A Lesson in YA Horror: Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare

Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare
My rating: 4 of 5 star

I almost didn’t read this book.  Clowns in the cornfield sound clinche’ and like trashy body horror shock value pulpy bullshit.   While I wasn’t “entirely” wrong - about the cliche themes - this story does take place in a small midwestern town full corn and involves a lot of gory kills  - I was wrong about it being shock value pulpy bullshit.  

This book has actual value and I’m glade to recommend it to fans of YA horror.  I also think a few adults could learn a thing or two about from this novel.    

The Story

   As I said Clowns in the Cornfield is set in a small rural midwestern town where everyone grew up knowing each other.  Then there’s the new girl.  Quine is accidentally swept into the tension of the town as their seems to be a war between the adults and teens in town. This tension bubbles over when a prank goes wrong on founders day.  

   

 Likes!  
Troupy without being cliche’.  

  This novel has all the familiar teen slasher tropes without being totally cliche’.  

The popular kids are not needlessly cruel assholes.  The nerds and younger kids are not helpless victims.  The punks are cool. The new girl isn’t picked up for no reason.  The closeted gay couple aren’t the main topics of gossip around town.  

This doesn’t save any of them.  They are still hunted down and and slain as though they were the same irritating assholes from Carrie, Friday the 13^th, or Nightmare on Elm Street.    It’s as though the old guard takes offense to these changes and tries to take them all out.  The meanest person in the school is a teacher.  And the biggest bullies in town are the same ones you’d call for help.    

The town is itself is divided down the middle between the adults and the teenagers who hope to someday take over the town and make it a better place.  Then the clown, who is the town’s founder, shows up to make his opinion known.  He appears to believe things are better without so many opinionated kids and their cellphones.

  Unfortunately for him, “the final girl” is a quick learner at the rifle.  

 Loved

Suspenseful without being gory.  

The kids help each other, they fight and flee they do dumb stuff, they do smart stuff, but all of it is believable things you’d do in a panic.  They fight back.  

The clown kills in every way BUT a gun and some of those ways are bloody.  So a blood thirsty audience will get it’s kicks - but the story isn’t torchere porn.  It’s not graphic for the fun of it.  Also, this story in no way glorifies the killer, or makes what he’s doing seem cool and justified.  The writer definitely seemed aware of the current temperature of the public towards mass violence.

This story could be extremely triggering for mass violence in a public setting, at a party.  But the writer breaks the tension in key places by either having the characters acknowledge this, or having someone be saved.  As it’s about to become too much, the story is turned on it’s ear all together into something totally unexpected.  

Disliked

The story is great and the explanations work for the horror story universe but some of the reasoning didn’t totally make since to me.  I wanted more details, more clarity on what exactly, specifically, motivated the killing of some many teenagers.    

Most questions were answered, but some of the ones that weren’t bothered me.   .

  Like why was Col blamed for the death of his sister?  He didn’t make her go up there, not did he make her jump.  He was at his party.  He pulled a stunt, and halfway through the fall she…went slack? Or something like that.    It appeared that someone filmed her getting hit in the head before she jumped right?  Who did that?

  What was up with he adult’s reactions to that footage?  It was an accident.  

Was there a specific reason - a single event that made every literally scared to see teens with camera phones?  

At the  the town just goes back to business as usual after the founding family, the sherif, the teachers, parents and who knows who else attempted to kill off a whole generation? And the kids are just pranking the shell shocked adults with camera phones after?  

Adam Cesare

The Author

Adam Cesare  love horror cinema.  He runs Project: Black T-Shirt, a YouTube review show where he talks horror films and pairs them with reading suggestions.  Clowns in the Cornfield has won a Brum Stoker Aware for Superior Achievement in Young Adult Novel of 2020.  Follow the Amazon Associates Links below if you're interested in checking out more of Adam's work.  .  

Conclusion:

Clowns in the Cornfield is a modern teen slasher for the present 2025 YA audience. Trigger warning for mass violence breaking out at party. 

It follows all the tropes of being a teen slasher, but somehow avoids being  cliche’.  The gore is bloody.  The killer seems an unstoppable horrifying shit.  And the deaths are shocking, and horrible.  But there is no torchere porn, no glorified meanness, and no justified slaughter.  Everyone who dies is a good or decent person.  Even though you come to sort of understand the motives, this book should not be a blueprint for some sick mind.  If anything it might be a cure - because when does a trend stop being cool….?

Recommendations

Zillinials and Boomers for sure. 

