Scripped

by K.V. Taylor, Jodi Lee (Editor)

In an attempt to escape constant arguing, Jonah Gray wanders away from the family cabin deep in the West Virginia wilderness. But he wanders too far, over the borders to a Faerie land that could only exist in Appalachia. Faerie-napping, cold knives, underground oppressors, horror stories, and unwilling affections threaten to suck him forever into their desolate Company Town. If they do, he’ll lose himself in every way possible. You might escape the fae, but you can never go home. Not really.

Genres: LGBT, Fantasy

148 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2011

About the author

Hi there! I write under the name KV Taylor (or, if you're looking for romance, Katey Hawthorne) but I'm called Katey for obvious reasons. I write urban and dark fantasy, but I read pretty much everything. You can find my short stories at my website, if you like that sort of thing.

My first novel, Scripped , is available from Belfire Press.

I like Black Bush, comics, guitars, history, and loud music. I'm always looking for reading recs, so please don't be shy. How about you?

Reviews

[Carole Lanham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly atmospheric and original, the world Taylor creates in Scripped is like no place I've ever imagined before. History and fantasy are woven together in such a disorienting way, I was left to wonder if the decayed mining town she describes in the book is real, and if it's secret inhabitants are there even now - stretched out on some dusty old mattress in a forgotten room, waiting for a lost hiker to stumble into their midst. Jonah, the conflicted soul at the heart of the story, loses himself a little more with every cold, gray step he takes toward their forbidding existence. What follows is a journey that is part horror, part Grimm’s Fairy Tale, and part love story, albeit of a most unusual variety.

This book mixes together such a powerful combination of dread and beauty, I couldn’t help but eat it up. Jonah’s story is sad, lovely, and entirely unique. But enough about him! I’m off to order more of KV Taylor’s work…

[Anthony Rapino · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic little novel with an original plot and well-drawn characters. Part of the fun for me was first trying to figure out (and eventually discovering) just what "scripped" meant, and then slowly discovering what happened to the main character, Jonah. I especially like that the author explains just enough to satisfy the reader, without giving too much explanation. It makes the occurrences seem all the more real. This novel has a deep and very real emotional core. By the end of it, I was left contemplating the many ways life and love can either break us or save us. There are also lingering thematic threads of "identity" playing throughout that are wonderful.

[A.G. Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A disturbing and sophisticated Fae tale set in Appalachian country. KV is an evocative writer, and drops you right into the skin of her tortured main character. (For anyone who's read the book, you'll get my pun...;)) Don't expect a happily ever after, but do expect to become invested in the MC's plight until the very last page. Darkly atmospheric and emotionally complex, SCRIPPED has some gruesome scenes and undertones of violence and GB sex, but it never feels gratuitous because it fits seamlessly with the story line.

[Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

What to say about Scripped without giving too much away? I really have to think on this because I don't want to spoil this book for anyone brave enough to try it.

This was a hard book for me to read. Normally, if you see me read something slow, it's because I'm having a hard time with some element or character in the story. It's rare that I read slow because I'm "savoring the flavor." But no, this book features not one, but two themes that trigger my personal problems. Many times I had to put my ereader down, clutch my chest and just think, "Breathe, okay?" Seriously, if I hadn't already read and loved two other books from the same author, I'd have never made it past chapter 2 of this book.

Summing up the plot, Jonah Gray is an athlete in a dysfunctional family who leaves his parents' cabin to get away from his arguing parents. In the woods, he stumbles across the Borderlands, the meeting point between our world and the fae world. He's found by Sela, who is very eager to take him back to her town. Jonah is put under a spell that leaves him confused, and so he's led into a trap, and into a life of being tied up and cut. And THIS is why I had so much trouble reading the book. Theme one that freaked me out was Jonah being owned as property, and having no control over his own life. Theme two is being tied up. Both of these themes are recurring, though I won't spoil the story by saying why Sela is using him.

Eventually Jonah finds a way to leave the town, but he remains closeted in more meanings of the word than I can describe without spoilers. I hurt for Jonah, knowing personally his self-loathing and his sense of being a broken person for many years. I understood his feelings of being unworthy of love, and that sense of connection made me wish for something better to happen. But this is a horror story, and the ending is more in line with that dark genre than with my wishes for a happy ending.

So, this is rough book for me to get through, and I think saying I enjoyed it is perhaps a long stretch of the word. But I cared about Jonah so much that I couldn't quit reading, and that to me says something about the quality of the writing. So I give Scripped 4 stars and recommend it to fans of horror and dark fantasy who are looking for an unflinching and ugly look at what happens when someone wanders off the beaten path and into the clutches of the fae. I'd just warn people with bondage or control issues that this book is very triggery. Like, I had to put it down and breathe slow to avoid risking hyperventilating from panic attacks. It's still a powerful read, and I'm glad I finished it.

[Reenie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wheee, KV Taylor's first novel! Pretty bloody cool one, too. I love the world of the fae she's created - it goes to show that you don't need stone circles and mystical dark ages/middle ages history to weave compelling mythology out of, because something better might be lying out in your backyard mountain mining towns. Dark and bloody and... well.. something compelling, the word for which is eluding me - is what the Appalachian mining history already was, and it was waiting for someone this good to turn it into the mythic, and to top that to do it in an intensely personal character-driven way.

[KV Taylor]

I wrote this. (Never woulda guessed, huh?) It's a dark paranormal/urban fantasy, like an old school fairy tale, but modern and Appalachian. Might appeal to fans of the original, dark as hell fairy tales and modern UF readers -- so long as you like it disturbing. Has a heavy undercurrent of One Screwed-Up Love Story, too.

http://youcannevergoho.me/

[Katey Hawthorne]

I wrote this! Different pen name, but different themes. Bit of a f#@ked up love story involved, yeah, but more of a dark UF/paranormal than a romance. (Hence the two pen names, of course!)

Loads of info here:

http://youcannevergoho.me/

[Meghan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although set in the modern day, Scripped belongs with the faery tales of old. KV Taylor's Fae are dark and entrancing, and her hero could be any of us. After reading this, you'll think twice before walking alone in the woods again...

[Sheri White · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was OK. Not the kind of book I usually like to read. Review to come soon for Belfire Press.

[Cate Gardner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightfully, dark tale of the fae and a boy who wanders into their ghostly mining town. Heart-wrenching and the ending will have you screaming a mixture of yes! and nooooo!

[K.C. Beaumont · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVED this. Will write a proper review soon :)