Synopsis
A top-secret government project hits upon a revolutionary idea for transporting matter across the vast reaches of the universe, and they succeed in bringing something back. Something alive. Something alien. They bring back THEM.
Mankind’s reign atop the food chain comes to an abrupt halt when a tractor trailer hauling a mustard-yellow shipping container mysteriously overturns and rolls off the highway, unleashing THEM upon an unsuspecting New England countryside. America soon falls, and the world follows.
Years later, one man emerges from the rubble of humanity, seeking other survivors and a shred of hope amidst an eerie and lonely landscape. He travels by night up the rural East Coast, discovering Americana ruins and encountering monsters the likes of which no human has survived before. Scarred and molded by the horrors of the new natural order, the man must face his own dwindling humanity, and pray that any other survivors have not become monsters themselves.
THEM is the spectacular debut novel by W.H. Chizmar, an exciting new voice in dark fiction. This story of survival and responsibility presents sobering questions about what it means to be human and will stick with you long after the final page.
Review
An obliterated world. A single man in search of humanity. Creatures who have claimed the top spot on the food chain. W.H. Chizmar’s debut novel, THEM, walks a very fine line. Under Chizmar’s pen, we see the world has fallen, morphed into the dominion of others, the home of “them.” In this bleak, alien landscape of a destroyed world, one man walks alone in search of some semblance of humanity. But how did we get here? How did “they” arrive here? And is there anyone to blame? Much more than a standard creature feature, THEM is a novel that examines the role of humanity within a world torn to shreds, a study in the vacuum of hope.
The creature-feature subgenre of horror has long existed on pillars of excitement and action with big reveals, unmasking something not of this world. These kinds of stories are normally fun romps showcasing mutation, monstrosities, and lots of carnage as a way to stop waves of destruction is sought. Yet, what is sometimes lacking from a creature-feature is the sense of heart, a place for humanity and grace to exist alongside the violence and carnage. After all, if you can stop the “big bad” then the day is saved, right?
Here is where THEM flips the sub-genre a bit on its head in an almost Spielberg-esque way, making these creatures that have nearly destroyed a whole population more human than expected. Chizmar draws interesting, subliminal parallels between our lone man and the creatures who now walk the earth, their way of life taboo and violent. Yet, “they” exist in packs, mourn their dead, and exhibit behaviors that seemingly mirror our own. It’s poetic destruction forged in these pages, the death of one era and the beginning of a new one while a flicker of humanity persists with the surviving man. And what is the purpose of this man, the point of this intense fight for survival he wages alone? Chizmar provides quite the philosophical answer, a deeper examination of our role as witnesses to humanity, accountability, and blame.
Even if you aren’t picking THEM up for this deeper commentary on the state of human connection, it is more than safe to say that this novel functions superbly as an entertaining, horrific, apocalyptic tale. Chizmar’s choice to craft the first half of this story with interwoven contextual details outlining how things came to be certainly aids in promoting the pacing of things. The “file” we are given that reveals the truth of how “they” arrived reads like the best episodes of The X-Files rife with government conspiracy, “mad” scientists, and shadowy figures who may just know too much.
THEM is a debut novel that stuns for its captivating duality of both philosophy and action, contemplation and confrontation. If this is any indicator of the trajectory of Chizmar’s literary career, I’m confident in saying I am one happy customer who is along for the ride. Compelling and unique, THEM is a creature-feature that stands apart from the rest for some of the best reasons.
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