Avonwood Exodus

by Chad Lutzke

172 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 27, 2026

About the author

Full-time family man, artist, musician, and ferret owner with twenty books under his belt, Chad Lutzke dips his toe into all things dark: Crime, grit-lit, slice-of-life, dirty realism, and horror, every one smothered in heartache with the occasional sliver of hope. Lutzke's work has been praised by authors Jack Ketchum, Richard Chizmar, Joe R. Lansdale, Stephen Graham Jones, Tim Waggoner, and his own mother.

He can be found lurking the internet at www.chadlutzke.com

Reviews

[✮ osanna aoki ✮ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Avonwood Exodus is a slice-of-life story about a group of people living inside of a trailer park community.

Yet Avonwood isn’t much of a community at all— with the only sense of collectiveness being that of fractured spirits, joint drug dealing, and a deep longing for escape… which comes in various forms.

The story is told in brief chapters over the course of one day from the perspectives of those living in or frequenting the trailer park.

There’s a young kid and his friend simply trying to make the most of their childhoods, an older brother hiding a meth addiction, a prostitute with broken dreams of becoming a Hollywood star, a peeping tom dealing with obsession and self-deprecation, a man orchestrating some shady business, and the property manager— a woman determined to bring Avonwood back to life.

Avonwood Exodus is one of those tales where every character seems to suffer— the setting bleak and suffocating.

This is a place where getting out would be the ultimate achievement… an achievement that seems just out of reach.

The desperation is high and the despair rampant.

I’m a sucker when it comes to a book full of melancholy and individuals who are severely flawed. It creates character, and more than that— some authenticity.

Character studies come in all shapes and sizes, even in books as fleeting as this.

Rating this novella with ★ ★ ★ ½ stars rounded up. The story is good, the interwoven elements and full-circle situation appealing, and the melancholy is strong. I felt as though it just ended all so abruptly, and it took me out of the ending quite a bit.

[Mike Hughes · Rating 5 out of 5]

another great Lutzke book. this one is dark and gritty and doesnt hold anything back. so good to read a new Chad lutzke book and I can't wait to see what he does next.

[Keith Gouveia · Rating 5 out of 5]

One Night. One Incident. All told from the points of view from the residents of Avonwood Trailer Park. Once again, Chad Lutzke has impressed me. Do yourself a favour and pick up this book. I highly recommend it.

[Josh reading · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great book by Chad Lutzke! I sensed hints of Raymond Carver in this entry, which is never a bad thing. In many ways, I felt like Chad could definitely continue this story if he chose to. I’d be curious to see where a few characters end up landing if there were further installments.

[Jose Villanueva · Rating 5 out of 5]

“What have you seen with those little eyes, baby Jack? Probably too much, huh?”

😭😭

I say it over and over, but no one does it like Chad Lutzke. I don't understand how he's so good at getting you to connect to characters, almost immediately. It takes some writers hundreds of pages in order to make an emotional impact but time and time again, Lutzke nails it within just a few pages. I was devastated to hear he was walking away from writing and ecstatic when he announced he was coming back. I would read his grocery list and I'm sure he'd somehow find a way for it to bring tears to my eyes.

[Working Man Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the narrative style choice that Chad accomplished here. The way multiple characters' lives intertwined throughout the plot was very well executed. I've been a fan of his for a while and it was nice to read something by him again.

This book is dripping with
Emotion and serves as a looking glass into the downtrodden, but sometimes optimistic lives of the folks living in this mobile home park. It's a great look into what happens behind closed doors.

Writing ⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Characters ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Horror ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Fun⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


Overall 4.25

[Alexis Vieira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Right up there as one of my favorite ever Chad Lutzke books! Absolutely incredible, I couldn’t put it down.

[Nancy Mills · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fast Moving

Lively intersection of a bunch of quirky residents of a trailer park and a sugar daddy/drug dealer. Lots of sex and violence. Sordid and witty. Highly recommended

[lucky 13 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Avonwood Exodus the little trailer park in anywhere USA you might drive by and wonder about the people or how it might be living in such a place. this is three stories that are interlocking gritty and dark only the way MR LUTZKE can tell it !

[Nicole Rubbo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rural trailer park steeped in prostitution, drugs, and quiet despair sets the stage for Avonwood. Rather than following a single narrative, the story unfolds through a series of interconnected lives—two boys forced to grow up too soon, a shy man aching for an unattainable love, a woman dreaming of escaping to Los Angeles to become an actress, and a young mother whose addiction overshadows her love for her child. Looming over it all is a small-time tyrant who rules the park with deep secrets and intimidation.
Each trailer holds its own story, but together they form a bleak, unforgiving portrait of a community trapped in cycles of loss and longing.
Chad Lutzke’s story will haunt me for a very long time.

[renee w]

5 splendid 🌟


“Because you’re living in a place like Avonwood, something’s wrong.
People don’t come here for the scenery.
They come because deep down they’re scared of comfort, responsibility, and security.”

Welcome to Avonwood Trailer Park. Here, you will find a young man in the midst of addiction, two boys coming of age, a love-struck neighbor, a prostitute with dreams of making it big in Hollywood, a secretive drug dealer, and a park manager trying to clean the place up. While they are all living their own separate stories, tragedy and hardship ultimately bring them together.

Chad Lutzke has once again outdone himself with this raw, heart-wrenching story. I cannot recommend this book enough as I do all of Chad’s work!

[Karen (kmo.reads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Avonwood Exodus is set in a trailer park inhabited by a diverse group of individuals, each grappling with their own personal struggles and searching for a way to escape their circumstances. The novella skillfully interweaves multiple perspectives, gradually bringing these narratives together at the end of the novella.

I have long admired Chad Lutzke’s work, which consistently conveys a sense of emotional depth, realism, and intensity. Avonwood Exodus is no exception. It is a story that lingers in the reader’s mind well after the final page.

[Jerri · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up. It's great to see Lutzke writing again! Of Foster Homes and Flies is in my top 5 favorite books.The writing was still great and feels very authentic to the characters. I loved the full circle of the story but would have enjoyed a longer story. I look forward to more by this author.

[Armand Rosamilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything you want and need in a dark, noir Chad Lutzke story. Broken, awful characters who do broken, awful things to one another. A wonderfully written tragedy of a tale.

[Stephen Mead · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very solid novella that concludes very nicely