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Creekers
Crick City is a small hick town. Violent, mean and dirt-poor, it's a place nobody wants to call home.
But for homicide cop Phil Straker, it is home. And now someone—or something—is turning his boyhood town into a bloody sideshow of mutilation and gruesome carnage.
They're called Creekers. Centuries old, driven by rage and lust for revenge, they move through the deep, dark woods—deformed, shadowy outcasts with twisted faces and blood-red eyes. Now, as the moon hangs low over their ancient house, they're gathering for a harvest of terror and death Crick City will never forget...
But for homicide cop Phil Straker, it is home. And now someone—or something—is turning his boyhood town into a bloody sideshow of mutilation and gruesome carnage.
They're called Creekers. Centuries old, driven by rage and lust for revenge, they move through the deep, dark woods—deformed, shadowy outcasts with twisted faces and blood-red eyes. Now, as the moon hangs low over their ancient house, they're gathering for a harvest of terror and death Crick City will never forget...
310 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1994
38 people are currently reading
1019 people want to read
About the author
Edward Lee
271 books1,463 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Edward Lee is an American novelist specializing in the field of horror, and has authored 40 books, more than half of which have been published by mass-market New York paperback companies such as Leisure/Dorchester, Berkley, and Zebra/Kensington. He is a Bram Stoker award nominee for his story "Mr. Torso," and his short stories have appeared in over a dozen mass-market anthologies, including THE BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES OF 2000, Pocket's HOT BLOOD series, and the award-wining 999. Several of his novels have sold translation rights to Germany, Greece, and Romania. He also publishes quite actively in the small-press/limited-edition hardcover market; many of his books in this category have become collector's items. While a number of Lee's projects have been optioned for film, only one has been made, HEADER, which was released on DVD to mixed reviews in June, 2009, by Synapse Films.
Lee is particularly known for over-the-top occult concepts and an accelerated treatment of erotic and/or morbid sexual imagery and visceral violence.
He was born on May 25, 1957 in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Bowie, Maryland. In the late-70s he served in the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Division, in Erlangen, West Germany, then, for a short time, was a municipal police officer in Cottage City, Maryland. Lee also attended the University of Maryland as an English major but quit in his last semester to pursue his dream of being a horror novelist. For over 15 years, he worked as the night manager for a security company in Annapolis, Maryland, while writing in his spare time. In 1997, however, he became a full-time writer, first spending several years in Seattle and then moving to St. Pete Beach, Florida, where he currently resides.
Of note, the author cites as his strongest influence horror legend H. P. Lovecraft; in 2007, Lee embarked on what he calls his "Lovecraft kick" and wrote a spate of novels and novellas which tribute Lovecraft and his famous Cthulhu Mythos. Among these projects are THE INNSWICH HORROR, "Trolley No. 1852," HAUNTER OF THE THRESHOLD, GOING MONSTERING, "Pages Torn From A Travel Journal," and "You Are My Everything." Lee promises more Lovecraftian work on the horizon.
Edward Lee is an American novelist specializing in the field of horror, and has authored 40 books, more than half of which have been published by mass-market New York paperback companies such as Leisure/Dorchester, Berkley, and Zebra/Kensington. He is a Bram Stoker award nominee for his story "Mr. Torso," and his short stories have appeared in over a dozen mass-market anthologies, including THE BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES OF 2000, Pocket's HOT BLOOD series, and the award-wining 999. Several of his novels have sold translation rights to Germany, Greece, and Romania. He also publishes quite actively in the small-press/limited-edition hardcover market; many of his books in this category have become collector's items. While a number of Lee's projects have been optioned for film, only one has been made, HEADER, which was released on DVD to mixed reviews in June, 2009, by Synapse Films.
Lee is particularly known for over-the-top occult concepts and an accelerated treatment of erotic and/or morbid sexual imagery and visceral violence.
He was born on May 25, 1957 in Washington, D.C., and grew up in Bowie, Maryland. In the late-70s he served in the U.S. Army's 1st Armored Division, in Erlangen, West Germany, then, for a short time, was a municipal police officer in Cottage City, Maryland. Lee also attended the University of Maryland as an English major but quit in his last semester to pursue his dream of being a horror novelist. For over 15 years, he worked as the night manager for a security company in Annapolis, Maryland, while writing in his spare time. In 1997, however, he became a full-time writer, first spending several years in Seattle and then moving to St. Pete Beach, Florida, where he currently resides.
Of note, the author cites as his strongest influence horror legend H. P. Lovecraft; in 2007, Lee embarked on what he calls his "Lovecraft kick" and wrote a spate of novels and novellas which tribute Lovecraft and his famous Cthulhu Mythos. Among these projects are THE INNSWICH HORROR, "Trolley No. 1852," HAUNTER OF THE THRESHOLD, GOING MONSTERING, "Pages Torn From A Travel Journal," and "You Are My Everything." Lee promises more Lovecraftian work on the horizon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
August 13, 2019
Framed ex-cop Phil Straker comes back after years to
This novel from Edward Lee is essentially a mash-up between Richard Laymon's The woods are dark, Twin Peaks and, as you can have imagined reading this review, H.P. Lovecraft's The Shadow over Innsmouth.
A good backwoods mistery thriller with many over-the-top explicit/disturbing sex and violence scenes, but well working with the main storyline plot and not just random ones, all leading to an intense and crazy ending, but not unexpected at all if you ever read the aforementioned lovecraftian tale.
A solid ☆☆☆ stars raised to four full ones by the ending.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 1, 2020
Crick City is a small hick town. Violent, mean and dirtpoor, it's a place nobody wants to call home.
A Homicide cop, Phil Straker, calls it his home. And now someone—or something—is turning his boyhood town into a bloody sideshow of mutilation and gruesome carnage.
They're called "Creekers". They are Centuries old, driven by rage and lust for revenge, they move through the deep, dark woodsthey are deformed, shadowy outcasts with twisted faces and blood-red eyes. Now, as the moon hangs low over their ancient house, they're gathering for a harvest of terror and death for Crick City.
