BenLockwood reviewed Downpour by Christopher Hawkins
Worth a read
3 stars
This review was first published at BriefEcology.com
When an ominous rain cloud forms over the rural house of Scott and his family, the literal and metaphorical deteriorations that come with it reveal the fractures of Scott's past and current family. The narrative of Downpour is a continuous, unbroken timeline from the moment the storm arrives to its final culmination. The entire story takes place over a matter of hours and it never leaves the setting of the rural farmhouse, and in this way, Hawkins traps the reader in the rain with his characters.
As the storm worsens, the rain's unnatural effects begin to emerge. What appears is fungal-like, an invasive, tendrilous entity that seems to dissolve and/or remake everything it touches. It bears similarities to what Dawn Keetely calls tentacular ecohorror, in her essay on ecohorror and tree agency. Whatever is in the rain entangles the characters, mixing their human …
This review was first published at BriefEcology.com
When an ominous rain cloud forms over the rural house of Scott and his family, the literal and metaphorical deteriorations that come with it reveal the fractures of Scott's past and current family. The narrative of Downpour is a continuous, unbroken timeline from the moment the storm arrives to its final culmination. The entire story takes place over a matter of hours and it never leaves the setting of the rural farmhouse, and in this way, Hawkins traps the reader in the rain with his characters.
As the storm worsens, the rain's unnatural effects begin to emerge. What appears is fungal-like, an invasive, tendrilous entity that seems to dissolve and/or remake everything it touches. It bears similarities to what Dawn Keetely calls tentacular ecohorror, in her essay on ecohorror and tree agency. Whatever is in the rain entangles the characters, mixing their human nature with an unknown and non-human nature, with unknown and non-human agency. The effect is an uncanny, unknowable version of nature that is both within and external.
Downpour is both slow and fast. It's dark, and the story only descends into more bleakness as it goes, until, like the fungal growth in the rain, it spirals in on itself and blooms into something strange and horrifically fascinating. It's a compelling read, but not one for the faint of heart. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed it.