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The Toll
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite Horror (2019)State Road 177 runs along the Suwannee River, between Fargo, Georgia, and the Okefenokee Swamp. Drive that route from east to west, and you’ll cross six bridges. Take it from west to east, and you might find seven.
But you’d better hope not.
Titus and Melanie Bell leave their hotel in Fargo for a second honeymoon canoeing the Okefenokee Swamp. But shortly before they reach their destination, they draw up to a halt at the edge of a rickety bridge with old stone pilings, with room for only one car . . .
When, much later, a tow-truck arrives, the driver finds Titus lying in the middle of the road, but Melanie is nowhere to be found.
But you’d better hope not.
Titus and Melanie Bell leave their hotel in Fargo for a second honeymoon canoeing the Okefenokee Swamp. But shortly before they reach their destination, they draw up to a halt at the edge of a rickety bridge with old stone pilings, with room for only one car . . .
When, much later, a tow-truck arrives, the driver finds Titus lying in the middle of the road, but Melanie is nowhere to be found.
336 pages, Paperback
First published July 9, 2019
247 people are currently reading
14234 people want to read
About the author
Cherie Priest
73 books4,373 followersCherie Priest is the author of about thirty books and novellas, most recently the modern gothics It Was Her House First, The Drowning House, and Cinderwich. She's also the author of the Booking Agents mysteries, horror projects The Toll and The Family Plot – and the hit YA graphic novel mash-ups I Am Princess X and its follow up, The Agony House. But she is perhaps best known for the steampunk pulp adventures of the Clockwork Century, beginning with Boneshaker. She has been nominated for the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award, and the Locus award – which she won with Boneshaker.
Cherie has also written a number of urban fantasy titles, and composed pieces (large and small) for George R. R. Martin’s shared world universe, the Wild Cards. Her short stories and nonfiction articles have appeared in such fine publications as Weird Tales, Publishers Weekly, and numerous anthologies – and her books have been translated into nine languages in eleven countries.
Although she was born in Florida on the day Jimmy Hoffa disappeared, for the last twenty years Cherie has largely divided her time between Chattanooga, TN, and Seattle, WA – where she presently lives with her husband and a menagerie of exceedingly photogenic pets.
Cherie has also written a number of urban fantasy titles, and composed pieces (large and small) for George R. R. Martin’s shared world universe, the Wild Cards. Her short stories and nonfiction articles have appeared in such fine publications as Weird Tales, Publishers Weekly, and numerous anthologies – and her books have been translated into nine languages in eleven countries.
Although she was born in Florida on the day Jimmy Hoffa disappeared, for the last twenty years Cherie has largely divided her time between Chattanooga, TN, and Seattle, WA – where she presently lives with her husband and a menagerie of exceedingly photogenic pets.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 731 reviews
July 20, 2019
Loosely billed as 'horror,' I don't think that The Toll earns the genre. With a Southern Gothic atmosphere, it has a dual plot line that only intersects near the end. One story begins with a bored seventeen-year-old boy, Cameron, his elderly witchy godmothers and the restless feeling of wanting change. The other plot surrounds a squabbling honeymooning couple headed to a cabin in the Okefenokee swamp, who experience something surreal as they cross a strange bridge. Because the tone between the two stories feels so different, it almost feels like two books in one. I read an advance reader copy, and parts of it still felt like a draft. In fact, in the end notes, Priest notes that it was written around the time of a cross-country move and selling a house, and I can't help but feel quality was sacrificed. Still, it was occasionally diverting.
Characterization was decent. Although the cast was often interesting, one of the challenges for me is that they were difficult to care about, as almost all of them were ethically challenged. The honeymooners, Titus and Melissa, are a mess. Cameron, the seventeen year-old, is basically a shallow, developmentally younger boy. The elderly godmothers were the most entertaining, but felt a little to contrived and cryptic at times. Still, they were by far my favorite characters. Dialogue occasionally feels awkward but actually quite real. A quote from Titus:
"He had a feeling that much of his forseeable future would be dedicated to keeping his mouth shut. He didn't like how he felt about that feeling."
Setting was decent, but didn't really immerse me in the swamp until the last quarter. I had more of a feel for the idiosyncrasies of the town than the swamp. While Titus goes into the general description of the bridges and the water as they approach the reserve, it's more the affection of an alligator fan and casual visitor than a person that knows the biology and plants of the swamp. I've read quite a few mysteries set in swamps that gave me a much better appreciation for the heavy, still air and stagnant pools of algae-crusted water.
Many points in the book felt underdeveloped or not well-thought out. At one point, Priest throws in something about Nick in the bar being a ghost. It was a moment of mental whiplash; not that I minded, but suddenly there was this new thing I had to integrate into my understanding of this village. Likewise, Cameron is surprised to learn the object of his crush is actually in her thirties. We've already read how this is a one-horse town; this seems surprising to me when he's lived there for fourteen years. The fact that Priest makes a point of small facts is frustrating as they seem to provide points to catch oneself on instead of enhancing the scenery--somewhat like walking a path with many branches blocking the way. I suppose it added to the atmosphere of strangeness in the town, but mostly it left me a little bit puzzled.
Take Practical Magic, by Alice Hoffman, cross it with American Elsewhere by Robert Jackson Bennett. Change the desert cliffs to deep swamp, throw in squabbling honeymooners instead of a gentle romance, and there you go: The Toll. Mostly it felt like a lot of ideas jumbled together and needed more development to grow them into something intimidating and ominous. On my diverting read scale, I'd rate it below Mira Grant's Into the Drowning Deep. If you want a good Lovecraft tale, go with Winter Tide or The Ballad of Black Tom.
Many thanks to a dear friend for the arc 😊
Characterization was decent. Although the cast was often interesting, one of the challenges for me is that they were difficult to care about, as almost all of them were ethically challenged. The honeymooners, Titus and Melissa, are a mess. Cameron, the seventeen year-old, is basically a shallow, developmentally younger boy. The elderly godmothers were the most entertaining, but felt a little to contrived and cryptic at times. Still, they were by far my favorite characters. Dialogue occasionally feels awkward but actually quite real. A quote from Titus:
"He had a feeling that much of his forseeable future would be dedicated to keeping his mouth shut. He didn't like how he felt about that feeling."
Setting was decent, but didn't really immerse me in the swamp until the last quarter. I had more of a feel for the idiosyncrasies of the town than the swamp. While Titus goes into the general description of the bridges and the water as they approach the reserve, it's more the affection of an alligator fan and casual visitor than a person that knows the biology and plants of the swamp. I've read quite a few mysteries set in swamps that gave me a much better appreciation for the heavy, still air and stagnant pools of algae-crusted water.
Many points in the book felt underdeveloped or not well-thought out. At one point, Priest throws in something about Nick in the bar being a ghost. It was a moment of mental whiplash; not that I minded, but suddenly there was this new thing I had to integrate into my understanding of this village. Likewise, Cameron is surprised to learn the object of his crush is actually in her thirties. We've already read how this is a one-horse town; this seems surprising to me when he's lived there for fourteen years. The fact that Priest makes a point of small facts is frustrating as they seem to provide points to catch oneself on instead of enhancing the scenery--somewhat like walking a path with many branches blocking the way. I suppose it added to the atmosphere of strangeness in the town, but mostly it left me a little bit puzzled.
Take Practical Magic, by Alice Hoffman, cross it with American Elsewhere by Robert Jackson Bennett. Change the desert cliffs to deep swamp, throw in squabbling honeymooners instead of a gentle romance, and there you go: The Toll. Mostly it felt like a lot of ideas jumbled together and needed more development to grow them into something intimidating and ominous. On my diverting read scale, I'd rate it below Mira Grant's Into the Drowning Deep. If you want a good Lovecraft tale, go with Winter Tide or The Ballad of Black Tom.
Many thanks to a dear friend for the arc 😊
June 1, 2021
2.5 Stars ⭐️
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
September 7, 2019
I want to thank Macmillan-Tor/Forge Tor Books and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book for an unbiased review.
Dark and Creepy!
