Blackwater by Michael McDowell horror book review

[@laurie7032]

Right now the books are being published in French for the first time ! It started in April and will finish mid-June, as they publish 1 every 2 weeks. I read the first one and really enjoyed it, can't wait to read the next ones !

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Oh that’s fantastic! I envy you being able to read them in that way!

[@troytradup]

I published e-books of the Blackwater series before the terrific guys at Valancourt took over the title(s), and I want to say Michael's agent told me the idea of serializing came from the publisher -- but don't quote me on that; I'm old. Michael was gay himself, and the LGBTQ overtones you're seeing were very intentional. I believe Valancourt basically has his entire catalog in print now. My fave outside of Blackwater is Cold Moon Over Babylon. I haven't read any of his non-horror titles, but I believe they're all available. Cheers!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

That’s really fascinating! Thanks for taking the the time to comment. I definitely need to read more of his work.

[@anotherbibliophilereads]

A read the audiobook a few years. It was very entertaining. I was quite taken with life on the river. I’ve read Cold Moon Over Babylon which was also good.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Yeah, he has a real talent for creating a good sense of place

[@WritteninBlood]

I'm so happy that you enjoyed Blackwater. May I also suggest "Cold Moon Over Babylon" and "Katie"?

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Definitely! I really want to read more McDowell now! Thanks for the recommendations

[@WritteninBlood]

@@CriminOllyBlog You're welcome 😊!

[@michaelmccarty]

I remember reading (and loving) all 6 books during the summer of 1984. Time for a re-read!!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I’m jealous of you having that experience!

[@livingdeadgirl6442]

i just finished reading this tonight. i still have so.many unanswered questions.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

It does leave a lot to the reader to figure out!

[@WritteninBlood]

I had all of the Blackwater volumes and I read and loved all of them. I don't know what happened to the volumes but I got ahold of the hardcover volume and re-read a couple of years ago and still loved it just as much.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Shame you don't have the paperbacks anymore, but great for all of us that it has been reprinted

[@WritteninBlood]

@@CriminOllyBlog Yes!

[@PerfumePretty]

What a great review! 🩷👍 I discovered Blackwater as Audiobook here in Germany, 2 days ago and I am already on the end of Book 3! 😅 It’s absolutely fascinating! I love it! That’s the way to write Stephen King somehow lost! But back to Perdido, I have to say I appreciate the way he described the interactions with the African Americans and poor people in general, because back in that time, it was exactly like that. Harper Lee for example, was much closer to this era than Michael and described her protagonists exactly the same! Of course it is a shame how poorly the colored people was treated but to understand a different time, you need to show the reality and no sugar coated version! Plus, Michael McDowell was very carefully in his stories and his protagonists treat each other often way to well, the reality was way harder! Especially in the South!🙂

[@MichaelSmith-zx5lw]

They have finally been getting paperback reprints in the UK! Happy to say i own the first three. I read the series last year and enjoyed it again via Audible, loved it, but couldn't justify spemding money on the physical editions. The second i saw they were available for pre-order i snapped them up! Three more to be released!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I saw that! So cool!

[@MichaelRomeoTalksBooks]

I read this when it was first released as one volume, sometime in the 80s I think. I have fond memories of it even though I don't remember a lot of details. I do vividly remember a scene with a character driving behind a log truck and what happens as a result.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Ah yes, that scene was in book 2 I think and very effective!

[@im1ru122]

FYI: I just read McDowell's 'Gilded Needles' & I recommend it! I know you read 'The Elementals' (which I'll get to... soon-ish) but I don't know if you've read more than 2 McDowell novels. With 'GN', he is working with a very different palette; more pointedly in the crime genre. Ultimately, for me, it brought to mind... well, a US version of a Victorian penny dreadful. It's a whole different world than 'Blackwater' but the complexity of the writing is exquisite!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Oh interesting - yes I've only read those 2 so far and definitely keen to read more

[@SpoonsForks]

I just finished Gilded Needles, you should read his other historical novel- Katie. IT WAS SO GOOD!

[@uptown3636]

This review arrived at the perfect time for me. I read and enjoyed The Elementals last summer, and I have preordered the Suntup Press edition of Blackwater. Can't wait for them to print it and send it my way! Thanks, Olly.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Excellent! That does look like a lovely edition, but expensive!

[@uptown3636]

@@CriminOllyBlog Indeed. It was a bit of a splurge, but the setting reminds me of my childhood in the (metaphorically) haunted American South. Hopefully it doesn't disappoint.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

@@uptown3636 I’m pretty confident you’ll love it. It’s a really great book.

[@nightmaresanyone]

Hey Olly! First off, you are almost at that 4 digit Subscriber number!! Congrats on that achievement! I still have 2 full copies of the entire series.....from when they originally were released. My brother gave me one set, and those are the ones that have NEVER been cracked open. The other set you can see behind me in my videos. LOVED these books. I think you would like his book 'The Amulet' also.....but let me warn you, that it is a LOT more graphic and fastly paced horror about a cursed necklace. Have a great and 🧟‍♂👻💀weekend my Fiend! Richard

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Thanks Richard! I actually have a copy of The Amulet, but it has pages missing 🙁

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

I’ve read a few of his books, The Elementals being the best. I’m probably going to read this one next month. I’ve been waiting for ages to find out how this story ends!