A Homicide cop, Phil Straker, calls it his home. And now someone—or something—is turning his boyhood town into a bloody sideshow of mutilation and gruesome carnage.
They're called "Creekers". They are Centuries old, driven by rage and lust for revenge, they move through the deep, dark woodsthey are deformed, shadowy outcasts with twisted faces and blood-red eyes. Now, as the moon hangs low over their ancient house, they're gathering for a harvest of terror and death for Crick City.
July 30, 2023
I have read alot of good books this year. Some absolute masterpieces but Edward Lee's Creekers is the best of the lot. It is by far the best book I have read in a long time.
Its about a hick town full of rednecks and an incompetent police department. Phil a city cop who grew up in the town however left now returns after being fired from the force in the city. The Creekers are an inbred community of deformed characters with brutal characteristics. They live in the woods nearby the town. Rumours of the Creekers and there debaucherous ways are local legend with noone actually believing they could be true. Phill joins the local department to investigate a PCP syndicate which in turn leads him to The Creekers. I wont say much more as its definitely one I dont want to spoil for anyone but that's the gist of the plot.
The way Edward Lee describes the Creekers and there inbreeding and the deformities they suffer, how they speak, how they interact and such is brilliant. He paints the picture with his words and it's not a pretty one but very inventive. The plot itself is so intriguing with Phill attempting to find evidence of the local drug syndicates, fit back into the town and his interactions with its residents and the relationships he forms. There is an element of mystery surrounding the whole plot of what is actually occurring as the mutilated bodies of numerous people turn up skinned and bloody.
This also has some horrific scenes of torture, rape and overall violence which is hard to read but so compelling with how it is written. It's brutal but not in a extreme horror way as its not way over the top as some books in that genre can be. It definitely difficult at times however to read.
The plot keeps you guessing, full of tension and makes you want to keep reading. I did not guess the ending to it at all and was left awe struck with how it concluded.
A masterpiece of horror fiction. This review does not do it justice on how good this is. I listened to this on audible as I couldn't afford to get a vintage copy. The narrator is also amazing and perfect for the story as well so if you struggle like me to find a copy and do audio books you can check it out that way.
Its about a hick town full of rednecks and an incompetent police department. Phil a city cop who grew up in the town however left now returns after being fired from the force in the city. The Creekers are an inbred community of deformed characters with brutal characteristics. They live in the woods nearby the town. Rumours of the Creekers and there debaucherous ways are local legend with noone actually believing they could be true. Phill joins the local department to investigate a PCP syndicate which in turn leads him to The Creekers. I wont say much more as its definitely one I dont want to spoil for anyone but that's the gist of the plot.
The way Edward Lee describes the Creekers and there inbreeding and the deformities they suffer, how they speak, how they interact and such is brilliant. He paints the picture with his words and it's not a pretty one but very inventive. The plot itself is so intriguing with Phill attempting to find evidence of the local drug syndicates, fit back into the town and his interactions with its residents and the relationships he forms. There is an element of mystery surrounding the whole plot of what is actually occurring as the mutilated bodies of numerous people turn up skinned and bloody.
This also has some horrific scenes of torture, rape and overall violence which is hard to read but so compelling with how it is written. It's brutal but not in a extreme horror way as its not way over the top as some books in that genre can be. It definitely difficult at times however to read.
The plot keeps you guessing, full of tension and makes you want to keep reading. I did not guess the ending to it at all and was left awe struck with how it concluded.
A masterpiece of horror fiction. This review does not do it justice on how good this is. I listened to this on audible as I couldn't afford to get a vintage copy. The narrator is also amazing and perfect for the story as well so if you struggle like me to find a copy and do audio books you can check it out that way.
October 16, 2022
Where I grew up in Florida there was a neighborhood next to mine named Creekerville. This was back in the 70s. Creekerville was actually part of Rocky Creek. Being the little shits that we were, we called the people who lived there Creekers. Creekerville was more rural, more country, and poorer than our suburban neighborhood. There were no sidewalks in Creekerville. Creekerville was a place to get beat up and your bike stolen for making the mistake of venturing into it alone. I had my bike stolen twice and the first time I got it back was from Creekerville. My dad came with me to get it back. I saw a man kick his own dog in the chest in front of the house where we found the bike. I'm still shocked at the casual cruelty displayed by that man kicking his dog. He knew I was getting my own bike back and didn't give a rip about it. Stuff got stolen and stolen again, that's just how things were in Creekerville. I had to pedal it back home myself, hoping the kids who stole it from me first didn't catch up to me when they discovered I'd stolen it back. The second time it was stolen it was gone forever. Another time a few years later I was cutting through Creekerville on a different bike and two boys, Creekers, one holding a pocket knife, chased me on foot until I eventually out-pedaled them. It was a mean and bitter place to get caught in. But we were just as mean in our side as well, where we had newer homes and sidewalks. The whole place has changed in the decades since. All of this has nothing to do with the novel here, except that when I saw it on the bookshelf I had to stop and wonder if Edward Lee grew up where I had grown up. "Creeker" was a word that was fairly exclusive to by upbringing.
Well, it turns out that, no, Edward Lee is not from my part of Florida. And the Creekers in this novel are nothing like anything I experienced growing up.
"Them Creekers, they worship themselves a demon, and it's to this demon that they sacker-fice folks."
If you haven't figured it out with the other reviews here, this book is one of those "in-bred cannibals" type of horror novels similar to movies like Wrong Turn. It's also about a small town cop trying to bust a PCP ring that has invaded his town Crick City. It's a nice and gory read. It's full of nasty people who get killed in disgusting ways. And it's got a wild twist that you may or may not see coming when it's all said and done. Sometimes a gory in-bred backwoods cannibal horror story is just what you need. I liked it.
Well, it turns out that, no, Edward Lee is not from my part of Florida. And the Creekers in this novel are nothing like anything I experienced growing up.
"Them Creekers, they worship themselves a demon, and it's to this demon that they sacker-fice folks."
