Psychological thrillers are the flavour of the moment for many novelists. But hot on the heels of good thrillers is a growing niche market for modern horror stories, separate from their pure science fiction and fantasy cousins. Aficionados of sci-fi, fantasy and horror have been spoilt lately by a spate of established authors such as Stephen King and Neil Gaiman. Lately South African authors have also weighed in. Foremost among these is Lauren Beukes, Capetonian novelist, writer of comic books and screenplays and winner of the coveted Arthur C Clarke Award for Science Fiction Literature in 2011.
Beukes does not flinch from the macabre and gruesome, nor does she shy from explicit language. But far from gratuitous, it’s all delivered in stunning dialogue and a compelling style that will keep you riveted. With Broken Monsters she achieved what most published authors yearn for: she followed an international best-seller (The Shining Girls) with another completely engrossing read.
Detective Gabi Versado faces a harrowing case: a killer who confronts the
world with his “artistic” messages. One of which is a child’s torso fused with the hindquarters of a deer – the broken monsters of the title. This and other hybrid bodies turn up in Detroit. A broken city, Detroit society’s moral compass has disintegrated. The city has gone from riches to rags and its dilapidated buildings reflect this gritty despair. Very much alive in this city of the broken and maimed is the vibrant cyber world. Beukes addresses the issue of how the complexities of social media have influenced mankind. Stephen “The King” himself called the novel “scary as hell and hypnotic”. Speaking of which..
Among many masterworks of horror craftsmanship, Stephen King authored one of the most frightening novels of the genre – 1977’s The Shining. It has given many generations heart palpitations since its appearance. The film adaptation was just as heartstopping. Ever wondered what happened to the little Danny of the story, called a “shiner” because of his psychic voltage? You must try to get hold of the sequel, which appeared a few years ago.
The book is pure King – dark waves of evil interweave with good and thus ensues that ageless battle between primary forces.
Five year-old Danny Torrance is now a middle-aged man. The horrible experiences he and his mother had at the Overlook Hotel has left marks on his psyche. But now he is faced with a different evil: paranormal order The True Knot, who feed on children with the shining. Like young Abra, now a True Knot target.
Dan, beset by his father’s penchant for alcohol and drugs, is Abra’s defender. Despite its name, Doctor Sleep is less creepy than its predecessor, but it’s still a heart-stopper. The 500-plus pages have the typical depth and breadth of a King story, populated by richly woven King characters.
And it seems a talent for weaving complex tapestries of horror and fantasy runs in the family. Next we’re taking a look at Stephen King’s son...
Joe swims in the same waters as his very well-loved father. But he’s not trading on the old man’s success.
Hill is in fact a phenomenal horror/ fantasy author in his own right and has built a massive and loyal following without using the King name. He has thrilled us with 20th Century Ghosts, Horns, Heart-Shaped Box, NOS4R2 and last year, The Fireman.
Hill offers us a whole new kind of postapocalyptic dystopia. In what appears at least partially to be a nod to Robert Frost, mankind is being consumed by a plague of fire. A new type of disease is causing people to spontaneously combust. Black streaks cover the skin of the infected and eventually burst into flame, reducing the victim – and their surroundings – to ash in an instant.
Everybody is blamed for the epidemic. Fox News says ISIS released the destructive spores invented by Russian scientists. MSNBC blames religion – engineers developed it, some crazed religious maniacs stole it and released it into the population to bring on The Rapture. Everybody has an opinion. And they are fast becoming extreme.
Our heroine is school-nurse Harper Grayson – brave and steadfast even after she has seen a man burn to ashes in front of her. Harper discovers she is pregnant at the start of the “Dragonscale” outbreak and in her struggle to survive the barbaric decline of society around her, she encounters John Rookwood, The Fireman – who seems to know far more about Draco Incendia Trychophyton than he lets on.
An added allure of this book is the climax upon climax, horror after horror, but also some enlightening commentary on human behaviour when societal controls break down. Few men fight for solutions in this dystopia, most form gangs and victimise the infected. Nobody is left unscathed by the Dragonscale; it’s brother against brother and lover against lover. The burning issue is the preservation of the self. But there are the few good people who struggle to preserve their humanity and Hill pushes his point on society: the good get better and the bad get worse. A highly provocative introspection. What would you do in a world burning itself to death?