Entry Wounds

Ken Fujima is a supply teacher, discontent with his life and feeling a failure. When Angela, a beautiful young colleague, shows an interest in him, he can't believe his luck. She invites him to a party and he goes, reluctantly leaving his wheelchair bound father alone. He returns from the party to find two assassins in his home, one of whom has a gun attached to her hand Through a series of highly charged events, Ken ends up with the gun attached to his hand and realises it can't be removed until he kills six people.
Throw in a drug-addicted brother, a revelation that his father belonged to the Japanese mafia and a cast of characters, none of whom are what they seem to be, and you have an addictive fast-moving thriller with just a touch of the supernatural.
This was slightly outside my favoured genres but I found it highly enjoyable and the development of Ken's character was well portrayed. It dragged a tiny bit in the middle, probably to allow the reader to catch his breath. The ending is unusual, highly satisfying and hints at a possible sequel.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

It was a book that was the first of many. The first I had read of Brandon McNulty. The first book I had ever read of a 'supernatural flavour'. And, the first book I have read where I have been drawn between two ratings to the point it has caused me to talk to myself about the pros and cons.

What did I love about the book?

Unlike other books the timeline is consistent, with the plot occurring in 'real time' - in other words, non of this fast forward 3 months, having a brief interlude as to what happened 15 years ago, before popping back to the present day for one chapter.

Another pet peeve of mine is a book with a cast of thousands, or at least a character list so big that you need both hands and feet to count on. Without re-reading, I would say at most this novel had 8 characters, with 4 main ones - making it easy to keep track of who was doing what.

The plot itself is an engaging one with originality, but then why oh why didn’t it get 5 out of 5?

It was a page-turner, and I would certainly read another by this author, but the ending just left me a bit disappointed, I was anticipating more. Due to the feeling of 'meh is that it', I decided, based on the fact I can't give half stars, settled on 4.

However, just as you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, you can tarnish an enjoyable 5 day read based on the final few pages.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. It has been published in September 2021.

"Entry Wounds" by Brandon McNulty is a fast-paced supernatural thriller about a cursed handgun that cannot be dropped until it has taken six lives.
I found the concept reminiscent of the earliest Stephen King novels, with just a touch of Anne Rice's "Interview with the Vampire" trademark guilt-trips over the 'to-kill-or-not-to-kill' dichotomy thrown in for good measure.
I really enjoyed the clear, slick writing style and the well-rounded, three-dimensional characters. There were some good twists and turns along the way, that took the story in quite a few unsuspected directions.
The only thing that left me a bit unsatisfied was the sheer quantity of unexplored or little-explored ideas that such a plot as this could have accommodated: would animal deaths have counted? What about the terminally ill, or the people who for any reason request assisted suicide? What if somebody who was already actively dying and beyond any chance of help were to be shot, would that count? And what if somebody who had been shot in a fatal - albeit not instantly fatal - way were to be killed by something else in the time that it took them to die from the gunshot? Also, in any other context but a supernatural novel, Hannah would have died of infection, despite Ken's best intentions. Would that have counted from the gun's perspective or not?
Another reason why I'm giving 4 stars instead of 5 is the pacing, which felt too fast at times. Yeah, I get it, there's no such thing as a too fast-paced action novel, except in "Entry Wounds" I felt like some parts were really rushed, like Ken's emotional journey from finding his father murdered to teaming up with one of his father's very murderers, or from hating his brother's guts to declaring that his brother is the only thing he has left to live for. I know people can change their mind, but I think such huge mind shifts would have been more credible if they had happened gradually, over a longer time span.
Overall, this was a great read, entertaining and impossible to put down, full of food for thought, and once again proof, if any was needed after the amazing "Bad Parts", that Brandon McNulty is a master storyteller.

this was such a unique horror mystery novel, the plot was great and it had a suspenseful atmosphere that worked perfectly. I loved the haunted revolver.

