The Creek

by Chris Hedges

It was the summer of 1985, and Charlie and Sam were both 11 years old. Despite being from opposite sides of the tracks, Charlie and Sam are best friends. Peddling along the back roads of the quiet town of Flatrock, the two plan for a summer of fun, mischief and discovery. While visiting Shephard's Creek, a scenic hangout for local children, they meet Lizzy. Energetic and pretty, the precocious girl immediately captures the boys' attention. As the trio ventures further into the natural, but treacherous, playground, life couldn't get any better for them. Then, in a split second, their lives are changed forever... And in the shadow of tragedy, the two boys learn a harsh lesson about death, abuse, and friendship. It was the summer 1985, the summer Charlie and Sam killed a girl. A novelette by Chris Hedges. Includes the bonus story “Sam I Am”.

110 pages, Paperback

First published April 15, 2012

About the author

Chris Hedges works full time in the semiconductor industry and on his days off, runs a custom book bindery (Hedges Book Bindery) from his home studio. When he’s not hand binding other people’s stories, he’s reading them and he likes to write one or two for himself. He lives a few miles South of Austin, TX with his wife, D’Ann and his two daughters, Claudia and Abigail. [Gallows Press]

[Librarian's Note: There is more than one author by this name.]

Reviews

[Tim Potter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t know exactly what to expect from THE CREEK by Chris Hedges, other than it being a horror novella. I’d downloaded it sometime in the past few months and managed to completely forget what it was about. Once I started reading, it was only a few pages before I thought I knew what I was in for. And then it took a turn, an interesting turn, that I didn’t expect. Then the same thing happened again. Turning the story around on a reader is never the easiest thing to do well, let alone doing it twice in a relatively short novella, but Hedges pulls it off. There’s also an interesting issue with the structuring of the story. The main story is a short novella, maybe 70 pages or a bit less. The main character also serves as the narrator during a few asides into his personal journal and the action revolves around him from beginning to end. But there’s a secondary character who is integral to the plot, but at a certain point his story and the main character’s story take different forks in the narrative road. Rather than intercut the secondary character’s story into the novella the author, and probably editor and/or publisher, includes the supporting character’s story in a “Bonus Story”, which amounts to 15 pages or so, after the novella. This allows the author to complete this supporting character’s story without disrupting the smooth flow of the main narrative, and is certainly different but also very successful. I would have enjoyed more detail in the story, especially when it came to the main character and the resolution of his character arc. The end seemed too abrupt, like it needed to be fleshed out a bit more, but was satisfying nonetheless. Without getting into plot points, the book plays out as a morality play and the only horrors are very real horrors. The kind of horrors that don’t feel right, that may make a reader wince, because they’re the kind of horrors that, mainly, happen in the real world. While it’s nowhere near as graphic, think of the kind of horrors of Ketchum’s THE GIRL NEXT DOOR or the morally ambiguous decisions the characters face in Gonzalez’s SURVIVOR. This is horror that puts the reader in place of the characters, even though they probably don’t want to be, and asks “What would you do?” It’s impressive stuff and well worth your time, especially if you like your horror thoughtful and based strongly in reality.

[Brett · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE CREEK reminded me a lot of THE GIRL NEXT DOOR by Jack Ketchum. Don't get me wrong, THE CREEK is a very different type of tale. However, the coming-of-age story mixed with meeting a girl, not to mention the atrocities which come later... Well, I don't want to ruin the trip with spoilers, so I recommend you read it for yourself.

Chris Hedges does a remarkable job with what I believe is his debut effort. I look forward to reading more from this fine writer in the future.

**Also includes a bonus short story!**

[Scott Tyson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great first book from Chris Hedges. And apart from a few typos here and there, a nice production from Gallows Press.

Recommended.