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.
What Kind of Mother by Clay McLeod Chapman Published by Quirk Books on September 12 2023
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 304
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Vivid imagery, body horror and the terrors of parenthood combine in this bizarre and heartbreaking mystery.
“You looked like a ghost in your sonogram. The second I saw the foggy outline of your lima bean body, I remember wondering to myself, Is this boy gonna end up haunting me?
Your mother thought you looked more like a hurricane. The ultrasound was a radar scanning the Atlantic and there you were, this swirling storm heading our way, seven months out from making landfall. Hurricane Skyler. The fiercest storm this family has ever seen.”
This might be the weirdest book I’ve read so far this year, but as usual, Clay McLeod Chapman is a genius at combining “weird” with emotional depth, resulting in a haunting tale about parenthood, lost children and transformation. The story ended up being a bit uneven for me—there were sections that I absolutely loved and others that didn’t work quite as well—but the end result was both bizarre and satisfying, and I would recommend it to readers who appreciate unusual stories and who don’t mind body horror.
Henry McCabe and his wife Grace lost their eight month old son five years ago. He simply vanished from his crib one day. A body was never found, and Henry believes Skyler is out there somewhere, alive and well. When Henry reconnects with his old high school girlfriend Madi, his hope of finding Skyler is renewed when Madi reads his palm and tells him she senses the presence of his son.
Madi isn’t sure what’s happening to her. She’s having dreams about a boy in a duck blind, and she convinces Henry to search the river to see if the boy might be Skyler. But what Madi and Henry find defies explanation, and sets them on a strange, emotional journey that will leave them changed forever.
Chapman calls What Kind of Mother “Southern gothic folk horror,” and I think that description sums it up perfectly. The story drips with atmosphere. The setting is a river town in Virginia where the main source of income is fishing. The characters are barely getting by, and a feeling of sadness and resignation hangs over them. All of them have some kind of past trauma. Madi’s teenaged daughter Kendra has decided to go live with her birth father and has left Madi, only visiting occasionally. Madi’s job as a palm reader doesn’t bring in much, so she rents a room in a motel, hoping to save enough money to move someday so that Kendra will come home. Henry, as we know, has lost his son, and his wife Grace committed suicide shortly after. When the two get together, their relationship becomes one of the few bright spots in their lives, as they now have the common goal of trying to unravel the mystery of the missing Skyler.
The story is broken into six sections which alternate between Henry’s and Madi’s points of view, and by far my favorite sections were Henry’s. In The Story of Skyler, we learn what really happened to Henry’s son. Later Henry narrates another section called Birthday Boy that continues the story of Skyler and Grace, and we learn the lengths Henry will go to in order to conceal the truth. Madi’s chapters deal with her discovery of the truth—or what she believes it to be—and now she has some decisions to make. Both characters are faced with something both horrific and miraculous and they have to figure out how to handle it. I know I’m being vague, but I definitely don’t want to spoil what happens!
As for the weirdness I mentioned earlier, Chapman outdoes himself by slowly ramping up the horror surrounding Skyler. I can’t go into details, again, because of spoilers, but the author uses the trappings of crab fishing to show a version of what might have happened to Skyler. There’s a part involving a crab trap that I won’t soon forget. And if you don’t know what a “peeler” is, well, I didn’t either. Now I wish I didn’t know, because Chapman’s vivid and disturbing descriptions will stay with me for a long time. There are some gross and upsetting parts in this story, especially in the latter half of the book, and this is where the body horror I mentioned comes in. I thought it was so well done, and told in Chapman’s mesmerizing prose it becomes both weird and beautiful.
If you’re a horror fan, you don’t want to miss Clay McLeod Chapman’s emotional and horrific take on parenthood. What Kind of Mother is sure to linger with me for a long time.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
I am sorry that the book was uneven, but it seems that, all in all, you had a good time with it so… Yay! And the quote is beautiful! Thanks for sharing it!!
His writing is amazing, I love his books for that reason, and also because his story ideas are so unusual.
“””Emotional and horrific”””
If you wanted to convince me to try this book with as few words as possible, you were quite successful… 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
Maddalena@spaceandsorcery recently posted…9 DRAGONS (Harry Bosch #14), by Michael Connelly
That is a good combo for a story:-)
Still sounds like a solid read. I hope my library gets a copy because I’m not sure I’d buy it, but I definitely want to check it out eventually.
Let me know if you do read it!
Well, so many things appeal to me with this story, not sure about the body horror but weird doesn’t usually phase me.
Lynn 😀
If you like weird, it’s the perfect choice:-)
I don’t know what a peeler is and from what you’re saying I really don’t wanna know but I do wanna read this book since it sounds like a good horror story. I really wanna know what happened to Skyler even though I’m sure it’s gonna be horrifying. Great review, Tammy!
Thanks Stephanie! Yes, it was pretty horrifying…
I think I’ll pass, because I’m not a huge horror fan AND I’m pretty sure I already know what a peeler is (though I’m not sure of the context so). But I’m glad you liked it!
I had no idea where the story was going, so it was a nice surprise to, um, be surprised!
Definitely not going to go looking for info about what a peeler is, even though I’m slightly curious now 😀
Pages and Tea recently posted…Book Review: The Bone House (Slayton Thrillers #3) by Caroline Mitchell
Ha ha I guess I could have explained more. It’s a type of crab, but the way he describes it is creepy!
Not sure that one is for me as I don’t do weird usually. But I am so glad you still loved it Tammy!
Thanks Sophie:-)
So I was kind of on the fence about this- I like the premise, but sometimes stuff with kids just is bad for me mentally, so I was waiting for some reviews (especially yours!) to come in. And I think I can do this one, actually! Especially since it deals with the “after” more. I am okay with body horror, and definitely on board with weird, so I think I shall give this one a chance, and just brace for the pacing issues. Great review!
Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight recently posted…Fall 2023 Seasons Of Books Giveaway Hop
Thanks Shannon! It’s very weird for sure, but I do love his writing and he adds so much emotion to his stories.
This probably isn’t for me but it does sound intriguing!
It was super weird and definitely not for everyone:-)
This author is new to me! This review is a great example of why I enjoy following your blog – you always put new-to-me intriguing reads on my radar. ☺
I’m sometimes wary of titles like these because they don’t always satisfy my curiosity as to ‘what actually happened’, but this sounds promising, so onto the TBR it goes.
Jenna @ Falling Letters recently posted…An Invitation to Blue Sky (Twitter Alternative)
This does sound kinda weird! But good too. Thanks for sharing it! I’m guessing it’s one my mom might like.
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