Ketchup on Everything

by Nathan Robinson

For the past twenty years, Elliott Tather has been living a life of mourning that almost destroyed him. After losing everything he held dear and bound by a consuming sorrow, Tather travels the country attempting to fix a wrong that haunts his every waking and dreaming moment. But one evening after pulling into a roadside diner to settle down with a simple cup of coffee, the door opens and everything changes. The nothing he had, and the regret that filled it will never be the same again.
Whatever you do, make sure you order Ketchup on Everything.
From the author of ‘Starers’ and the short story collection ‘Devil Let Me Go’ comes a troubling, heart wrenching tale of despair, loss and what might come afterwards.

Genres: Horror, Vampires, Novella, Fiction

119 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 16, 2014

About the author

Nathan Robinson started writing fiction at an early age, however it took untill he was 26 to finally submit something.
His first acceptence was for THE CHICKEN IN BLACK which won first prize on www.spinetinglers.co.uk, If you ever meet a girl named Maisie Mae came next, quickly followed by Hatch, Banana Boxes, Brian of the Night and The Spare. Maisie Mae was included in Panic Press's Soup of Souls anthology. His Mexican Gangster thriller Top of the Heap was released as a podcast in April 2011 from www.pseudopod.org and is due for release by The Dark Fiction Spotlight in their best of Anthology


So far he’s had numerous short stories published bywww.spinetinglers.co.uk, Rainstorm Press, Knight Watch Press, Pseudopod, The Horror Zine, The Sinister Horror Company, Static Movement, Splatterpunk Zine and many more.
He writes best in the dead of night or travelling at 77mph.
He is a regular reviewer for www.snakebitehorror.co.uk and Splatterpunk Zine, which he loves because he gets free books. He likes free books.
His first novel “Starers” was released by Severed Press to rave reviews. This was followed by his short story collection “Devil Let Me Go”, and the novellas “Ketchup with Everything” and “Midway” and the novel, “Caldera.”
He is currently working on his next novels, “Death-Con 4” and a sequel to “Starers.”
Follow news, reviews and the author blues at www.facebook.com/NathanRobinsonWrites or twitter @natthewriter

Reviews

[Paul (Life In The Slow Lane) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only just barely Horror, but not "horrorble"

So this bloke, Elliot, has his son kidnapped. He spends the next part of his life lookin' everywhere for the poor little bugger (Evan), while his wife gets busy drinking herself to death.

The first 50-60% of the book moves about as fast as a tortoise, then switches into race-car mode for the last 40%. That's not a problem 'cos it's only a 100 page book. You could knock this off in one day if you're a faster reader than me (that's nearly everybody). The writing style is pretty good, and there's a nice little twist at the end. I didn't see it coming. I think I appreciated Elliot's plight a bit more because my daughter was staying with me while I read the book. I was imagining how I'd feel if someone kidnapped her.

I think I liked this one a bit better than Midway so 4 Ketchupy Stars.

I still want to read Caldera by this author, but it's not showing up anywhere as yet.

[Bandit · Rating 5 out of 5]

My third read by the author, who's definitely becoming one of my favorite indie horror discoveries. This is a novella about a parent's worst nightmare inspired in fact by a parent's nightmare. There is a heart wrenching realism to the characters here that surpasses stereotypical genre selections and, supernatural aspect aside, this is just good, really good writing. A sort of story you can't put down and, due to its reasonable length, don't have to. Put me in mind of Let The Right One In, which is a high compliment. The tagline for this one if made cinematic...Ketchup, the most dangerous condiment. Excellent read. Highly recommended.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just what I needed. A short and absorbing read.

The characters were very well done, and the pacing of the story was excellent. Once the mystery was over, the fun kind of tapered off (that's just me. I love the unknown in a story; when it's found out, anything after that is usually anti-climatic). But, it wasn't for long, as this is a novella.

I'll probably read more of him someday. His writing reminded me a lot of Greg F Gifune, which is a very good thing.

[Matt (TeamRedmon) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elliot's life is in shambles. He's a shadow of his former self, traveling with his wife in an RV. He is desperately searching for what was lost, but he feels that he's the only one who cares anymore. One late night, he pulls into an old diner for coffee and a slice of pie. He's eating his pie while the only waitress prepares for closing time when something happens that will change his life forever. We then find out what broke Elliot. And let me tell you this, it just about broke me reading it. I read the whole thing in one session at 4 in the morning when I couldn't sleep. It was hard to read, but I couldn't stop. This one made me cry in the first 50 pages; I was deeply invested in this story and the characters. Ketchup on Everything is my first read from Nathan Robinson, and I have to say that I'm impressed. I'll be reading more from him very soon.