The story begins with a young couple (Titus & Melanie) on their honeymoon headed to the Okefenokee State Park in the deep south of Florida to go camping and canoeing and just relax with one another. After traveling through the swampland and riding over many small bridges, they start to drive over a very narrow and what appears to be not too sturdy bridge, when suddenly Titus begins to feel lightheaded and very sleepy. The next thing Titus remembers is waking up flat on his back on a paved road several yards away from his car with the doors wide open and Melanie is nowhere to be seen! The mystery and horror will now takes you on a journey that is fun to travel until the end of the book.
Cherie Priest has told a clever and creepy story that captures the look and feel of the swampland territory and the flavor of the small community of people who live there. This book was very well-written and fun to read. There were several stories woven around Melanie's disappearance which made it become a very spooky and twisted mystery. I enjoyed this novel very much and would gladly read more books by this author!
I do recommend this book to other horror lovers who enjoy a quirky and fun storyline and I have given this book 4 Creepy🌟🌟🌟🌟Stars!!
Dark and Creepy!
The story begins with a young couple (Titus & Melanie) on their honeymoon headed to the Okefenokee State Park in the deep south of Florida to go camping and canoeing and just relax with one another. After traveling through the swampland and riding over many small bridges, they start to drive over a very narrow and what appears to be not too sturdy bridge, when suddenly Titus begins to feel lightheaded and very sleepy. The next thing Titus remembers is waking up flat on his back on a paved road several yards away from his car with the doors wide open and Melanie is nowhere to be seen! The mystery and horror will now takes you on a journey that is fun to travel until the end of the book.
Cherie Priest has told a clever and creepy story that captures the look and feel of the swampland territory and the flavor of the small community of people who live there. This book was very well-written and fun to read. There were several stories woven around Melanie's disappearance which made it become a very spooky and twisted mystery. I enjoyed this novel very much and would gladly read more books by this author!
I do recommend this book to other horror lovers who enjoy a quirky and fun storyline and I have given this book 4 Creepy🌟🌟🌟🌟Stars!!
July 23, 2019
You know I put my faith in a shotgun, any day of the week and twice on Sunday - but every girl with an ounce of granny magic knows it's true: Things from other worlds don't like iron.
If you're on your way to Staywater, count the bridges and pray there's only six. Because sometimes there's seven - and when that happens, (pardon my French) shit gets really weird.
Not that Staywater is normal. There's a house of dolls, ghosts in the bar, and mannequins with their own sense of fashion (but don't test them by knocking on the glass. They wouldn't like that.). And despite an almost quirky sense of small town in the swamps, everything's just a little bit off, just a little bit wrong, and a lot ominous.
This is a short book, and I think it hit an awkward length. As much as I liked the ideas here, they didn't get the attention they deserved - an odd snippet would pop up, intrigue me, and then...never turn out to be important or make it back into the story again. Chekhov's gun in this story would have been a laser pistol that left the stage of it's own volition without firing a shot. But it was definitely creepy, and I love me some quirk. So while it really could be either shortened or lengthened to make it work better for me, I'd opt for lengthened if given the choice, and I hope this location gets revisited in another book.
If you're on your way to Staywater, count the bridges and pray there's only six. Because sometimes there's seven - and when that happens, (pardon my French) shit gets really weird.
Not that Staywater is normal. There's a house of dolls, ghosts in the bar, and mannequins with their own sense of fashion (but don't test them by knocking on the glass. They wouldn't like that.). And despite an almost quirky sense of small town in the swamps, everything's just a little bit off, just a little bit wrong, and a lot ominous.
This is a short book, and I think it hit an awkward length. As much as I liked the ideas here, they didn't get the attention they deserved - an odd snippet would pop up, intrigue me, and then...never turn out to be important or make it back into the story again. Chekhov's gun in this story would have been a laser pistol that left the stage of it's own volition without firing a shot. But it was definitely creepy, and I love me some quirk. So while it really could be either shortened or lengthened to make it work better for me, I'd opt for lengthened if given the choice, and I hope this location gets revisited in another book.
November 11, 2024
3.5
"Everything's a ghost story, eventually."
Titus and Melanie are newlyweds traveling to a cabin in the Okefenokee Swamp for their honeymoon when they cross a series of bridges. But when they venture onto a final one-lane bridge covered in moss, Titus blacks out behind the wheel and wakes up to find Melanie, and the bridge, gone. And when he contacts the police, they inform him that there is no such bridge in the swamp at all.
I really enjoyed the set-up of the The Toll, as well as Cherie Priest's writing. Most of the characters are kind of annoying, especially the whiny, useless Titus, but happily the chapters shift POV often, and we get the perspectives of the elderly Spratford Cousins, who know a good deal about the lore of the swamp and "granny magic," and their 17 year-old "godson" Cameron (admittedly also useless and annoying) who was left at their door as a toddler and raised entirely within the insular town of Staywater.
After Titus finds himself stationed in Staywater to wait out the search for his missing wife, the book makes a tonal shift to focus on the strange town full of residents who take for granted things like a regular ghostly patron at the local bar, a shih tzu that spends its days in a tree, and the window mannequins in an abandoned store who on occasion decide to change their outfits of their own accord. As someone who is a fan of stories about small towns full of eccentric locals and eerie goings-on (Twin Peaks anyone?), I didn't mind this so much, but wish the creepiness had held as strong as the quirkiness. The ending also dragged a bit for me and wasn't entirely satisfying. Still, I will definitely check out more from Cherie Priest in the future.
"Everything's a ghost story, eventually."
Titus and Melanie are newlyweds traveling to a cabin in the Okefenokee Swamp for their honeymoon when they cross a series of bridges. But when they venture onto a final one-lane bridge covered in moss, Titus blacks out behind the wheel and wakes up to find Melanie, and the bridge, gone. And when he contacts the police, they inform him that there is no such bridge in the swamp at all.
I really enjoyed the set-up of the The Toll, as well as Cherie Priest's writing. Most of the characters are kind of annoying, especially the whiny, useless Titus, but happily the chapters shift POV often, and we get the perspectives of the elderly Spratford Cousins, who know a good deal about the lore of the swamp and "granny magic," and their 17 year-old "godson" Cameron (admittedly also useless and annoying) who was left at their door as a toddler and raised entirely within the insular town of Staywater.
After Titus finds himself stationed in Staywater to wait out the search for his missing wife, the book makes a tonal shift to focus on the strange town full of residents who take for granted things like a regular ghostly patron at the local bar, a shih tzu that spends its days in a tree, and the window mannequins in an abandoned store who on occasion decide to change their outfits of their own accord. As someone who is a fan of stories about small towns full of eccentric locals and eerie goings-on (Twin Peaks anyone?), I didn't mind this so much, but wish the creepiness had held as strong as the quirkiness. The ending also dragged a bit for me and wasn't entirely satisfying. Still, I will definitely check out more from Cherie Priest in the future.
April 9, 2020
Too long and drawn out for my liking. Most of the characters were bland, and I just lost interest.
April 1, 2020
I read this for The Ladies of Horror Fiction April Group Read (2020). This is the first thing I've ever read by this lady. I started a little early, thinking I'd still be reading in April. LOL! Well, i was so wrong! The writing in this book is so good. Once you open it up, it's so hard to stop. (so get comfortable). I loved the story. There is a lot going on in the background. Some of it is mentioned in passing and some we spend a minute there but it's never explained why. I liked that, I felt like we could revisit this town someday in a new story. The characters were good. I loved the Cousins and have lots of questions about Jess.
If you like good, old creepy reads, southern gothic, maybe some fantasy, this book is for you. Now I'm eager to see what else Cherie Priest has out there!
September 26, 2019
THE TOLL is only the second novel that I have read by author Cherie Priest, but it definitely put her on my list of "must-read" authors. This Southern Gothic tale was so rich in atmosphere that it was easy to put myself in the place of the characters, and see the way things were through their eyes.
"He'd seen ghosts before. Everybody in Staywater knew at least a couple, and most everyone was on friendly terms."
We begin with a newly married couple, Titus and Melanie Bell, as they travel State Road 177, between Fargo, Georgia and the Okefenoke Swamp, on their way to a cottage "honeymoon". When they come upon a single lane bridge that just feels . . . wrong . . . the sense of confusion and apprehension are strong enough for the readers to feel.
