Book Summary
Simon McHardy’s Blowie follows Leo, a sexually frustrated teenager stranded on Stanley Island with his marine biologist father. When a chance encounter with a beached dolphin awakens an unorthodox obsession, Leo embarks on a grotesque quest for the ultimate orgasm—culminating in a surreal confrontation with a blue whale’s blowhole. The novella blends extreme horror with pitch-black comedy, juxtaposing marine biology with deviant eroticism.
Reactions to Blowie are violently polarized, with readers either praising its audacious absurdity or condemning its transgressive premise. McHardy and co-author Sean Hawker lean into the narrative’s shock value, crafting a coming-of-age story that satirizes desperation and taboo desires. The prose is unflinching, oscillating between crude humor and visceral body horror—a hallmark of McHardy’s “splatterpunk” style.
Key Themes
Forbidden Desire: The novella weaponizes zoophilic undertones to explore isolation and warped sexual awakening. Leo’s escalating acts—from dolphin experimentation to whale pursuit—mirror a deranged inversion of romantic idealism. McHardy frames these taboos as both grotesque and darkly tragic, with Greenpeace activists and whaling fleets serving as absurdist foils.
Environmental Satire: Beneath the shock factor lies sharp commentary on human exploitation of nature. The Japanese whaling fleet’s appearance twists Leo’s perversion into a metaphor for anthropogenic harm, while marine biology jargon contrasts with the protagonist’s depravity. It’s a nihilistic jab at humanity’s capacity to sexualize and destroy.
What Makes It Unique
Blowie stands out in extreme horror for its audacious premise and tonal whiplash. Few authors would dare to write a cetacean-centric erotic odyssey played straight, yet McHardy commits fully—even weaving in pseudo-scientific descriptions of blowhole anatomy. The novella’s brevity (under 100 pages) heightens its intensity, leaving readers reeling from its unabashed weirdness.
The collaboration with Sean Hawker (Mother Maggot) amplifies the story’s chaotic energy. Their signature blend of splatterpunk and absurdism transforms what could be mere shock-value into a bizarrely cohesive narrative. Fans note the book’s unexpected emotional beats, like Leo’s father discovering his son’s escapades—a moment that veers from hilarious to heartbreaking.
Reader Reactions
Reviews on Godless.com and Goodreads reveal stark divides: “Hilarious!! Poor Leo made me laugh like a lunatic!” contrasts with “THIS IS LITERAL PROSHIPPING Z00PHILE… DISGUSTING AND ILLEGAL!” . Many acknowledge the intentional provocation, with one reader admitting, “I knew it was gonna go to messed-up places with that title”.
The sequel, Blowie 2, has drawn even fiercer criticism for its premise (a micro-dicked whale attacking beachgoers), suggesting McHardy doubles down on controversy :cite[4]. Yet the original retains a cult following among bizarro fiction enthusiasts who celebrate its unapologetic strangeness.
About the Author
Simon McHardy is a Tasmanian-based author notorious for transgressive horror like Mother Maggot. His works frequently explore body horror and taboo subjects through a lens of dark comedy, often via Godless.com—a platform specializing in extreme indie horror. McHardy’s reclusive persona and limited interviews add mystique to his deliberately offensive oeuvre.
Blowie exemplifies McHardy’s fascination with biological grotesquerie. His background (possibly in marine sciences, given the novella’s technical details) lends eerie credibility to the absurd premise. Collaborations with Sean Hawker suggest a shared affinity for pushing boundaries, though Blowie remains one of their most divisive works.
Memorable Quotes
“Join Leo along with his father, Greenpeace, and a Japanese whaling fleet in this touching, coming-of-age story about a boy and his whale.”
“Whale blow me over! Holey shit! I mean cum on! What’s not to love about this?”
Where to Buy
- Godless.com (digital) –
- Goodreads – Reader reviews