[M.L. Roos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nathan Robinson is quickly becoming one of my top five favourite authors, and here is why. The man knows how to spin a tale so well, so tightly woven, so clean and so full of depth it leaves the reader breathless. From the opening paragraph to the gripping end, Robinson grips the reader in his hand and holds them, squeezes them, sometimes allowing them to breath, but often times leaves them completely gasping for air.

Ketchup on Everything is a tough story to read for anyone who has children. Be warned. Horror and children are a great combination when done right. And Robinson did this tale justice. Gripping pace, a master in the descriptive sense and a lover of prose, this is a must read for anyone who loves horror with a dash of reality.

Read this. You will not be disappointed.

[Bill · Rating 2 out of 5]

This one was just ok for me. I really don’t know what I was expecting. The story was fine, tragic and a bit heartbreaking, but nothing too crazy or out of bounds. The characters were a wee flat and could have used some depth to them. The ending I think was supposed to be more of a shock, but it really wasn’t. No, I didn’t see it coming, but it wasn’t a total “holy sh*t”, it was more like “ok, that’s kinda interesting” kind of thing.

Geez. Sounds like I didn’t like this one, but I did. Sort of. With a little more fleshing out I think it could have been a lot better. 2.5 Stars

[Sassy Sarah Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ketchup on Everything by Nathan Robinson

4 stars

Elliot Tather is a broken man. His life is in shambles. His marriage is broken and his wife doesn’t even speak anymore. Tather travels the country in search of the thing that broke his family. He stops at a diner and doesn’t even think it will change his life. But something walks through the doors of the diner and it’s not human and it’s from Tather’s past. AHHH! I don’t read a lot of horror. It’s good to read a book meant to be horrifying every now and then. I really enjoy Robinson’s writing. His debut novel, Starers, really impressed and he’s proven himself to be imaginative as well as a strong writer. I was very happy that he contacted me about reading his novella because I enjoy his work. I breezed through Ketchup on Everything. One second at I was at the 15% mark and then I looked down and I was at 75% and I thought I might as well finish it. I love books like this. Ketchup on Everything provides real life horrors as well as horrifying creepy horrors. I honestly didn’t know what to expect going into this novel. I knew it would be scary, but I didn’t think about the plot overall. I was quite shocked by some elements in the story. This novel is broken into three parts. The first part is when Tather gets to the diner and then the door opens changing his life. The second part is a look on the thing that broke Tather and his family. The last part… well I just won’t talk about that.

Whimsical Writing Scale: 4

The main male character is Tather. Tather is a man in his forties and he’s become a vagabond of sorts. I liked Tather especially learning his past and story. I didn’t like him towards the end as much, but he was still likable for me.

Swoon Worthy ScaleCool Old Guy Scale- 3.75

The Villain- It was a shocking turn of events that I really enjoyed. Thumbs up for this odd turn of events!

Villain Scale: 4

I can’t talk about the rest of the characters because it will give the story away. Guess you’ll just have to read this one for yourself.

Character Scale: 3.75

I’m really impressed with Ketchup on Everything. It wasn’t what I expected it to be. In this case, that’s a good thing! I highly recommend this for fans of horror, paranormal, or readers looking for a quick, but satisfying read.

Plotastic Scale: 3.75

Cover Thoughts: The cover is simple… I’m not really sure about it, but it does look like ketchup.;)

Thank you, Mr. Robinson for contacting me to review your book in exchange for an honest review.

[Nathan Robinson]

Two of my books are free today! Get some free horror!

Devil Let Me Go by Nathan Robinson​

UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00E5G85GG
US http://amzn.com/B00E5G85GG

Ketchup on Everything​

UK http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00JANUJXQ
US http://amzn.com/B00JANUJXQ

[Maddelton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book from Nathan at a convention recently and I really enjoyed it. It's a quirky little story with a cool twist and is easily doable in a couple of hours or so. Would recommend to anyone who likes horror or indie books and I will definitely be checking out Nathan's other works!

