Horns

Horns is a dark fantasy novel from 2010 and the second publication from American writer Joe Hill.

One morning, Ignatius "Ig" Martin Perrish awakes with a massive hangover. Something that seems more and more common for him these days. Especially since the anniversary for the night his girlfriend and the light of his life, Merrin Williams, was brutally raped and murdered and her disfigured body was tied to a cherry tree, is rapidly approaching. To his own horror, Ig was arrested for the murder. Though the charge against him was dropped, his name was never cleared, and the public still believes that his rich family protected him against his rightfully deserved punishment. Left by most of his family and all of his closest friends, Ig has felt trapped in what can only be his own personal hell.

Maybe that is why, on this one particular morning, a pair of horns has sprouted on his forehead.

While first assuming the horns to be a mere hallucination, simply his brain's way of expressing the torment and sorrow he has felt, Ig soon discovers that they are indeed real as other people acknowledge their existence. For some reason, their reaction to the prominent growths is strangely casual. What is even more weird is that all the people Ig meets seem compelled to freely confess their most depraved, perverted and violent urges to him. He also finds out that he has the power to influence them to carry out those urges and read their innermost secrets by touching them. These powers could help him find Merrin's killer.

Tropes used in Horns include:

Consummate Liar: Lee Tourneau^[context?]
I Owe You My Life^[context?]
It Got Worse: After his horns have caused his grandmother, mother, and father to confess many horrible secrets to him, Ig already believes that he has heard the worst, and doesn't expect his brother, Terry, to be able blurt out anything that could surpass it, and tells him to get it over with. Terry then tearfully tells him that he knows that Lee Tourneau killed Merrin, which reduces Ig to a screaming mess for a couple of minutes.
A God Am I: Lee Tourneau believes that he once, for just a brief moment, held the power of God, when it actually was the result of light case of brain damage from landing on a pitchfork with the back of his head.
God Is Evil: Ig concludes that the reason why God allowed Merrin to be raped and killed is because He is actually not very fond of humans, and detests women in particular, because they, like Him, can create life and also because they can redefine love as they see fit. He also compares him to a gangster, only offering his protection in exchange for blind faith and worship.
Living Lie Detector: Ig^[context?]
Mommy Issues: Lee Tourneau^[context?]
Shout-Out: To The Rolling Stones' Sympathy for the Devil and You Can't Always Get What You Want.
Satan Is Good: Along with his God Is Evil moment, Ig argues that the devil is the only higher being who really loves humans for what they are, despite their flaws.
The Unfavorite: Ig is very well aware that his parents doesn't like him as much as Terry, and knows that his father in particular is disappointed in him because he was unable to uphold the family tradition of playing the trumpet, but he first realizes the full extent of their dislike when his horns starts working on them.