If you haven't figured it out with the other reviews here, this book is one of those "in-bred cannibals" type of horror novels similar to movies like Wrong Turn. It's also about a small town cop trying to bust a PCP ring that has invaded his town Crick City. It's a nice and gory read. It's full of nasty people who get killed in disgusting ways. And it's got a wild twist that you may or may not see coming when it's all said and done. Sometimes a gory in-bred backwoods cannibal horror story is just what you need. I liked it.
March 21, 2022
This is an early Lee novel, first published in 1994 by Zebra/Pinnacle, then re-released by Necro in 2010. Lee takes us back to some familiar stomping grounds-- BFE Maryland and the 'route'. This is also the setting for Bighead, Ghouls and at least a few more of his works. This story focuses on Phil, a native of Crick City who made it to the big city (D.C.?) and was rapidly climbing the police hierarchy until he was set up by a rival and forced to resign. Forced to work as a night watchman, one day he receives a visit from the sheriff of Crick City who offers him a job as a cop again. Phil, quite leery about returning to Crick City (a little backwater town on the 'route') nonetheless decides to take the job; hey, at least he will be a cop again!
We also have one of Lee's all star casts to be sure: Scott-boy and Gut, two amoral sociopathic rednecks who get their thrills via rape, murder and running PCP; the 'creekers' themselves, i.e., severely inbreed 'hill people' led by Cody Natter, who although deformed, has a great brain; and Vicki, Phil's ex who was once a cop, but now a junky stripper/prostitute who dances in the only bar in Crick City.
Phil's new boss the sheriff tells him about various gangs running PCP around, and also that Cody Natter not only now owns the strip club/bar, but that he also cooks and sells PCP. Phil starts to stake out the club, and eventually goes undercover to play the Narc...
Lee tells a very good story, and there are definitely shades of Bighead here, but this is more of a plot driven novel than his more splatterpunk works. Lee can make even the nastiest events seem somewhat normal however depraved. The strip club, for example, has a 'back room' where deformed creekers strip-- too many fingers, not enough fingers, split heads, extra arms, extra breasts, the list goes on. You can 'buy' the creekers for a price and there is no shortage of demand.
Anyway, Phil finds cracking the creeker's PCP operation a major challenge but I will stop here to avoid spoilers.
Absorbing to say the least, Creekers packs a punch, although definitely many steps down the depravity ladder from Bighead; this was obviously meant for a larger audience. Some great twists and turns and the ending left more questions than answers. You will also find Lee's trademark door knocker with the face and eyes but nothing else on the creeker's bordello. The denouement was classic and served to bump this to 4 redneck stars.
We also have one of Lee's all star casts to be sure: Scott-boy and Gut, two amoral sociopathic rednecks who get their thrills via rape, murder and running PCP; the 'creekers' themselves, i.e., severely inbreed 'hill people' led by Cody Natter, who although deformed, has a great brain; and Vicki, Phil's ex who was once a cop, but now a junky stripper/prostitute who dances in the only bar in Crick City.
Phil's new boss the sheriff tells him about various gangs running PCP around, and also that Cody Natter not only now owns the strip club/bar, but that he also cooks and sells PCP. Phil starts to stake out the club, and eventually goes undercover to play the Narc...
Lee tells a very good story, and there are definitely shades of Bighead here, but this is more of a plot driven novel than his more splatterpunk works. Lee can make even the nastiest events seem somewhat normal however depraved. The strip club, for example, has a 'back room' where deformed creekers strip-- too many fingers, not enough fingers, split heads, extra arms, extra breasts, the list goes on. You can 'buy' the creekers for a price and there is no shortage of demand.
Anyway, Phil finds cracking the creeker's PCP operation a major challenge but I will stop here to avoid spoilers.
Absorbing to say the least, Creekers packs a punch, although definitely many steps down the depravity ladder from Bighead; this was obviously meant for a larger audience. Some great twists and turns and the ending left more questions than answers. You will also find Lee's trademark door knocker with the face and eyes but nothing else on the creeker's bordello. The denouement was classic and served to bump this to 4 redneck stars.
October 14, 2010
A familiar taste of poison beckons back
Man, you need a deep stretch after this one, but one thing is for certain - Ed Lee is a smart guy. He has smut, lots of it sometimes but he blends it well with an intelligent story that serves a purpose, it's not a cup of sugar with a drop of coffee in it, that's for sure . Creekers reads like a thriller with some intense ick that fits in some strange and creepy way. I was following it along expecting one thing and got something totally wicked at the end, I adore an intense ending that kicks the reader awake, for some strange reason it kept reminding me of John Shirley's "Wetbones" which still kicks around in my skull and I read that years ago, sometimes it's easy to get used to all the gore and shock to the point where it barely touches us, but stories like this one stick around and give off a scream every once in a while.
Phil Straker ( Ed Lee’s first pen name btw) comes back home, backto a crumb of a city called Crick City the last place that will take him back after a failed career as a cop. He's back to the one place he tried to escape back so hard from, now he is trying to do the right thing by digging his dignity back up with a car sized shovel as he dives deep into the city's dirtiest business, a strip joint that might be in cahoots with the main thing he's used to hunting; narcotics. New and old relationships stir his brains and soul, creating more sorrow than happiness, the story was so realistic that when the ending finally hit me I almost fell of the bed, I read this over two days and it was pretty hard to put down even though it was a total dip into a specific point of view, lots of gross rednecks and the mutated chicks they were drooling after. Phil is chased by new and old demons but he realizes that there is something very wrong with the town he thought he knew, close investigation only gets him closer to the eye of the storm, the one place he should probably avoid, curiosity kills the cat, let's just say that he's more than curious..You get into this whole investigation and suddenly everything is flipped upside down but in a good way, I loved it, very nicely done, I think I will read Lee again very soon, my next victim from him will be Succubi. Up to date Slithers marks my favorite of his but this was fabulous, not something you can read every day for a long time because it's probably too much but it's definitely a great scary and keeping you at the edge type of a story.
- Kasia S.
