Ghost Eaters
A Novel
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3.0 • 1 Rating
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
“A Gothic-punk graveyard tale about what haunts history and what haunts the human soul. An addicting read that draws you into its descent from the first page.”—Chuck Wendig, New York Times best-selling author of The Book of Accidents
One of Vulture's Best Horror Novels of 2022, this terrifying supernatural page-turner will make you think twice about opening doors to the unknown.
Erin hasn’t been able to set a single boundary with her charismatic but reckless college ex-boyfriend, Silas. When he asks her to bail him out of rehab—again—she knows she needs to cut him off. But days after he gets out, Silas turns up dead of an overdose in their hometown of Richmond, Virginia, and Erin’s world falls apart.
Then a friend tells her about Ghost, a new drug that allows users to see the dead. Wanna get haunted? he asks. Grieving and desperate for closure with Silas, Erin agrees to a pill-popping “séance.” But the drug has unfathomable side effects—and once you take it, you can never go back.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
You know you’re in for a freaky read when the story revolves around drugs and ghosts. Erin and her college friends have all done well since graduation—except for her ex Silas, who finally succumbed to his addiction. But the drug that killed him wasn’t an opioid or meth. It was something new: a drug that lets you see the dead. Clay McLeod Chapman’s innovative thriller is exciting and terrifying in equal measure. If you’re interested in some horror with a generous side of smart and biting social commentary, don’t pass up Ghost Eaters.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Chapman (Whisper Down the Lane) probes the terrorizing psychological grip of addiction, both to drugs and to toxic relationships, in this psychedelic psychological horror novel. Erin has spent most of her adult life entwined with Silas, moving from a romantic attachment into a codependent friendship. Now, she's just trying to keep him alive after years of addiction. But when he ditches rehab and ignores her intervention attempt, she finally kicks him out of her life—only for him to overdose and die days later. Following this tragedy, one of their mutual friends introduces a guilt-ridden Erin to Ghost, a new drug he and Silas were testing, which enables users to communicate with the dead and lets her to see Silas once more. She soon develops an addiction to Ghost. But the door to the land of the dead lets through more than just Silas—and, it turns out, it's not so easily closed. Chapman captures the visceral tragedy of drug addiction and grief as he follows Erin through the unhealthy relationships she has with both herself and others. Rife with body horror and hallucinations, some of which may get a bit too trippy for some, the narrative sucks readers into its dark, disorienting world. It's equal parts moving and gruesome.