[Vi Reaper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Horror stories evoke fear; it is the nature of the beast. So rarely do you find a horror story that causes other emotions to stir. But a good horror writer knows that in order for the fear to really pay off you have to engage the readers with not just the concept of the story but with the characters that populate the world of the story. So what if a character you don't care about dies? No matter how visceral or detailed that characters demise, without invested emotions it just doesn't resonate.
Luckily for the reader, with this story, you will care.
Elliot Tather has a good life. A happy wife, a nice house and a young son. All that is thrown into disarray when one day his son, Evan, disappears from the backyard. With no sign of the boy, Elliot's life becomes a hell of misery and tragedy. As the days become years and with his entire existence disintegrates around him, he never gives up hope that one day he will find his lost boy. Then one night, Elliot stops at a diner and what happens there will alter his future forever.
The main horror aspect in this story does not come from copious amounts of gore ( although there is enough of that to keep the gore hounds happy) it comes instead from the very real idea of how one thing can change a life for the worse almost instantaneously.
This is an excellent novella. While it won't take you long to get through, the emotional hit this story inflicts is non less devastating

[Jeannie Holbrook · Rating 4 out of 5]

I kept thinking about Ketchup on Everything long after I had read it. It is not a long book, but it certainly makes up for it in quality. I have been debating how I was going to write this review for a little over a week now. I do not like to give too much away in my reviews. I am not sure there is much I can say without giving away part of the book.
I could not put this book down till I finished. Mr. Robinson had me interrupted from the first chapter. The writing is crisp and smooth. I felt like I was there with Elliot. I felt his loss, grief and the need to keep going in search of answers until I physically could not move. I think the ending was perfect.

[Fabrizia · Rating 1 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️
I really liked the writing buy the story is a bit too weird for my personal taste.

[Aiden Merchant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review coming soon to DeadHeadReviews.com!

[BigLittleBookz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to come.

[Aiden Merchant · Rating 4 out of 5]

(This review appears on DeadHeadReviews.com) ---> This novella came to me as a random recommendation spotted on Goodreads (and by “random recommendation,” I mean I read a positive review in my timeline and decided to look up the title). You see, I’m a lot more likely to tackle something new and out of the blue if it’s easily digestible, which this novella is…and isn’t. Yes, it is easily digestible in the sense that it’s short enough to read in a single sitting without much pause. No, it is not easily digestible, in the sense that the subject matter is pretty damn rough throughout.

Let’s look at it in brief (vaguely, without spoilers). Our main character is a father who has spent the last twenty years of his life chasing grief for a mistake he made (one that is very common amongst parents and difficult to lay undeniable blame as a result). We follow Elliot Tather to a diner where he sits down for some coffee and a slice of pie. The story then goes into the past, explaining how Elliot got there on the road without any real destination in mind. The reason behind his trip and his grief is heart-breaking, especially if you have kids yourself. Luckily, there are no gruesome or sexual details, but it’s nevertheless a hard story to read (especially since Robinson tells it so well, so emotionally). You eventually make your way back around to the diner where the reveal comes, and it’s not one I was expecting.

I did like the final twist, even though I felt the ending pages weren’t quite as well written as what preceded. The final moments were too abrupt, I think. There was also a moment (I suspect an error) that left me confused; the first few pages of the book mention Elliot’s wife in the seat beside him, but she’s not there at all when we circle back to the diner at the end of the book. Did I miss something spiritual maybe, or was that just a faux pas?

All in all, this was a great, heart-tugging ride that succeeded in a genuine interest in the characters and their ravaged lives. I had never heard of Robinson before, but this novella has left me open to reading more of his work down the road.

[Happy Goat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a horrifying and emotional story about loss and regret. It strikes a fine balance between horror and heartbreak, and I can’t tell you anything else because if I reveal the subgenre, it’ll spoil it. Just trust me – it’s great.

[David Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elliot Tather is a man who has lost everything. He had a good life but one event caused it all to fall apart and now he is a lonely person traveling the countryside in an RV searching for meaning. He finds what he is looking for one night when he arrives at an all night diner and witnesses something unbelievable that changes everything.

I’m not even sure where to begin on talking about Ketchup On Everything by Nathan Robinson. This is one great novella, but if I talk about it too much it will spoil it. When I started reading it I immediately fell in love with the main character, Elliot. Everything is described from his view-point and he goes into great depth describing the diner that he goes into and the waitress that is taking his order. You begin to care for the waitress as well as Elliot’s inner thoughts describe the kind of person he thinks she is. In the beginning you also get a quick glimpse of the RV that he is traveling in and I found myself wondering what brought Elliot to the diner and why does he talk like his wife is with him.

The story may unfold slowly with very little action but you are so into the characters that you don’t really notice. We eventually hear about Elliot’s past and I found myself wondering would I be like Elliot if this happened to me? When I was half way through the book I was thinking where is this story going? Then a whole new story begins that makes you question what happened earlier in the book. This is a masterfully told tale that has a slow build and ends with a lot of action and an exciting climax.

Ketchup On Everything combines real life horrors with fictional horrors. This is the perfect horror novella because it preys on your emotions. You care about Elliot and you watch him go through every parent’s worst nightmare and then you get hit with a surprise twist. This book may have an odd title but it does make sense when you read it. The title and description of this book gives no clue as to what comes in the second half of the book, which is where everything changes. Do yourself a favor and get a copy of Ketchup On Everything. You won’t regret it.

