PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Forty years have gone by since Becky Sharp has last seen her mother. Despite being an known actress, Becky’s mother vanished without a trace. Content with her daily life, Becky soon uncovers a box of mysterious VHS tapes of an unknown television show, Rumplejack. After witnessing what was on these tapes, she uncovers clues that could lead to the whereabouts of her long-lost mother. Soon, Becky embarks on a journey to find her absent mom. What she doesn’t realize is that the tapes had more than just clues to her past; they also contained an evil monster. Armed with a large hammer, Rotten Tommy is now on his own mission to find Becky, and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to get to her.
Boiled down to its most basic summarization, Rotten Tommy is what happens when one decides to besmirch the world of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood by injecting the mysticism of The Ring (2002) and chaos of Friday the 13th(1980). Just for fun, imagine if Gumby was 7 feet tall and wore a black coat and went on a murderous rampage.
Well known for his other books, Maggie’s Grave (2020) and The Haar (2022), writer David Sodergren has introduced yet another engrossing horror novel in his fairly impressive résumé of books with Rotten Tommy. Sitting at 288 pages, the book is a fast read as the plot doesn’t have too many areas of slowdown. Sodergren’s writing style is simple yet effective at setting up any scene, whether it be for plot, scenery, or gore. The violence is creative and graphic enough to get any horror novel fan invested in what is unfolding on the pages. There’s some clever imagery and prop-usage throughout that makes the death sequences feel fresh and in line with the fictional world.
A testament to Sodergren’s restraint in writing is the benefit that the brutal scenes of horror are detailed just enough to gross the reader out. They don’t linger on descriptions for too long or try to outwardly offend and upset the reader through sheer disgust. Rather, the descriptors emphasize the brutality of Rotten Tommy and what he is truly capable of.
“Keep the dooR locked night and day… keep the dOor locked nighT and day… keep The door lockEd Night and day… so Tommy can’t…”
Another important aspect that Sodergren injects into the story is having a main character that is on the autism spectrum. In the author notes, Sodergren informs the reader that he himself has autism and it is important to note that there is no single definition or type of autism, so Becky’s characterization isn’t meant to be all encompassing. The National Institute of Mental Health describes autism as “a spectrum disorder because there is wide variation in the type and severity of symptoms people experience.” Source
This level of characterization brings a nuance and depth to Becky’s character that goes deeper into her inner monologue and thought process. She is written with complex emotions and feelings. Granted, this idea doesn’t apply to any of the secondary characters as they are not as fully fleshed out (even when they’re literally fleshed out)!
Ironically, the largest flaw of the book ties into the overall theme of nostalgia and engaging in the past. Throughout the book, there is an overly heavy reliance on pop culture and specific items tying the world to current day (as of 2024). This attempt at world building through references hampers the idea that this story will in itself be discovered and viewed through the rose-tinted lenses of nostalgia. Instead of engrossing the reader in a world reminiscing of a time where tapes were in vogue, they’ll instead be stuck in a world where everything is already out of touch. Modern day examples that are used will soon be outdated in a year or two. Ironically, this causes Rotten Tommy itself to be dated.
Other than that small issue, Rotten Tommy really is a treat to horror fans with a strong sense to revisit their childhood. It takes the idea of youthful Saturday morning TV and smashes it to pieces. Rotten Tommy is highly recommended.
Rotten Tommy is available on Paperback, E-book, and Kindle Unlimited.