Man, you need a deep stretch after this one, but one thing is for certain - Ed Lee is a smart guy. He has smut, lots of it sometimes but he blends it well with an intelligent story that serves a purpose, it's not a cup of sugar with a drop of coffee in it, that's for sure . Creekers reads like a thriller with some intense ick that fits in some strange and creepy way. I was following it along expecting one thing and got something totally wicked at the end, I adore an intense ending that kicks the reader awake, for some strange reason it kept reminding me of John Shirley's "Wetbones" which still kicks around in my skull and I read that years ago, sometimes it's easy to get used to all the gore and shock to the point where it barely touches us, but stories like this one stick around and give off a scream every once in a while.
Phil Straker ( Ed Lee’s first pen name btw) comes back home, backto a crumb of a city called Crick City the last place that will take him back after a failed career as a cop. He's back to the one place he tried to escape back so hard from, now he is trying to do the right thing by digging his dignity back up with a car sized shovel as he dives deep into the city's dirtiest business, a strip joint that might be in cahoots with the main thing he's used to hunting; narcotics. New and old relationships stir his brains and soul, creating more sorrow than happiness, the story was so realistic that when the ending finally hit me I almost fell of the bed, I read this over two days and it was pretty hard to put down even though it was a total dip into a specific point of view, lots of gross rednecks and the mutated chicks they were drooling after. Phil is chased by new and old demons but he realizes that there is something very wrong with the town he thought he knew, close investigation only gets him closer to the eye of the storm, the one place he should probably avoid, curiosity kills the cat, let's just say that he's more than curious..You get into this whole investigation and suddenly everything is flipped upside down but in a good way, I loved it, very nicely done, I think I will read Lee again very soon, my next victim from him will be Succubi. Up to date Slithers marks my favorite of his but this was fabulous, not something you can read every day for a long time because it's probably too much but it's definitely a great scary and keeping you at the edge type of a story.
- Kasia S.
November 28, 2023
Like a stroke book for the mentally deficient. Not fun… not scary. I see it gets a lot of positive reviews. Didn’t work for me. Returning it to Amazon for a refund. Jesus God what shit!
November 21, 2022
Edward Lee, to me is sort of like Richard Laymon. He knows how to poke at a topic that should be left alone until it pops and oozes uncomfortably. This time around he deals with deformities and inbreeding. Two subjects that doesn't come up to often in polite conversation. So, you can imagine where he takes you over the pages here. Another plus is that the ending completely blindsided me. I never saw it coming. This was a great gross gem that I'm glad I uncovered.
A cop kills a minor in a drug raid and is told to resign before he's fired. Soon after he's offered a job on the force from where he's from. A small backwoods town. Not much to do. But it seems that a PCP ring is running out of the local strip club. What's more is that this club has a special bonus. It has a Creeker back room. A Creeker is the name the locals call the inbred community that resides near them. So that means strippers with no arms and multiple breasts and so forth.
So, what you get, pretty much is Deliverance on heavy, heavy drugs. Mr. Lee just jabs at that festering sore spot with a rusty nail.
A cop kills a minor in a drug raid and is told to resign before he's fired. Soon after he's offered a job on the force from where he's from. A small backwoods town. Not much to do. But it seems that a PCP ring is running out of the local strip club. What's more is that this club has a special bonus. It has a Creeker back room. A Creeker is the name the locals call the inbred community that resides near them. So that means strippers with no arms and multiple breasts and so forth.
So, what you get, pretty much is Deliverance on heavy, heavy drugs. Mr. Lee just jabs at that festering sore spot with a rusty nail.
August 8, 2022
Story 5/5
Narration 5/5
I loved it!!
Narration 5/5
I loved it!!
April 20, 2021
Holy fucking shit! Edward Lee has blew me out of my skin with this one. Would highly recommend, hell it's going back in the TBR pile for a second round. A creepy, cultish horror that keeps you gripped. Praise be to Ona!
June 14, 2024
Just finished reading what has got to be my favorite read of the year so far! This year, I’ve been making it a point to read more classic splatterpunk… the quintessential reads by hardcore horror authors who paved the way for me to follow my author dreams. And this book… THIS BOOK.
It’s got everything I love! We follow a dejected protagonist who is forced to go back home and build his life from scratch… all while confronting trauma and darkness from his past. The story is told as a standard police procedural, but I was never bored!
It isn’t tedious and clinical, yet it has the coherence and narrative momentum that kept me glued to the pages; the strong characters, the vile gore, and the intriguing mystery all gelled so well.
And to top it all off, it’s got such beautiful descriptions of the grotesque—from the vile things we do to one another, to the horrid state of living in a human body, to the deformities and imperfections of the human state—both internal and external… and it bolsters this ugliness by painting a cruel and unforgiving world around its characters.
It’s nihilistic, it’s bleak, and it subverts third-act expectations with masterfully sinister panache! And that ENDING is a doozy! Masterpiece. 5 stars. Best book of the year (so far).
It’s got everything I love! We follow a dejected protagonist who is forced to go back home and build his life from scratch… all while confronting trauma and darkness from his past. The story is told as a standard police procedural, but I was never bored!
It isn’t tedious and clinical, yet it has the coherence and narrative momentum that kept me glued to the pages; the strong characters, the vile gore, and the intriguing mystery all gelled so well.
And to top it all off, it’s got such beautiful descriptions of the grotesque—from the vile things we do to one another, to the horrid state of living in a human body, to the deformities and imperfections of the human state—both internal and external… and it bolsters this ugliness by painting a cruel and unforgiving world around its characters.
It’s nihilistic, it’s bleak, and it subverts third-act expectations with masterfully sinister panache! And that ENDING is a doozy! Masterpiece. 5 stars. Best book of the year (so far).
July 8, 2016
I have to admit - I've expected something else. Not entirely else, but else in a sense that only someone who loves Lee's stories would understand. I was hoping for "Bighead" or "Minotauress", and I've got a more complex story, with characters that are more deeper than I thought. After "Witch Water"I think that "Creekers" is the most elaborate novel of Edward Lee so far. Less gore, more real relations. Less deviation, more really good plot. And a great mystery that keeps the reader waiting until the end.