Later, Titus inexplicably finds himself in the middle of the road--his new bride nowhere to be found.
". . . from east to west, you'll cross six bridges . . . from west to east . . . once in a while, you might cross seven. But you better hope not."
When we reach the small town of Staywater, Georgia, we quickly learn that this place and its residents aren't quite like other areas and people . . . Staywater initially brought to my mind a land "stuck in the past", by the observations we get of people like the old cousins, Daisy and Claire, and the hands-on way they live--planting their own gardens, tending to their own affairs. There is a lot different in this dying town, but the people there accept it as "normal"--most never having left the town since they arrived.
". . . We thought it was safe to forget . . . But we've been wrong before . . . "
Priest does a phenomenal job in showing us this town, where the dead aren't always gone, and a large event that occurs every "so many years" is avoided in conversations as completely as possible.
An event that causes some to . . . disappear . . . forever.
". . . It's funny, how your brain tries to tell you that you're looking at something normal, when you're not. Like it's trying to protect you from your very own self."
The only complaint I had with this novel is that after the initial revelations, things slow down too much for my personal taste. Although we are still seeing some of the unique aspects of Staywater through its residents, the larger matter of the "bridge" and what it signifies is only alluded to.
". . . The worst part is that you're never going to know. That's what really does a number on your head . . . "
However, from about two-thirds into the novel on, things begin to escalate dramatically. The cousins are much more forthcoming with their knowledge, and the other characters start taking more action, as opposed to the virtual lethargy that they had spent their lives in thus far.
". . . the ghost of something that never lived--or never should've lived here . . . "
At this point, it feels as though the atmosphere has been suitably established, and now the individual people begin to show more "spirit". I loved the dynamics between many of these personalities--both the ones on good terms, and the ones wary of each other. Comedic banter has always been a favorite of mine in novels, and this became much more prominent here, as well.
". . . It's about to rain, we're walking into a swamp full of monsters, and we're looking for answers that nobody's ever gotten before . . . "
While there is much ambiguity as to the nature of "the thing" causing the periodic vanishings, I felt that it worked well in a story like this one. It helped to maintain that sense of "otherworldliness" and fit in so well with the differences that the entire town of Staywater projected.
". . . If you see it from the corner of your eye, or if you stare at it too hard . . . the costume starts to waver."
Overall, this story was a perfect fit in the Gothic Horror subgenre. The town and its residents made me feel as though I'd stepped back into another time and place entirely. Although it was a bit too slow for me during the middle, the action really took off during the last third--at which point I couldn't put it down until I'd finished it.
". . . She's no monster under a bridge, but she's a monster of another sort. Selfish and cold, grown up too pretty in a town full of ugly . . . "
The ending left me completely satisfied, giving my mind free reign to wander on with endless possibilities and emotions.
"The things I take are mine to keep."
Recommended.
"He'd seen ghosts before. Everybody in Staywater knew at least a couple, and most everyone was on friendly terms."
We begin with a newly married couple, Titus and Melanie Bell, as they travel State Road 177, between Fargo, Georgia and the Okefenoke Swamp, on their way to a cottage "honeymoon". When they come upon a single lane bridge that just feels . . . wrong . . . the sense of confusion and apprehension are strong enough for the readers to feel.
Later, Titus inexplicably finds himself in the middle of the road--his new bride nowhere to be found.
". . . from east to west, you'll cross six bridges . . . from west to east . . . once in a while, you might cross seven. But you better hope not."
When we reach the small town of Staywater, Georgia, we quickly learn that this place and its residents aren't quite like other areas and people . . . Staywater initially brought to my mind a land "stuck in the past", by the observations we get of people like the old cousins, Daisy and Claire, and the hands-on way they live--planting their own gardens, tending to their own affairs. There is a lot different in this dying town, but the people there accept it as "normal"--most never having left the town since they arrived.
". . . We thought it was safe to forget . . . But we've been wrong before . . . "
Priest does a phenomenal job in showing us this town, where the dead aren't always gone, and a large event that occurs every "so many years" is avoided in conversations as completely as possible.
An event that causes some to . . . disappear . . . forever.
". . . It's funny, how your brain tries to tell you that you're looking at something normal, when you're not. Like it's trying to protect you from your very own self."
The only complaint I had with this novel is that after the initial revelations, things slow down too much for my personal taste. Although we are still seeing some of the unique aspects of Staywater through its residents, the larger matter of the "bridge" and what it signifies is only alluded to.
". . . The worst part is that you're never going to know. That's what really does a number on your head . . . "
However, from about two-thirds into the novel on, things begin to escalate dramatically. The cousins are much more forthcoming with their knowledge, and the other characters start taking more action, as opposed to the virtual lethargy that they had spent their lives in thus far.
". . . the ghost of something that never lived--or never should've lived here . . . "
At this point, it feels as though the atmosphere has been suitably established, and now the individual people begin to show more "spirit". I loved the dynamics between many of these personalities--both the ones on good terms, and the ones wary of each other. Comedic banter has always been a favorite of mine in novels, and this became much more prominent here, as well.
". . . It's about to rain, we're walking into a swamp full of monsters, and we're looking for answers that nobody's ever gotten before . . . "
While there is much ambiguity as to the nature of "the thing" causing the periodic vanishings, I felt that it worked well in a story like this one. It helped to maintain that sense of "otherworldliness" and fit in so well with the differences that the entire town of Staywater projected.
". . . If you see it from the corner of your eye, or if you stare at it too hard . . . the costume starts to waver."
Overall, this story was a perfect fit in the Gothic Horror subgenre. The town and its residents made me feel as though I'd stepped back into another time and place entirely. Although it was a bit too slow for me during the middle, the action really took off during the last third--at which point I couldn't put it down until I'd finished it.
". . . She's no monster under a bridge, but she's a monster of another sort. Selfish and cold, grown up too pretty in a town full of ugly . . . "
The ending left me completely satisfied, giving my mind free reign to wander on with endless possibilities and emotions.
"The things I take are mine to keep."
Recommended.
July 7, 2019
This one was OK. It took me a while to get through it because I kept putting it down. 🙈 The writing itself was good. 👍 The characters interesting. 👍 The plot was OK, but I wanted more. It was repetitive and felt a little underdeveloped. 👎 So yea, not horrible but also nothing to write home about. 😪 
June 24, 2019
Despite the monstrous something that kills…
Despite the weird townspeople who hold fast to secrets…
Despite the dark bridge where terrible things happen…
I actually found I wanted to live in The Toll’s world. In The Toll, author Cherie Priest brings us a world of magic, gothic horrors, and compelling wonders. From the first chapter I was lost, coming up for air only because I had to work to pay the bills. Each one of our characters, living, dead or other, brings this world to life.
The book is highly atmospheric and our mystery simply doesn’t let you go.
At the end of it all, I simply wanted more.
*ARC Provided via Net Galley
January 6, 2021
Between Fargo, Georgia and the Okefenokee Swamp runs State Road 117 alongside the Suwannee River. If you drive the road from east to west will you cross six bridges, however, if you instead drive from west to east you might find seven bridges. You just pray to God that you don't find seven bridges.
Titus and Melanie Bell were not so lucky.
READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW OVER AT FRESH FICTION!
Titus and Melanie Bell were not so lucky.
READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW OVER AT FRESH FICTION!
August 1, 2019
If you like Stephen King and supernatural thrillers, you'll love this.
I, however, don't like either of those.
I, however, don't like either of those.
