Grey – by Ian Rogers

The Guf stands empty.

The last human soul in all of existence has been stolen by the Devil and his children, the Seven Deadly Sins, and humanity’s end is in sight. With no other choice, God enlists Heaven’s hatchet man— an entity called Grey that is neither angel nor demon—to retrieve the soul and save the world.

Dark bleatings, my awesome tribe. Today, I’m talking about a book that you might like if you enjoy your horror with a side of funny. I am extremely picky when it comes to this type of genre mixing – I dislike most books and films that are considered Horror Comedy, because it’s so hard to get the level of silliness and the tone right. However, I’m delighted to tell you that this author nailed it.

Grey is summoned by Metatron to find the last human soul before the apocalypse happens and wipes out everyone left on Earth. This last human soul was stolen from Heaven (literally from a jar) and it must be returned immediately. For some reason, humans can no longer procreate and this last soul is the key to keeping them all alive.

Grey, as a character, is pretty funny. He’s a little sarcastic, a little sassy, and a little nonplussed about the whole adventure. He’s kind of like “I’m not dying to go on this quest but I suppose I have nothing else going on”. I feel like horror comedy is at its best when the scenario is absolutely diabolical and the humour is coming from the general attitude and personality of the protagonist, as it is here. Where most people would encounter something in this story and think ‘OH GOD NOOOOOOO’, he’s more like, ‘Oh, for God’s sake…’

It’s been a while since Grey walked the Earth and things have changed. Las Vegas, for example, is now entirely run by militant, kick-ass women. The kind of women that have fitted devices in their taxis that administer an electric shock to the passenger if they don’t trust him, for example. The Seven Deadly Sins are characters that are running loose. Satan is extremely emotional. Things, in every way, have gone quite awry. And Grey is the only one who can fix…well…everything.

You could be forgiven for just chuckling away as you read this, and then being quite shocked when the author absolutely rips your heart out. I shan’t tell you how or why, lest I spoil it, but dear lord. For God’s sake. The final act does remind you that this is horror, after all, and your empathy will be swiftly reengaged.

Overall, I found this immensely amusing and entertaining, and a thoroughly enjoyable read. I’d recommend this to people who like things like ‘Shaun of the Dead’, and Gavin Dillinger’s ‘An Exploration of Existential Indifference in a Void of Confidence’. If you’d like to check out the book or the author, I’ve popped some links below for you:

GREY

IAN ROGERS

Bleeeeat!

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