I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Remaking by Clay McLeod Chapman Published by Quirk Books on September 15 2020
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 320
Format: Finished paperback
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Stylish and creepy, The Remaking takes inspiration from a real life ghost story and twists it into a macabre homage to horror movies.
I’m so glad I received a surprise copy of the new paperback release of The Remaking from the publisher, because otherwise I might have missed it altogether. And Halloween was the perfect time to read this spooky ghost story! I recently featured Clay’s next book in a Future Fiction post—Whisper Down the Lane—and I’m even more eager than ever to check it out, after loving this book. If you love horror stories that are more spooky than slasher in nature, then I suggest you give this a try. And let’s appreciate this awesome cover, which looks like a movie poster!
Chapman divides his tale into four different sections and time periods. First, in 1931, we learn about the tragic death of a woman named Ella Louise Ford and her daughter Jessica, who were accused of witchcraft and burned to death by an angry mob. As the story goes, Ella Louise’s body was buried in the nearby woods, but the townspeople were afraid that Jessica would try to come back and haunt them, so they buried her in a steel reinforced coffin and surrounded her grave with a fence made of crosses. Legend says that Jessica’s ghost appears over her grave every year on the anniversary of her death, yearning to be reunited with her mother.
The second section takes place in 1971. As a young boy, Lee Ketchum swears he saw Jessica’s ghost one time, and every since then he’s been haunted by The Little Witch Girl of Pilot’s Creek, as she’s come to be known. Now an adult, Lee is a filmmaker and his dream is to tell the story of Jessica and Ella Louise. He’s able to pull together financing for his movie, called Don’t Tread on Jessica’s Grave, and decides to film it in Pilot’s Creek for authenticity. Amber Pendleton is the nine-year-old actress hired to play Jessica in the film, and her mother knows this will be her daughter’s big break.
The third section jumps forward to 1995 when Amber, now considered a “has been,” is in her thirties. Her only income is doing the horror convention circuit, where she has a small but dedicated fan base who are obsessed with Don’t Tread on Jessica’s Grave and have turned it into a cult movie of sorts. One day her agent calls her out of the blue to give her the news that someone wants to update and remake the movie, and guess what? The director, Sergio Gillespie, wants Amber for the role of Ella Louise. Gillespie’s movie is called I Know What You Did on Jessica’s Grave, and Amber reluctantly agrees to take the part.
Finally, in 2016, we meet a journalist named Nate Denison who has a popular podcast called Who Goes There?, where he examines and debunks popular myths and ghost stories. He’s decided to solve the mystery of the Little Witch Girl of Pilot’s Creek once and for all, and is determined to interview Amber—who is still living in Pilot’s Creek—to find out what really happened that night in the woods during the filming of I Know What You Did on Jessica’s Grave, an event that is still steeped in mystery.
Chapman deftly connects all these sections together into a compelling and creepy mystery. Amber is the constant throughout the story, as we follow her from an innocent girl who gets more than she bargained for during the filming of the movie; to her sad life as an adult, where she is unable to escape the nightmares that have followed her since Don’t Tread on Jessica’s Grave was filmed; to the present day, where she lives in near squalor in a trailer park, trying to forget the horrors of the remake by hiding behind alcohol and drugs. The author did a great job of showing the highs and lows—mostly lows—of being a child actor: being typecast and falling into obscurity, unable to get any serious acting roles. He uses examples of real life actors like Linda Blair (who starred in 1973’s The Exorcist and was never able to break free of that role) to parallel Amber’s life, and I thought this and other bits of movie trivia really added a nice layer to the story.
The Remaking is clearly Chapman’s homage to horror films, and I loved the way he integrated iconic movies into his story. I read an article that said he used several movies as inspiration, and I could definitely see the influences of films like Scream and The Ring, and he obviously took inspiration from the cult hit I Know What You Did Last Summer’s title. Chapman also gives us a bit of a film history lesson by reminiscing about the “good old days” of film—days that I remember, so I guess that makes me old!—like before the use of digital film when movies were created on celluloid and shipped from theater to theater in a metal film canister. Chapman himself has written screenplays, so he’s well versed in the movie biz and it shows.
I also loved that Don’t Tread on Jessica’s Grave eventually gained urban legend status, sort of like the legend of the classic film The Wizard of Oz which was rumored to be cursed (in one scene it looks like there is a figure swinging from a tree in the background, rumored to be a cast member’s suicide caught on film) Stories have a life of their own, which is the point Chapman is making with his book, in some ways. Film buffs, particularly horror film buffs, are going to have a blast reading this book.