February 29, 2020
To be honest, a cabin holiday in a Florida swamp sounds like a terrible idea for a honeymoon. On their way to the Okenfenokee Swamp, newly-married couple Titus and Davina Bell are already having pesky arguments, mainly about this weird choice of holiday which Titus insisted upon. If only they knew what was coming for them…
The Bells are driving across a strange and ancient one-lane bridge when the young husband loses consciousness at the wheel. He wakes up to find himself lying in the middle of the road. The engine is still running but Davina seems to have disappeared into thin air. The local Police, though sympathetic, sound quite sceptical. But Titus is quite sure that they are keeping something back from him. And he is right. In the nearby town of Staywater, this mysterious disappearance raises disturbing memories of a mysterious being which lives under the bridge: an entity supposedly slain years before by the now elderly cousins Claire and Daisy, but which seems to have returned to extract its toll…
The Toll is a fun horror book which taps into several different streams of Southern Gothic. There is the “grotesque” element as represented by the eccentric, if not downright crazy, characters who live in the tiny settlement of Staywater. There is an underlying sense of danger coming from the hostile environment: the treacherous swamps, the roaming giant alligators. But above all, the novel exudes a sense of supernatural dread – it is haunted not only by the presence of the malevolent entity, but also by other weird goings-on such as a house full of possessed dolls, and ghosts who roam the town and chat matter-of-factly with its inhabitants. All these ingredients are moulded into a novel which is, at its best, spine-tinglingly scary.
If I must criticise the book, it’s because sometimes it has the feel of an unfinished draft. Some passages of dialogue sound repetitive and could do with some judicious editing. The attempts at humour sometimes fall flat, especially during key set-pieces in the final chapters which would have had greater impact had they been conveyed as unadulterated horror. Several plot elements remain unexplained or unresolved – I kept hoping, for instance, that there would be some backstory concerning the family of Cameron, Claire and Daisy’s ward.
Despite these reservations, The Toll remains an interesting and entertaining addition to the Southern Gothic canon. I also feel that its coming-of-age elements (courtesy of Cameron, one of the main – and most likeable - characters) could make it appeal to the YA market as well.
http://endsoftheword.blogspot.com/201...
The Bells are driving across a strange and ancient one-lane bridge when the young husband loses consciousness at the wheel. He wakes up to find himself lying in the middle of the road. The engine is still running but Davina seems to have disappeared into thin air. The local Police, though sympathetic, sound quite sceptical. But Titus is quite sure that they are keeping something back from him. And he is right. In the nearby town of Staywater, this mysterious disappearance raises disturbing memories of a mysterious being which lives under the bridge: an entity supposedly slain years before by the now elderly cousins Claire and Daisy, but which seems to have returned to extract its toll…
The Toll is a fun horror book which taps into several different streams of Southern Gothic. There is the “grotesque” element as represented by the eccentric, if not downright crazy, characters who live in the tiny settlement of Staywater. There is an underlying sense of danger coming from the hostile environment: the treacherous swamps, the roaming giant alligators. But above all, the novel exudes a sense of supernatural dread – it is haunted not only by the presence of the malevolent entity, but also by other weird goings-on such as a house full of possessed dolls, and ghosts who roam the town and chat matter-of-factly with its inhabitants. All these ingredients are moulded into a novel which is, at its best, spine-tinglingly scary.
If I must criticise the book, it’s because sometimes it has the feel of an unfinished draft. Some passages of dialogue sound repetitive and could do with some judicious editing. The attempts at humour sometimes fall flat, especially during key set-pieces in the final chapters which would have had greater impact had they been conveyed as unadulterated horror. Several plot elements remain unexplained or unresolved – I kept hoping, for instance, that there would be some backstory concerning the family of Cameron, Claire and Daisy’s ward.
Despite these reservations, The Toll remains an interesting and entertaining addition to the Southern Gothic canon. I also feel that its coming-of-age elements (courtesy of Cameron, one of the main – and most likeable - characters) could make it appeal to the YA market as well.
http://endsoftheword.blogspot.com/201...
June 28, 2019
If I must read southern, it ought to be gothic. Such as this story. And frankly, the immediate premise makes you think Scandinavian, Norwegian specifically, and trolls demanding tolls for the safe pass and so on. But this one is set in the swaps of Georgia and the demanding troll is very much a location appropriate creature. So yeah, a southern gothic creature feature with a small dying off town haunted every so often by something supernatural with only a pair of aging witches to stand in its way. But it starts off with a man idiotic enough to presuppose that canoeing a swamp constitutes exciting and romantic honeymooning experience and his new bride grudgingly accompanying him. It sounds like a terrible idea and, sure enough, plays out like one. Crash boom bang (but a quiet sleepy swampy kind) later and now it’s up to the confused and bewildered newlywed to find out what’s going on, which ends up involving a variety of locals to a variety of lethal results. Get ready for a pretty decent body count. Get ready to hit the swamps. Get ready to pay the toll. Good story, properly dark and atmospheric, properly developed characters, sustained suspense and, of course, of course, an awesome creature. Very exciting story, My first read by the author and a terrific introduction as far as those go, I liked the writing very much. Thoroughly entertaining enjoyable read.Probably best to read at night, though effective even during the day. Recommended for all fans of scary things told in a literary manner. Thanks Netgalley.
February 10, 2020
▪Thank you Tor Night Fire for my gifted copy. I voluntarily reviewed this book. All opinions expressed are my own.▪
The Toll
By: Cherie Priest
~REVIEW~ ☆☆☆☆☆
State Road 177 runs along the Suwannee River, between Fargo, Georgia, and the Okefenokee Swamp. Drive that route from east to west, and you’ll cross six bridges. Take it from west to east, and you might find seven.
But you’d better hope not.
The Toll freaked me out from the start. Why? If I get in my car and drive thirty minutes east, I will be in the Okefenokee swamp. And, those old rickety one lane bridges? There are at least a dozen of them within ten minutes of my house. The atmospheric presence of the swamp is spot on. Personally, I dislike the Okefenokee because I've always found it creepy. It's full of noisy creatures, but it's eerily silent. In broad daylight, it's unnaturally dark in the swamp. Things really are floating in the black water. Just don't go there. Ever. As for the bridge, those old one laners are frightening all the time-creaking and groaning as you drive perilously close to the edge. There is no margin for error. I recommend avoiding at all costs. This story really grabbed me from the start because, well, I know what it's like, the skin crawling weirdness that pervades the whole area in and around the swamp. Granted, there may not be living dolls and visible ghosts, but the macabre vibe is real. It's no stretch of the imagination to believe someone could disappear in the swamp. The author takes it a step further with another person left behind and clueless about the disappearance. The eccentric quirky characters are excellent, from the old ladies to the bartender to the distraught husband, with everyone having something to hide. This story is like a puzzle that shouldn't fit, but it does. The weirdness works to create a dark twisted tale of things that can't be real, or can they? If you decide to read The Toll, and I recommend doing so, let the paranoid delusional atmosphere sink in until it's uncomfortable because that's how the Okefenokee feels. Now, you're ready.
The Toll
By: Cherie Priest
~REVIEW~ ☆☆☆☆☆
State Road 177 runs along the Suwannee River, between Fargo, Georgia, and the Okefenokee Swamp. Drive that route from east to west, and you’ll cross six bridges. Take it from west to east, and you might find seven.
But you’d better hope not.
The Toll freaked me out from the start. Why? If I get in my car and drive thirty minutes east, I will be in the Okefenokee swamp. And, those old rickety one lane bridges? There are at least a dozen of them within ten minutes of my house. The atmospheric presence of the swamp is spot on. Personally, I dislike the Okefenokee because I've always found it creepy. It's full of noisy creatures, but it's eerily silent. In broad daylight, it's unnaturally dark in the swamp. Things really are floating in the black water. Just don't go there. Ever. As for the bridge, those old one laners are frightening all the time-creaking and groaning as you drive perilously close to the edge. There is no margin for error. I recommend avoiding at all costs. This story really grabbed me from the start because, well, I know what it's like, the skin crawling weirdness that pervades the whole area in and around the swamp. Granted, there may not be living dolls and visible ghosts, but the macabre vibe is real. It's no stretch of the imagination to believe someone could disappear in the swamp. The author takes it a step further with another person left behind and clueless about the disappearance. The eccentric quirky characters are excellent, from the old ladies to the bartender to the distraught husband, with everyone having something to hide. This story is like a puzzle that shouldn't fit, but it does. The weirdness works to create a dark twisted tale of things that can't be real, or can they? If you decide to read The Toll, and I recommend doing so, let the paranoid delusional atmosphere sink in until it's uncomfortable because that's how the Okefenokee feels. Now, you're ready.