It was great!
It was great!
May 18, 2016
LOOK AT THAT FUCKIN’ COVER!! It’s the most '90s cheap-horror-paperback/VHS cover I’ve ever seen in my life. Woe to those who came across this cover in the aforementioned period and thought they might be getting some John Saul/V.C. Andrews-type shit (not that I'm knocking those authors at all, for those who dig them.) Cosmetic stuff aside, what we have here is an odd kind of hick splatterpunk/crime story. It’s kind of like The Hills Have Eyes meets Deliverance meets...uh, Twin Peaks? I really have no fucking idea. Like I said, it’s a weird book.
Our hero is painfully average cop Phil Straker (readers of Lee’s will recognize him from the insanely gross Goon.) Straker is fired from his big-city cop job for spoilery reasons and returns in shame to his hometown Crick City for a much less glamorous job investigating the town’s PCP ring led by mega-creepy Creeker mastermind Cody Natter. At this point, you probably have asked yourself “what the fuck is a Creeker?” Well, it’s basically a severely inbred human being with insane disfigurements, its own language and boiling red eyes (red irises, not the run-of-the-mill stoner glare most of us have encountered at one point or another) that lives in the hills. Yeah...if you haven’t figured it out already, Crime and Punishment this is not.
This is more the kind of Edward Lee book I dig, where there’s actual plot and characterization and not just random scenes of gross, over-the-top sex and violence. The over-the-top sex and violence works best when it’s tied into the plot and not just the entire reason for the book’s being. Crick City was a cool, original setting and the Creeker strip club was the one of the loveliest shades of fuckin’ weird I’ve ever encountered. Another plus is that Lee actually pulled off an ending that didn’t leave me going “why the fuck do I do this to myself?” It’s coherent, has some twists and doesn’t have that feeling of the author just pulling plot from their ass as they go along that I encountered in Lee’s works like The Pig and Succubi.
Our hero is painfully average cop Phil Straker (readers of Lee’s will recognize him from the insanely gross Goon.) Straker is fired from his big-city cop job for spoilery reasons and returns in shame to his hometown Crick City for a much less glamorous job investigating the town’s PCP ring led by mega-creepy Creeker mastermind Cody Natter. At this point, you probably have asked yourself “what the fuck is a Creeker?” Well, it’s basically a severely inbred human being with insane disfigurements, its own language and boiling red eyes (red irises, not the run-of-the-mill stoner glare most of us have encountered at one point or another) that lives in the hills. Yeah...if you haven’t figured it out already, Crime and Punishment this is not.
This is more the kind of Edward Lee book I dig, where there’s actual plot and characterization and not just random scenes of gross, over-the-top sex and violence. The over-the-top sex and violence works best when it’s tied into the plot and not just the entire reason for the book’s being. Crick City was a cool, original setting and the Creeker strip club was the one of the loveliest shades of fuckin’ weird I’ve ever encountered. Another plus is that Lee actually pulled off an ending that didn’t leave me going “why the fuck do I do this to myself?” It’s coherent, has some twists and doesn’t have that feeling of the author just pulling plot from their ass as they go along that I encountered in Lee’s works like The Pig and Succubi.
August 2, 2012
CREEKERS is one of Lee's novels that is closer in theme to THE BIGHEAD and THE HOUSE than to SLITHER. While there are some demons and a small tie-in to CITY INFERNAL, most of the story has a gritty, intensity of hard-boiled detective mixed with backwoods rednecks. And of course, sex, violence and perversities.
Philip Straker is a big-city detective who ends up framed for shooting a kid and then ousted from the department. Having nowhere else to go, he moves back home to the small Podunk town of Crick City. There he is offered to work on the police force for Chief Lawrence Mullins, the father figure who practically raised him. Chief Mullins wants Straker to find and end the PCP problem that is occurring in town. A problem that Mullins suspect is being run by Cody Natter. The catch? Not only is Cody Natter the leader of a group of inbred hill people with numerous deformities including red eyes, but Natter also runs the town's strip club and is married to Straker's ex-fiancée.
The story has a lot happening in it and is very involving. As in real life, many of the characters are both good and bad and hard to narrow down as to whether you should be liking them or not. Of course, some are pure scum and while they are add considerably to the sex and violence, you also hope that they get their comeuppance. About the only thing that I wasn't too sure about was the ending which took a turn from the rest of the novel. It wasn't off and ridiculous but at the same time it wasn't what I was expecting. If you are a fan of hardcore and intense horror, then you should enjoy the book. It's one of Lee's better novels. If you aren't sure though, try one of Lee's more mainstream books. I would hate for you to get scared off and miss out on a wonderful author.
Philip Straker is a big-city detective who ends up framed for shooting a kid and then ousted from the department. Having nowhere else to go, he moves back home to the small Podunk town of Crick City. There he is offered to work on the police force for Chief Lawrence Mullins, the father figure who practically raised him. Chief Mullins wants Straker to find and end the PCP problem that is occurring in town. A problem that Mullins suspect is being run by Cody Natter. The catch? Not only is Cody Natter the leader of a group of inbred hill people with numerous deformities including red eyes, but Natter also runs the town's strip club and is married to Straker's ex-fiancée.
The story has a lot happening in it and is very involving. As in real life, many of the characters are both good and bad and hard to narrow down as to whether you should be liking them or not. Of course, some are pure scum and while they are add considerably to the sex and violence, you also hope that they get their comeuppance. About the only thing that I wasn't too sure about was the ending which took a turn from the rest of the novel. It wasn't off and ridiculous but at the same time it wasn't what I was expecting. If you are a fan of hardcore and intense horror, then you should enjoy the book. It's one of Lee's better novels. If you aren't sure though, try one of Lee's more mainstream books. I would hate for you to get scared off and miss out on a wonderful author.
July 10, 2017
Edward Lee is really up there with me as royalty of splatter punk. This is probably one of his best book's he's ever written! In this tale you have Demon's! inbred hillbilly's PCP labs all sort's! Very far out there but very entertaining.
