Book Review: "The Travelling Vampire Show" by Richard Laymon
5/5 - contemporary horror at its best...
I was searching the horrors of Reddit (no, literally - I was on the horror that is Reddit, looking for horrors as well - I mean, where else would you go) and I found someone talking about The Travelling Vampire Show by Richard Laymon, saying that it was a great horror novel they read a while back. No, it is not an off-shoot of The Rocky Horror Picture Show and no, it has nothing to do with Dracula. It feels, at least at the beginning, like a teen novel. But then it really does transform into something else entirely. Let's see what it's all about and whether Richard Laymon lives up to the hype that one Redditor created...
Valeria is the only known vampire in captivity and flyers around the town of Grandville are advertising showing her off in the 'travelling vampire show'. Dwight, a teenager, is narrating the story and wishes to see the show with his friends. The show is strictly adults-only and so, the teen friends hatch a plan to sneak out to a place called 'Janks Fields'. Honestly, this set up feels a bit corny and bit like an old Stephen King novel. But I think it has its charm. It's got teenagers doing things they aren't supposed to be doing, some weird stuff happening around town and an eerie sort of atmosphere, drooping around here and there.
The teens are actually sneaking out because they want to see how the show is being prepared, hoping to catch a glimpse of whatever 'adult stuff' the show has in store. But instead of that happening, the friends get separated, one is injured, one tries to get help and one leaves the group by themselves. They begin to realise that this might not just be some sideshow act, but something quite serious and dangerous. Ultimately, it also reveals how the group interacts with each other, with Dwight being the one that the reader finds responsible but also flawed.
Lee, Dwight's sister-in-law is the one who ultimately gets them into the show, buying them tickets and supervising them throughout the stay. But as the night moves on, there's some serious growing paranoia that even the anchor of rationality Lee brings to the story cannot solve. Janks Field is revealed to be a place of accident, but also a place of ritual and violence. There is definitely an air of otherworldliness to the book, but also an inhumanity that is dark and malevolent. There is something hidden beneath the allure of the carnival that is definitely a danger to everyone there.
When the vampire is put on stage, there are clear signs that she is exactly as the audience feared. She stalks the audience with a violent prowl, biting the necks of some of the members. The tone of the book begins to change from one of the eerie, quiet night to one of brash, full-blown terror. The vampire is now less of a sideshow character and more of a predator and a very realistic danger. The facade is gone and chaos starts to reign from the carnival atmosphere. Something truly wild, terrifying and sadistic is born out of it and the true intentions of this twisted night are revealed in blood, gore and intense levels of violence. As people are killed and injured on every side, there is little hope for the friends to make it out alive.
Looking back on his life afterwards, Dwight takes to the pages to describe the event, how it made him grow as a human being but also how there are some things that are way too real for humans to comprehend, even if you don't think they are at the time.
A fun, (slightly predictable) coming-of-age horror novel which definitely resembles a Stephen King book, there is no wonder why this fun carnival horror won the Bram Stoker Award. If you love horror novels then I definitely recommend you do not skip out on this one. Yes, it may seem like you know exactly what is happening, but Laymon's control of pace and atmosphere is definitely one for the ages. He proves in this novel that he is not just a great writer, but someone who can intensify imagery, sensory descriptions and someone who can formulate a great sense of creeping dread from the slightest movements in the air.
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Comments (2)
I used to read a lot of Richard Laymon. This one seems very familiar, but it was a long time ago. Great review 😀
I do love horror but I'm not a fan of vampires. Loved your review!