The Rest Stop

by Eric Butler

The author of The Popelick Massacre and Donn, TX returns with a grindhouse tale in the vein of TCM and House of 1000 Corpses .

A rest stop with a reputation for abandoned cars in the middle of nowhere, and a family on their way to a new home turns into a tale of terror.

Sometimes it's better to keep driving, no matter how tired you are.

Genres: Horror

84 pages, Paperback

Published September 28, 2023

About the author

I'm an indie Horror writer who lives deep in the heart of Texas. When I'm not writing novels and stories for anthologies, I'm doing the bidding of 3 adorable huskies. I've been married for over 20 years and have a teenager in the house, so I won't be running out of horror material for quite some time.

Reviews

[Diana | Indie Book Addict · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack and his two nieces are traveling and stopped at a rest stop. All seemed normal until a rusty Chevy pickup caught Jack’s eye. Once they head off to the restrooms to freshen up, everything changes, and I mean everything.

As the description says, this is a great mix of TCM and House of 1000 Corpses. Butler wastes no time getting right to the action. It’s brutal and thrilling. This is edge of your seat reading because you don’t know what’s coming next, you just know something is coming full force, and it’s not going to be good. The author included very detailed imagery which really made things more intense, and the constant cat and mouse only adds to how disturbing this story is. The terror is real! Several unpredictable twists, characters you will feel for and characters you will hate. Butler went all out with this one. You can always count on his short stories to pack a punch.

“I’m already sorry, but not as sorry as you’re gonna be.”

[Stephen Cooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great story from Eric. Always enjoy his writing and unrelenting bleakness and mean spirit lol.

[Veronica ☠️ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kylie and Sara are traveling with their uncle Jack to their new house. They slept at a rest stop and it's time to continue their road trip. They all go to the bathrooms to freshen up when they are immediately faced with a creepy pair of men. These men are here to collect and this trio will do. The nightmare is just beginning.

What a ride! This is a brutal short read and I ate it up. Crazy families are some of my favourites and this family sure delivers insanity. The reason why they do what they do really intrigued me. I enjoyed how Butler ended this story and I'm diving into book 2 immediately. Next time I'm on a road trip, I won't be stopping at any rest stop! The side of the road will do just fine!

[Horror Bookworm Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Horror Bookworm Recommendation
The Rest Stop by Eric Butler
https://horrorbookwormreviews.com/

Sara and Kylie are on a road trip with their uncle. Anxious to reach the girl’s new home but exhausted from the drive, the trio decide on a brief stay at a rest stop. When a rusty Chevy pickup creeps through the pull-off area, what seems like an ordinary break from a long drive turns into a bloody battle for survival.

The Rest Stop by Eric Butler brings a style of demented horror to the safe haven roadsides of America. Butler trades his pen & paper in for meat cleavers, boning hooks and bloody aprons. Not since Dicky & Balls has there ever been a terrifying backwoods duo…ladies and gentlemen give a warm coppery welcome to Jimbo & Skeeter. These two crazies put the kid in kidnapping and the brutal in brutality.

I have to mention when reading Eric Butler’s short stories or even novellas, you don’t want them to end and crave more. The Rest Stop is no exception. Turning an everyday well known environment into a menacing atmosphere is why this is a need to read. Oh yeah, and plenty of those familiar “oh-shit” moments also take place.

Purchasing an Eric Butler book is like masquerading as a ghost on Halloween and receiving a big ol’ pack of M&M’s in your pumpkin bucket, there’s nothin’ better. Just when you thought it was safe to eat, stretch your legs and refill your gas tank…The Rest Stop by Eric Butler…disturbing, frightening and scary as hell. A five star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Horror Bookworm Recommendation.

[D.W. Hitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic adrenaline-filled Splatterpunk.

