever linked by their past experiences, but could not have interpreted the experience any more differently. Brian searches for answers in the hull of a spaceship, convinced he was abducted by aliens, while Neil moves from trick to trick, leading a risky lifestyle and coming to some difficult realizations along the way. I thought this was a wonderful story of two people looking for answers and closure. It is beautifully written and takes us to a place that is uncomfortable to look at, but gives us two different perspectives to view it from. I highly recommend this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Sad story and sad writing
Review: I read some of the other reviews... yeah this is a sad story but the writing was pretty bad too. I mean you have to skip parts because it bogs down. Not sure why everyone is saying he's so great and all cause he's not. Much better at writing stories with gay teens you care about and cry over is that Schroeder guy.
Rating:
Summary: Waste of time... not to mention paper and ink
Review: I wish I could blame a friend's recommendation for reading this awful book. But no, I read some reviews on here that promised some great literature. Well I'm not sure if they were the author's friends or what but this is definitely a disappointment!
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful mess of a novel
Review: I'm a big fan of imdb.com, and somehow I stumbled upon the page for an upcoming movie called Mysterious Skin. It interested me, so I thought I'd check out the book. Well. I finished it about twenty minutes ago, and I'm speechless.
MYSTERIOUS SKIN has so many different characters, memorable quotes, and mind-boggling descriptions that I couldn't put it down. I'm not going to go into the full story, but the book is fantastic. Basically, it's about two boys that share a common bond, though neither of them know it in the beginning of the story. As the book advances, both characters (Brian Lackey and Neil McCormack) start to come to terms with an event that took place during the summer of 1981.
There are a few parts of the book that are extremely graphic, some pages were hard to read without putting the book down and trying to clear my mind. My short description does NOT do the book justice.
MYSTERIOUS SKIN is a fantastic novel, one that I wouldn't have chosen to read if I hadn't heard of the movie. This is definately the best book I've read in a loooong time. Highly recommended.
Overall grade - A+
Rating:
Summary: Don't pigeonhole this book!
Review: I've seen this book in the "Gay Culture" section of bookstores, rather than in the general fiction department, which is a shame because this is really a fine book.
What makes this great story work is its attention to detail...you feel like you went to high school with all of the characters, which makes the underlying theme of sexual abuse and discovery even more compelling. Although set in the Midwest, the story really could happen anywhere. Also casts a fascinating angle on the whole "alien abduction/false memory" issue. The action just pulls you along from one page to the next, and when I got to the end I wished that I had another 100 pages to read.
Rating:
Summary: LEFT ME SOBBING
Review: It's been a while since I have read this book, but none of the others I have read previously or since have prompted me to seek out this chance to review. Definately one of the top three books I've read -- I only refrain from calling it the best because I read a lot and might not be thinking of everything. Much like the characters in the book (as well as the author) I was raised in Kansas and fled to a larger city when the first opportunity arose. Heim's description of the state was remarkably accurate, recalling the chilling winters and stark loneliness of the open plains so vividly I often took refuge at my window to reassure myself of where I was. More than that, the anguish he expresses reached so deeply into my psyche and touched something so familiar (yet I still have no recollection of what specifically) that I often closed a chapter with wailing sobs (unlike me) on my bed. This is not GAY FICTION as it is so often labeled. Such a classification is perverse on a book of this subject matter. Had the main characters been female, would this be categorized under erotica? It is a human story of ghastly intrusions that can happen to any one of us. Reading Mysterious Skin opens senses and emotions some may not realize they have and serves to better everyone's understanding of what we, at any age, may be subjected to. Final note: traditionally the last few pages of books disappoint me, but Mysterious Skin pleased me so much I copied the last page to keep before I loaned the book out. A thoroughly satisfying read that evokes thoughts few other books have even imagined. Bravo, Scott Heim!
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