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Mr Brightside
In London's shadowy streets, Rory went looking for love.
Instead, he found a monster.
In the shadowy streets of London, 16-year-old Rory arrives searching for love—but finds himself trapped in a brutal world run by a man known only as Mr Brightside. Three years later, haunted and hardened, Rory crosses paths with Bryan, a hopeful bartender who sees beyond Rory’s scars. As Bryan falls deeper, Rory fights against emotions he's buried beneath violence, addiction, and the ghost of a long-lost lover.
But Mr Brightside wants Rory back—and he doesn’t take no for an answer.
Torn between the darkness he knows and a flicker of redemption, Rory must face his past to claim any chance at a future. Gritty, raw, and achingly tender, Mr Brightside is a powerful, disturbingly dark romance thriller about survival, love, and the price of escape.
Jon Towlson is a British film critic, journalist, and author known for his extensive work on horror and genre cinema. He has written several books exploring the cultural and historical significance of films, particularly in the horror and science fiction genres.
Mr Brightside is his fiction debut.
Instead, he found a monster.
In the shadowy streets of London, 16-year-old Rory arrives searching for love—but finds himself trapped in a brutal world run by a man known only as Mr Brightside. Three years later, haunted and hardened, Rory crosses paths with Bryan, a hopeful bartender who sees beyond Rory’s scars. As Bryan falls deeper, Rory fights against emotions he's buried beneath violence, addiction, and the ghost of a long-lost lover.
But Mr Brightside wants Rory back—and he doesn’t take no for an answer.
Torn between the darkness he knows and a flicker of redemption, Rory must face his past to claim any chance at a future. Gritty, raw, and achingly tender, Mr Brightside is a powerful, disturbingly dark romance thriller about survival, love, and the price of escape.
Jon Towlson is a British film critic, journalist, and author known for his extensive work on horror and genre cinema. He has written several books exploring the cultural and historical significance of films, particularly in the horror and science fiction genres.
Mr Brightside is his fiction debut.
Audible Audio
Published May 6, 2025
About the author
Jon Towlson
33 books39 followersJon Towlson is a film critic and the author of 40 CULT MOVIES: FROM ALICE, SWEET ALICE TO ZOMBIES OF MORA TAU (2023), MIDNIGHT COWBOY (McGill-Queen's University Press, 2023), DAWN OF THE DEAD (DEVIL'S ADVOCATES) (Auteur/ Liverpool University Press, 2022), GLOBAL HORROR CINEMA TODAY (McFarland, 2021), CANDYMAN (DEVIL'S ADVOCATES) (Auteur/Columbia University Press, 2018), THE TURN TO GRUESOMENESS IN AMERICAN HORROR FILMS, 1931-1936 (McFarland, 2016), CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (CONSTELLATIONS) (Auteur/Columbia University Press, 2016) and SUBVERSIVE HORROR CINEMA: COUNTERCULTURAL MESSAGES OF FILMS FROM FRANKENSTEIN TO THE PRESENT (McFarland, 2014). He is a regular contributor to STARBURST MAGAZINE, and has also written for the BFI, Scream, The Dark Side, Diabolique, Paracinema, Exquisite Terror, Irish Journal of Gothic and Horror Studies, Shadowland Magazine, Bright Lights Film Journal, Offscreen, Cine Excess and Digital Film-Maker Magazine. Jon has contributed extras to Blu ray releases by Arrow, Second Sight, Eureka and 101 Films. Jon has been nominated several times for a Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award 'honoring the best in classic horror research'.
Jon hosts the official STARBURST horror podcast
FRIDAY NIGHT FRIGHTS.
Jon hosts the official STARBURST horror podcast
FRIDAY NIGHT FRIGHTS.
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