First Edition (2016)
Rerelease Edition (2017)
First published back in June of 2016, Welsh author David Owain Hughes’ novel ‘Man-Eating F*cks’ was originally published through Matt Shaw’s ‘Matt Shaw Presents’ series of black cover books.
The novel was later released in 2017 by Hellbound Books, then in April 2025 Hellbound Books released a further special 10th Anniversary Hardcover edition of the novel titled ‘All The F*cks’ (2025). This special edition rerelease not only reprinted the original story, but also included a novella, a number of short stories, and a comic strip, all from the ‘Man-Eating F*cks’ series. This limited-edition hardback volume was limited to just one-hundred hand-numbered and signed copies.
This review is of the original version. A review of ‘All The F*cks’ (2025) will follow in due course.
In the outback of South Wales, the police have been getting increasingly concerned about the disappearance of teenaged Chloe Griffiths. However, this isn’t the only thing concerning the local law enforcement. There’s been some highly unusual activity reported in recent months around the picturesque South Wales area.
There’s a perplexing list of missing persons, along with livestock and horses having gone missing from local farms. Not to mention the apparent sightings of strange, green-skinned individuals, fleeing the scene, or lurking in the dense woodland around the Wales.
These sporadic and increasingly worrying reports eventually come to a spearhead on the isolated Ogmore Mountainside, when a car breaks down and the family along with the RAC rescue driver all go missing. But it’s what the detectives find in the woodland close by which escalates the terror. The dismembered body of one of the missing persons.
Unbeknown to the authorities, a cannibalistic tribe have settled down in the isolated Welsh woodlands. Ancestors of Alexander Sawney Beane, they’re an ancient breed who’ve survived for generations on the woods, hills, coasts and any other deep dark place they can find to hide. They’ve travelled the length and breadth of the country over and over.
Their existence is one of murder, rape and incest. However, the tribe are getting desperate. Their numbers have been depleting to the point where their murderous activity has started to get noticed. Which has driven the cannibals to a daring attack…a gig at the local live venue where ‘665 The Neighbour of the Beast’ and ‘Raining Spears’ are set to unleash a killer live set.
In the audience is Detective Inspector Huw Davies’ eighteen-year-old daughter. She’s the only thing in the detective’s life that keeps him going. And now she’s missing. Taken by vile abominations who will stop at nothing to ensure their tribe’s existence continues.
The Welsh Hills will run red with blood…
Here we have what can only be described as the Welsh version of Jack Ketchum’s classic cannibal novel ‘Off Season’ (1981). Author David Owain Hughes hasn’t tried to hide the fact that he’s basically rewritten much of the premise, only uplifted it from the Maine outback to unleash a new round of cannibalistic savagery within the picturesque rolling Welsh hills and woodlands.
The homages don’t end just there. We also have more than a few references to ‘The Hills Have Eyes’ (1977) including a scene that’s pretty much plucked straight from the movie. But it’s all done in a respectful, horror fan tribute kind of way. Passion for the genre within its feral veins.
Anyway, going back to that first and point of reference, there really is so much in this book that draws from ‘Off Season’ (1981). The setup, the way the cannibals have existed and almost migrate from one place to another. It’s a feral lifestyle, almost cultish in its raw existence.
Alongside our cannibal pals, we also have a thriller-esque thread to the story. It’s involving North Wales’ cocaine baron who’s seeking revenge on the tribe of cannibals for slaughtering his wife and two daughters. So, this drug lord, Mr Gibson, has hired a hitman to track down the killers and deliver some cold hard justice. Of course, said hitman is a tough-as-nails black guy named Lawrence who’s been on their trail for a year now. Through Lawrence, we get a thick slab of grit and explosive action, which we all know Hughes absolutely thrives upon within his tales.
Another thread of classic Hughes entertainment that’s utilised is with the secondary character of Derek – a sleazy postman with a Gollum-like split personality. Now, Derek is your textbook Richard Laymon style perv. A deviant whose pent-up sexual frustration has led to a dark, dangerous incel type of persona to manifest. And this loner-with-a-boner has his seedy eyes set squarely on the novel’s protagonist, eighteen-year-old Storm.
That leads me on to another key point about the book – the large and varied cast of characters that Dave has brought into the mix. The cannibals have a whole family of flesh-hungry fucks, all sporting classic David Owain Hughes names – from Zombi and Gunter (the horror easter eggs are strong with this one), to the lesbian lover sisters Eight-Ball and Cue-Ball, and a whole host of other cannibal members in between.
We also have a side story (and mini-love arch) with the band members of the rock support act ‘Raining Spears’ whose gig becomes a ferocious bloodbath when the cannibals rock up to deliver their own wild show.
As you can imagine, being a David Owain Hughes novel titled ‘Man-Eating F*cks’, this tale absolutely packs in the violence and the over-the-top 1980s style gore. A sort of ‘Cannibal Ferox’ (1981) brought to the woodlands of the rolling Welsh hills.
There’s rape and visceral gore a plenty. As such, characters come and go like the cast from ‘The Walking Dead’. But at the forefront of the chaos and all this rampaging, marauding horror, we have a father and daughter, whose lives have been split apart by the cannibals. The sheer desperation of D.I. Huw Davies to rescue his daughter becomes the driving force for much of the second half of the tale. A force that sweeps you up and pulls you along with it.
So yeah, for a lowbrow, over-the-top uber-violent and uncompromising cannibal read, look no further. It’s ‘Off Season’ (1981) in the Welsh valleys. Chaos and bloodshed aplenty. Honestly, you’ll fucking love it!
The novel runs for a total of 186 pages.
© DLS Reviews
