It seems like everyone has that one
special summer, that point that marks the separation between the
carefree days of childhood and the burdens of adulthood. It’s a
common experience—which is why it makes such a rich setting for any
coming of age story. For Kyle Edwards, that summer will be infused
with terror, violence, and the end of all innocence.
It’s 1976 and the Edwards family
lives at the end of a long dirt road in rural Georgia. One day,
young Kyle is riding his bike down the road when a fast moving car
swerves to miss him. Looking back, he sees a bloodied woman emerge
from the wreckage and start to make her way towards him, asking for
help. Panicked, he rides as fast as he can toward home and says
nothing about the accident he caused. When no evidence of the
incident is found, Kyle, in the classic manner of children with other
things to do, puts the “reticulated woman” out of his head.
Meanwhile, as their parents’ marriage quietly falls apart, Kyle
forms a bond with his younger sister, Grace, against the bullying of
their older siblings and the crueler depredations of another band of
teenagers. This bond is soon tested—and manipulated—by Kenny
Ahearn, the “paralyzed man” who lives down the road and has a
backyard full of secrets, a strange new pet in his attic, and a heart
blacker than anything Kyle or Grace have ever imagined.
Jerkins (“A Very Simple Crime”)
creates a beautifully suspenseful story filled with dread, cruelty,
and—most of all—power. Kenny Ahearn is one of the most
unspeakably evil creatures encountered in print in some time. His
diabolical ability to control Kyle and draw him into his blood-soaked
web is truly inspired—and, above all, chilling. The writing is
top-notch; Jerkins’ prose is lyrical, evocative, and layered. The
picturesque setting—a long, lonely road through wide, open
spaces—serves as the perfect contrast to the stifling, closed-in
terror that Ahearn represents. Further, as Kyle is drawn into the
Paralyzed Man’s clutches, the boy’s emotional world turns in on
itself, which serves to increase the novel’s already high levels of
suspense and icy despair.
At the End of the Road is a completely
gripping, bone-chillingly disturbing, read. Highly recommended.
Reviewed by Shedrick Pittman-Hassett
Shedrick Pittman-Hassett is a
full-time librarian and part-time writer trying to do that the other way
around. He has written reviews for Library Journal and has also had two
articles published in the award-winning Knights of the Dinner Table
magazine. Shedrick currently resides in Denton, Texas ("The Home of
Happiness") with his lovely wife and the obligatory demon-spawn cats.
When not writing, gaming, or watching cheezy kung-fu flicks, he can be
found in a pub enjoying a fine brew. Visit him at Serial Distractions.
No comments:
Post a Comment