                    Here are some other books by Adam Cesare for you try.  Please use my Amazon Associates links below to buy these books on Amazon or Audible.  Using my links really helps the blog grow and encourages me to keep doing this.  If however, you don't want to feed the ever growing consumer monster that is Amazon, please considering borrowing these books from your local library.  You can also use the library's free audio book service Libby to listen on the go.  Our libraries really need out support!    Enjoy!

                            

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Review: The Tainted Cup

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

                 

Publisher: Del Rey Books  2024

Jacket/ Marketing Synopsis:

In Daretana’s most opulent mansion, a high Imperial officer lies dead—killed, to all appearances, when a tree spontaneously erupted from his body. Even in this canton at the borders of the Empire, where contagions abound and the blood of the Leviathans works strange magical changes, it’s a death at once terrifying and impossible.

Called in to investigate this mystery is Ana Dolabra, an investigator whose reputation for brilliance is matched only by her eccentricities.

At her side is her new assistant, Dinios Kol. Din is an engraver, magically altered to possess a perfect memory. His job is to observe and report, and act as his superior’s eyes and ears--quite literally, in this case, as among Ana’s quirks are her insistence on wearing a blindfold at all times, and her refusal to step outside the walls of her home.

Din is most perplexed by Ana’s ravenous appetite for information and her mind’s frenzied leaps—not to mention her cheerful disregard for propriety and the apparent joy she takes in scandalizing her young counterpart. Yet as the case unfolds and Ana makes one startling deduction after the next, he finds it hard to deny that she is, indeed, the Empire’s greatest detective.

As the two close in on a mastermind and uncover a scheme that threatens the safety of the Empire itself, Din realizes he’s barely begun to assemble the puzzle that is Ana Dolabra—and wonders how long he’ll be able to keep his own secrets safe from her piercing intellect.

Featuring an unforgettable Holmes-and-Watson style pairing, a gloriously labyrinthine plot, and a haunting and wholly original fantasy world, The Tainted Cup brilliantly reinvents the classic mystery tale.

Spoiler Free Review

This book is beautiful, scientifically surreal, and wondrously spell binding.  Robert Jackson Bennet has created a world both familiar and strange, relatable and yet alien. The themes are familiar, but are used to turn you on your ear.  And the most polite people in the book are the ones you can't trust.  

Fall into a steam punk London on a distant planet.  Meet the recently exiled Sherlock Holmes style detective Ana Dolabra, who despite being voluntarily blind for most of the book, can still detect the clues of murder better than anyone else in a room full of altered minds and heightened senses.   

Meet her Watson “Din” Kole, whom has the ability to engrave memories permanently, but is terrible at reading, writing, and lying.   

Together they tackle this impossible case.  A contagion is spreading across the region.  Trees are bursting out of people’s bodies.  The victims are unrelated.  Rich, poor, loner, friends.    

What looks like accidental contagion to the local authorities sings of murder to Ana Dolabra.   But she needs proof.  She needs evidence.  She needs an assistant who is honest, trusted, and by the book.  Instead she chooses Din Kole - a boy who got the lowest grades in his rank, and can’t read or write. 

And they’d better hurry.  Because while they are hunting down a killer, a real monster is banging at the walls of their canton.  If it breaks through  nothing they do will matter.

 

 About the Author

Robert Jackson Bennett 

Robert Jackson Bennett is a star studded author of many fantastical novels.  

He’s won two Shirley Jackson Awards for Best Novel, an Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original,  a Sydney J Bounds Award for Best Newcomer, and a Philip K Dick Award Citation of Excellence!   

City of Stairs was shortlisted for the Locus Award and the World Fantasy Award. City of Blades was a finalist for the 2015 World Fantasy, Locus, and British Fantasy Awards. 

Besides that, he’s a family man with a wife and two sons living in Austin.  He seems like a nice guy with a good since of humor. 

Spoiler Review

What I Liked

The complexity of the mystery is as twisted and provocative as a healthy tangle of vines bursting out of a man's chest!  Despite this complex puzzle of unfamiliar names, places and events the clues were easy to follow once Ana explains them.   Ana’s explanation seem obvious and common sense, but only after you understand the world they live in.  Much like Sherlock, Ana comes to the table with a unique combination of experiences, observations, and knowledge that others have either over looked, ignored, or didn't connect to the situation at hand.    

 

Like a Sherlock novel, the reader is  following the Watson character in close third POV.  We know what he knows, and we learn what he learns.   However, unlike Dr. Watson, Din is very observant.  As an engraver, it's his job to see, observe, and remember what he has seen and observed.  Usually, in a book like this with such detailed setting descriptions I become frustrated and bored.  But the ceremony of Din going through his engraver's processes makes these detailed descriptions feel like action.  It's enjoyable to have him describe a greasily murder scene in beautiful opulent rooms, or dreary neglected basements.  I found myself repeating the descriptions, getting lost in clever word play, then having to start a paragraph over.  To follow what he'd said.

