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It Came from Del Rio

4.18 of 5 stars 4.18 · rating details · 112 ratings · 25 reviews

There are borders and then there are borders. Between right and wrong. Between Texas and Mexico. The first is a joke to Dodd Raines, the second a payday. Then there's the borders he's made. Between himself and his estranged daughter, the border patrol agent. Between himself and his one-time employers. And there's another border, one he cares about even less than the Rio Gr...more

Paperback, 212 pages

Published October 22nd 2010 by Trapdoor Books (first published 2010)

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Mar 23, 2011 Andrea rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: sf, mystery-noir

Border town dark and brilliant, as much noir as SF as neither, just as the borderlands are never one thing or the other. I raced through this the way I haven't done in a while. Since Moorcock. Jones is a great writer, both in his language and in his eye for the curious and crazy details that make character unforgettable, both in people and places. Those are the details I've always loved and if you want eccentric details, the southwest's sure got them. Of course I love it more that this is my pla...more

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Jan 03, 2011 Jake Gest rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror, fiction

A very unique novel by local Colorado author Stephen Graham Jones, It Came From Del Rio is a postmortem account of what the main character, Dodd Raines, intends to be his last job. A criminal forced to flee to Mexico with his daughter after a failed bank heist, he now earns his living transporting contraband across the border. When he gets a call and discovers his employers know too much about his daughter, he plans to finish this one last job.

Divided into two parts, the novel is narrated by bot...more

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Dec 06, 2010 Jesse Bullington rated it 5 of 5 stars

I don't know the last time I've been this blindsided by a book--Jones takes a decidedly pulp premise (and title, with accompanying great cover!) and delivers an absolutely heartbreaking, brilliant two act novel. The first half follows accomplished mule Dodd as he attempts to make one last border run with a mysterious cargo, but from the very beginning we know that Dodd is in too deep and we're not in for a storybook ending in the second half, where things take a radical but immensely satisfying...more

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Dec 20, 2011 Paul Eckert rated it 4 of 5 stars

One thing you can say about Stephen Graham Jones – you never know what you’re going to get, but you won’t be let down. Such is the case with It Came From Del Rio. This is one book you really can’t judge by it’s cover. That cool, man-eating bunny on the cover belies the real heart of this story.

Perhaps the cover was a clever ruse, a meta-trick on the reader. Where one would expect a riveting page-turner of man versus zombie rabbits, what you actually get is the story of a connection (or the abse...more One thing you can say about Stephen Graham Jones – you never know what you’re going to get, but you won’t be let down. Such is the case with It Came From Del Rio. This is one book you really can’t judge by it’s cover. That cool, man-eating bunny on the cover belies the real heart of this story.

Perhaps the cover was a clever ruse, a meta-trick on the reader. Where one would expect a riveting page-turner of man versus zombie rabbits, what you actually get is the story of a connection (or the absence thereof) between a smuggler and his daughter. Dodd, a career smuggler has been hiding in Mexico with his young daughter, Laurie, when he gets a call for a job that could get him enough cash to quit the criminal life altogether and secure Laurie’s future. Things don’t go as planned, and by the end of his half of the story, his mission has taken a different turn. The second half of the story belongs to Laurie, now grown up, as she investigates the death of the man who acted as her father for the past fifteen years. A series of bizarre murders becomes a link to her real father, and she has to subvert her fellow border patrol officers in order to find out the truth.

Jones leaves most of the gory details to our imaginations, and it takes awhile to get used to this. I kept waiting for some really cool, B-movie cheese to happen, and for a few pages it did, but not in the way I expected. Instead, the story is about the series of events that led up to a character’s critical transformation, not so much the transformation itself. Dodd and Laurie’s stories are both told in past tense, but the present tense character sneaks in periodically to reveal how they have been changed, as well as to express their regrets about the way things turned out. It was a brilliant way of expressing the aftermath of the main events in the story without having to spell it out in an epilogue.

