My first creepy read of October was Sour Candy by Kealan Patrick Burke. And yes, yes, it was very creepy. To be honest, I am very surprised that the book was mentioned so little on blogs and booktube since 2015. With 3.86 stars on Goodreads, I thought I might not enjoy the book too much, but it is a fantastic story, absolutely loved it..
The book follows Phil Pendleton, who lives a decent life with insignificant problems here and there, until his world crashes and burns around him after meeting a kid at Walmart. And no, it is not a spoiler because the story opens with the line “Four months to the day he first encountered the boy at Walmart, the last of Phil Pendleton’s teeth fell out”. What a great freaking good start.
Sour Candy is a novella, around 70 pages. It is already a tightly structured book, so I don’t want to reveal things so much. Sour Candy is a messed up. The sense of dread never leaves until the very end. In just a few pages, writer Kealan Patrick Burke makes you invest in the lead character. Him being an everyday guy who is very relatable helps. Especially if you’re not into kids that much. Ending provides a decent payoff, yet not that unpredictable. I also like the Lovecraftian vibes it gives out.
I think novella size stories work remarkably well for horror in the hands of a talented writer. Kealan Patrick Burke created a book that is so captivating; somehow I still can’t stop thinking about it. I’ve finished it 3 days ago! The imagery and feeling is still there. Sour Candy stays with you for a long time. Which makes it an excellent read for October.
This was my first book by Burke, and I definitely will continue reading his stuff. Read great comments about Blanky and Kin, I guess I will pick one of them up as my next Burke book. And I have to mention, although I read Sour Candy as an e-book, I loved its cover. Even if I did not enjoy the book, I would crave it in my library, anyway. It’s stunning. I’ll buy it as soon as I can.
Peek-A-Book 