Kill Your Darling is a bleak novella about grief, obsession, and what storytelling can (and can’t) do for the broken people left behind.

The setup is simple. Forty years ago, Glenn Partridge’s teenage son was found dead in a vacant lot, his face wrapped in duct tape, cartoon eyes drawn on. No suspect, no closure, no justice. Glenn never let go. He’s called the police for decades, chasing leads that evaporate. His wife, long-suffering but not entirely without humor, signs him up for a writing class at the library. Rule number one: write what you know. So Glenn writes about Billy.

The act of writing gives Glenn’s grief a shape, maybe even a purpose. But the more he writes, the more his story begins to evolve. The creative process plays an important role here, and it’s blurring the line between catharsis and obsession.

It’s fun, but not in the usual sense. The opening alone will knock the air out of you, and Chapman doesn’t soften the blow. Glenn isn’t even all that likable - he’s bitter, obsessive, prickly. The grief transforms him into a monster of sorts as he try to wrestle meaning out of chaos.

At just under 170 pages, it’s a quick read. The writing is taut, vivid, and at times cruelly funny in the way real tragedy can be. This book won’t make you feel better, but it will make you feel.