Of course you don't understand the brilliance of these set ups until Din replays the scenes for Ana and she puts them together.  Seemingly unimportant details that hung Din up, become vital clues, or obvious tell-tails that once pointed out make perfect since.  The result is making the reader feel almost as clever and informed as we go on to the next piece of the puzzle and we too start to pick up on things.  Because Din gets better at following his instincts we gain trust in him as a parter just as Ana does.  The result is feeling reassured in this chaotic and reliable world.  Escapist fantasy at it's best!  

What I Loved

 The world building  in The Tainted Cup is masterful.  Every space has character.  Even now typing this I could smell the sea of the Daretana, or walk the halls of the manors Din explored as he sought clues. As I've said Din's observant.  His descriptions are like poetry, making you feel as though you are right there with him feeling what he feels - like a odd little fish in this dark alien steam punk world. 

I also loved the voice actor! 

Andrew Fallaize is magnificent in the audio verson of this book.  His performance really sells the world building, plays on the poetry of Din's descriptions, and brings life to each and every character.  

I've listened to many audio books by now. I'm not exaggerating by saying that all of Fallaize's characters sound different.  Along with Benniett's descriptions, Fallaize's ability to give each character a unique voice really helps when telling people apart - especially later in the book when the action starts to get heavy and everyone comes into contact with Din in a rush.  Fallaize's women sounded like women, the men like men. Each of the main repeat characters has a distinct way of talking that is so clear that you can see their gestured movements before they are described in words. 

And yes, I keep saying performance because Andrew Fallaize is performing this story, not simply reading.  It sounds as though he's having fun doing it.  There are other books which I needed to purchase because I didn't agree with the way the reader chose to intone words, or chose not to express emotions at all in any characters.  Not so with Tainted Cup.  I may purchase this book because I enjoyed it, but not because I need to reread it with my own voice in my head. 

Dislikes: 

Literally the only difficulty I had with this book was how much it inspired me to keep working on my own passion project.  It triggered my ADHD so much that I struggled to complete reading, because every single time I picked it up I felt like I should be working on my own story.  But that's compliment.  

This is the kind of well written novel that makes doubt my own ability to get my story done and out there.  But at the same time it gave me ideas, and passes on things such using familiar descriptors on alien worlds.  

I may have to buy this book just to keep inspired.  

Conclusion:  

 The Tainted Cup is beautiful, brilliant, scary, and surreal .  Robert Jackson Bennet has created a steam punk London on a distant planet.  Any mystery, fantasy, speculative or horror  fans will love living in this space - especially if they enjoyed Sir Author Conan Doyal's star character or anything by Philip K. Dick.  

The audiobook is worth it for this one.  The performance by Andrew Fallaize is master class and really enhances the story.  

Check out these other books by Robert Jackson Bennett:

Please use my Amazon Associates Link to purchase a copy or listen on Audible.  Or borrow them from your local library or through Libby for free!  

 

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Review: The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle

The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What I liked: 

The characters the story the plot everything.  I love everything about the premise and I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book.  It's no wonder there was such a back log for it on Libby.

What I loved:

The setting, the changing points of view, the beginning, middle and the end! Everything!  I love me a run down old house in the middle of no where.  I love me a room of full of people who know each other and hate each other but having to work together.  I love a story where a character is reliving the same day at different angles.  I played Shadow of Destiny and enjoyed every bleeding minute of it.

What I would have changed?

Well there are some very specific places I would have changed what happened.  For one, I know they needed to save The Butler (who is never named) from the footman, but couldn't he figure out a way to do that without beating the man half to death and rendering two of hosts helpless until the end of the day?  

I grant that it was helpful for The Butler to be in the right place to save Anna at the end of story.  But I can't help but think that the Butler could have been put to much better use moving around the house, and talking to the people behind the scenes.  As demonstrated in the Blanch White series, the help has their pulse on everything going on in the house.  Who knows how much faster Aiden and Lucy could have reached a conclusion had the Butler not been so violently incapacitated.  

Second, leaving Derby just standing out in a field after everything that happened until footman found him?  That was a little off to me.  It was already established that the boy was ADD and the best should have smoking.  But why leave him just dumb struck a field to be murdered by surprise?  Even if he was in shock, later the detective could have called him as back up.  He'd have come eagerly.  Then when the footman got the jump on them Derby would have been there and he would have had a fighting chance.

