A review by wardenred
Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle

dark funny tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I’ve written heroes into plenty of corners, and given a long enough timeline I always manage to find them a way out. Unfortunately, time is currently a limited resource. I also don’t have the luxury of going back to make story edits, placing a weapon under the trash bin in act one so I can find it here later.

I’ve heard a lot about Chuck Tingle, admittedly mostly *not* in the context of horror novels, but this is the first time I’ve picked up a book by him. I’m not sure what I expected. Probably something… idk, wilder? Out there? I guess I have trouble putting a finger on it. But anyway, what I got was a fairly good satirical queer horror book that kept me engrossed throughout. Or at least definitely from the moment the horror part came fully into view. Because a script writer getting haunted by his own creations? Yeah, I’m very much here for that.

I liked how the themes were handled here: the intersections of making art and complying to the rules of the corporate machines who are in charge of getting that art to the consumers; the questions of identity; how all of that can intersect. The nonlinear narrative lent itself really well to this story, I feel, especially the parts that delved into the parts of Misha’s childhood and adolescence that inspired the horrors that are after him. Honestly, the more I look back at the book, the more I like the structure and the more layers I find in the intersection of structure and theme. So that’s really cool.

At the same time, I feel like the book suffered when it came to characters. The protagonist is the only one who felt to me like a fully realized person with all the hopes, fears, conflicts, and complexities that come with it. Everybody else kind of felt like just, you know, functions in his story. I guess given the subject matter it could be interpreted as very meta and intentional, but I’m not convinced.

Also, not to give anything away, but the explanation for all those horror characters showing up in the real world? Very chilly, very interesting, and very in line with the modern fears that probably most creators world-wide have to grapple with.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings