THE FALL by Alan Baxter – Review

I received this book for free from the Author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

The Fall: Five More Tales from The Gulp by Alan Baxter
Series: Tales From the Gulp #2
Published by 13th Dragon Books on April 12 2022
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 320
Format: eARC
Source: Author
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The nitty-gritty: Cosmic horror, shocking violence, colorful characters and black humor come together in Alan Baxter’s follow-up to The Gulp, a delightfully dark bunch of tales that will put you on edge—and keep you there.

“There’s interesting and there’s fucked, mate. Nothing good ever came out of Gulpepper.”

Is it possible to be fond of a town where mostly bad things happen? Well that’s the case with me and the Australian seaside town of Gulpepper, or the Gulp as the locals call it. The Fall is the second of the Tales from the Gulp, and I loved it even more than the first book, which I reviewed last year. The Fall consists of five stories, which at first seem to be separate from each other, with different characters and situations. But look closer and you’ll see interesting connections. Characters briefly cross over into other stories or are mentioned in passing, or past events from the previous story might be discussed by a couple of new characters in another. These tantalizing connections are sort of like the strange white fungal threads that infect this entire collection—just one of many weird elements you’ll find in these pages.

Here is a brief run-down of the five stories:

GULPEPPER CURIOS

Andrew McDermott is a fifty-year-old who has decided to celebrate his early retirement by taking an extended road trip on his motorcycle. But a fork in the road leads him to an important decision. Keep going towards Monkton? Or take the beat up path towards Gulpepper? Unfortunately—and against the advice of a passing stranger—Andrew chooses Gulpepper. 

At first he’s charmed by the quaint, seaside fishing village. But then things turn weird, and a visit to the local curio shop turns into Andrew’s worst nightmare.

This was a fantastic story to open the collection. Like Andrew, new readers have no idea what they’re in for, but little by little the oddness that is Gulpepper creeps in as Andrew comes to realize that perhaps he made the wrong choice…

CATHEDRAL STACK

Captain Colley and his crew of five fishermen take off early one morning as usual, but when their ship, the Gulping Mermaid, strays too close to Cathedral Stack—a treacherous rock formation said to be haunted—the six sailors find themselves without a ship and forced to swim for the Stacks.

The less said about this story the better! If I had to choose a favorite in the bunch, it would probably be this one. Cathedral Stack was unique and creepy, terrifying and disgusting, and I loved every bit of it. Full of crazy WTF moments and gothic nightmares, I loved the ocean setting and the gruesome twists.

THAT DAMN WOMAN

Clem and his wife Ginnie are having yet another fight. Ginnie wants nothing more than to get out of the Gulp, but Clem refuses to leave his farm. The fight turns ugly and Ginnie winds up dead. Now Clem has to figure out a way to hide the body. And that’s just the first of many mistakes Clem makes…

This story had a lot of tension and was actually pretty scary! I felt so bad for Clem. Let’s just say things do not go well for him (well now that I think about it, things do not go well for anyone in Gulpepper!)

EXCURSION TROOP

Six high schoolers join troop leader Darren Walker on their last Venture Scouts outing before they graduate. But when one of the kids discovers some wild mushrooms, and Darren and Sonya decide to eat them, well you can guess where this is going.

Bloody and violent and full of disturbing imagery, Excursion Troop is a fast-paced “pick ‘em off one by one” story that had me cringing in parts and breathless in others.

THE FALL

The final story was a surprise in that Baxter brings everything together and finally gives his readers some answers about what the hell is going on in Gulpepper. Carter is the unofficial “protector” of Gulpepper, sniffing out supernatural trouble and working with a local woman named Ingrid Blumenthal to combat the evil before it gets out of hand. And things are getting out of hand. But Ingrid is missing, and bodies are clawing their way out of graves and walking around town. It’s up to Carter to save the day—or is the Gulp too far gone for that?

I loved the way Baxter brought back characters from the first four stories as well as some from the first book. It was a great way to tie everything together. I especially loved that local band Blind Eye Moon makes an appearance in the final story—if you’ve read The Gulp, you’ll know exactly who I’m talking about! The ending is suitably weird and creepy, and there’s even a sense of closure, but Baxter mentions in his Afterword that he’s probably not done with Gulpepper yet, which makes me very happy. I’ve no doubt his fans will be clamoring for more by the end of this book. Highly recommended!

Big thanks to the author for providing a review copy.

Read my review of The Gulp