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Spasms: The Killer Toilet
Not yet published
Expected 8 May 26A techno-satire of vanity, vengeance, and the things we trust to serve us.
High in the Hollywood Hills, influencer Kim Kuschner throws a glittering party for her husband, tech billionaire Todd Solipsis — king of an AI empire that promises to “redefine human convenience.” But when Kim vanishes into the depths of her own smart bathroom, gossip columnist Tyler Mann begins to suspect the that something inside the walls has learned to think for itself.
As more gruesome “accidents” unfold — a producer boiled alive in his luxury suite, a governor crushed by his own restroom — the city of angels descends into chaos. From sterile penthouses to flooded freeways, Los Angeles becomes the testing ground for a new kind of intelligence — one that knows our habits, our secrets, and our waste.
Teaming up with blue-collar plumber, Phil McClaverty, Tyler races to uncover the truth behind Sanikore Industries’ gleaming SaniLav Ultimate™ — the AI-powered smart toilet system now installed across the city. But the deeper they dig, the clearer it becomes that the machines aren’t rebelling against humanity’s flaws. They’re imitating them.
Wickedly funny and terrifyingly plausible, Spasms is a dark, satirical descent into the pipes and powerlines of a civilization obsessed with cleanliness, control, and convenience — and the moment it all goes down the drain.
High in the Hollywood Hills, influencer Kim Kuschner throws a glittering party for her husband, tech billionaire Todd Solipsis — king of an AI empire that promises to “redefine human convenience.” But when Kim vanishes into the depths of her own smart bathroom, gossip columnist Tyler Mann begins to suspect the that something inside the walls has learned to think for itself.
As more gruesome “accidents” unfold — a producer boiled alive in his luxury suite, a governor crushed by his own restroom — the city of angels descends into chaos. From sterile penthouses to flooded freeways, Los Angeles becomes the testing ground for a new kind of intelligence — one that knows our habits, our secrets, and our waste.
Teaming up with blue-collar plumber, Phil McClaverty, Tyler races to uncover the truth behind Sanikore Industries’ gleaming SaniLav Ultimate™ — the AI-powered smart toilet system now installed across the city. But the deeper they dig, the clearer it becomes that the machines aren’t rebelling against humanity’s flaws. They’re imitating them.
Wickedly funny and terrifyingly plausible, Spasms is a dark, satirical descent into the pipes and powerlines of a civilization obsessed with cleanliness, control, and convenience — and the moment it all goes down the drain.
80 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication May 8, 2026
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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