Country: USA
Genre: Psychological Horror (with noir elements)
Pages: 260 kb (eOriginal)
Synopsis:
Based on a true story, CLOWN IN THE MOONLIGHT is narrated by a nameless youth, an outsider looking for a way into a local Satanic circle who has allegedly performed human sacrifice. Soon, it becomes quite clear to him that what's going on isn't as by-the-book Satanism as he would've thought. The narrator isn't impressed and clashes with the circle leader Ricky and reveals his inner darkness to the reader. Sometimes, the big, bad wolf isn't who you think it is.
Ricky's passed out on the couch, his bags of PCP about to fall out of his pocket, the Satanic Bible already having worked down between the cushions. I sit beside him and try to picture his dreams.
It was just a theory, but now I am convinced it is a fact. Tom Piccirilli is physically unable to write anything bad. He must have a disability that prevents him from sucking around a keyboard. Psychological horror (a fun, often underestimated genre) fits him like a glove and CLOWN IN THE MOONLIGHT is a powerful whack in the face. I could stop my review there, really. Piccirilli's name alone should convince you to check this short, but potent novella. But in case you need the extra push, this is why it's worth your time and the puny 2,99$ asking price...
There are many somber individuals in the world, who you ignore or have conveniently forgotten. Ricky Kasso is one of these people. Kasso allegedly murdered Gary Lauwers after torturing him as a part of a Satanic ritual. In real life, he got arrested after bragging about it and hanged himself in his prison cell. But his fictional alter ego Ricky Kelso had a run in with a dark and enigmatic stranger that might've explained his downfall. The narrator of CLOWN IN THE MOONLIGHT doesn't have a name or he rather not say it, because names have power. He takes the occult very seriously and the juvenile spectacle that is Ricky Kelso doesn't please him. At all.
CLOWN IN THE MOONLIGHT might be the leanest, sturdiest story by Tom Piccirilli I've read, so far. The sentences are even shorter than usual. He doesn't shy away from the three or four words, sometimes one after the other. It's written in the present tense, so there is this burning feeling of emergency to it. Anything could go wrong at any moment, but the narrator is so calm and so deep down into darkness, he feels like an unstoppable force. The further you get in the story, the stronger he gets. The dialogues with Ricky reminded me of James Ellroy's KILLER ON THE ROAD, where Plunkett makes Charles Manson go mad with rage in prison. Piccirilli, like Ellroy, created a character strong enough to keep up with real legendary deranged people.
She wants to go back and look at the dead kid's face again. I don't. She calls my name as if I'm very far away. Perhaps I am. The scene not only excites her sexually, she wants to be a part of the violence, the desecration of flesh, the revolt against God. I understand.
The ending of CLOWN IN THE MOONLIGHT has been discussed as letdown and this is an interesting problem. It's the first time I ever come across an ending being problematic in this particular way. Nothing is really left unexplained. The suspense doesn't die in the egg. It's rather beautifully wrapped, in fact. It just...goes on for too long. I know, it's weird. See, CLOWN IN THE MOONLIGHT is separated in three parts, the last one being very short and...kind of...unnecessary? It would have been a great, almost Operatic finale if the novella would have ended with part two, but there is this odd annex at the end, that is part of the story, which doesn't go anywhere. It was a minor hitch to me and a rather curious one. It didn't detract from my enjoyment of the novella at all.
Another reason to pick up CLOWN IN THE MOONLIGHT is that on top of having a full story to cut your teeth on, Piccirilli put samples of many other works at the end, including his latest, amazing novel THE LAST KIND WORDS. There is also a chapter from his dark fantasy novel NIGHTJACK and a short story called SHADDER. That makes it the perfect book to pick up if you sit on the fence about Piccirilli. You will have a taste of what he's truly capable of. For me, it is simple. He's now one of my favorite writers. He's not easy and he often descends into the darkest depths of the human soul, but his take-no-prisoners approach to literature makes him fun to read. Urban legend Ricky Kasso have never felt so alive than in the hands of Tom Piccirilli.
FOUR STARS