Spells

by R.M. Vaughan

Spells is a violent coming-of-age story set in suburban Canada in the 1970’s. Andy Loch, a chubby 14-year-old, is obsessed with witchcraft and the occult. Convinced that occult forces curse his family, and that he himself possesses supernatural abilities, the boy dabbles in black magic in a desperate effort to connect with his remote father. Andy’s fascination with the occult peaks during “Tut-mania,” the craze sparked by the North American tour of Tutankhamun’s burial treasures. As Andy begins a macabre road trip from his small hometown to Toronto to see the exhibition, his world and his sanity spiral out of control.

220 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2003

About the author

Richard Murray Vaughan was a Canadian poet, novelist and playwright.

Reviews

[Jessica Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

this took me a really long time to read, and it pains me to say i didn't love it.

it had all of the elements of something perfect-- rural maritimes setting, dark arts and the occult, references to obscure 1970s pop culture ephemera, and grit for days, but there is just something about it that i can't identify that left me wanting. it might warrant a re-read given how good all of the elements are (and that ecw is one of my favourite little indie presses), but for now, i'm moving on to more hardline spooky for the month of october-- shirley jackson, ray bradbury, and the almighty lovecraft.

[b · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really can’t stand the novel as a form, and so when I commit to one that isn’t assigned for grad school it must really mean something. Spells fell off the library’s bookshelf when I pulled a small book of poetry off beside it. I’m only familiar with Vaughan’s verse, and maybe something an art review or two of his—small stuff. This was such a bizarre and aggressive and melancholy book. Yeah yeah yeah postmodernity / post-Gothic doubt & indeterminacy / blah blah blah, but on its face, either it’s a story about a terribly lonely boy who has a grasp on the way the world treats him differently for being queer and for being fat (and buys into delusions of the occult), or a story about a terribly lonely boy who has a grasp on the way the world treats him differently for being queer and for being fat and has the ability to cast spells and dabble in bad juju; either way, it’s a nice weird story about New Brunswick poverty, occult pop culture, difficult fathers (well, impossible fathers, here), and the succession of queers against so many odds (I won’t spoil anything, but the final chapter is a sharp turn and more of an epilogue and there’s just a weird amount of resilience and smoky wispy “I think it’ll get better” guarded optimism. Not my favourite canlit book, but probably my favourite canlit novel. Would love to read some more work from Vaughan soon, at least if my grad school schedule allows.