The Premise
Aaron lives in the small town of Ptolemy, Ohio. He is married, successful in work, father of two adolescents – and frustrated with the monotony of it all. One night, he witnesses his neighbor taking a young man to a place he's never noticed before. He suspects infidelity, and decides to follow, hoping to find sexual excitement he lacks at home. Behind that door, however, lie sinister forces unlike anything he's ever known.
In Review
Small American towns are an ideal setting for nefarious doings and dark magic. There's something about their scale that invites mystery, scandals, and deceit. Maybe it's a projection of contemporary cynicisms about urban life onto a smaller canvas; or maybe urbanites just get creeped out by all of that space, and assume that anyone who likes it must be a little off in the head (today's rampant stereotypes about the Midwest notwithstanding). Regardless, these anonymous little places, tucked away behind a sense of normalcy, can lead the idle mind to wonder. Who lives there? What are they like? Is there someone I should meet - and if so, would they change my life?
Would I discover something out of this world?
Tim Waggoner presents this latter scenario in Darkness Wakes. The title alone should give you an idea of what the book's about: everyday individual stumbles upon mysterious doings in a small town, and his or her life is changed, usually for the worse. In this instance, the character in question is a local, rather than a traveling innocent, and his discovery of dark doings is prompted by a growing sense of frustration about the good ole middle class life. Like Alice, it may seem that Aaron has a choice about going down that rabbit hole, but his desires beat him to the final decision.
I liked the way that Waggoner portrays this compulsion to be selfish, despite the risk of failing the family and the job. He seems to be pointing out that even a responsible person can find the motive to pursue infidelity, and get involved with people who are best avoided. I was also impressed that he didn't use the supernatural angle as an explanation for Aaron’s eventual decline. The dark forces do tempt Aaron, but it is that which is inside of him that carries him across the threshold between right and wrong.
The plot is also praiseworthy. The origin behind the mysterious organization that Aaron joins could have come from a Twilight Zone episode. The actions and composition of the secret society itself aren't new to genre fiction, but their exploits are sufficiently naughty and wicked to interest; if you look for sexual content in fiction, you'll find it here. What really adds to the story, though, is the introduction and subsequent history of a rival secret society. Compared to the first group, this happy little company is disgusting, psycho, and scary. Through them, Waggoner is able to up the gore quotient, and cap the story with a small-scale battle royale between twisted people who are desperate for another hit of the magical mojo that has warped their lives. He then follows this with a resolution that surprises, offering a sinister twist on the happy, family-oriented triumph.
Darkness Wakes was fun to read, and for that reason alone I'd recommend it to anyone who wants their genre fiction violent and lascivious. I don't usually care for sexual content, but Waggoner implies more than he tells, and does establish sex as a legitimate motivating factor behind selfish acts; he is, after all, writing about vice. Fortunately, Waggoner also takes the time to examine what happens to people who decide to pursue vice above all other considerations; and to portray the inevitable changes in their character. The supernatural forces, dark rites, and hygienically-challenged serial killers just make this study more interesting.
1/16/07