Back in the ’90s, Saito betrayed yakuza's clan. In an attempt to gain power, he sold out their captain to the LAPD. Such an act was punishable by death. Twenty years later, Saito's daughter wanted a revenge for their parents’ deaths using a snubnose revolver that had been possessed along with a letter that had been given by a friend of their father.

The letter said, DON’T PICK UP THE REVOLVER WITH YOUR BARE HANDS. Use a t-shirt or rag, but never touch it with your bare hands. It was supposedly cursed by the shamans on Mt. Fuji back in the 1930s. Anyone who wields this weapon can’t drop it until they die or murder six people. The weapon has a deep history within the yakuza.

Until the gun, was trusted to Ken Fujima unintendedly. Ken never wanted vengeance—at least not until he’d unwittingly picked up this godforsaken weapon. He knew better. It was the snubnose that wanted the kill; not him. And though the temptations were intensifying, he still had a choice.

The struggle is real. Between honesty, betrayal, friends and family. Ken knew one thing: he had to kill someone. With that in mind, he might as well find a meaningful target or he might die.

My rating 4 ⭐. My very first attempt reading a supernatural thriller.

Thanks to @netgalley and the publisher for giving an arc inexchange for my honest review.

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#donereading #EntryWounds #brandonmcnulty #emabaca #malaysiamembaca #igreads #bookstagram #goodreads

I was intrigued by the premise of this book. A cursed gun that fuses itself to your hand the moment you touch it and doesn’t let go till you have killed six people.

Ken Fujima, a substitute teacher, hopes to get a full-time position but is thwarted once too often. Meanwhile, 24-year-old Michelle Salto and her sister Hannah set out to seek revenge on the two members of the Japanese mafia, the yakuza, who shot their parents in cold blood 20 years ago. The girls’ lives are destroyed on account of the sins of their parents.

Receiving a cursed gun in a package from their father’s friend, the girls set out to kill their parent’s killers. The sixth man Michelle kills is Ken’s father.

When Ken picks up the gun, it sets off a chain of death and destruction that can only end after he has killed six people. Ken thinks he can fight against the instinct to kill, but the gun has a mind of its own, and it is thirsty for blood.

Ken, the son of an honest mother and a father who used to be a gangster, has a strong moral compass. Forced to kill, Ken seeks to play vigilante against the appetite of the gun.

But will his morals stand against the will of the gun?


The writing was powerful.

He tore the details out of himself like bits of shrapnel from a festering wound – painful yet necessary.



The main characters are Americans of Japanese origin. There aren’t too many characters in this book, but they all have a key role to play.

The narrative was smooth, well written and well paced. It was almost like a detailed screenplay. I could easily imagine the action.

The very first chapter, with the writing so spare yet lush, felt like a short story. Things got better from there. Starting from a difficult situation, the author keeps upping the ante for the main characters. The addition of crazy and bizarre characters like Robby and Chrissie does nothing to make things easier for Ken. These are people whose moral compass is already soiled thanks to drug abuse.


The author tells us that Ken had developed a tolerance towards the absurd. But to us, as readers, the events playing out don’t appear absurd. Instead we watch the action unfold with bated breath.

The book raises moral questions. If you were forced to kill somebody, would you? If the choice wasn’t yours to make, how would you react?

It also reminds us that our actions have the potential to affect the lives of others long after we are gone.

This is my first book by Brandon McNulty but it won’t be the last. I sure hope there will be a book 2, an Exit Wounds, in the future. There are far too many loose threads, Robby, Takahashi, Angela, Ken, that need to be tied up.

"Entry Wounds" by Brandon McNulty offers a gripping exploration of human resilience amidst trauma. McNulty, known for his poignant storytelling, once again delivers a compelling narrative that delves into the complexities of emotional wounds and healing. Building on the success of his debut novel, "Shattered Beginnings," McNulty proves his adeptness at crafting multifaceted characters and thought-provoking plotlines. "Entry Wounds" is a must-read for those seeking a captivating tale woven with depth and authenticity.