“Vaudeville” by Greg Chapman.

Publisher: Dark Prints Press

eISBN: 9780987197641

“Vaudeville” by Greg Chapman is an e-novella published by Dark Prints Press. It’s the story of Anthony Moore, whose father committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree and no one really understands why. He was a great guy, loved by all, and the death is a mystery that has rocked the small town of Keaton and left Anthony and his mother broken and at odds with each other. Anthony’s mother drinks the pain away and Anthony is himself lost and friendless, searching for direction. Every day he goes into the woods, to stand and stare at the tree where his father hanged himself, and wonder why. And then, one day, four strange troubadours emerge from the trees, at once fascinating and frightening, and Anthony’s life takes a dramatic turn. “The All-American Travelling Troubadours” have a dark story to perform – all they need is an audience of four young souls.

The scene-setting, character development and story in this novella start well. We’re introduced to a situation that is both familiar enough to identify with and strange enough to keep us wondering what might be going on. Chapman often uses some choice turns of phrase and carries the story well, but for me there are places where the writing falls a bit flatter and has something of a first draft feel about it.

I was carried along well, however, and wanted to know what was behind the strange events. The Troubadours themselves are truly grim characters, quite nasty and well-conceived. As the story played out it was satisfying in places, but there some parts that left me a little confused. The connections between the Troubadours, Anthony’s father and the Civil War sargeant, for example, didn’t come too clear to me.

There are no great suprises in the story. As it unfolds you can see where it’s heading, but for the most part, Chapman does a good job in the telling. I think the whole thing could have used another one or two editorial passes to tighten it all up, trim some of the extraneous parts and smooth out some of the story. The ending was a bit trite and I really wish the story had stopped before the very final line. But of course, as with all reviewing, so much of this is subject to taste.

This is a straight-up horror story with some great supernatural Vaudevillian villains, and worth a look if that concept floats your boat. I’m also very glad to see publishers like Dark Prints Press embracing e-publication to bring us more novella-length fiction, so let’s see more of that, please!

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