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The Hellbound Heart
Summary
Frank Cotton's insatiable appetite for the dark pleasures of pain led him to the puzzle of Lemarchand's box, and from there, to a death only a sick-minded soul could invent. But his brother's love-crazed wife, Julia, has discovered a way to bring Frank back-though the price will be bloody and terrible . . . and there will certainly be hell to pay. This book is the basis for the blockbuster movie Hellraiser.
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Average customer ratings
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars61
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4 Stars16
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3 Stars2
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Performance
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars52
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4 Stars18
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3 Stars4
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4.5 out of 5 stars
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5 Stars52
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4 Stars19
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Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- pete waddoups
- 14-03-17
Great
I loved it, listened in one sitting, a good companion to the book. With barkers telling you can hear drama of love and lies unfurl leaving all hope lost
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Spencer Cain
- 09-10-19
The best version
Clive Barker's narration is essential. The story itself is gripping and never seems to slack.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Neville Bartos
- 27-07-19
Great Book
If you enjoy the Hellraiser franchise then this is a must listen. I slow crawled through it because it isn't long, but it's well worth a credit.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- hoverdose
- 08-11-18
Definitive Performance
The Hellbound Heart is a tremendous story that many of us were introduced to as fans of the movie Hellraiser. Although this is an abridged version, it excludes very little, and any of these shortcomings are negated by the fact that this is read by Clive Barker himself.
He's not a outstanding voice actor, but he does a surprisingly good job considering it's not his day job. But by emoting his own work you hear and feel intonations that provide real extra context to his written work, since, after all, he wrote it. It's a particular joy to hear how he depicts the Cenobites.
Out of the unabridged version and the short "performance" audio versions that I own, this is by far my favourite of the three, an enjoyable, easily consumable condensed version that is worth it for Barker's reading alone.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sean Johnson
- 08-08-18
amazing
classic book definitely worth a listen. Clive Barker's narration makes it 10 times better .
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Allan McNeill
- 08-08-18
Truly awesome
Been a fan off Hellraiser forever, but never got around to reading the novella that it spawned from... until now, and I do not regret it. Clive Barker sucks you into the world of the Cenobites in true horror fashion. Tremendous.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- "the_gentleman_of_the_bush"
- 10-07-18
Better than the film... And I love that!!!
So, so good, and to hear Barker's inflections really shows you how he viewed the characters. Also added a whole other level of depth to the film that I missed.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- D. C. Harold
- 29-06-18
Read by Clive!
The real joy in this is that it is read by the author himself and he does a cracking job of it too. No one knows better the nuances of how this tale should be told and I only wish he'd read his other books for Audible too.
The downside is that, for some reason, this fairly short story (it's a novella) has been abridged still further. I couldn't spot what was cut but my guess is that at some point this was a physical release and shortened to fit onto disc. Shame. Otherwise it would be 5 stars all the way.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Steve
- 06-06-18
The hellbund heart
One good read wish that it was longer and would also have liked to have read the original version to witch Frank becomes the leader of his centbits
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 16-04-18
Accidental download
I was downloading some catch up material before reading The Scarlet Gospels and picked the wrong version. It's good to have version with Clive Barker narrating but wanted the unabridged version... and now I own both :)
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 11-10-18
Wonderful and Brilliant
I purchased this because it is both by a well known author and it is narrated by that same author. I feel that the author is the best person to know how properly to narrate the story. The story is a scary masterpiece about love and lusts folly and is performed wonderfully.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Haley
- 02-05-18
Horror Classic
I remember buying this book before but I cannot for he life of me find it anywhere, yet even so I'm glad to have the audible version. an easy read and an entertaining one. I feel the voice work could have been more enthusiastic but eh, it's not a deal breaker.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Danielle Morrison
- 08-02-18
A Must!
The Hellbound Heart is one of the best works in Barker’s Arsenal. Barker’s performance of his work only adds to the beautiful gore found within his pages. As a fan of the film, I enjoy there being so much different from the source material. Both are allowed to live and breathe inside the same universe, while being independent enough to feel fresh with each reading, or in the case of the film, viewing, of the work. 5 stars all the way!
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jerry Bobowski
- 29-05-17
It is a must for all Clive Barker's fans!
I loved the fact that Clive Barker himself narrated this classic storybof his. Clive's voice, suprisingly soothing and delicate can at moments become really scarry while he reads the villain's lines. He read it so well as if he were a professional actor. It was an experience really worth having.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Mary Karowski
- 10-03-20
The abridged version....stick with the full
The abridged version while good leaves out elements that truly flush out the story and make it what it is. For a savings of 15 minutes time? Naaaah. Stick with the full version. Ok huge fan of hellraiser series of movies. I must say (like almost always) the book is soooo much better than the movie. The visions that Clive Barker creates can name bee be done justice anywhere other than in the depths of ones imagination. In his words and in our minds is where pinhead and the others truly come to life in all their unimaginable terror. The story conveys the thoughts of the characters and the pains, pleasures and horrors that images just couldn’t do justice to. What a truly great dark and twisted tale. I was voluntarily provided this free review copy audiobook by the author, narrator or publisher
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- Nathan Fulps
- 20-07-19
We need more
I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it when an artist/author reads their own material. For some, it is a blessing and for others it is a curse. It can make or break the listener. Not the case here, straight from the lips of Clive Barker, he does an amazing job as he reads one of his most iconic horror pieces. Being that it has a different title than the movie Hellraiser, I hope people find this and give it a listen.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jess B
- 05-10-18
Loved it!
I have read this book many times because it is a fast read and has the right amount of horror, mystery, and suspense in every scene. This was my first time listening and this version is narrated by the author. I honestly would listen to his other narrations as well.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- sean
- 02-07-18
A brief glance of Hell
You'll check your clothes for bloodsplatter and feel like you've witnessed the horror from somewhere in the room it happened. Perfectly short and the imagery is on another level.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- gregory weese
- 02-04-18
Loved this!
Great book, it was amazing to hear Clive Barker read, it, everyone's voice read just as it was supposed to sound. Great visual experience!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- Roy
- 21-09-17
Horror Perfection!
This is a true masterpiece. And having Clive Barker himself reading the story makes it as good as it gets.