However, I feel that some of the characters and their motivations were a bit incomplete. For example, I was never sure that Laurie truly understood what happened with her father. She should have had a lot more questions, as each piece of evidence she overturned led her in the right direction plot-wise, but not in a way that would have explained things satisfactorily. There is never a hint that she had more questions, or that anything about her father was unclear to her. A few minor characters seemed to make giant leaps of faith and personal sacrifice for something they probably didn’t understand too well. There seems to be something missing from Dodd as well, as once his half of the story ends, his later actions become a bit cryptic. I was interested in his personal transformation, but there was not much to go on except speculation and context from Laurie’s story.

This story had a strange effect on me. That is, I enjoyed the book more upon reflection than while I was actually reading it. I think this was because I kept expecting one thing, but experiencing another. Once I reached the end I was able to sit back and put all the pieces together and appreciate the masterful orchestration by Jones.

I still think the sum of the story was better than the individual parts. Once it was over, I could appreciate why Jones told the story the way he did. But Dodd’s story seemed to take awhile as he slogged through the desert, and Laurie’s story lagged while she tried to figure out everything that the reader already knew. By the end I could see why the story was told this way, and it made me appreciate the story more. I was able to appreciate the tragic and bittersweet bond between the father and daughter, as well as the various minor characters and how their actions played into the themes of this story.

The other great thing about this story was reading about small Texas towns that I was familiar with. I never expected Sealy to be in a novel, but there it was, a nice surprise. Jones brings these areas to life and infuses them well into the narrative.

I know this story will continue, and from what I’ve heard it’s in a different vein than this one, so I’ll be interested to see where Jones takes the story from here.
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Apr 02, 2011 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars

I wasn't exactly sure about this one for the first 30-some pages. It wasn't bad, but I wasn't really all that into it either. Yet, I pressed on--and glad I did.

Soon enough, Jones had me totally pulled into the world he'd created, the humor, the horror, and the downright bizarre. I'll admit, I don't think that Jones is the most eloquent of wordsmiths, but he sure knows how to tell a story, keep his readers interested, and even give a few nuggets of downright brilliance to his readers.

Like so many...more

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Nov 24, 2010 Richard Thomas rated it 5 of 5 stars

( This review was originally published at at The Nervous Breakdown:
http://www.thenervousbreakdown.com/rt... )

Once Stephen Graham Jones has you, once you’re invested, and want to see what’s going to happen next, that’s when he elevates his game. He’s one of those rare authors (like Brian Evenson, William Gay and Cormac McCarthy) that can write, and publish, and exist in two worlds: the land of genre fiction, with the horrific, the fantastic; and also the high towers of the academic, the language...more

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Jun 21, 2012 Matthew Vaughn rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, horror

Forgetting the fact that everything I’ve read from SGJ was exceptionally great, I would want to read, It Came from Del Rio for the cover alone. It reminds me of a comic book cover, one that would have come from something like DC’s Vertigo line, not from the standard super hero books. And because of this cover I expected a crazy horror, slasher novel, or something close. But I’ve read SGJ before, so why would I even think that.
We begin with the story of Dodd, a fugitive hiding out in Mexico with...more Forgetting the fact that everything I’ve read from SGJ was exceptionally great, I would want to read, It Came from Del Rio for the cover alone. It reminds me of a comic book cover, one that would have come from something like DC’s Vertigo line, not from the standard super hero books. And because of this cover I expected a crazy horror, slasher novel, or something close. But I’ve read SGJ before, so why would I even think that.
We begin with the story of Dodd, a fugitive hiding out in Mexico with his young daughter, Laurie. Dodd transports things across the border for the right amount of money, and he’s really good at it. Only one day a job comes up that is quite out of the ordinary. Dodd gets put into a situation where he doesn’t have a choice whether or not to take this job, that choice has been made for him. With the end of this job comes the end of the first half of the book. The second half picks up fifteen years later, with Laurie as an adult and a member of The Border Patrol. She has a new life, but she has never forgotten the one she had as a child, living in Mexico with her dad. And then the killings start.
This book is written like journal entries, the first half from the perspective of Dodd, the second from Laurie. In less capable hands this could have been a disaster, but thankfully we have Stephen Graham Jones at the helm. And to touch on what I mentioned earlier this book wasn’t anything like I expected. What I enjoyed the most was the early relationship between Dodd and Laurie, and how it made me feel for the little girl when her father left for that last job. That right there is why SGJ is a master at the written word, he creates real characters, ones that you care about, and feel for. Originally I thought this book would just be like a pulpy horror novel, but it is so much more, and I am very happy about that.
So, yeah, everyone should read this, and everything else he has written. You would be doing yourself a favor. Also, did I mention the Hell Bunny? This is called part one of The Bunny head Chronicles, I don’t know what the plans are for any sequels but I’ll be ready if he puts them out. Though I’m sure they couldn’t top this one, could they?
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Oct 08, 2012 Pembroke Sinclair added it

I finally finished It Came from Del Rio by Stephen Graham Jones. Man, that seemed to take slightly longer than I had anticipated. Oh, well. It's done now.

