Fantasy Book Critic: Book review: Gone South by Robert McCammon

AUTHOR INFO: Robert McCammon is the New York Times bestselling author of Boy's Life and Gone South, among many critically acclaimed works of fiction, with millions of copies of his novels in print. He is a recipient of the Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award, the Grand Master Award from the World Horror Convention, and is a World Fantasy Award winner. He lives in Alabama. Visit the author at RobertMcCammon.com.

First published: August 1, 1993 Page count: 400 pages

Robert McCammon is a brilliant writer. In Gone South, he dazzles with ideas, excellent pacing, and memorable characters. The opening line sent a shiver down my spine.

It was Hell’s season, and the air smelled of burning children.

The first thought? I’m not ready for that kind of thing. But I was wrong. Gone South isn’t a bleak book, quite the opposite. It’s a story about hope and redemption. It’s about a Vietnam veteran named Dan Lambert whose bad luck causes tragedy. Broke, Dan tries to negotiate with a bank’s loan manager so he can keep his pickup truck. Things don’t go as planned; they start an argument, a gun goes off, and Dan becomes a killer with a bounty on his head. A masterfully written moment of fear and fury was all it took.

Because he’s dying anyway (leukemia caused by Agent Orange during his time in Vietnam), he runs away. To see his family one last time and maybe find a quiet place. He knows one thing, that he’d just taken the first step of a journey from which there could be no return.

Two bounty hunters follow him. One is a seasoned veteran with three arms and the second is an overweight Elvis Presley impersonator. Sounds ridiculous? Probably. But that’s one of McCammon’s greatest gifts - he makes the most absurd characters human, profound, and relatable.

Take Pelvis Eisley - an Elvis impersonator who wants to get into bounty hunting. He has Elvis shrine in his apartment, wears a wig and blue suede shoes. He loves the King with all his heart. That’s all he has, his admiration for Elvis and Mama, his little dog. At a certain moment in his life, he’d decided that he wasn’t good enough and needed something much bigger to cling to and hide in. In Gone South, he’ll reconsider if he’d given up on his own talent too early in favor of the Elvis disguise because he wasn’t sure he was worth a damn.

And Flint? The experienced bounty hunter despises his life, but as a freak, he doesn’t have many options. Having an extra arm hanging from his chest and a baby-size head growing from his body didn’t exactly help him in life. People looking for sensation, their cruelty, and, ultimately, indifference made Flint mean and bitter. But not bad. He’s in it for the money, but not to hurt innocents.

Dan flees from them and the police to the bayous of Louisiana, where he meets Arden Halliday, a young woman in search of a legendary faith healer named Bright Girl. From that moment on, the story and the suspense double as the two venture into the swamps and their mysteries.

Gone South shows that life and circumstances can lead you differently than you planned, and sometimes all you can do is persevere. Life is unfair, it's hard and sometimes cruel, but people can find a way out, even if it's temporary (but what isn't?)

Gone South is a strange book. More hopeful than dark but it contains scenes of violence and mayhem. It blends action, thriller with black comedy elements. I loved it and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a memorable read.