#Titanuary-‘Soon’ by Lois Murphy

About the book…

A gripping literary horror novel about the death of a haunted town, for fans of Richard Matheson. Winner of the Aurealis Best Horror 2017.

On winter solstice, the birds disappeared, and the mist arrived.
The inhabitants of Nebulah quickly learn not to venture out after dark. But it is hard to stay indoors: cabin fever sets in, and the mist can be beguiling, too.

Eventually only six remain. Like the rest of the townspeople, Pete has nowhere else to go. After he rescues a stranded psychic from a terrible fate, he’s given a warning: he will be dead by solstice unless he leaves town – soon.

My undying gratitude to Titan Books for keeping my cold, dead heart fuelled with horror and speculative fiction ! ‘Soon’ by Lois Murphy was published in paperback on the 15th October.

The narrator, Pete, one of the last residents remaining in Nebulah after the mist arrives, has an engaging and authoritative voice which anchors the reader through an astonishing and world weary tale.

The mist arrives not long after a mysterious convoy in this sleepy town, grey cars with Men In Black-esque individuals on board, are doing something down at the local cemetery.
Soon after, the normal noises of birds, companionship and togetherness which characterises the town,disappear over night.

What comes in with the mist is never fully explained and this is what I completely loved-it just is. At nightfall,the moment the sun comes down, the mist arrives and brings the dead with it.
All the small things which characterise our daily lives such as eating fish and chips as the sun sets, stumbling home from the pub with friends after dark all vanish.

As does the neighbourhood.

Until 6 stoic, stubborn older inhabitants remain.
Pete is an ex-policeman, cancer survivor who lives with his dog -named for his ex-wife,one of his many indiscretions-lives a simple life from sun up to sundown.
He and his friends share food,companionship and a willingness to not give up .

The narration is both tender and heartbreaking in the depiction of the horrors that the mist wreaks on them mentally and physically.

The remote nature of the town’s location means they have to rely on the their vehicles being solid, reliable, and being able to make it back home from wherever they are.

The peril and danger that could so easily sway a person to move and never look back, is something that Pete, Mills,Li and the others use to fortify their decision to stay.

When Pete rescues Alice, a stranded psychic who has hears about Nebulah and wants to experience it for herself, a situation quickly develops that foreshadows death and destruction, pulls apart this tight knit group of survivors and really emphasise how those with lived experience are disregarded by those who know better.

In a beautifully horrific and tragic scene, Pete tries to get through to Alice who returns with friends, that you cannot talk to what is in the mist if you have a less aggressive attitude and bargain with it.
The remoteness of Nebulah, the very particular Antipodean nature of the story relates so hard to what you are and what people perceive you to be.

The mist brings a clarity to characters, that does not exist when the sun is up and the methods which those in the mist use to tempt out the inhabitants of the houses is easily equal to the infamous Danny Glick scene in Salem’s Lot .

There are particular incidents that will live rent free in my nightmares forever,and I am honestly not mad.
The warmth and the pathos of the way that these 6 support each other and their four legged friends left me in tears at many points.

The word soon has never been laden with such potential for carnage, loss and horror. Read this fantastic book to see why.

About the author…

Lois Murphy’s first novel, ‘Soon‘, won an Aurealis Award for Best Horror and was shortlisted for the Colin Roderick Award. Lois has travelled widely, most recently spending six years exploring Australia in a homemade 4WD truck, working mainly in small or remote towns. Lois currently lives near Melbourne, Victoria.

Links-https://loismurphy.wordpress.com/

Twitter @TitanBooks