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The Hags of Black County
Ruled by a committee of Hags, and fueled by toothless rivalries, Black County lurks just far enough out of the way to be completely unnoticed by the rest of civilization. Its inhabitants have been mentally warped for generations and the land itself seems to have the power to drive anyone unlucky enough to visit into ridiculous hillbilly madness.When a construction Company needs to bury a pipeline through its ludicrous hills and valleys, a twisted charm goes to work and every aspect of already bizarre Black County life takes a gory turn for the hysterical. Take a preposterous trip along with its citizens, both native and new, through escapades such as the Hag parade, the grand opening of Madame Skunk’s House of Ill Repute, the demolition derby riot and the rabid, zombie clown apocalypse.
134 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 24, 2014
7 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 2, 2014
What can be said about The Hags of Black County that hasn’t already been said about similar great works by Shakespeare and Proust? Actually, The Hags of Black County aspires only to be a fun read and it successfully reaches that primary goal.
Unpretentious and uncomplicated, the novella tells a ‘slice of life’ story covering a few days in a bizarre place called Black County, where wacked-out witches, called hags, carry out their extraordinary exhibitionist activities in full public view. The hags’ extroverted antics reach a crescendo of weirdness at the annual Black County Fair.
While the hags busy themselves with bingo, fortune telling, potion preserves production, reanimating dead animals and transforming themselves into a variety of were-species, the county fair is also interfused with rabid clowns, feuding demo-derby hillbillies, demented hag minions, buffoonish law enforcement and other sideshow attractions.
Giving the reader a stabilized normal perspective on these strange shenanigans is the central character named (of course) Joe Schmoe. Mr. Schmoe is a foreman with a pipeline company who had the misfortune of being transferred to Black County. But unlike most transient oil and pipeline workers, he doesn’t spend all his free time at nudie bars.
Nope, Joe decides to go to the Black County Fair, where he meets a common food vendor named Sadie, who agrees to acclimate Joe to his new surroundings. Thus, we readers get a tour de force course on Black County haggery, courtesy of pedestrian Sadie, who has learned to accept her spectator-on-the-sideline status within the sick society. (There may be a social allegory there, but I doubt it).
Anyway, long-brewing resentment over a former hag war, mixed with jealousy and power struggles within the hag community, eventually come to a climax as the story nears its end. Throw some escaped zombies, a whore-mongering mayor and a perverted child-stealing skull-effer into the mix and you have the makings of an eye-popping conclusion.
Author Michelle Bowser is a natural humorist and none of the comedic scenes she creates seem forced or contrived, which is a problem for more pretentious bizarro and horror authors who try to inject humor into their otherwise “serious works.” You’re either born with the gift of comedic timing and absurdity, like Michelle obviously is, or you’re not.
Unpretentious and uncomplicated, the novella tells a ‘slice of life’ story covering a few days in a bizarre place called Black County, where wacked-out witches, called hags, carry out their extraordinary exhibitionist activities in full public view. The hags’ extroverted antics reach a crescendo of weirdness at the annual Black County Fair.
While the hags busy themselves with bingo, fortune telling, potion preserves production, reanimating dead animals and transforming themselves into a variety of were-species, the county fair is also interfused with rabid clowns, feuding demo-derby hillbillies, demented hag minions, buffoonish law enforcement and other sideshow attractions.
Giving the reader a stabilized normal perspective on these strange shenanigans is the central character named (of course) Joe Schmoe. Mr. Schmoe is a foreman with a pipeline company who had the misfortune of being transferred to Black County. But unlike most transient oil and pipeline workers, he doesn’t spend all his free time at nudie bars.
Nope, Joe decides to go to the Black County Fair, where he meets a common food vendor named Sadie, who agrees to acclimate Joe to his new surroundings. Thus, we readers get a tour de force course on Black County haggery, courtesy of pedestrian Sadie, who has learned to accept her spectator-on-the-sideline status within the sick society. (There may be a social allegory there, but I doubt it).
Anyway, long-brewing resentment over a former hag war, mixed with jealousy and power struggles within the hag community, eventually come to a climax as the story nears its end. Throw some escaped zombies, a whore-mongering mayor and a perverted child-stealing skull-effer into the mix and you have the makings of an eye-popping conclusion.
Author Michelle Bowser is a natural humorist and none of the comedic scenes she creates seem forced or contrived, which is a problem for more pretentious bizarro and horror authors who try to inject humor into their otherwise “serious works.” You’re either born with the gift of comedic timing and absurdity, like Michelle obviously is, or you’re not.
August 15, 2014
A totally insane comedy. Black County is a real strange place, and the Hags are just . . .
Enjoy the hilarious ride.
Enjoy the hilarious ride.
October 1, 2017
An outrageous exploration of life in a small back woods county. The author takes absurdist humor to a whole new level. Wonderfully astute and ridiculous at the same time!
August 19, 2014
I don't usually read Bizarro but this book is very funny. Some nutty witches unleash a plague of zombie clowns on a fair that was already as weird as it gets. Prepare to be amazed by the madness in Black County.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews