In the small town Alligator Point – just south of New Orleans, Louisiana – stories of “the Piper” are part of the town’s history. Just as much as the infamous slave traders, the Pirates Lafitte. But recently, children have gone missing – with discovered bones the only clues as to what might have happened to them. But in the dangerous lands of the bayou, no one can be certain other animals are to blame. And when nine-year-old Pontiac’s best friend becomes a victim, she can’t help but feel that the legend might be real. What she and her neighbors don’t realize, though, is that the Piper is out for revenge for what the town’s ancestors did all those years ago. If they don’t atone for those crimes before it’s too late, their personal ailments will be the least of their worries. Pay the Piper is the second collaboration between George A. Romero’s estate and bestselling author Daniel Kraus and a Southern Gothic fiction novel that forces characters to face the sins of their ancestors – or pay the price for them.
Book
Alligator Point’s residents don’t have much to work with. Many of them revel in what they call “nasty sugar”, or any vice that risks addiction. They’ve also lost loved ones to cancer – watching them endure a slow, painful, and incurable death. On top of that, many of them are leaving their homes for good. Someone known as the “Oil Man” is buying their land in hopes of extracting the oil from parts of the Earth. One by one, Pontiac and her father watch the town’s population dwindle. Pontiac’s teacher, Miss Ward, fears the school will close down and she will have no where to go. Add in the missing children, and it’s no wonder that families are eager to leave Alligator Point behind.
Pete Roosevelt is no longer on the payroll as the town’s sheriff. But he still does the job with his deputy Spuds Ulene. He doesn’t have the resources for missing persons cases. Especially when they could be explained away by the animals prowling in their natural habitats. Plus, some townsfolk hold grudges against him from unsolved cases of their own lost loved ones. Pontiac, on the other hand, has always been curious and tracks everything down. She begins to work with Doc Devereaux, the town’s merchant. And she finds old records recounting incidents eerily similar to what is currently happening. If she and the other characters don’t figure out how to stop it, they’ll have to Pay the Piper once and for all.
Review
Daniel Kraus rises to the challenge with finished George A. Romero’s lost project with Pay the Piper. Kraus writes a compelling horror story that offers commentary on acknowledging our nation’s unfavorable history and treatment of our climate. He impressively stays true to the Cajun dialect and Southern Gothic vibes. All characters – except for Pontiac – are lost causes. Yet they are tasked with saving their town from the frightening and horrific being that demands atonement for the past.
While I always appreciate Kraus’s work and the boundaries he pushes in his work, I could tell that developing this story for the public was one of the hardest things he’s done. It’s a bit slow-paced with moving parts that don’t seem to connect right away. Even so, readers will undoubtedly become invested in the town of Alligator Point and its residents, anxious to see if they will be able to make the right choice and defeat the Piper.
Daniel Kraus joins the Cantina Book Club Podcast to talk about working with Romero’s estate yet again and the exciting work he’s preparing to release next. Keep an ear out for the interview and preorder Pay the Piper, available September 3.