P.s The book cover is just love for me <3
P.s The book cover is just love for me <3
May 30, 2020
⭐️.5/5 DNF
I nadszedł ten dzień, kiedy Edward Lee - jeden z autorów pewniaków mnie rozczarował. No, niestety - miedzy mną a „Ludźmi z bagien” nie zaiskrzyło. Siegając po „Ludzi” spodziewałam się, że dostanę Cannibal Holocaust w mniej egzotycznym - bagiennym wydaniu. Nie tym razem! Nie przesadzę jeśli stwierdzę ze półtorej godziny, które przeznaczyłam na czytanie tej książki było czasem straconym. I zupełnie nie żałuję, że odpuściłam już po - i tak z wielkim trudem wymęczonych - 100 stronach. Przebrnięcie przez kolejne 300 zajęłoby mi tygodnie. I nie - nie rzuciłam tej książki w kąt, bo przerosła mnie ilość zawartych w niej obrzydliwości i perwersji. Halo, to jest horror ekstremalny - wiedziałam co biorę do ręki i właśnie ohydztwa w jak największym stężeniu oczekiwałam. A tymczasem „Ludzi” spokojnie można by czytać do obiadu. Edward Lee przyzwyczaił mnie że jeśli chodzi o akcje to u niego ta zawsze biegnie szybko, dynamicznie, bez zbędnych przestojów i dłużyzn. A tym razem wieje wieje nudą! Akcja wlecze się niemiłosiernie. Przez pierwszą 1/4 książki może na 5 stronach mamy Edwarda Lee, którego tak uwielbiamy - niestroniącego od mocno krwawych i brutalnych, a jednocześnie kreatywnych scen tortur i zbrodni. Cała reszta to wywołujące ziew opisy do znudzenia powtarzanych czynności oraz nic nie wnoszące do fabuły dialogi. Postacie nie lepsze - sztampowe do bólu, niczym żywcem wyjęte z pierwszego lepszego amerykańskiego serialu kryminalnego klasy B z lat 80.
Horror ekstremalny ze względu na swoją specyfikę w pełni rozkwitnąć największa możliwość ma w krótkiej formie, a nie grubych tomiszczach. Według mnie „Ludzie z bagien” dużo lepiej sprawdziliby się jako opowiadanie bądź 200-stronicowa nowela. Bo przy 400 stronach wyziera z tej książki straszna powtarzalność i monotonia. W sumie co się dziwić - w końcu ludzie maja ograniczoną liczbę kończyń, które można im odrąbać i narządów które można wydrzeć. A czytanie o tym samym - nawet na różne sposoby - przez kilkaset stron dosyć szybko robi się nudne.
Fanką twórczości Edwarda Lee nadal pozostaję, jednak już nie będę rozgłaszać na prawo i lewo, że przeczytam wszystko, co zostanie przez niego napisane. Pozostaję przy swoim i jak dla mnie jeśli horror ekstremalny to tylko krótka forma.
I nadszedł ten dzień, kiedy Edward Lee - jeden z autorów pewniaków mnie rozczarował. No, niestety - miedzy mną a „Ludźmi z bagien” nie zaiskrzyło. Siegając po „Ludzi” spodziewałam się, że dostanę Cannibal Holocaust w mniej egzotycznym - bagiennym wydaniu. Nie tym razem! Nie przesadzę jeśli stwierdzę ze półtorej godziny, które przeznaczyłam na czytanie tej książki było czasem straconym. I zupełnie nie żałuję, że odpuściłam już po - i tak z wielkim trudem wymęczonych - 100 stronach. Przebrnięcie przez kolejne 300 zajęłoby mi tygodnie. I nie - nie rzuciłam tej książki w kąt, bo przerosła mnie ilość zawartych w niej obrzydliwości i perwersji. Halo, to jest horror ekstremalny - wiedziałam co biorę do ręki i właśnie ohydztwa w jak największym stężeniu oczekiwałam. A tymczasem „Ludzi” spokojnie można by czytać do obiadu. Edward Lee przyzwyczaił mnie że jeśli chodzi o akcje to u niego ta zawsze biegnie szybko, dynamicznie, bez zbędnych przestojów i dłużyzn. A tym razem wieje wieje nudą! Akcja wlecze się niemiłosiernie. Przez pierwszą 1/4 książki może na 5 stronach mamy Edwarda Lee, którego tak uwielbiamy - niestroniącego od mocno krwawych i brutalnych, a jednocześnie kreatywnych scen tortur i zbrodni. Cała reszta to wywołujące ziew opisy do znudzenia powtarzanych czynności oraz nic nie wnoszące do fabuły dialogi. Postacie nie lepsze - sztampowe do bólu, niczym żywcem wyjęte z pierwszego lepszego amerykańskiego serialu kryminalnego klasy B z lat 80.
Horror ekstremalny ze względu na swoją specyfikę w pełni rozkwitnąć największa możliwość ma w krótkiej formie, a nie grubych tomiszczach. Według mnie „Ludzie z bagien” dużo lepiej sprawdziliby się jako opowiadanie bądź 200-stronicowa nowela. Bo przy 400 stronach wyziera z tej książki straszna powtarzalność i monotonia. W sumie co się dziwić - w końcu ludzie maja ograniczoną liczbę kończyń, które można im odrąbać i narządów które można wydrzeć. A czytanie o tym samym - nawet na różne sposoby - przez kilkaset stron dosyć szybko robi się nudne.
Fanką twórczości Edwarda Lee nadal pozostaję, jednak już nie będę rozgłaszać na prawo i lewo, że przeczytam wszystko, co zostanie przez niego napisane. Pozostaję przy swoim i jak dla mnie jeśli horror ekstremalny to tylko krótka forma.
