Fabulous Bodies didn't disappoint. Now, I don't think it's quite as strong as his previous two novels, but it's another strange horror story that only Tingle could have written.
Seriously, who else would come up with a fashion influencer who moonlights as a body thief, gets involved in digging up the body of her favorite glam-rock icon, and then spends the night chauffeuring his increasingly deranged corpse across Palm Springs?
Poppy is an excellent protagonist. On paper, she's not someone I should particularly like. She's obsessed with followers, branding, and chasing the next payday, and her side hustle (stealing bodies / body parts) is difficult to describe as ethically sound. And yet Tingle makes her entertaining and her choices become more or less understandable, if not exactly defensible. Like his previous protagonists, she's deeply flawed without ever becoming difficult to root for.
Then there's Eddie. He's an absolute blast. Basically, he's a glam-rock legend who refuses to let something as trivial as death interfere with putting on a spectacular performance. He's hilarious, charismatic, cruel, and completely unpredictable. Every time he appeared, I had no idea whether the next page would make me laugh, wince, or recoil in disgust.
The horror is also considerably nastier than in Tingle's previous novels. There's plenty of graphic body horror here, but as always, it isn't gore for gore's sake. Beneath all blood, and flying body parts is a story about celebrity worship, ambition, and parenthood. And also that it's better not to meet your heroes, especially undead ones, because the people we build our identities around are rarely who we imagine them to be.
I listened to the audiobook, and that proved to be an excellent choice. Mara Wilson absolutely nails Poppy's voice. She effortlessly balances panic, sarcasm, and real emotion.
Chuck Tingle continues to be one of the most original voices in modern horror. His books are bizarre, funny, heartfelt, and impossible to mistake for anyone else's.
Long story short, Fabulous Bodies is a wildly imaginative blend of horror, dark comedy, and social satire. If Tingle keeps writing books this weird, and this entertaining, I'll keep reading them.
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