But let’s talk about the ghostly parts of the story. The Remaking has some seriously creepy scenes, but I wouldn’t say it was “jump out of your skin” scary. The scenes in the cemetery should have been the creepiest parts, but for some reason I found a couple of other scenes to be even more eerie. There’s one that takes place in a run down motel that made me break out in goosebumps, and there’s another one near the end when Nate, the journalist, is walking through the woods at night, wearing headphones and recording the ambient sounds of the “whispering pines.” I actually prefer letting my imagination run wild with the suggestion of ghosts, rather than seeing the “real” ghosts of Jessica and Ella Louise in the flesh.
Chapman throws in lots of meta moments as well, which had me chuckling, because who doesn’t love meta in their fiction? Obviously I had a blast reading The Remaking, and even though October is over, it’s never too late for a good, spooky read. I suggest you pick up this one, you won’t regret it.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
Hmmm I’ll consider picking it up, but I’m not a fan of horror movies. Books are better, but… I guess we’ll see. Thanks for the great review! I’m glad you had something nice and spooky to read for Halloween!
Thanks Will! Yes, it was good timing on my part:-)
I’ve read this one. I loved the plot, but the melodramatic prose turned me off after awhile. There was too much of it. Still, overall, a fun read. Good review!
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Oh I know what you mean. His writing style in this was dramatic!
The cover is amazing! 😀
I don’t watch horror movies so the multiple references would probably go over my head but I’m intrigued by the four timelines.
Great review! 🙂
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I love the way he handled the timelines, it worked so well:-)
The cover really seems a movie poster! And the idea of the book, and the metà parts, sound really interesting!!
It was really fun, also very creepy:-)
It sounds like this story has so many layers and I just love that the cover is just like a movie poster. So clever!
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I agree, very clever cover, and much better than the original one, which was a snake (it sort of makes sense as a metaphor but I like this one much better)
This sounds great! I’ve been trying to figure out how I should start reading horror, maybe I’ll start with this one
This is definitely on the tame side of the horror I’ve read, so it might be a good place to start:-)
Fabulous review! I loved this one too. Now I wish I had a physical copy instead of (or in addition to?) the ebook, because I love the paperback cover. 🙂 Can’t wait for his new book!
I’m so excited for his new book! There’s a short excerpt in the back of the paperback, if you decide to buy one:-)
Oh this sounds cool – I like the sound of the referencing of horror movies, and the multiple timelines. Also gotta love that movie poster style cover.
Right? That cover is so good:-)
This is a very interesting mix: a classical ghost story and film-making, with the added bonus of following a child star through the rise and inevitable fall of her career. And a story that gives you goosebumps is indeed one worth reading! 🙂
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The movie angle was a lot of fun:-)
I love the sound of the structure of this one, which is absolutely fascinating – but as I’m not a fan of horror books, or movies, I’m guessing that a great of the content would simply go over my head. But that structure. Hm… As ever, a great review, Tammy! And thank you for sharing:)).
Thanks Sarah, I loved the structure:-)
Wow, you really liked this one…lol. I hated it! 2 stars. I am so glad you enjoyed it as I really wanted too! 🙂
I kind of see why you wouldn’t like it:-)
“I Know What You Did on Jessica’s Grave,” too funny! Couldn’t stop smiling about that title. I did enjoy some of the horror movies of that time. This might be a fun way of reliving them.
I thought that title was so funny too:-)
This sounds really good. I’m not usually a fan of horror but if I do read it, I definitely prefer the non-slasher variety so will keep this on my radar in case the mood for a scary story hits. Excellent review!
Thanks Suzanne, this works well if you just like creepy:-)
I think I have an eARC from last year, this is a great reminder I definitely have to make time for this!
Definitely worth reading:-)
I’m really glad you loved this. It’s definitely one of my faves and I can’t wait to read his new one!
Me too, it sounds really good too.
Ooh, sounds creepy! 😀
Yes, it did creep me out!
I like the sound of this and would enjoy the horror movie references. I never knew all that about the Wizard of Oz – how curious.
Lynn 😀
There are all sorts of movie urban myths if you google it, sort of creepy but fun!
I’m intrigued by the structure of this one! Glad that you enjoyed it!
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