[Nat Whiston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here we go again, Eric making me feel for characters I did know I could feel for. Jack is a good uncle, he looks after his nieces and cares deeply for them. So when his family is put in danger at a rest stop on his way to take them back to their mom. Jack finds another level of terror as he enters every family member's worst-nightmare scenario. Then BANG Eric snaps away everything in one moment. Leaving us with a very Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets House of 1000 Corpses type tale. Kylie is a strong and tortured character so it's easy to feel for her, you're like Dear god Eric hasn't she been through enough?! But as always Eric likes to go one step further. Fast-paced and adrenaline-fueled the reader is locked in this story for survival and the need to escape. Because the worst kind of monster is usually a human? Right? So this tale takes all the twists and turns exploring the captures and their messed up family. Blood, gore, violence, and a little Enucleation make for an extreme and fun horror tale of caution

[DA · Rating 5 out of 5]

In true Butler fashion you get a fast paced crazy bloody ride through a terrifying landscape. He also has a great knack for including at least one character that is vile but just a touch endearing. If you haven't read anything from this author and you like your horror with lots of action and just enough gore then you'll want to check out his books. This would be a great introduction to his writing.

[Eve Moss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not this book having me stressed at work while listening to it lol loved it, and I loved the end. If you’re looking for a quick read (or listen on audible) that will have you on edge in the best way here ya go :)

[Christina Pfeiffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full reviews at: https://www.uncomfortablydark.com/chr...

**REVIEW**

THE REST STOP by Eric Butler

Eric Butler and I have a history… a history of me wanting to take out a kneecap. Think back to 2021 if you follow any of my insanity and you will remember how pissed I was about POPE LICK MASSACRE (iykyk). Well, he did it again! He has done pissed off me in 2023. Great job, Cargo Shorts.

Kylie, Sara, and their Uncle Jack are just trying to get to their destination in one piece, but one rest stop break makes that a fight for their lives.

TRS had me reading so damn fast so I could see what was going to happen next and I was on the edge of my bed the whole time. Butler crafts a world that not only is scary but is too real to not be unnerving. The twists and turns do not stop coming until the very end. I know I’m going to get flak for this, but it is his best work so far. A not at all surprising, HIGHLY, HIGHLY RECOMMEND 10/5.

[Danielle Yvonne · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Shouldn’ta done that,” he said with a sigh. “Momma’s not gonna be happy.”

Oh. Wow. 😳 Ok well, I don’t know if I’ve officially named any favorite shorter stories I’ve read for 2024 yet, but this is absolutely in the top 3 somewhere. (I know it was released last year, I’m late to the party. 🫣)

This was phenomenal. Total page turner. Depraved as hell. Backwoods shenanigans psycho craziness that will absolutely mess up your next road trip. 🫡

The writing style was perfect. The tone was perfect. The pacing was perfect. The mood was such a vibe, a fucked up vibe, but a vibe. 😮‍💨

This one got me to gag a couple times, I was genuinely creeped TF out, and all around it was just a phenomenal story and told really well. It was completely unhinged but told in a way that, I don’t even know how to explain, other than as unhinged as it is, you’re still able to keep going through and it’s super cohesive. (Idk if that makes sense but it will if you read it, I swear. 😅)

Easy five stars. Give it a chance. I can’t see this not being loved by so many people.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Cheryl P. (review hiatus) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jack and his two nieces, Kylie and Sara, are traveling home when they make a stop to rest and freshen up. Then, everything quickly and drastically changes.
This little story is short, but fast paced and packs a punch. It'll make you apprehensive about ever visiting a rest stop again! I will definitely be checking out more stories by the author.

[Eve L. Fell · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 🍒

Fast paced as hell. This book hit hard from the beginning and didn’t really let up. There was no time to process the deaths and gore I felt like I had to keep reading as it was playing like a movie in my head.

Kylie and her family are on a roadtrip. They stop at a rest stop to freshen up and all hell breaks loose. Some crazy family kills her uncle and kidnaps her and her sister. They take her to their farm and lock them in a barn. I don’t want to say much else without giving the whole book away.

I read this in one sitting. It was a very quick read. Will be reading more by this author.

[The Yeti Reads and Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jack is driving his nieces the long distance to meet their mother at their new home. After being awoken from their nap by a loud truck creeping through the parking lot at a rest stop, they decide to freshen up a bit and get back on the road. While getting ready, some unsavory characters have different plans for them.

Uncomfortable, violent, and shocking. Eric Butler delivers a fantastic tale of horror. We have all seen those sketchy rest stops, and this tale will definitely make me think twice about stopping at one. No matter how bad, I have to pee. That ending is just wow. Don't miss it!