[Patrick D'Orazio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ketchup on Everything is a bit of a surprise of a novella. I went into it not knowing anything about the story except for the brief blurb of a description, and came out of it with some mixed emotions. It begins innocently enough, with a man traveling the countryside in his RV stopping at a roadside diner to grab a cup of coffee. He seems to be talking to his wife in the vehicle before he steps inside, but it is a one-sided conversation that leaves the reader puzzled as to whether she is there or not. Elliott seems like an affable, pleasant man, though there is a sadness about him that is only hinted at during the introduction to this tale.
Through flashback, we discover that Elliott’s young son disappeared years before. He was playing in the family’s garden and all the sudden was gone. The author makes the process of facing first the horror and dread of this experience quite vivid and real-especially for someone who has children and cannot escape the fear that your child could go missing. From there it becomes a helpless, mind-numbing agony of frustration the more time passes without knowing what has happened. The idea of an innocent child that you love more than life itself vanishing without a trace is something hard, if not impossible, for most of us to fathom. Nathan Robinson allows the reader to ride along with both Elliott and his wife, who take too different roads in coping with the loss of their son, for the years of torture they suffer through.
By the time we return to the present, past the flashbacks, the sense of having lived in Elliott’s shoes makes what happens next all the more intriguing, though perhaps not as intense as the first part of the story where there is both pain and an undeniable hope that somehow, their lost boy will be found. This is not a criticism of how the story comes to completion, just a tribute to the writing that leads up to that part of the story, which adds an interesting twist on Elliott’s sad and tragic tale.

[N. Gosney · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started this book without any expectations really, and at first I did wonder where the story was going. A tale about a man in a diner; it seemed fairly innocuous enough. It was not too long after this that the emotional roller coaster really took off. I'm not ashamed to say I felt myself welling up at the disappearance of Evan. I was surprised by just how strongly my heart-strings were pulled. I wouldn't have expected that basing it purely on the very beginning.
Despite the author's confession at the end of the book that he doesn't know anyone who has had a child disappear in mysterious circumstances, he really managed to capture the gut wrenching torment of the parents at this situation. I really felt I was there with them in their kitchen as they wept. I was there with Elliott as he pinned the "missing" posters on posts all around the neighbourhood, and searched tirelessly in bushes and hedges for his absent son. It hit me right in the stomach, and I could almost imagine it wasn't actually fiction at all, but some terrible true-life story entitled "My life was shattered when my son vanished" in a type of That's Life magazine. I can fully appreciate why the mother turned to the bottle. I think in that sort of situation you can't possibly predict how you would crumble under the turmoil.
It's a book that will make you cling to your children (if you have any) and thank God you know where your little ones are. The ending of the book is bittersweet, horrific, touching, and fitting all at once. I don't want to ruin it for anyone who hasn't read it yet, so I shall say no more. It's not a long book (obviously, being a novella), but it's a great read and I recommend it without hesitation.

[Tessa · Rating 2 out of 5]

No, no, no, no, NO! What happened Nathan? Where is that amazing creepy factor you used to put in your stories? In my opinion, from everything I have read from you this is by far your worst work. Unnecessarily long and the ending was kinda predictable :( .

I usually hate it when an author just puts in tons of nonsensical action and doesn't use description properly. In this book's case, it needs more action. There's nothing to keep you interested in it. Yup, this is boring. When I read a horror I expect a horror. 90% of this book is the story of a family not cooping very well with the disappearance of their boy.

Also, when it finally got to the interesting part (60% in) the explanation of this mystery did not satisfy me at all. After reading 60 pages of him moping over this kid his reaction when he found out what happened to him was very disappointing. I also think that the bad guys were intentionally dehumanized and we never get to form a proper opinion about them. after all, they did take care of this kid for 20 years.

Another thing I didn't like was the ending it had none. It was the sort of book where the main character drives happily into the sunset. That's a pun because they're vampires.... but then again, they are not affected by sunlight.

All in all, I've read better from this author. :/

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Isn’t the title just brilliant? Well, I’ll leave you to decide that but comic genius, really. It conjures up images of all sorts of cult horror greats from the past. I’m still giggling but also feeling strangely affected by this story, which I read mostly in my lunch break at work! Because this isn’t simply some short, cult horror story. It is much, much more than that.

If you know anything about Nathan Robinson’s writing, you’ll soon find out that he has yet again concocted a brilliant recipe of horrifying, but yet very moving narrative. This story is short, I grant you and such great, powerful writing makes you immediately want more, but I’m all for quality over quantity.