I really enjoyed the book. It is split into two sections: Dodd's and Laurie's. Dodd's section gets a little confusing at times because it's not told in linear fashion. He skips around in time a lot. Laurie's is told chronologically, and it helped make everything clear. Well, almost everything. It is the first in a series of books.

I'm not exactl...more

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Dec 03, 2010 Gordon rated it 4 of 5 stars

The cover literally screams genre fiction, but under the hood we realize that Jones is using genre conventions and plotting (zombies, chupacabras, border cops, etc.) in this tale of what might otherwise be considered lit-fic, given his sharp prose and characterizations. The "voice" he adopts for the daughter's POV in the second half is rendered perfectly and really draws you in as she pieces together her father's fate. My only disappointment (which doesn't linger in hindsight, only during), was...more

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Oct 17, 2011 Boden Steiner rated it 5 of 5 stars

This "little book" is going to sneak up and devour people in giant incisor bites. Easily one of the most cool,fun, perfectly written books I've read in a while. In a lesser writer's hands, this story could have drifted away, but with It Came from Del Rio, Stephen Graham Jones wrangles it all together, delivering a novel that blurs the line between comic book aficionado and "serious" reader. Effortlessly. In truth, this book should have both of these type of readers either high-fiving or fighting...more This "little book" is going to sneak up and devour people in giant incisor bites. Easily one of the most cool,fun, perfectly written books I've read in a while. In a lesser writer's hands, this story could have drifted away, but with It Came from Del Rio, Stephen Graham Jones wrangles it all together, delivering a novel that blurs the line between comic book aficionado and "serious" reader. Effortlessly. In truth, this book should have both of these type of readers either high-fiving or fighting for fan ownership, or both. Everyone wins.

A man with a mission, a daughter with a past, but also bloody boots, clairvoyant cows, space rocks, and the rabbits you might only see through a South Texas heat mirage, It Came from Del Rio goes many places.

Part modern western, part tabloid fairy tale (with teeth), all heart, Jones tells a story that, at it's core, is the journey of a father and daughter, making choices and doing what they must in order to keep their lives moving. Lost and found, the characters kick the dust down unmarked roads and leap over fences, the "goal" always a constant. Jones is in complete control of this ride, fluidly shifting gears around love and survival, fringe myth, and the relationships that keep feet moving across every border.

I might be wrong, but I think it's all true.

Anyone familiar with Jones' work will know that the prose will play a big role in telling the story. They will also know that his work can range from the geek-horror-cool of Demon Theory, to the vivid characters and FBI reality of All The Beautiful Sinners. There is a wide range of thought and storytelling on display in those novels. I believe that It Came From Del Rio was written around the same time, and as different as those two books are, Del Rio somehow puts ingredients from both in the same canteen, shakes it up, and serves up a new cocktail--something mescal with a taste of McCarthy, a dash of Leone, and some Romero boiling on top. Stephen Graham Jones may be the only bartender with the recipe, or the only one that can serve it right.

Down in one. Again, Bartender, again!(less)

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Nov 20, 2010 Todd Newton rated it 5 of 5 stars

I've never read a book quite like this before. The unnaturally earthy characters come across so well, just seep into you. It's poetic. People can call this horror, but it's neither gory nor particularly suspenseful; that's not what it's trying to be. It's a story about taking something and twisting it, making it unrecognizable, then loving it anyway. Five stars well-deserved.

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Jan 03, 2011 Brendan rated it 4 of 5 stars

A really engaging, very creative noir crime fantasy. I liked both narrators and found the book to be a very quick, very enjoyable read. I have to take issue with the packaging though--the cover makes this sound like a wacky romp a la A. Lee Martinez. While there are some wacky elements, it's really quite dark in tone and subject matter and not at all the zany creature feature suggested by the cover.

