This was a really fun read, the likes of which I haven't seen in a while! It's a creative mix of other stories you'll probably recognize: it's "The Purge" meets "The Hunger Games" meets Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery." In a small, no-name, non-descript Midwest town surrounded by cornfields and secrets, each year, the teenage boys in town run the gamut to destroy a supernatural figure they call "The October Boy."
It seems that this scarecrow-figure with vines for a body and a pumpkin head rises from a post-harvest cornfield each year on Halloween, a butcher knife in hand, with the goal of reaching the church in the center of town by midnight. Killing the October Boy results in a prize which, in a Hunger-Games-like showdown, brings wealth and prominence to the victor and his family... but all is not what it seems. Don't want to provide spoilers here - but as you may guess from "The Lottery" references, there's an interesting twist for the "victor."
This was a short but good romp, even if it was a little brief and superficial. I think it could actually have been a much longer novel, with more character development and some back story provided, like a mystery for the main protagonist, Pete, to solve. The one main missing element is that we never discover how this tradition originated, or how long it had been going on, or what the implications were if The October Boy were to complete his mission in reaching the church. The evil cop in the story seems to be under the impression that the town would cease to exist, but nothing much is discussed other than that.
I would very much have liked to know how this yearly ritual came about... and why it's only boys who can participate, and why no one is allowed to leave the town, without serious repercussions. What's with the candy? Is it just a kind of symbol or is there a greater implication? Regarding the members of the Harvester's Guild: how were they appointed? Are they longstanding members of the community or the descendants of the town's founders? Did their ancestors have anything to do with the origins of an undead pumpkin-headed creature rising from a cornfield to engage in a duel-to-the-death with the town's teenage boys?
There were just a lot of missing elements that would have made this creative and engaging story even better. There were also some lags with just a lot of dialogue that kind of broke up the plot and made it somewhat boring at times, but it moved at a decent pace for the most part and definitely kept readers wanting to know how things are going to end up. Definitely recommended if you want a short, fun read, and aren't expecting anything too involved.
It seems that this scarecrow-figure with vines for a body and a pumpkin head rises from a post-harvest cornfield each year on Halloween, a butcher knife in hand, with the goal of reaching the church in the center of town by midnight. Killing the October Boy results in a prize which, in a Hunger-Games-like showdown, brings wealth and prominence to the victor and his family... but all is not what it seems. Don't want to provide spoilers here - but as you may guess from "The Lottery" references, there's an interesting twist for the "victor."
This was a short but good romp, even if it was a little brief and superficial. I think it could actually have been a much longer novel, with more character development and some back story provided, like a mystery for the main protagonist, Pete, to solve. The one main missing element is that we never discover how this tradition originated, or how long it had been going on, or what the implications were if The October Boy were to complete his mission in reaching the church. The evil cop in the story seems to be under the impression that the town would cease to exist, but nothing much is discussed other than that.
I would very much have liked to know how this yearly ritual came about... and why it's only boys who can participate, and why no one is allowed to leave the town, without serious repercussions. What's with the candy? Is it just a kind of symbol or is there a greater implication? Regarding the members of the Harvester's Guild: how were they appointed? Are they longstanding members of the community or the descendants of the town's founders? Did their ancestors have anything to do with the origins of an undead pumpkin-headed creature rising from a cornfield to engage in a duel-to-the-death with the town's teenage boys?
There were just a lot of missing elements that would have made this creative and engaging story even better. There were also some lags with just a lot of dialogue that kind of broke up the plot and made it somewhat boring at times, but it moved at a decent pace for the most part and definitely kept readers wanting to know how things are going to end up. Definitely recommended if you want a short, fun read, and aren't expecting anything too involved.
The ONLY reason this has more than 1 star is because the idea of the story is really great. The way it is written, however, I found absolutely insufferable. In another author's hands, I'd love to read this story. The writing style just wasn't for me.
