STRAIGHT BY CHUCK TINGLE (A BOOK REVIEW)

11/6/2021

a tight slice of classic pulp horror with a genuinely intriguing premise that finds a way to speak about some pressing social issues whilst delivering plenty of thrills, shocks and action.

STRAIGHT BY CHUCK TINGLE (A BOOK REVIEW by kit power)

Chuck Tingle is a two-time Hugo Award nominee, and self-described ‘erotic author’, whose incredibly prolific output and distinctive style have made him an internet and publishing sensation. Straight represents Tingle’s first foray into the horror genre, and is my first encounter with his work.

Straight stands firmly and proudly in the pulp horror tradition; an anomaly in space (labelled The Blank Space) has, on for a single day for the last 3 years, sent the hetrosexual population of the world into a crazed killing frenzy, causing them to turn on anyone on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum with extreme violence. Once the day is over, the affected people revert to their normal selves, with no memory of what they’ve done. The story evokes classics such as Night Of The Living Dead and The Crazies, Day of the Triffids, The Purge and Edmund Cooper’s All Fool’s Day. As the narrative begins, Earth is about to enter its third anniversary of this event, and our protagonist is getting ready to travel to a remote cabin in the desert with some close LGBTQIA+ friends to wait out the event.

I was fascinated by the decision to make this the third anniversary of the event; my first instinct as a storyteller would probably be to tell the story of the first event, given the opportunities that would provide for shocks and surprises, but I think Tingle’s decision here is very smart, and certainly works in the novella’s favor; both because it allows the tension to develop (because of the known quantity of the event itself), and because of the way the story tackles what society has done to attempt to adjust to this bizarre and horrific event. In a nod to the current moment, by year three there’s a vaccination effort which should inoculate straight people from most of the effects; and, just like now, there’s a significant minority of people who refuse to take it, for various reasons.

The opening scene encapsulates the tensions well; our protagonist shares a lift with his elderly straight neighbour, who is going to her son’s house for what has been called Saturation Day. She’s apparently friendly, but unvaccinated due to her age, and the impact of The Blank Space is already being felt as she offers the narrator a cookie which has sewing needles baked into it. It’s a good opening scene, setting the unsettling tone and neatly foreshadowing the dangers to come.

From there, we meet the rest of our narrator's friends as they start out on their road trip. I found them to be a well rounded team, with Tingle doing an admirable job in creating efficient pen portraits that quickly brought the characters to life - a core talent of pulp writers that I always feel doesn’t get enough credit. Likewise, the tension and violence escalate well, with some graphic, unsettling horror sequences, and an eventful narrative that packs in plenty of thrills and surprises. I also felt the tale worked well at novella length; the author has spoken on Twitter about what a longer, 3rd act version of the tale would have looked like, and I can’t fault his logic for deciding instead to end the tale when and how he did.

The prose is crisp and clear; and I found the use of present tense gave the tale a sense of immediacy that I enjoyed. There were a couple of parts that felt a little too on-the-nose for me, in terms of moments when characters would express either through dialogue or internal thought processes the themes of the story; but I’m aware that’s very much a subjective take, and it didn’t detract from my overall enjoyment of the piece.

I had a good time with Straight; it’s a tight slice of classic pulp horror with a genuinely intriguing premise that finds a way to speak about some pressing social issues whilst delivering plenty of thrills, shocks and action. It also left me intrigued to see what else Tingle might decide to do in the horror arena.

KP
30/5/21

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Straight by Chuck Tingle

When a strange tear in the cosmos appears within Earth’s annual path, the consequences are disastrous. For one night a year, the vast majority of humans now undergo a frightening mental change, transforming into hateful, rage-fueled zombies who will stop at nothing to satiate their desire for brutality.

While not much is understood about this horrific mass hysteria, the demographic it effects is very specific: cisgender straight people.

A few years after the first of these tragic events, four friends from across the queer spectrum look for safety in solitude, hunkering down in a remote desert cabin for what is now known as Saturation Day. With a vaccine available for straight people to curb their violent episodes, some predict the worst is over. Others aren’t so sure.

As night falls, it becomes clear that survival isn’t guaranteed this Saturation Day.

This is the first horror novella from two-time Hugo Award finalist Chuck Tingle.