October 17, 2019
“Southern Gothic” on the cover caught my attention. October caught me short-handed on seasonal literature. At one of my favorite independent bookstores I spotted The Toll and I knew the penalty for not having moody reading in a moody season. I’d not read anything by Cherie Priest before, so this was new territory for me. This is a ghost story, but so much more than just a ghost story. A visitor to the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia (you get the vibes from that already) experiences an unexplained tragedy. His bride has gone missing on their honeymoon. He ends up in the dying town of Staywater where some people know more about this than they’re saying.
The titular toll refers to a bridge that sometimes appears on the road into the swamp. It’s not really a bridge, but there is a very real toll to pay. In addition to the ghosts, Priest crafts a monster not terribly well defined—or clearly described—that exacts said toll. The locals know that this happens every thirteen years, but they live with it. Victims can be locals or outsiders. A couple of elderly female cousins, however, who have a bit of hoodoo about them, know what to do. They have to protect their godson and, one senses, the future of the town.
Vividly drawn with interesting characters who have unexplained backstories, The Toll isn’t necessarily a horror story associated with Halloween. It’s fairly gentle until near the end, and it builds a slow burn while leaving many things unexplained. There’s plentiful mystery, some supernatural elements, and some humor. And more than a little bit of small-town life. There’s also a body count. While it didn’t have me leaping out of my seat in terror, it kept me curious up to, and even after, the end. From a small town myself, I understood, I think, the moral of the story. I wrote a bit more about it here: Sects and Violence in the Ancient World.
The titular toll refers to a bridge that sometimes appears on the road into the swamp. It’s not really a bridge, but there is a very real toll to pay. In addition to the ghosts, Priest crafts a monster not terribly well defined—or clearly described—that exacts said toll. The locals know that this happens every thirteen years, but they live with it. Victims can be locals or outsiders. A couple of elderly female cousins, however, who have a bit of hoodoo about them, know what to do. They have to protect their godson and, one senses, the future of the town.
Vividly drawn with interesting characters who have unexplained backstories, The Toll isn’t necessarily a horror story associated with Halloween. It’s fairly gentle until near the end, and it builds a slow burn while leaving many things unexplained. There’s plentiful mystery, some supernatural elements, and some humor. And more than a little bit of small-town life. There’s also a body count. While it didn’t have me leaping out of my seat in terror, it kept me curious up to, and even after, the end. From a small town myself, I understood, I think, the moral of the story. I wrote a bit more about it here: Sects and Violence in the Ancient World.
August 3, 2021
The summer isn't really warm here right now so I thought I'd read a Southern Gothic to warm up my thoughts and Cherie Priest's highly praised The Toll had been on my TBR for way too long.
Dual storylines are seriously popular in current mystery/horror novels and although I am kind of sick of it, it admittedly worked fine here. On the one hand we follow Titus and Melanie Bell, who, heading to their honeymoon in the Okefenokee State Park in Florida to camp and swim in the swamp, encounter a bridge that actually shouldn't exist and cross some kind of border by crossing it. On the other hand we have the town of Staywater which is really all kinds of weird...
Although the mystery (and this is really more mystery than horror) and the resolution didn't really thrill me, I found that the atmospheric writing in this book and above all the insanely vivid characters kept me engrossed.
Dual storylines are seriously popular in current mystery/horror novels and although I am kind of sick of it, it admittedly worked fine here. On the one hand we follow Titus and Melanie Bell, who, heading to their honeymoon in the Okefenokee State Park in Florida to camp and swim in the swamp, encounter a bridge that actually shouldn't exist and cross some kind of border by crossing it. On the other hand we have the town of Staywater which is really all kinds of weird...
Although the mystery (and this is really more mystery than horror) and the resolution didn't really thrill me, I found that the atmospheric writing in this book and above all the insanely vivid characters kept me engrossed.
January 13, 2025
The was the classic pale of a cursed town. It was a little bit slow, but I had some trouble characters that were fun to follow and learn about.
This was so easy read with some new aspects on our old story and glad I gave it a chance.
This was so easy read with some new aspects on our old story and glad I gave it a chance.
August 6, 2019
3 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2019/08/06/...
The Toll by Cherie Priest is a disturbingly dark tale of the supernatural, tinged with gothic horror and eldritch elements. The story takes us to a tiny backwater town on the edge of the Okenfenokee Swamp in Georgia called Staywater, where every thirteen years or so, someone always goes missing. Their disappearance is usually preceded by reported sightings of a mysterious seventh bridge along the west-to-east route on State Road 177, though of course, only six bridges exist according to any map. Spooky!
On an unusually cool spring day, Titus and his wife Melanie are driving along 177 towards the state park where they will be spending their honeymoon, when they come across a one-lane rickety bridge leading into the swampy darkness. The next thing Titus knows, he is waking up on the side of the road, his SUV behind him is empty with its doors flung open, and Melanie is nowhere to be found. After calling for help and being told by the police that they’re doing all they can to find his wife, Titus accepts a ride to the nearby town of Staywater to find room and board. Filled with worries and unable to sleep, he heads to the dive bar down the street in order to drown his sorrows. There, the locals tell him not to worry, that most likely his wife simply lost her way in the swamp while trying to look for help. It happens often enough to the tourists and campers who come out this way, after all, and the police will certainly make sure Melanie comes home safe.
But in their hearts, the residents of Staywater know better. They all sensed the shift in reality when it happened, the first time in thirteen years. The swamp keeps what it takes, or rather, the thing that lives there does. The bridge has helped it claim another victim, and Titus will probably never see his wife again. No one knows this better than Claire and Daisy, two elderly cousins who have lived in Staywater their entire lives, watching it crumble and slowly die over the years. They thought they had put a stop to whatever was terrorizing the town, but apparently its connection to their world was too strong. And now, the cousins have even more to lose. The two of them have been raising a teenage boy named Cameron, who was left on their doorstep as a baby. No one knows where he came from, but Claire and Daisy knows that the thing in the swamp likes to take outsiders. All they want is for Cameron to grow up and one day escape Staywater, but until the problem in the swamp is taken care of once in for all, they know that things can never be safe.
To tell the truth, even though I thought The Toll was a decent read, it’s hard not to feel slightly let down by some of its incongruencies and flaws, especially in light of how much I adored Priest’s last novel The Family Plot. I can’t help but wonder though, if some of the constraints mentioned in the author’s acknowledgements—that she worked on the book in stages over a hectic period in her life or the fact that the manuscript had multiple editors—could have played into the novel’s overall sense of incompleteness and certain elements in it that felt out of place. For instance, despite its floundering status, Staywater is a town full of quirky idiosyncrasies that I would have loved to know more about: its resident ghosts, the old department store where the mannequins apparently come to life in the night, or the old blind dog in the tree. At the end of the day though, all these things felt like they were thrown willy-nilly into the story, with no intention to ever go back and explore them. Likewise, I felt the same way about the teases about Cameron’s origins, the real deal with the cousins, or what is truly going on with Jess. And those are just a few examples; scattered across this novel are a lot more of these poor orphaned threads that don’t seem to go anywhere or aren’t sufficiently explained. Like I said, it’s just disappointing.
The ending also felt a bit rushed, and failed to live up to the long and suspenseful build-up. To be sure, there’s a strong element of horror to The Toll, but at the same time I wouldn’t say it was particularly scary. Most of the story reads like a mystery, steadily paced while dropping delicious clues about the phantom bridge and what might have happened to Melanie. And I suppose that is also why the last section of the book felt so random when it switches tack and goes full tilt on horror and thrills, which made for some great reading. However, in terms of satisfaction, the ending might have missed its mark. To put it bluntly, it felt like a copout, with too many questions and conflicts left unresolved.
Bottom line? I didn’t love this, but I didn’t hate it either. My experience with Cherie Priest’s work has always been hit or miss in the past, but I still get that flutter of excitement in my chest whenever I find out she’s writing a new book. I went into The Toll with rather high expectations because of the story’s intriguing premise, but while it was well written and entertaining enough, in the end something felt missing. I guess I just expected a little more in terms of answers, cohesion, and horror.
The Toll by Cherie Priest is a disturbingly dark tale of the supernatural, tinged with gothic horror and eldritch elements. The story takes us to a tiny backwater town on the edge of the Okenfenokee Swamp in Georgia called Staywater, where every thirteen years or so, someone always goes missing. Their disappearance is usually preceded by reported sightings of a mysterious seventh bridge along the west-to-east route on State Road 177, though of course, only six bridges exist according to any map. Spooky!
On an unusually cool spring day, Titus and his wife Melanie are driving along 177 towards the state park where they will be spending their honeymoon, when they come across a one-lane rickety bridge leading into the swampy darkness. The next thing Titus knows, he is waking up on the side of the road, his SUV behind him is empty with its doors flung open, and Melanie is nowhere to be found. After calling for help and being told by the police that they’re doing all they can to find his wife, Titus accepts a ride to the nearby town of Staywater to find room and board. Filled with worries and unable to sleep, he heads to the dive bar down the street in order to drown his sorrows. There, the locals tell him not to worry, that most likely his wife simply lost her way in the swamp while trying to look for help. It happens often enough to the tourists and campers who come out this way, after all, and the police will certainly make sure Melanie comes home safe.
But in their hearts, the residents of Staywater know better. They all sensed the shift in reality when it happened, the first time in thirteen years. The swamp keeps what it takes, or rather, the thing that lives there does. The bridge has helped it claim another victim, and Titus will probably never see his wife again. No one knows this better than Claire and Daisy, two elderly cousins who have lived in Staywater their entire lives, watching it crumble and slowly die over the years. They thought they had put a stop to whatever was terrorizing the town, but apparently its connection to their world was too strong. And now, the cousins have even more to lose. The two of them have been raising a teenage boy named Cameron, who was left on their doorstep as a baby. No one knows where he came from, but Claire and Daisy knows that the thing in the swamp likes to take outsiders. All they want is for Cameron to grow up and one day escape Staywater, but until the problem in the swamp is taken care of once in for all, they know that things can never be safe.
To tell the truth, even though I thought The Toll was a decent read, it’s hard not to feel slightly let down by some of its incongruencies and flaws, especially in light of how much I adored Priest’s last novel The Family Plot. I can’t help but wonder though, if some of the constraints mentioned in the author’s acknowledgements—that she worked on the book in stages over a hectic period in her life or the fact that the manuscript had multiple editors—could have played into the novel’s overall sense of incompleteness and certain elements in it that felt out of place. For instance, despite its floundering status, Staywater is a town full of quirky idiosyncrasies that I would have loved to know more about: its resident ghosts, the old department store where the mannequins apparently come to life in the night, or the old blind dog in the tree. At the end of the day though, all these things felt like they were thrown willy-nilly into the story, with no intention to ever go back and explore them. Likewise, I felt the same way about the teases about Cameron’s origins, the real deal with the cousins, or what is truly going on with Jess. And those are just a few examples; scattered across this novel are a lot more of these poor orphaned threads that don’t seem to go anywhere or aren’t sufficiently explained. Like I said, it’s just disappointing.
The ending also felt a bit rushed, and failed to live up to the long and suspenseful build-up. To be sure, there’s a strong element of horror to The Toll, but at the same time I wouldn’t say it was particularly scary. Most of the story reads like a mystery, steadily paced while dropping delicious clues about the phantom bridge and what might have happened to Melanie. And I suppose that is also why the last section of the book felt so random when it switches tack and goes full tilt on horror and thrills, which made for some great reading. However, in terms of satisfaction, the ending might have missed its mark. To put it bluntly, it felt like a copout, with too many questions and conflicts left unresolved.
Bottom line? I didn’t love this, but I didn’t hate it either. My experience with Cherie Priest’s work has always been hit or miss in the past, but I still get that flutter of excitement in my chest whenever I find out she’s writing a new book. I went into The Toll with rather high expectations because of the story’s intriguing premise, but while it was well written and entertaining enough, in the end something felt missing. I guess I just expected a little more in terms of answers, cohesion, and horror.
August 31, 2019
A lot happens and yet nothing happens.
September 13, 2025
This is a reread
A disturbing dark tale of the supernatural, seasoned with gothic horror. The story takes us to a tiny backwater town on the edge of the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia called "Staywater". Every thirteen years or so, someone goes missing. Their disappearance is usually preceded by reported sightings of a mysterious seventh bridge along the west-to-east route on State Road 177, though of course, only six bridges exist according to any map. None the less the little southern town is visited every thirteen years by a hellish creature who lives inside a ghostly covered bridge.
We start out by meeting a couple of quarreling newlyweds, Titus and Melanie Bell, who are traveling into the Okefenokee Swamp for a camping honeymoon that Melanie never agreed to. Of course, they get lost and find the bridge, then they of course take the bridge and then...ready for it? Melanie suddenly is missing and Titus, for reasons which are never explained, is still there. I felt kind of sorry for Titus who was a tragic figure in this story. He wasn't very likable or laudable in any way. He did very much want to find his wife though. At least he's not the hero of the story. That honor belongs to Cameron, the ward of the real heroes of the tale, old spinsters Daisy and Claire, who killed the "bridge monster" thirteen years earlier. Seems that it wasn't enough to keep its ghost from somehow coming back to kill people.
It seems that Cameron somehow is the only teenager in this town, and he's hopelessly in love with Jessie, a much older woman and the town's bartender. Don't get too attached to her as she also has secrets that end up making her a much less sympathetic character than she originally seemed to be. Cameron is the one that fills us in in this story. Cameron mere existence is strange. Seems that he was somehow mysteriously delivered to Daisy and Claire years ago and you'd think his story would become part of the mystery of the place, but no, think again. Cameron just reacts to the various incidents in the story and becomes involved later but only after he discovers how badly he's screwed up everything else.
Back to Daisy and Claire, who, as they themselves admit that they are way too old to save the world. Besides they thought they taken care of this "problem" when they were thirteen years younger and better equipped. Their discussions about the problems of their age and lack of energy and mobility is one of the more truly original ideas in this entire story. Honestly, the book had such a casual, matter-of-fact treatment of the ghosts and the supernatural in seemingly these folks' everyday lives, that this whole idea took away some of the horror that it started out with.
I didn't dislike the book...there were things about it that I liked...but there were more things that made me not. Too many incidents were set up but were never again delivered or explained. Cameron is a character who never really got a chance to shine, and Daisy and Claire seemed like they would have been more interesting if it had been their story that was told. The story of their first encounter with the creature as opposed to this later one. Supporting characters like Titus and Dave have parts that we were teased with but was never really developed. Jessie never gets an explanation for her actions and as for what happens to her at the end.
I have never written a book, so I don't feel that I can be too critical, and I don't want or intend to be. Overall...there was some really good parts in this book, and I have read this author before and I know that Cherie Priest, is without a doubt an extremely talented writer. It's just that somewhere in all this, lived a much better story and book waiting to be born.
A disturbing dark tale of the supernatural, seasoned with gothic horror. The story takes us to a tiny backwater town on the edge of the Okefenokee Swamp in Georgia called "Staywater". Every thirteen years or so, someone goes missing. Their disappearance is usually preceded by reported sightings of a mysterious seventh bridge along the west-to-east route on State Road 177, though of course, only six bridges exist according to any map. None the less the little southern town is visited every thirteen years by a hellish creature who lives inside a ghostly covered bridge.
We start out by meeting a couple of quarreling newlyweds, Titus and Melanie Bell, who are traveling into the Okefenokee Swamp for a camping honeymoon that Melanie never agreed to. Of course, they get lost and find the bridge, then they of course take the bridge and then...ready for it? Melanie suddenly is missing and Titus, for reasons which are never explained, is still there. I felt kind of sorry for Titus who was a tragic figure in this story. He wasn't very likable or laudable in any way. He did very much want to find his wife though. At least he's not the hero of the story. That honor belongs to Cameron, the ward of the real heroes of the tale, old spinsters Daisy and Claire, who killed the "bridge monster" thirteen years earlier. Seems that it wasn't enough to keep its ghost from somehow coming back to kill people.
