Synopsis
A terrifying tale of supernatural horror set in a cursed Louisiana bayou, from the minds of legendary director George Romero and bestselling author Daniel Kraus.
In 2019, while sifting through University of Pittsburgh Library System’s George A. Romero Archival Collection, novelist Daniel Kraus turned up a surprise: a half-finished novel called Pay the Piper, a project few had ever heard of. In the years since, Kraus has worked with Romero’s estate to bring this unfinished masterwork to light.
Alligator Point, Louisiana, population 141: Young Renée Pontiac has heard stories of “the Piper”—a murderous swamp entity haunting the bayou—her entire life. But now the legend feels horrifically real: children are being taken and gruesomely slain. To resist, Pontiac and the town’s desperate denizens will need to acknowledge the sins of their ancestors—the infamous slave traders, the Pirates Lafitte. If they don’t . . . it’s time to pay the piper.
Perfect for fans of George A. Romero’s pioneering horror movies or his previous collaboration with Daniel Kraus, The Living Dead, Pay the Piper is a thrilling taleof dark folklore, grisly murders, and the horrors that manifest when a community must confront its shadowy past. Readers looking for gothic horror books will enjoy the chilling supernatural elements and haunting Southern setting, and anyone who enjoys scary books for adults will appreciatethe chance to dive into this lost work by a celebrated horror icon
Review
Thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for the audio of this one!
Considering my deep love for all things zombies, I’m actually a bit embarrassed to admit this is my first read from the Father of the Zombie Film. But I do find it to be incredibly cool that Kraus found this half-finished manuscript in the archive and was able to give it public life. That must be a daunting thing, and even though he had already done so with The Living Dead, this was definitely different for both of them.
In the Louisiana bayou, a supernatural entity known as the Piper has been disappearing children for generations. The slayings made me think of my own writing, and yet those delivered here are somehow more gruesome. This definitely made me wish I had included some of the young perspectives in my own novel. I really enjoyed the opening of the story, as I found the less I knew of the Piper made it eerie and almost nightmarish as it filtered through personas coming after a couple people. If those refusing to leave don’t accept the past, they may just end up paying the piper.
Now there was a scene between the Piper, cloaked as the school teacher and the young girl, Pontiac, that I found incredibly uncomfortable. But as a horror scene, it was certainly horrific, I just asked myself why—it did not really tie back into anything making it necessary.
As others have pointed out, I did agree that the ending felt a bit rushed, or maybe that it could have gone a bit deeper. However, I found the buildup to be really strong, and from what I understand, the social commentary was something Romero was known for. Tying the supernatural entity back to the slave trade, the story takes on race and class and carrying the sins of the father. I also found the entire cast to be interesting and engaging, especially how they all interacted and clicked (or didn’t!) together. This one’s different but definitely worth checking out.
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