Tim Miller’s Universe of “Shock and Awe”
I’m no stranger to extreme gore/splatterpunk, graphic violence or strong sexual content. After all these years, I was and still am a big follower of author Edward Lee and the late Richard Laymon. So, when I was contacted by author Tim Miller to review his new book ‘Clown Night,’ I agreed to give it a shot for two reasons. One: Tim Miller is fast becoming a household name in the horror world and two: nowadays, we have all these strange news and police reports of clown sightings. America's hysterical obsession with creepy clowns has become quite topical lately. What would be a better read for the Halloween season? Is the world done with urban legends or are we just creating new ones? Are creepypasta-style horror stories like Slender Man and evil clowns luring our children into the woods the new norm? While looking through other books written by Tim Miller, it appears that this clown culture has taken root in him as well, because he’s a bit clown obsessed himself…. And this was BEFORE all the sightings. Just looking at his series ‘April Almighty’ books, it features clowns in books 2-4 and series spin-off. (‘Welcome to Happytown,’ ‘Escape from Happytown,’ ‘April Reigns,’ and ‘Clown Apocalypse.’)
I did some personal research of clown history. While I do not suffer from Coulrophobia, as many people do, I have always looked upon clowns as something that masks evil or as some sort of a demonic persona. I related it to their garish makeup and outlandish costumes. Throughout time, clowns have gone from being court jesters, tricksters, children entertainers, and circus performers to being used in horror novels and films. Everyone knows Stephen king’s novel/movie ‘It’ and recognizes Tim Curry’s adaption of the villainous Pennywise. In my psychological studies in college, I learned of a serial killer named John Wayne Gacy. He was dubbed the "Killer Clown” because his alternate persona by day was "Pogo the Clown." In his town, he would perform at charitable services for fundraising events, parades, and children's parties. Again, this masked his own dual, evil persona...
So, I read and reviewed this book looking at it from all different angles and perspectives to come to my star rating at the end.
First of all, author Tim Miller is adored by his big fan base due to the extremely graphic violence/sexual content and splatterpunk gore. Yet, I felt ‘Clown Night’ was quite mild considering I have read other books that were really much worse. That being said, I had no issues at all with his writing. In fact, the story starts off slow in the beginning. Then, it picks up with a nice, steady flowing pace. The intensity builds toward the end as the action really kicks in. When I started to read, it was very clear to me that the disturbed character Reggie was not a typical (or classical) serial killer. There were no signs at all given in his background history or kills that pointed in that direction. It's very obvious to me that he is more of a thrill killer. He just likes the sheer excitement of torturous murder, of blood pouring through his fingertips, and the media attention it brings. This all makes him feel more powerful, where, in his real life, he is not. The other sign of a thrill killer is that he doesn’t use the same MO throughout the rest of the story. It's not just women as a target, but men also. Plus, when low on funds, he robs stores for cash. That, in part, might be his biggest mistake. He is all over the place in Texas and sloppy, thus leaving clues everywhere.
Enter our hero. What I really liked about this story is the strong female lead, Texas Ranger Claire Sanchez. I believe she is the real reason I was drawn into the story and continued reading to the end. I also love when books have main characters (especially law enforcement) that go rogue and are determined to get the killer at any cost. There will be two surprising twists and turns mid-story with a very strange, almost supernatural element at the end that comes full circle back to that clown mask. Now, the chase is on and you will have to see yourself if Claire Sanchez gets her man.
The reason for the 4-star rating instead of 5 is that when I got to the ending, I was little disappointed because the author left some unanswered questions. I was a little confused, but it was because I have not read the April Almighty series yet. Tim ends with a bit of an Easter egg. For those that have read the series, you’ll be thrilled. However, if you’re not a follower of those books, you are left in the dark. Of course, this might be Tim’s way of his hooking his ravenous readers into devouring his four book (plus multiple spin-offs) series. If so, he got me. I want to know more.
For an added bonus, we get an excerpt of a new book being released, November 18, 2016 called ‘Rape Van.’ Not sure if this one will be my kind of story, but Tim Miller has a certain style and flair that can make me read just about anything.