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Mar 18, 2012 Nicholas Lubofsky rated it 5 of 5 stars

What an absolutely amazing book. It's a touching story about the unbreakable love between a father and a daughter… with the undead, chupacabras, and rabbits.

A riveting story — I literally could not put it down. Seriously, I couldn't not finish it this afternoon, even though I had something else I needed to do today, and now there's no time. This book is that good, yeah.

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Nov 01, 2010 Chris Deal rated it 5 of 5 stars

I wrote a long review of this over at the Velvet, but I'll say this here: IT CAME FROM DEL RIO is one of those rare, fun reads that touches something deep inside you, that moves you even when what's going down crosses the border into the world of the absurd, but still, this book, it's fun in a way that few things can be. So, you should probably read it. I mean, who doesn't want to read a book about a zombie with a bunnyhead?

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Dec 22, 2011 Gareth Lewis rated it 4 of 5 stars

The rumors are true. It Came From Del Rio is beautiful and bonkers. It's sort of what Leonard Gardner's brutal, sparse and elegiac boxing novel Fat City would have been if it had gremlins in it.

And my, that cover.

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May 03, 2012 Georgina Kamsika rated it 4 of 5 stars

Great pulp-esque novel (I love the cover design) broken into a two-act literary horror-fest. Bunny-headed zombies, oh yes.

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Nov 02, 2010 Paul rated it 5 of 5 stars

This story about a bunny-headed zombie shouldn't work, shouldn't be so moving and gritty. But it is.

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Dec 04, 2010 Eric rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book is as awesome as its cover. And its cover is 100% awesomeness. Read this for all your rabbit-headed zombie chupacabra needs!

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May 27, 2011 Victoria rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: horror

Not my typical read...and I probably won't continue the series, but I'm glad I read it. It's bizarre -- a crazed rabbit chupacabra seeking revenge. Yeah. Very cool. But it's primarily about a father/daughter relationship, and the lengths a dad will go to prove his love. The first half is told from the dad's POV, and the second half is from the daughter's. The author's descriptions are creative and refreshing. Give it a try.

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Dec 12, 2010 Mark rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is an amazing, genre-shattering, read. I never thought I'd read a book about a zombie and find it so beautiful, so eloquent about love and loss, and end up being moved to tears.

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Jan 25, 2011 Ellen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A marvelous hard-edged, sometimes bloody, modern western about a widowed drug smuggler forced to abandon his young daughter when he’s tripped up by something really bad that he’s pressured into carrying across the Mexican-US border. Dodd Raine’s voice and plight engaged this reader totally. How can you not pick up a novel in which the legendary chupacabra is crucial to the plot? Highly recommended

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Dec 01, 2010 Gregory Frye rated it 5 of 5 stars

Awesome book. here's my review (some spoilers. maybe.): http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/a-bunn...

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Jun 28, 2012 Will rated it 4 of 5 stars

A pulp gem. Lots of fun. One of the very few qualms I had was that the first-person narrative voice is pretty much exactly the same from each of the two main characters' POV. But it's a book about a fucking chupacabra, so whatever. All in all, great ride.

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Aug 05, 2011 Natalie Bryan rated it 5 of 5 stars

I knew the writing would be good, but I didn't expect the story to grab me the way it did. So, so good.

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Nov 02, 2010 Kris Saknussemm rated it 5 of 5 stars

Looking forward to this one. I dig Jones big time.

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May 20, 2013 Inkwellmonster marked it as to-read

May 13, 2013 Stavros marked it as to-read

May 13, 2013 Alex Simmons rated it 3 of 5 stars

May 12, 2013 Jacki York marked it as to-read

May 11, 2013 Tristan marked it as to-read

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About Stephen Graham Jones

Stephen Graham Jones is the author of eight novels and two collections. Stephen's been a Shirley Jackson Award finalist three times, a Bram Stoker Award finalist, a Black Quill Award finalist, an International Horror Guild finalist, a Colorado Book Award Finalist, a Texas Monthly Book Selection, and has won the Texas Institute of Letters Award for Fiction and the Independent Publishers Award for M...more

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