It seems that Cameron somehow is the only teenager in this town, and he's hopelessly in love with Jessie, a much older woman and the town's bartender. Don't get too attached to her as she also has secrets that end up making her a much less sympathetic character than she originally seemed to be. Cameron is the one that fills us in in this story. Cameron mere existence is strange. Seems that he was somehow mysteriously delivered to Daisy and Claire years ago and you'd think his story would become part of the mystery of the place, but no, think again. Cameron just reacts to the various incidents in the story and becomes involved later but only after he discovers how badly he's screwed up everything else.
Back to Daisy and Claire, who, as they themselves admit that they are way too old to save the world. Besides they thought they taken care of this "problem" when they were thirteen years younger and better equipped. Their discussions about the problems of their age and lack of energy and mobility is one of the more truly original ideas in this entire story. Honestly, the book had such a casual, matter-of-fact treatment of the ghosts and the supernatural in seemingly these folks' everyday lives, that this whole idea took away some of the horror that it started out with.
I didn't dislike the book...there were things about it that I liked...but there were more things that made me not. Too many incidents were set up but were never again delivered or explained. Cameron is a character who never really got a chance to shine, and Daisy and Claire seemed like they would have been more interesting if it had been their story that was told. The story of their first encounter with the creature as opposed to this later one. Supporting characters like Titus and Dave have parts that we were teased with but was never really developed. Jessie never gets an explanation for her actions and as for what happens to her at the end.
I have never written a book, so I don't feel that I can be too critical, and I don't want or intend to be. Overall...there was some really good parts in this book, and I have read this author before and I know that Cherie Priest, is without a doubt an extremely talented writer. It's just that somewhere in all this, lived a much better story and book waiting to be born.
February 24, 2025
Fraught with dull and unlikeable characters, plot holes, and unresolved questions, “The Toll” was not as fantastic a read as it has been toted.
It’s very atmospheric and descriptive- which certainly helps readers to visualize the settings, but also overloads the story with extensive dryness.
I can’t say I’m a huge fan of Southern Gothic reads in general, but I do enjoy books like “A Choir of Ill Children” by Tom Piccirilli that evoke dread and fear through their narratives. I just felt nothing towards Cherie Priest’s tale.
It’s very atmospheric and descriptive- which certainly helps readers to visualize the settings, but also overloads the story with extensive dryness.
I can’t say I’m a huge fan of Southern Gothic reads in general, but I do enjoy books like “A Choir of Ill Children” by Tom Piccirilli that evoke dread and fear through their narratives. I just felt nothing towards Cherie Priest’s tale.
Read
July 16, 2025Well.....what to say about this book... sigh!
Thoughts:
I had a feeling that it would not get any better - just a big slow-mo story that runs itself in circles it seems. Flipping between two character paths didn't help either and I know that eventually they will intersect with each other but I don't have the patience for all that as it takes just too much time to get where it might go. I am not good with slow burn books anyway - now days in my reading I want things to get a move on - these stories that just drag along and don't have the getup and go feels like wasted reading time to me.
I peeked at reviews after reading what I read and I see that I am not the only one on the dragging along storyline. Moral of the story here is: Get to the point already!!
Also I felt nothing for the characters either - they have a bland quality to them - the main character Titus was just a whiner and complainer - drove me nutso - I wanted to drop his ass off a bridge! lol
There will be a no star rating as I don't rate books I don't finish.
Thoughts:
I had a feeling that it would not get any better - just a big slow-mo story that runs itself in circles it seems. Flipping between two character paths didn't help either and I know that eventually they will intersect with each other but I don't have the patience for all that as it takes just too much time to get where it might go. I am not good with slow burn books anyway - now days in my reading I want things to get a move on - these stories that just drag along and don't have the getup and go feels like wasted reading time to me.
I peeked at reviews after reading what I read and I see that I am not the only one on the dragging along storyline. Moral of the story here is: Get to the point already!!
Also I felt nothing for the characters either - they have a bland quality to them - the main character Titus was just a whiner and complainer - drove me nutso - I wanted to drop his ass off a bridge! lol
There will be a no star rating as I don't rate books I don't finish.
March 28, 2021
Southern Gothic
I will be straight with you. I loved it and a big reason is because Priest created a southern gothic world for me complete with a small town, old crumbly buildings, jaded people, swamps and trees galore draped with spanish moss, mist and humidity. To be honest, I remember the book (which I only finished reading yesterday!) as being hot and humid but…did I make that up? Maybe the book’s messing with me? It was spring in Georgia. My imagination could have got away on me in which case I thank Priest even more.
Right from early in the book, there were pointers that something was amiss. That helped keep my focus because I wanted to know what. What is it that’s going on just underneath the surface of this sad, tired old town? The clues kept coming intermittently and were resolved by the end.
Plot
There were concurrently running threads in The Toll. In one a couple called Melanie and Titus are heading for their honeymoon in Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia (a real place). An odd place for a honeymoon, perhaps. It causes a little friction between them on the drive. It is a national park, though (knowing that makes it better for me). The second story thread sees a young man called Cameron living with two old women in a rambling house in Staywater. The women are cousins, Daisy and Claire, and they found Cameron abandoned as a boy and have raised him since. The town of Staywater (not a real place as far as I know) is dead aside from a police station, a motel (mainly to cater to those visiting the national park, I think) and a bar that only opens from 4 pm until late.
One conversation at the cousin's home went like this:
I had to go back and keep reading those three sentences about half a dozen times I liked it so much. It seems such a slow life watching life and services decay in a town with so few people left living in it but rest assured, Staywater has some dramatic stuff going on under the surface.
Characters
The character development was excellent. Miss Claire, Miss Daisy, Cameron, Jess, Dave, Titus & his wife. Even Netta. Not that everyone was likeable, for example I hated Titus and Melanie’s relationship (they’d only just married and the bickering! Omg). But Priest wrote them so well. At one point Melanie said, “I say a lot of shit,” and Titus said nothing, deciding it was low-hanging fruit. *smirk* So, there were amusing moments. Some characters I could really get behind. The old cousins were interesting, strong women and Cameron was a funny kid and easy to like.
Extra things I enjoyed in The Toll (beware - spoilers below!):
Cherie Priest's other work
Now I have to say this. Two months ago I tried reading Preist’s Maplecroft, and I did not finish it. It didn’t even make it to my DNF list because I couldn’t get through enough. Straight away I felt the style and genre wasn’t for me. But, The Toll seems very different.
In a nutshell
I loved this book. Yes, ma’am, I did. I’m a sucker for southern stories and this one delivered and has gone straight on my all-time favourites list. ♥️
I will be straight with you. I loved it and a big reason is because Priest created a southern gothic world for me complete with a small town, old crumbly buildings, jaded people, swamps and trees galore draped with spanish moss, mist and humidity. To be honest, I remember the book (which I only finished reading yesterday!) as being hot and humid but…did I make that up? Maybe the book’s messing with me? It was spring in Georgia. My imagination could have got away on me in which case I thank Priest even more.
Right from early in the book, there were pointers that something was amiss. That helped keep my focus because I wanted to know what. What is it that’s going on just underneath the surface of this sad, tired old town? The clues kept coming intermittently and were resolved by the end.
Plot
There were concurrently running threads in The Toll. In one a couple called Melanie and Titus are heading for their honeymoon in Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia (a real place). An odd place for a honeymoon, perhaps. It causes a little friction between them on the drive. It is a national park, though (knowing that makes it better for me). The second story thread sees a young man called Cameron living with two old women in a rambling house in Staywater. The women are cousins, Daisy and Claire, and they found Cameron abandoned as a boy and have raised him since. The town of Staywater (not a real place as far as I know) is dead aside from a police station, a motel (mainly to cater to those visiting the national park, I think) and a bar that only opens from 4 pm until late.
One conversation at the cousin's home went like this:
“We’re fine, same as always.”
“Same as always,” he echoed.
Everything in Staywater, always the same as always.