But other than those two situations I am perfectly happy with this book.  I read in twice already, back to back.  Not just a good read, The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a GREAT read!

Conclusion

    This book is perfect for me.  It's right up my alley.  A closed room mystery involving timey whimmy weirdness, a story told through different perspectives, clever clue planting and surprising twist endings.  This book was masterfully written.  But I do have a few questions for the author.

      I'd play this as a game.  I'd watch this as a movie.  I'd read it again for a third time.  But I have other books on the slab.

If you like this book you might also enjoy:

The Tainted Cup by 

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The Mercy Thomas Book Series

 

Night Broken by Patricia Briggs
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

   The  Mercy Thomas Book series is among my favorite guilty pleasures.  It has everything I love.  Dark fantasy, murder mysteries, mythological beings living in a modern setting, and a pretty kick ass main character.  I can almost stomach all the romance because it's wrapped around such captivating storylines.  If you're a fan of Charmed, Grimm, or Supernatural you'll love these books too.  Also try the Alpha and Omega Series by the same author.  

Patricia Briggs is an American writer and a lover of beasts great and small.  She lives in Montana on a horse ranch with her family.  She seems like a pretty cool lady and I hope to meet her someday.  

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My Black History Pick for 2025

Star Child: A Biographical Constellation of Octavia Estelle Butler by Ibi Zoboi
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

   Star Child: A Biographical Constellation of Octavia Estelle Butler

    This is such an incredible book that I just need to spotlight it on all of my social medias!  

    Star Child: A Biographical Constellation of Octavia Estelle Butler is a book of poetry about my favorite writer by my new favorite poet Ibi Zoboi.  This New York Times Bestselling Author first caught my attention with an excellent blurb on back of this astonishing book cover written artistically into the shape of a star:

    Star Child

    Estelle is her Middle Name.  Estelle means "star"- a bright shining light at the highest point on a pyramid, or a tree, or a solar system.  There to remind us to look above our heads and witness the wonder of the sky like an ocean-blue blanket, or a glittered canopy, guarding the secrets of other worlds.  And like a star, she was born to listen to the whisper of the universe, to father the constellations and weave them into stories."

    If you are a fan of Octavia E. Butler, then you understand exactly what she means in this poem. 

    If you're not a fan, or if you've somehow have never heard of her let me enlighten you.  Octavia E. Butler was a black American science fiction writer who wrote stories featuring black protagonists in fantastic, powerful, and sometimes dreadful roles.  

    Her work is inspiring, profound, intense, and sometimes horrifying.  She is loved and studied by people all over the world.  Her sudden dead in 2006 left her work in complete and her fans devastated.  I did not discover her until 2009 on an epode of the Drabblecast.  I weep for what I missed out ever being able to meet her.

        Octavia E. Butler seemed to have insight into the future, into other words, into our very souls.  She made unique connections between the human soul and the stars. And she did so in plane simple language that touched plane simple people and inspired them to really see, to think honestly and critically, and love with boundaries.  

        Ibi Zoboi's Star Child is an autobiography of Octavia E. Butler written in poetry.  It's amazing to learn so much about my favorite author is such a elegant and easy to understand way - where she came from and how she became.... the amazing thought leader she did in the unique way that only poetry can provide.  

    I honestly don't think I really understood the power of good poetry until I read this book.  Ibi Zoboi is a real artist.  

Please Check out Star Child: A Biographical Constellation of Octavia Estelle Butler from your local library.  Or try my Amazon Associates Links.

Have you read anything by Ibi Zoboi?  Please suggest what you think I should read next!  Leave comment here on any of social media pages.  I'm Bluesky, Facebook, and Goodreads

I'm Porsche B. Yeary and I hope to see you on the Next page

Other books you may also like to try:

 By Octavia E. Butler

Kindred - most popular

Bloodchild - Recommended for first timers, and YA

Lilith's Brood - Recommended for hard core science fiction fans who have "read it all". 

Parable of the Sower - Read with caution. If you read Dune and 1984 and you're looking for more, have at it.  Not for the faint though.  The Parable Series may inspire you to pick up a cause, join a protest, or get involved in Civil Disobedience.  

Fledgling  - Thought provoking vampire fiction featuring a young black vampire and her fight for equality among the undead.  Octavia's last book.

By Ibo Zoboi

I haven't read any of these yet, but after reading Star Child I sure plan to read more.  

Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America

Nigera Jones

(S)kin

Pride: a Pride and Prejudice Remix

The People Remember

  

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