What is truly brilliant about this novella is its ability to suck one in and engage them from the off into what is essentially a story of love and of loss, that evolves into a little bit of a gory, nasty tale. This story makes us think about how life can change very suddenly and it also challenges our ideas around existence.

I am looking forward to reading more from Mr Robinson!

I recommend this book to many of you, not just for avid horror fans, because this read is accessible and both intelligently and imaginatively written; applying to many with its ability to make you feel.

[Grampy · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Ketchup on Everything” by Nathan Robinson is absolutely nothing like the title might suggest to you. In fact, it apparently is nothing like anything Nathan Robinson has previously written, although I’m only repeating what I’ve read elsewhere. “Ketchup on Everything” is a powerful, touching story of a man and his wife, living life in a constant state of unsettledness following the disappearance of their 8-year-old only child, Evan. The raw emotion of that universal fear of every parent on Earth is profusely tangible in this poignant and haunting tale of love and loss.

I have several other books by Nathan Robinson, and I will be reading them very soon. Robinson may have veered from his normal archetype in “Ketchup on Everything”, but his rich and erudite talent for effective and captivating writing is abundantly obvious throughout this story. I was very impressed with his writing. I like a lot of genres, and enjoy most of what I read, but I very seldom say I was “impressed” with the writing. Nathan Robinson is one of the few about whom I can honestly say that. Please… do yourself a favor, and purchase a copy of “Ketchup on Everything”. And just in case you need it, keep a box of tissues handy.

[Emma Kirkpatrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars from me for this one! With it being a very short story (like... 104 pages long) I found that there wasn't enough time to identify with the characters or even like them very much. Not that they were unlikable in any way - they just didn't get enough build up. The story comes in 3 parts - the first part I found very dull as nothing happened other than the lead character ordering some pie. Not exactly the kind of thing to make me want to keep reading. The second part was actually enjoyable even though it was slow going and you still don't get chance to start liking the characters, even though 20 years goes by in this part. And finally the third part... I literally have no words! Must say I wasn't expecting "THAT" - and found it a huge let down that this was the big twist. Still... the writing was ok and the story was enjoyable.. I just think that had it been a longer story we would have had more time to get to know the characters and the big twist could have had more of an impact had there been more build up and another 400 or so pages of story in between. Sadly a 104 page book was never going to fit everything in to make this a success. 3.5 stars - purely because I can see what the writer was trying to do.. he just didn't quite pull it off.

[Jessy Whitaker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not many horror novels leave me wanting to read more because they either get boring mid-story or have a boring punchline to it, but Robinson's novel leaves me to never wanting to sleep! The way Robinson writes is so delicate and fine. Elliot's life gives us the sense of matter that everything can change within a matter of seconds, and then it will all come flooding back in the future, but not everything comes back good and perfect, well not in Elliot Tather's case anyway!

I highly recommend this novella to anyone with a big, creative mind.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

The start of this book was very confusing but then you figure out how it ties together with the whole book. It was a very short read but I enjoyed it a lot. The conclusion of this book is amazing and I hope that there is a sequel to trail behind it. If you like vampire books then I definitely recommend this book to you! The main character goes through a ton of events during this 162 page journey, Well Done Nathan Robinson.

[Ally Web · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having a son really made this a page turner for me. This is every parents worst nightmare. Having a Child kidnapped because you weren’t paying close attention to him. I really enjoyed this book. It pulled me in fast. Ketchup on Everything could possibly be my favorite horror Novella. I’m really glad I read it. 5/5

[Kayleigh Marie Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is both horrifying and emotional, striking a fine balance that will get you quaking with fear and sympathy. It's a parents worst nightmare (even I cried, and I'm not yet a parent), gloriously infused with a just-so dash of horror. Terrifying for many reasons, and a great story. Everyone in the world should read it!

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like a lot of others, I went into this knowing basically nothing about the book. It starts off kind of boring, about a man who is looking around the country for his son, who was abducted. It's not anything that hasn't been written before. But then it takes a weird turn that I wasn't expecting, and it got pretty good! It's very short so I think it's worth a read if you like that sort of thing.

[Chloe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not sure how I feel about this book. As a short story, It was good. It was well written and the characters were well developed and relatable. It was real and heartbreaking but (as mentioned in another review), once the mystery was solved it kinda slowed down... I’ve never really been a fan of vampires tho, buuuuut that’s just my preference 🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️

[Sharon Greenwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

This pulled me in from the start - the anguish of the parents and the soul destroying aftermath of losing a child was captured with intensity and feeling ... and then it slapped me in the face with a quirky unexpected ending.