Crimson Orgy
Austin Williams
Borderlands Press
ISBN: 978-1-880325-81-0
2008

Crimson Orgy, the debut novel by Austin Williams, takes us back to the grindhouse movie days of the mid-60’s.  Director Sheldon Meyer and producer Gene Hoffman undergo a self-imposed one week deadline and a shoe-string budget to film the crème de le crème of hardcore gore flicks.  The endeavor takes place in south Florida and features a cast of amateur actors that aren’t always aware of what the project really entails.

Paced out on a day-by-day basis, the story unravels like a ticking clock that you know is driving toward something horrific.  We’re given the basic premise from the beginning; we know generally what is eventually to occur – someone involved in the making of the movie will die – but how or why it happens remains a mystery that pulls us enjoyably through this book to its conclusion.

The novel is brimming with the feel of this particular era in American movie history and you can’t help but believe you’re right in the middle of the production, buckets of fake blood and severed limbs and all.  Williams takes us far deeper into this culture than you’d ever expect.  And with the various obstacles thrown at Meyer and Hoffman – redneck cops, drunken or obsessed crew members, hurricanes, strange deaths – you get the sense that it’s a miracle that half of these movies ever saw the light of day.

The ending may not be what you’d expect, but that’s certainly not a bad thing.  If anything, I admire Williams’ willingness to avoid catering to certain expectations.  For the most part he does a respectable job at keeping us on our toes throughout the story, and the ending is shocking enough to keep our minds churning long after we’ve put the book down.

As can be expected of a new novelist, the book is not without a few minor faults:  character perspectives occasionally switched quickly within the same scene or section, and there was perhaps some excessive ‘telling’ of the plot and events via character recollections.  But in general these issues do not prove to be a distraction and when the action switched to the ‘here and now’, the prose was smooth and engaging.  Ultimately, it’s hard to not be engrossed by this tale.

I think the book is well worth a read.  It’s a nice departure from the average modern horror story and I’m sure you won’t regret diving into it.

                                                          -- Michael De Kler