January 27, 2019
Przeciętnie napisany, ale do bólu brutalny i wulgarny horror. Obrzydliwa książka która nigdy nie powinna była powstać. 7/10
November 19, 2010
Edward Lee delivers the world's only (to my knowledge) inbred hillbilly, redneck PCP mafia backwoods horror thriller with Creekers. This book, like Lee's best work, was simultaneously an absolute joy to read and absolutely nasty and disgusting, taking the reader to places they would never want to go in their wildest nightmares. The characters are great, the pace is perfect, the villains are extremely nasty and plentiful, and the book is blessed/cursed with a downright disturbing ending, that leaves the opportunity for a sequel open. I would love to see that sequel get written someday. Lee, when he's on, is one of the best horror writers there is, and he was definitely on with this one. Recommended to fans of rural horror that aren't afraid of an author that will do everything he can do disturb and shock you.
November 12, 2010
Read Edward Lee's books and you will never ever feel safe taking a back country road again.
March 25, 2024
Review to come.
September 5, 2020
Skeet-inner! Ona-prey-bee!
Holy fucking shit that was an epic fucking tale!
5/5 Skulls
💀💀💀💀💀
Holy fucking shit that was an epic fucking tale!
5/5 Skulls
💀💀💀💀💀
August 26, 2011
This novel is considered by many of his fans to be the "holy grail" of his works--being long out-of-print for years. To find a copy, I went online to rare books sites & found the Zebra Press run (used) priced at $100 or more--even the copies marked as having torn covers, broken spines or both! Online, I read reviews where Lee's fans (of which I am one) screamed this was the greatest work by him--EVER! So I had to have it.
I bought a limited, signed, hardcover edition by Necro Publications--complete with a ribbon bookmark stitched into the spine--& I remember running my fingers over the dust jacket thinking: "It's mine!" I was so ready to dive into it--having read it was the most vile book written by the king depravity--but had to put it on hold because I was already reading about 4 other books (yes, it's a bad habit & one I'm not proud of). Now you can get it as an e-book--no longer an out-of-print/limited edition status tome. Ah, well, I'm still glad I got a cool hardcover edition.
Anyway, I got through the 4 books--freeing up my reading list--& I cracked this baby open, thinking I was going to be reading Lee's "swan song"--his masterpiece. I was partially correct--maybe just a little correct? It's hard to say because I've read some really vile stuff by Lee--THE HOUSE, GOON & BIGHEAD--& CREEKERS came off as rather tame by comparison. The vile novels by him are just that: V-I-L-E! THE HOUSE contained some of the most disgusting scenes I've ever read on the printed page &, yet, in Lee's deftly written prose it wasn't just written to be shock schlock, it was actually a beautifully written twisted tale. Lee has a purpose in writing the disgusting & perverse; giving the reader a reason to pay close attention to the story because he gives you a one that has depth--one that makes you think. & stories like THE HOUSE & BIGHEAD stay with you for a long time. CREEKERS? Not so much.
It's a good story. Really. But being a HUGE reader of H.P. Lovecraft, I recognized by the end of CREEKERS it was just Lee's take on THE SHADOW OVER INNSMOUTH. Is this bad? No. I was just expecting more. I guess the phrase, "Don't believe the hype", applies to this one.
I will say this: if you are new to Edward Lee, this is a good place to start--a novel that allows you to ease into his world. If you just want to jump into the deep end with him, start with THE HOUSE. CREEKERS is a novel that is worth the time but doesn't deserve to be hailed as his best.
I bought a limited, signed, hardcover edition by Necro Publications--complete with a ribbon bookmark stitched into the spine--& I remember running my fingers over the dust jacket thinking: "It's mine!" I was so ready to dive into it--having read it was the most vile book written by the king depravity--but had to put it on hold because I was already reading about 4 other books (yes, it's a bad habit & one I'm not proud of). Now you can get it as an e-book--no longer an out-of-print/limited edition status tome. Ah, well, I'm still glad I got a cool hardcover edition.
Anyway, I got through the 4 books--freeing up my reading list--& I cracked this baby open, thinking I was going to be reading Lee's "swan song"--his masterpiece. I was partially correct--maybe just a little correct? It's hard to say because I've read some really vile stuff by Lee--THE HOUSE, GOON & BIGHEAD--& CREEKERS came off as rather tame by comparison. The vile novels by him are just that: V-I-L-E! THE HOUSE contained some of the most disgusting scenes I've ever read on the printed page &, yet, in Lee's deftly written prose it wasn't just written to be shock schlock, it was actually a beautifully written twisted tale. Lee has a purpose in writing the disgusting & perverse; giving the reader a reason to pay close attention to the story because he gives you a one that has depth--one that makes you think. & stories like THE HOUSE & BIGHEAD stay with you for a long time. CREEKERS? Not so much.
It's a good story. Really. But being a HUGE reader of H.P. Lovecraft, I recognized by the end of CREEKERS it was just Lee's take on THE SHADOW OVER INNSMOUTH. Is this bad? No. I was just expecting more. I guess the phrase, "Don't believe the hype", applies to this one.
I will say this: if you are new to Edward Lee, this is a good place to start--a novel that allows you to ease into his world. If you just want to jump into the deep end with him, start with THE HOUSE. CREEKERS is a novel that is worth the time but doesn't deserve to be hailed as his best.
February 14, 2024
Crick City a nowhere land inhabited by nowhere people, unemployed, dilapidated trucks on blocks, an absolute shithole of a town. Hooch, moonshine, panther piss, PCP, smashed off their tits. Phil with his masters degree, a lieutenant detective, gets done by a kids death in another nice part of town. Now his only hope of employment is in this shithole of a place he grew up in and never thought he would return. This town had Creekers. Inbred over centuries, malformed heads, some with no ears, tiny mouth holes, missing fingers, couldn't communicate, they were the towns secrets in the backwoods. The local strip joint where pigs sloshing about in mud were better than the skinny drug fucked strippers. But they did have a backroom of Creeker strippers, some with four tits, missing limbs, mongoloid deformities that sick fucks like to jerk off to and also get balls deep in. Phil will try to break apart the drug trade. People skinned, skulls cracked, flesh devoured. A signed copy.
