Fear factor

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/02/2023 (1297 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Stephen Graham Jones, one of the most prolific horror writers working today, returns to the setting of Proofrock, Idaho, and final girl expert Jade (now Jennifer) Daniels from his hit 2021 slasher novel My Heart is a Chainsaw. This time around there is a new killer, a new heroine and a lot more blood.

The second novel in a planned Indian Lake Trilogy, Don’t Fear the Reaper takes place four years after the events of My Heart is a Chainsaw, which culminated in the Independence Day massacre. Held in custody under suspicion for the murder of her father, Jennifer Daniels is released from jail and returns home to Proofrock. The luxuriously upscale but never-completed town expansion of Terra Nova lies a ruin and the community struggles to return to normal after the traumatizing and spectacular deaths of so many. She reconnects with Letha Mondragon, who is now married to high school bully turned sheriff’s officer Banner Tompkins, and mother to Adrienne. Sheriff Hardy, now retired, continues to keep his eye on the community, watching over the dam which hovers over Proofrock.

The same night Jennifer returns home, a heavily-guarded prison transport carrying serial killer Dark Mill South is hit by an avalanche which kills all the guards but manages to set him free, within walking distance of Proofrock. Soon, teenagers all over town turn up gruesomely killed, the trail of blood seeming to lead right back to Jennifer, whose expertise in movie slashers might be the only hope of stopping this unstoppable killer.

Because it’s a direct sequel and there is another on the way, the novel isn’t meant to be read on its own. While it might be possible to get through it without having read My Heart is a Chainsaw, a lot of callbacks and much of the context for character decisions would be lacking.

Don’t Fear the Reaper adheres to the expected rules of a slasher sequel: the final girl from the previous entry returns, but she may not be the foil to the killer this time; there is a much higher body count, which is saying something after the end of the previous novel; and there is a much tighter timeline, as this sequel takes place over the course of one night.

Dark Mill South is a great addition to Jones’ slasher universe: an Indigenous man, he seems to be avenging the deaths of 38 Dakota men executed in 1862, working his way to amassing that same body count. Definitely a Michael Myers or Jason-esque behemoth, his presence is threatening and exhilarating for fans of the genre.

Jennifer Daniels has left her own legacy in Proofrock in the wake of the previous massacre. With the gift of hindsight, many of the town’s teens regard her as the true hero of the Independence Day massacre, believing the whole thing might have been avoided if the authorities had only listened to her. Jennifer’s long incarceration allows Jones some interesting wiggle room to play with more movie conventions and expectations. The teens of Proofrock work with Jennifer’s example of using the rules of slasher movies to predict the killer’s next move, but Jennifer has not seen a slasher in four years so she is no longer the expert in the genre she once was.

Each chapter is named after an easily recognizable slasher film — some old-school favourites, others modern classics. Jones also peppers the whole narrative with nods to different slashers, perhaps key among them the Scream franchise. The supernatural element of Stacey Graves, the Indian Lake Witch, gets a little more play this time around, keeping readers on their toes about just what to expect from not only this novel but the third and final entry in the trilogy which will follow, likely in 2024.

Another loving nod to slasher films and horror fans, Don’t Fear the Reaper continues Stephen Graham Jones’ legacy as one of the best horror writers around.

Keith Cadieux is a Winnipeg writer and editor. His most recent book is Signal Decay from At Bay Press.