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AudioBook information:
Author: Jason Pargin
Narrated by: Ari Fliakos
Release date: November 3, 2026
Audiobook Duration: 13 h 19 min
Summary:Â New York Times bestselling author Jason Pargin’s nightmarishly hilarious John Dies at the End series is back to entertain all who dare enter.
A massive, sticky pile of severed human limbs suddenly appears in the parking lot of a vacant department store in a desolate small town. A set of footprints is found trailing away in the snow, as if a single pair of bare feet had wandered off the pile. If this wasn’t puzzling enough, the cops soon find that no one seems to be missing the limbs. Some of the fingerprints on the severed arms belong to living people with all their appendages intact, others match no one on file, and the rest of the limbs somehow have no prints at all.
This sounds like a case for local weirdos John, David, and Amy, partly because the cops don’t want the headache and partly because David’s own arm is in the pile, despite an identical copy of it still being attached to his body. When a mysterious man then shows up at David’s home claiming to be in pursuit of an entity he calls “the Penetrator,” it seems clear the trio is in for a long weekend.
In addition to stopping whatever this nonsense is, the gang will also have to quell the panicked headlines that threaten to ensue, which could prompt the feds to try to just wipe the whole town off the map (again). As such, the first thing you need to know is that, contrary to whatever ugly rumors you may have heard, there are no giant crabs in this novel.
Reviews:
“A fantastic entry point for readers curious about Pargin’s off-the-wall humor and absurdist plot twists.” ―BookPage
MORE PRAISE FOR JASON PARGIN
A GOODREADS CHOICE AWARD NOMINEE 2024
“A road trip through America that is equal parts hilarious and terrifying. Jason understands humanity better than most, and it’s inspiring that his diagnosis is ultimately optimistic.” ― Daniel O’Brien, Senior Writer, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
“I was hooked from the first page. If I’m honest, from the first sentence or two. Jason has a rare gift for delivering High Weirdness coated in a sticky layer of real life, deeply relatable shit that forces you to see yourself in whatever weirdo or maniac he introduces. It’s a rare gift, but he’s got a lot of those. You should read this book.” ―Robert Evans, Host of Behind the Bastards
“Jason Pargin’s curse is a brain that can make sense of what we’re all living through. His gift is an ability to take the key elements -paranoia, screen addiction, deep loneliness, fear of the end times -and hocus-pocus them into a comic thriller. Illuminatus! for an even weirder time, and with much cooler cars.” ― David Weigel, national political reporter, Semafor
“Jason Pargin has a unique grasp on all the ways our relationship with information technology has warped our brains and our society as a whole. This latest work is a fun, socially relevant, and propulsive work of satire. Well, mostly satire: The way its characters fabricate dangerous narratives out of whatever information they can access is terrifyingly true to life. I felt personally called out a dozen times and I loved every page of it.” ― Matthew Kitchen, Editor, Chron
“Jason Pargin’s Zoey Ashe series is the dystopias of Margaret Atwood meets Parks and Recreation, a fast-paced, witty and much-needed shot in the arm to the genre. Funny without being flippant, cynical without being insincere, this is one of the best ongoing series out there today.” ― Lindsay Ellis, New York Times bestselling author of Axiom’s End
“Within the snarky humor is an incisive commentary on social media and the state of our connected world, and a story about trauma and how people lash out when they’re hurt…This isn’t just a funny tale of inept supernatural investigators; it’s a story of people struggling through pain to find a better path. Pargin offers us a welcome note of hope.” ―Booklist
“[Pargin] is a great storyteller, and he imparts warmth, nuance and humanity in a way that amplifies his vibrant humour. in grim times he will lift your spirits.” ―The Big Issue
“With verve and velocity, the story moves…one cinematic set piece after another, strung together with twisty fun and wit.” ―The New York Times Book Review
“Like Jonathan Swift for the internet age, [Pargin]’s novel offers an engrossing journey and razor-sharp wit inside of an uncanny prediction of an American future. His newest is only more proof that he will be remembered as one of today s great satirists.” ― Nerdist
“All right, grab some popcorn and strap in. We’re in for another profane and funny roller-coaster ride from [Pargin].” ―Kirkus Reviews
“A sofa clutching read from beginning to end, and a great look at the constantly growing world of social networking.” ― Starbust, 9 out of 10 stars
“The comedic and crackling dialogue also brings a whimsical flair to the story, making it seem like an episode of AMC’s The Walking Dead written by Douglas Adams of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.…Imagine a mentally ill narrator describing the zombie apocalypse while drunk, and the end result is unlike any other book of the genre. Seriously, dude, touch it and read it.” ― The Washington Post
“Violence, soy sauce and zombie survivalists abound in this clever and funny sequel to John Dies at the End (2009). One of the great things about discovering new writers, especially in the narrow range of hybrid-genre comedic novels, is realizing that they’re having just as much fun making this stuff up as you are reading it. Sitting squarely with the likes of S.G. Browne and Christopher Moore, the pseudonymous [Pargin] must be pissing himself laughing at his own writing, even as he’s giving fans an even funnier, tighter and justifiably insane entry in the series…. The humor here is unforced and good-naturedly gory. Anyone who enjoyed the recent films The Cabin in the Woods or Tucker & Dale vs. Evil will find themselves right at home. An upcoming (cult?) film adaptation of John Dies at the End promises to lure new readers. A joyful return to the paroxysms of laughter lurking in the American Midwest.” ― Kirkus
“The rare genre novel that manages to keep its sense of humor strong without ever diminishing the scares; David is a consistently hilarious narrator whose one-liners and running commentary are sincere in a way that makes the horrors he confronts even more unsettling.” ―The Onion AV Club
“John Dies at the End is like an H.P. Lovecraft tale if Lovecraft were into poop and fart jokes.” ―Fangoria
About the Author:
JASON PARGIN is the New York Times bestselling author of the John Dies at the End series as well as the award-winning Zoey Ashe novels.He previously published under the pseudonym David Wong. His essays at Cracked.com and other outlets have been enjoyed by tens of millions of readers around the world.