You Will Speak for the Dead

You Will Speak for the Dead by R. A. Busby

Published by Stelliform Press

Paul Simard's life is a mess. When his mother dies, and his boyfriend moves out, the only thing Paul has left is his hoarder house cleaning business, and that's not exactly a recipe for dating success. But after Paul gets a call to clean out the home of some elderly biologist, nothing will ever be the same. You see, 928 Avirosa isn't just your normal cleanout. Something in the house is...alive. It's not just the fungal carpet or the mushrooms growing over every surface, or even the disturbing smell. It's the woman's voice he hears inside his head. The creeping sense he's been invaded. The powerful connections to memories and people he's never seen. Yes. Something in that house is alive. And it wants to speak to him. Before long, Paul understands the house hoards more than just secrets - and Paul's life depends upon uncovering its answers.

My Review:

This book made me uncomfortable and sad (not a bad thing). The disgusting hoarder house brought back memories of dealing with old family member's belongings after they passed. None were true hoarders, but some of them had plenty of stuff. Also, the spores and fungus that permeate the story left me shuddering and pushing away any snacks. Busby's detailed descriptions of body horror and fungus are enough to put anyone off their favourite foods. This is not a book to read while eating! But, if you have a stronger stomach than me, or can push past your nausea, there is a great novella here waiting for you.

Our main character is Paul Simard, recently single and mourning his mother. Paul is a well-written, fully dimensional character. His struggles in life are relatable, and I found myself rooting for him, even when he was being stubborn. One of the things he is most stubborn about is when to quit. Paul runs a business cleaning out hoarder houses, like the type that would be on that old TV show, “Hoarders”. The more disgusting they are, the more Paul wants to clean them, for some reason. It’s clear that it has become something of an obsession for him. One of the main reasons his relationship faltered is because Paul could not pull himself away from the truly disgusting homes. So, it only makes sense that one of these houses would be his potential downfall. 

I forget where I heard this, but someone once advised that when writing horror, it helps to make it a little bit the character’s fault. Not that they are bad people being punished, but that you give them signs they miss or warnings to ignore. It’s not about them deserving their fate, but how they could have potentially avoided it. For me, the near-miss of safety adds in another layer of pathos. Pulling this off without making the character too frustrating is a skill, and Busby does that. Paul gets himself into trouble because he does not know when to walk away, but his reasons are believable.

Paul does not judge the hoarders that he cleans up after. He actually sympathizes with them. Especially now that he has recently lost his mother, he understands the comfort in holding onto things from the past. Near the beginning of the book, there is a section that explains this view to the audience. I appreciated this section, because this book could have easily turned into exploitation like that old TV show, but instead Busby through Paul reminds us that the hoarders are people, too.

It’s this empathy that elevates this book from a simple body horror fungus novella into a tale about loss, grief, and the inability to move on. Paul is mourning his relationship with his mother and his ex-boyfriend throughout the book. He is plagued by loneliness, which is why the spores in the home seek him out. I don’t want to spoil the story, but the woman’s voice mentioned in the description calls to him because they have both suffered loss, and she hungers for connection.

You Will Speak for the Dead does feature some unsettling body horror, which is not my favourite genre of horror, and fungus, a trope I’m starting to move past personally, but the writing is strong and the story is deep. I recommend this for anyone with a strong stomach and an open mind.

 

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