‘Wake Up And Open Your Eyes’ – Clay McLeod Chapman (Titan Books)

 


Page Count: 393 Pages

I’m not sure what happened to my TBR pile this week… I did have plans to keep working through it but somehow ended up travelling down the ‘Horror Road’ instead. That’s the way it goes sometimes, just remember to never take a road trip with me ;o) I’m half serious by the way, ask my ex-wife how good I am with a map. Anyway…

My reading seems to be all about the Apocalypse this week (humorous or otherwise) so when I remembered that ‘Wake Up And Open Your Eyes’ was hidden in a pile of books, I dug it out and settled down for a quiet read. Let me tell you all about it…

Noah Fairchild has been losing his formerly polite Southern parents to far-right cable news for years, so when his mother leaves him a voicemail warning him that the “Great Reckoning” is here, he assumes it’s related to one of the many conspiracy theories she believes in. But when his own phone calls go unanswered, Noah makes the long drive from Brooklyn to Richmond, Virginia. There, he discovers his childhood home in shambles, a fridge full of spoiled food, and his parents locked in a terrifying trance-like state in front of the TV. Panicked, Noah attempts to snap them out of it and get medical help.

Then Noah’s mother brutally attacks him.

But Noah isn’t the only person to be attacked by a loved one. Families across the country are tearing each other apart-–literally-–as people succumb to a form of possession that gets worse the more time they spend watching particular channels, using certain apps, or visiting certain websites. In Noah’s Richmond-based family, only he and his young nephew Marcus are unaffected. Together, they must race back to the safe haven of Brooklyn–-but can they make it before they fall prey to the violent hordes?

I’ll be honest, ‘Wake Up And Open Your Eyes’ came close to being a ‘did not finish’, really close in fact. But I stuck with it and I’m very glad that I did. What we have here is a vicious slice of horror that takes great pleasure in showing us that when the end comes, it will be of our own making.

Now, I’m the kind of person who may agree with your social commentary but won’t necessarily appreciate being force fed it while I’m reading your book. That’s not why I read, to put it bluntly. And that’s what I found in the early stages of of ‘Wake Up And Open Your Eyes’, the plot essentially being sidelined for commentary on the state of right-wing media and the people who take it in. It’s not that I don’t agree with what Chapman is saying here (people of a certain age have all experienced Noah’s situation), it’s just that I was there for the story as well. Your mileage will inevitably vary, it is an important message to be fair.

Like I said though, I stuck with it and I’m very glad that I did. What initially came across as a heavy-handed diatribe actually ended up as a very even-handed commentary on the state of humanity as a whole. Left or right, we are all susceptible in the end and to be honest, a demon’s job is actually very easy when you think about it. We all mean well but we’re easily corrupted, Chapman knows this and uses it to deliver a horror tale that just hums with a dark energy. No-one is safe, no matter where they stand on the political spectrum.

One of my favourite things about reading horror are the moments when characters get to peer behind the veil, and what they see brings their world crashing down (mostly because it’s happening to them, not me). There is plenty of that here, Chapman absolutely does not hold back and the end product is terrifying. Honestly, I had to wonder how Noah was still standing after meeting his parents (physically and emotionally). Same deal with Marcus and the journey that Chapman takes through the disintegration of his family. And that’s the other thing I enjoy about horror; some people will fold but others will take a stand. It makes for compelling reading, watching Noah react as well as a series of smaller flashpoints that broaden the scope. And all of that makes for an ending that is just chilling, I can’t get that last image out of my head.

I’ve struck lucky with my recent horror reading and ‘Wake Up And Open Your Eyes’ is another dark and terrifying stop along the way. Highly recommended.

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