January 20, 2020
Small town boy moves to big city and becomes law enforcement material. After problems in the big force, he returns home to become a graveyard shift deputy.
His boss puts him on the trail of local drug runners, and the action is on.
His boss puts him on the trail of local drug runners, and the action is on.
October 19, 2011
After this book, Im starting to wonder why everyone thinks Lee is so great. His stories are unusual and unique for sure. And even very well written. But this book as the others I have read are just a bit boring. I do not find them entertaining, and had a hard time getting through this one. It just didnt keep my attention.
April 3, 2022
Classic Edward Lee with a good surprise ending.
June 27, 2013
Edward Lee's stories from his rural Appalachia mythos (eg Creekers, Goon, The Minotauress, etc) are like cotton candy. Everyone knows the formula, everyone knows what to expect when they pick it up, and ultimately it's hard to recollect where one book starts and another ends. The writing is solid enough to not call any attention to itself, they're each easy to read and hard to put down. As far as I can tell, there's no real specific timeline to the mythos, and thus there's not any particular order to read them.
Keep in mind, however, that what other reviewers have said about Edward Lee's spectacularly depraved imagination and the depths of filth, gore, perversion, violence, misery and casual disrespect for the vast majority of the victims in his stories is absolutely true. Edward Lee's Appalachia books are not for those proud of their delicate sensibilities, nor for the horror fan who is looking for "bump in the night" chills. These books are for readers looking for fun, easy to read splatterpunky stories that focus on creating vivid imagery to the detriment of wildly involved plots or Impressive Metaphors About The Human Condition.
Cotton candy for the crowd of jaded readers looking for outlandish prurience and cheap escapism. We know who we are, and we love Mr. Lee for providing us such wonderful entertainment.
I've read a number of books from this mythos in the last couple of years, and I'm going to copypasta this review into each of them. With five stars each.
Keep in mind, however, that what other reviewers have said about Edward Lee's spectacularly depraved imagination and the depths of filth, gore, perversion, violence, misery and casual disrespect for the vast majority of the victims in his stories is absolutely true. Edward Lee's Appalachia books are not for those proud of their delicate sensibilities, nor for the horror fan who is looking for "bump in the night" chills. These books are for readers looking for fun, easy to read splatterpunky stories that focus on creating vivid imagery to the detriment of wildly involved plots or Impressive Metaphors About The Human Condition.
Cotton candy for the crowd of jaded readers looking for outlandish prurience and cheap escapism. We know who we are, and we love Mr. Lee for providing us such wonderful entertainment.
I've read a number of books from this mythos in the last couple of years, and I'm going to copypasta this review into each of them. With five stars each.
August 25, 2020
Such a degenerate storyline so insane with inbred crazyness, drug smokin, slangin, prostitution, stripping, RAZZIN... which means finding some gal old young normal or inbred doesnt matter, walking alone at night to get picked up, tortured raped and brutalized to meat. Then thrown in the sawmps. That just one pair of characters and they get up to Drunk Razzin every other night. also some supernatural/demonology sacrifices are the sole motives for the Creekers actions. They are also cannibals. All of this makes one hell of a crazy story that has some potential. But my god, it was such a long book for what should of been a novella at most was droned out into pages of useless thoughts that have no meaning to the story. Also he repeated Phills thoughts over and over. Specially after getting through one big massive build up and i cant wait to see how phill reacts to the truth, what he plans to do to the Creekers house the BAM! THE END. like someone slamming a door in your face! So dissatisfied and disappointed , i dont think ill be buying anymore Lee books unless ofcourse it was handed over for free, then mabe.
January 29, 2021
Quite similar to „Off season” by J. Ketchum, we’ve got terrifying mutants with gruesome habits. The whole story is actually an extreme type of horror. Nonetheless I found it very monotonous: brutal rapes, scalping, striptease and so on. There is no real mystery, nothing we could discover and be scared of, we only get very explicit scenes.
Moreover, it is emphasised that the story is set in a small town. I can’t understand how can the main character run an incognito investigation there? How is it possible that nobody knows he’s a policeman? Nobody sees him when he commutes to work??? If he returns to his town after many years, shouldn’t he get into the centre of attention?
Another irritating point was the describing of Susan with the use of the same words: that she was a natural beauty, that she used no make - up etc.
Nevertheless I enjoyed the story, especially the unexpected ending.
Moreover, it is emphasised that the story is set in a small town. I can’t understand how can the main character run an incognito investigation there? How is it possible that nobody knows he’s a policeman? Nobody sees him when he commutes to work??? If he returns to his town after many years, shouldn’t he get into the centre of attention?
Another irritating point was the describing of Susan with the use of the same words: that she was a natural beauty, that she used no make - up etc.
Nevertheless I enjoyed the story, especially the unexpected ending.
September 12, 2022
Twisted
You can always guarantee a sick an twisted tale from the amazing Edward Lee. He is a genius with his stories. How he can mould and shape a story and characters, turn them into adventurous, extreme grotesque horror. Stories that memorize you, holding you and ends
Hoping you into the world of that story, the environment, the characters, the gore and twisted tales. I am always amazed at the imagination that unfolds in every read. I have read this story before and this one seemed to have a few extras in it. I love the stories of the hillfolk and Steelers etc. How they seem to be mixed in the future and past way of living. Loved Paul in this read and chief mullins. What a creep he turned out to be. So many twists and action through you are constantly entertained. An amazing read from an amazing author. Recommended 1000%
You can always guarantee a sick an twisted tale from the amazing Edward Lee. He is a genius with his stories. How he can mould and shape a story and characters, turn them into adventurous, extreme grotesque horror. Stories that memorize you, holding you and ends
Hoping you into the world of that story, the environment, the characters, the gore and twisted tales. I am always amazed at the imagination that unfolds in every read. I have read this story before and this one seemed to have a few extras in it. I love the stories of the hillfolk and Steelers etc. How they seem to be mixed in the future and past way of living. Loved Paul in this read and chief mullins. What a creep he turned out to be. So many twists and action through you are constantly entertained. An amazing read from an amazing author. Recommended 1000%
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