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I think I might do The Elementals for Horror MAYhem!

[@AllenSaleAstralAudio]

Something to consider regarding the race issues in this: 1. Small southern town. Far from progressive in general attitudes. (Side note: love how the actual town exists but not as he described.) 2. The character’s reaction to the civil rights movement does accurately reflect a small subset. So handled correctly through the lens of time and place which isn’t reflective of his presumed progressive stance on the subject. I can understand the discomfort though; especially if one hasn’t spent time in that area.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I do get that, but felt the book lacked any strong black characters to counter the views of the town/white characters

[@AllenSaleAstralAudio]

@@CriminOllyBlog Accurate to the downtrodden nature that did and does still exist I’m afraid. I knew a gentleman who was uncomfortable coming into my family’s house; just wanted to be on the porch even though we were more than happy to have him. This was 2015 mind you. It’s sad. Yes, there could have been a strong character but would it have been historically accurate for a backwater town such as that? Writers wrestle with that choice; no wrong answer since even an omission teaches lessons - how things could be better with the right nudge - how small communities are the harshest silent critics clinging to outdated notions and being swept away by time.

[@AnneEWilliamson]

Sounds like such a fascinating books. Horror mixed with family saga...such a strange combo, especially during such a changing time of the 20th century.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

It's a really effective book - I'm still thinking about it now!

[@im1ru122]

Glad to hear this review! I am waiting for my 'Blackwater' volume to arrive in the mail and the anticipation is great! ;) As an aside... since McDowell was a gay writer, I don't think you've done a video on lesbian gothic (at least I haven't come across one). I'm thinking specifically of Carson McCullers (i.e., 'Reflections in a Golden Eye', 'Ballad of the Sad Cafe'), Patricia Highsmith (although she's more in the crime line) and Sarah Waters (i.e., 'The Little Stranger', although 'Fingersmith' is one of my all-time favorite novels). I'm also thinking of the gothic nature of non-lesbian writer Flannery O'Connor. Might you have a go at these? Just a thought.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Thanks David! I hope you enjoy Blackwater as much as I did. I'm not sure I've really read any Lesbian Gothic - I'll have to look into it!

[@mikebruce3933]

Was The Elementals not filmed as The Frighteners starring Michael J. Fox? A fun movie that helped forward the career of one Peter Jackson who went on to dabble in fantasy movies 😊

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I didn't know that! I really liked that movie! Although I think it actually stalled Jackson's Hollywood career because it was a bit of a flop commercially.

[@mikebruce3933]

@@CriminOllyBlog very true but he learned a lot from it. I think it was quite well received critically. 😊

[@CriminOllyBlog]

@@mikebruce3933 yeah I remember it being really entertaining.

[@troytradup]

I don't believe The Elementals served as source material for The Frighteners. If it did, they threw out literally every element of the plot. :-)

[@mikebruce3933]

@@troytradup fair dos, I'm no expert, thought I'd heard it somewhere 😊

[@fridahultgren8865]

I'm gonna ask for this as a birthday present. Am a huge fan of Tim Burton and Stephen King. And I also love a good horror story. Sounds right up my ally. Ty for the review

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Hope you enjoy it, Frida, and happy birthday when it comes!

[@im1ru122]

Finished reading 'Blackwater' yesterday. Even when it felt a bit long (as it does in places), it was never less than engaging. The writing was always pushing things forward. I was also glad I could laugh out loud in some places. A rich tapestry, to be sure.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Glad you enjoyed it! Agree - it was a wonderfully rich and complete book

[@im1ru122]

Jumping back in for a sec: My copy of 'Blackwater' arrived; I decided to dive in - and it has already enveloped me! What an engaging storyteller! And I'm not normally much of an impulse buyer but I've been properly seduced so I went ahead and ordered copies of McDowell's 'Gilded Needles' and 'The Elementals'. ;)

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Ah fantastic! Glad you’re enjoying it!

[@im1ru122]

@@CriminOllyBlog Finished Volume One - and loving it! (By the way... in one of your vids, you mentioned the short story collection that's a tribute to Shirley Jackson ('When Things Get Dark'). It intrigued me and I ordered a copy (so, thank you!).

[@CriminOllyBlog]

@@im1ru122 Ah great! I liked that book a lot! There's an amazing Joyce Carol Oates story

[@im1ru122]

@@CriminOllyBlog I'm near the end of Volume 3 of 'Blackwater' - and I feel... possessed. ;) I've had to slow myself down with it a bit because I feel compelled to savor it. Sometimes I finish a chapter and I have to... sit with it for a bit before going on. It's simply remarkable. (FYI: I was never again able to find the video where you talk about 'When Things Get Dark'.)

[@CriminOllyBlog]

@@im1ru122I think I read that Jackson book before I had the channel so may be that I talked about it in a tag video. I did write a text review of it, but I think that went up on a site that no longer exists. Really glad you're enjoying Blackwater so much

[@kakelards]

Nice Doxa✌

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Cheers!

[@im1ru122]

One more sudden thought re: gay male writers & crime / 'horror': William March's 'The Bad Seed'. Ever read it? One of the few books I've read twice and the book is much better than the film (though I like the film).

[@CriminOllyBlog]

I haven't - will have to look out for it