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.
Krackle's Last Movie by Chelsea Sutton Published by Split Lip Press on February 10 2025
Genres: Adult, Horror
Pages: 84
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Weird, grotesque, absurd and emotional, Krackle’s Last Movie is a quirky mystery with plenty of heart.
“When I’m conducting these interviews, I am never in one place. I shift from their childhood until their death, dropping into the days before their change, then into the moment they knew, for sure, that their body, their mind, and their life would never be the same.”
-Minerva Krackle’s diary, 1990
Split Lip Press is a “new to me” small publisher, and I’m very happy I had the chance to check them out. Krackle’s Last Movie is a fairly short novella, but it’s packed to the brim with evocative writing, strange characters and a completely bonkers idea that somehow works. Chelsea Sutton is a very talented writer, and her brand of weird really worked for me!
The story revolves around a filmmaker named Minerva Krackle, who mysteriously disappeared one day while investigating a real life mummy as part of her upcoming documentary. Her assistant Harper and her long time body guard Dr. Danger have decided to complete the film themselves, and Harper finds herself mired in decades worth of video and audio tape, trying to figure out the best way to end Krackle’s movie. But this isn’t any old documentary. After an event dubbed Curious Monster Syndrome (CMS) hit the population, people all over the world began developing odd afflictions, and Krackle dedicated her professional life to interviewing them: werewolves, sea monsters, mermaids, and even invisible people, trying to show the humans behind the monster parts.
As Harper sifts through the footage, she’s also looking for answers. What happened to Krackle? And how does Harper—a monster herself—fit into all this?
Krackle’s Last Movie is a rather fractured story that jumps around out of order, giving it a sort of jerky “found footage” feel that worked surprisingly well. The reader is asked to piece together the story as Harper dips into the past, making her way through Krackle’s interviews, and while it does require a bit of work, it pays off in the end. Little by little, we start to realize just how far reaching CMS is and the strange variety of creatures it produced. These are normal people who woke up one day with bizarre body changes: a horn growing out of a forehead, tentacles where arms used to be, fish tales instead of legs, you get the idea.
And while we get to know Minerva through the camera lens and video tapes, it’s Harper who is the emotional heart of the story. Harper’s childhood was a traumatic one, full of pain and blood and uncertainty (all related to her “monstrous” affliction , which I won’t spoil here), and as an adult she’s still trying to come to terms with it. The side characters all add a touch of the surreal to the story, like Dr. Danger, who fancies himself a supervillain and carries a freeze ray gun; a dead girl named Meggie who has come back to life and is now a mummy; and my favorites, two mermaid sisters named Lenore and Leelee who live in Minerva’s apartment building and spend their time splashing in the bathtub.
In the end, the mystery of Krackle’s disappearance is solved—sort of—but it also raises even more questions. Harper comes to terms with her body and finds a way to move on, and the emotional, poignant ending left me smiling. Readers who are looking for something off the beaten path will find a lot to love in this book.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.
This sounds like an original book, and also… Soooo intriguing!! It may not be my usual pick, but I will keep an eye out for it!!
It was original for sure!
This definitely sounds like a unique concept. Weird and grotesque arent really my thing but I do like the sound of the emotional depth involved. And the quote you’ve shared has caught my eye. There are bits of it thay definitely appeal to me but others – like the supervillain – that leave me more sceptical. I may try it one day but I’m not in a rush to with all of that in mind. I’ll definitely be curious to see if you read more by the author though.
It was an odd combination of elements, but somehow it worked:-)
Huh, the structure of this sounds fascinating. And it’s always fun to check out new authors etc through novellas, with low time investment… I might have to give it a go!
Novellas are definitely the way to go for new authors, I agree:-)
This sounds really odd and also really interesting! Thanks for sharing!
It’s definitely one of the more unusual stories I’ve read recently:-)
Man I need to get my hands on this one. It sounds fun!
It was a lot of fun!
Interesting. It’s very unlikely I’d have stumbled across this without you, so thanks for the intro.
I wouldn’t have known about it at all if the publisher hadn’t contacted me:-)
Great review, Tammy! I like the idea of this story jumping around out of order, especially since you say it worked surprisingly well. I’m definitely intrigued!
Thanks Stephanie!
That seems a unique read Tammy! I am surprised that the “jumping aroud outr of order” worked to be honest. When a story is fractured as you said it rarely works for me. So I am glad that you loved it! It must be talent 😉
It was so well done, the jumping around didn’t bother me!
How very unique. I love the sound of it and that cover is so perfect for the story you describe.
Lynn 😀
The cover is perfect!
Ooh, this one sounds so interesting! I might have to check it out. Thanks for sharing it!
https://lisalovesliterature.bookblog.io/2026/02/03/release-blast-review-intercepted-the-coopers-1-by-aleatha-romig/