I had to go back and keep reading those three sentences about half a dozen times I liked it so much. It seems such a slow life watching life and services decay in a town with so few people left living in it but rest assured, Staywater has some dramatic stuff going on under the surface.
Characters
The character development was excellent. Miss Claire, Miss Daisy, Cameron, Jess, Dave, Titus & his wife. Even Netta. Not that everyone was likeable, for example I hated Titus and Melanie’s relationship (they’d only just married and the bickering! Omg). But Priest wrote them so well. At one point Melanie said, “I say a lot of shit,” and Titus said nothing, deciding it was low-hanging fruit. *smirk* So, there were amusing moments. Some characters I could really get behind. The old cousins were interesting, strong women and Cameron was a funny kid and easy to like.
Extra things I enjoyed in The Toll (beware - spoilers below!):
Cherie Priest's other work
Now I have to say this. Two months ago I tried reading Preist’s Maplecroft, and I did not finish it. It didn’t even make it to my DNF list because I couldn’t get through enough. Straight away I felt the style and genre wasn’t for me. But, The Toll seems very different.
In a nutshell
I loved this book. Yes, ma’am, I did. I’m a sucker for southern stories and this one delivered and has gone straight on my all-time favourites list. ♥️
August 14, 2019
I was really looking forward to this book and it disappointed me hard. I think the best way I can describe this book would be a shittier version of Stephen King's IT. It's like, everything that was good in It is watered down and stupid in this book. Similarities: a monster, from another world/dimension, has chosen a small town to prey on. It comes out of hibernation (or whatever) every 13 years (I think, I can't remember) and just takes whomever it finds in the swamps during the "flooding season". It apparently likes to play with its flood but it was "killed" some 40 years prior, though still pops its head up to take the occasional victim -- in the most boring way possible (whomever drives over a certain bridge losses someone to pay the "Toll".)
I dunno. I didn't feel like this book had a genre. It's set during like 2 days so there wasn't any actual time to get your mitts into any. Was it horror? Not really. Was it about a man desperate to find his wife? Eh. He was only there for two days. Was it a police procedural? Well, they took him to the spot and pointed out the obvious to him but still, we didn't follow the police so...
And I hated the kid. Cameron. He annoyed me.
This would've gotten 2 stars from me but I hated the ending. It's like everything that was going on before is just forgotten while we focus on the most unlikable character. I was just like 'bleh' when I finished.
I dunno. I didn't feel like this book had a genre. It's set during like 2 days so there wasn't any actual time to get your mitts into any. Was it horror? Not really. Was it about a man desperate to find his wife? Eh. He was only there for two days. Was it a police procedural? Well, they took him to the spot and pointed out the obvious to him but still, we didn't follow the police so...
And I hated the kid. Cameron. He annoyed me.
This would've gotten 2 stars from me but I hated the ending. It's like everything that was going on before is just forgotten while we focus on the most unlikable character. I was just like 'bleh' when I finished.
October 8, 2019
This is the best book I have read in a long time. The plot and characters grabbed me right from the beginning and didn't let go until the end..and I admit that really surprised me. The cover does not look like much...yes, it is rather creepy I suppose but it's also kind of drab..but the writing inside is anything but. It's a real page turner! I just had to keep reading to find out what would happen.
The plot has a lot of strange, mysterious stuff going on...people vanishing in the swamp.. the tiny half dead town has local legends too of mass disappearences. Then there's the ghosts and the mannequins that change their own clothes, the local library where books are left to rot on their own..things are anything but normal in that town. And sometimes there's seven bridges instead of six. But all of the weird stuff comes together wonderfully.. I find the weird stuff interesting.
I really like the main character Cameron. He's very innocent for his age and somewhat of a simpleton I suppose, but he has a good heart.. he gets caught up in this supernatural mess even though his guardians try to protect him from it.. he often gets kept in the dark but he does try to do the right thing, even if he sometimes in unsure what that is.
The settings are eerie and described well.
And in case anyone is wondering, this is indeed a creature story..and a good one at that! I really enjoyed it. This is one book I would buy and there are few that I enjoy enough to do that.
The plot has a lot of strange, mysterious stuff going on...people vanishing in the swamp.. the tiny half dead town has local legends too of mass disappearences. Then there's the ghosts and the mannequins that change their own clothes, the local library where books are left to rot on their own..things are anything but normal in that town. And sometimes there's seven bridges instead of six. But all of the weird stuff comes together wonderfully.. I find the weird stuff interesting.
I really like the main character Cameron. He's very innocent for his age and somewhat of a simpleton I suppose, but he has a good heart.. he gets caught up in this supernatural mess even though his guardians try to protect him from it.. he often gets kept in the dark but he does try to do the right thing, even if he sometimes in unsure what that is.
The settings are eerie and described well.
And in case anyone is wondering, this is indeed a creature story..and a good one at that! I really enjoyed it. This is one book I would buy and there are few that I enjoy enough to do that.
March 13, 2019
This is one hundred percent my kind of horror. Things are mysterious and unknowable (but not in an annoying way). There's a ton of suspense and creeping dread. Gory grossness is only used when necessary. Plus the whole thing is incredibly character centered.
Now I realize I didn't give it a full five stars -- that is not a loss for quality, but rather for preference. There were characters I loved and those I didn't, and some ended up where I'd like and some not. What every one of those characters felt like was real. Everyone had a flaw or a past to confront -- if they had POV chapters -- and I loved that. To me, the horror only works if I really care about the people in peril and this does that so well.
Now I realize I didn't give it a full five stars -- that is not a loss for quality, but rather for preference. There were characters I loved and those I didn't, and some ended up where I'd like and some not. What every one of those characters felt like was real. Everyone had a flaw or a past to confront -- if they had POV chapters -- and I loved that. To me, the horror only works if I really care about the people in peril and this does that so well.
April 21, 2020
Thoughts, highlights, and review to come. :)
November 22, 2019
One very strange town and two kick-ass grannies make for a pretty good book! My only criticism is that it would have been better if it were a bit shorter, in my opinion. 3.5 stars rounded up.
November 21, 2019
I. LOVED. THIS. BOOK.
Instant favorite - 5 stars only because that is as high as you can go.
Incredible atmospheric, heavy and damp, but also lighthearted and magical, every part of this novel stole my heart. Set in the swamps of Georgia, where the air is something that pushes back, The Toll tells the story of Staywater as it follows our boy Cameron, and two honeymooners. These two tales, told side-by-side show the history of the town as well as its current events.
Quite frankly, I found Cameron to be a little s*** but I loved Claire and Daisy. I loved their banter, their character, and their not so obvious but definitely clear witchy vibes. I loved the supernatural and otherworldly qualities of the town, and did not feel like any of them where out of place; they just felt right. There are some things I would like more information on, but I did not feel like any of it impeded the story (dolls? the spare rooms?).
There is so much I want to say about that 7th bridge, but I am an anti-spoiler reviewer. This novel was written beautifully, the content was both creepy and intriguing. There were no instances of too much of this or too little of that. I have absolutely 0 complaints. Easily my favorite book of this year. Definitely up there in favorite books of all time. Thank you Night Worms for bringing this to me!
Instant favorite - 5 stars only because that is as high as you can go.
Incredible atmospheric, heavy and damp, but also lighthearted and magical, every part of this novel stole my heart. Set in the swamps of Georgia, where the air is something that pushes back, The Toll tells the story of Staywater as it follows our boy Cameron, and two honeymooners. These two tales, told side-by-side show the history of the town as well as its current events.
Quite frankly, I found Cameron to be a little s*** but I loved Claire and Daisy. I loved their banter, their character, and their not so obvious but definitely clear witchy vibes. I loved the supernatural and otherworldly qualities of the town, and did not feel like any of them where out of place; they just felt right. There are some things I would like more information on, but I did not feel like any of it impeded the story (dolls? the spare rooms?).
There is so much I want to say about that 7th bridge, but I am an anti-spoiler reviewer. This novel was written beautifully, the content was both creepy and intriguing. There were no instances of too much of this or too little of that. I have absolutely 0 complaints. Easily my favorite book of this year. Definitely up there in favorite books of all time. Thank you Night Worms for bringing this to me!
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