5 severed fingers out of 5

[Shaun Filion · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow !! Eric Butler's latest story caught me right from the very first chapter. A quick paced novella that I couldn't put down till the very end. As if I didn't already dislike rest stops as it was!! this book certainly didn't help. This one is definitely worth checking out !

[Nicole Marcozzi · Rating 3 out of 5]

wasn’t a huge fan of the writing style but there were some gross moments that i can appreciate

[Crystal Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wtf Butler?! I believe this is by far the most brutal thing I have read from Butler. Comes in hard, and stays that way. Fast paced, extreme, and I loved it!

[Angelique Jordonna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Way to get someone cozy and interested and then just rip away any shred of hope there could possibly be. Also, I may not sleep in rest stops anymore. 🤷‍♀️

[Nick Watts · Rating 4 out of 5]

One mean book that doesn't let up. Love Butler's work.

[Rainbeaux Harvest · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to be disrespected while eating salad with olives, this is the book for you! I only recently got over my fear of using public bathrooms at my old ass age. Thanks, Eric Butler, I'll go ahead and move on to adult diapers.

[C.M. Guidroz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will never stop at a rest stop EVER AGAIN...
In 50ish pages this author made me care about these characters. 50ISH FKIN PAGES.

This book is compared to a gut-wrenching grindhouse experience and I have to agree except I would go as far as to say if you like Texas Chainsaw Massacre...you will like this.

Parts of this book actually creeped me out. The part where the girls are brushing their teeth and the stall door slowly starts to creep open, the chaos that follows...just a gut punch of a book. Fkin read it.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I travel, I try to avoid rest stops and park restrooms when I can. They smell funny, they’re eerily quiet, and I imagine every surface is covered in some kind of bodily fluid.

I loved The Pope Lick Massacre and immediately put The Rest Stop on my TBR. I was attracted to it based on the cover art as well as the homepage to some of my favorite slasher movies. Don’t let its size fool you, at a whopping 70 pages it packs a punch from start to finish. At time I thought my eyes were going to pop out of my skull. 😳 I loved the story but would have loved for it to be a little longer.

[Kimberly Spookybookwurm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whew!!! This one had more than a few of my fears packed into piece!! As well as, giving me even more reasons to be scared, while out on the road! I had to finish it fast, because I needed to know what would happen! Characters were easy to relate to, and it got my heart racing. I will definitely be checking out more titles that he has put out.

[Alenna Burleson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The rest stop stop was such a good read! this book literally so fast i loved it. It was quick paced and engaging from start to finish, the characters were really cool, very hills have eyes x organ harvesters.

[ReadsWithRissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

An uncle and his two nieces stop at a restaurant to freshen up. Little did they know they will be thrown into a night of fear and terror.

I highly recommend Rest Stop by Eric Butler. This had the perfect amount of horror, disgust, and fear that I love in a book.

[Jason Nickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Butler nailed the feel of old school horror here. This story felt like something akin to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. A great quick and fast paced read.

[Sean Stanford · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great read! Not many books keep me on the edge of my seat, but this one definitely did. Very well written and had me thinking of some of Jack Ketchum’s work. My only gripe is I wanted more.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent fast paced story about some deranged backwoods folks.

[Lynnde Tew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very quick and fast paced from beginning to end. 👍🏻

[Kimyona Dietter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short, intense, and shocking, no time was wasted getting the reader into the story. Readers are shoved in face first into a terrifying and gruesome opening scene where the action starts before the setting is really established. “The punch you never see coming,” never stops punching you in the face as you read along. While a lot of the horror is off to the side/off camera, it somehow becomes more awful to know it’s going on while the protagonist can only imagine. There is not a moment where the reader is not silently willing the captives to get out and be rescued. The captors are unknown minus their names and what they say, but their intentions are at best vague.

 

I never stopped cringing through this story and at the end I shuddered. It never ends.

 

I now have new feels for road trips. “shivers”

[Sea Caummisar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Butler has a way of writing so that the scenes play like movies in my mind. I've probably said that before in a review, but it's because it's true. If two movies could mate and create a book, this would be a tangling of Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Turistas. Oh yeah, and of course the Rest Stop movies because how can I not mention those greats in this review?
This tale had a bit of blood and gore and very detailed graphic scenes which I'm sure will grab the extreme crowd (which I am and loved this read).