The Distance Travelled

The Distance Travelled, Brett Alexander Savory, Necro Publications, 2006

Stu is a resident of Hell. A group of obnoxious young people in a dune buggy drive by, one day, and throw a live pig through Stu's kitchen window. Stu captures one of them, and calls him Pigboy. He has found a portal to Hell from Upside, and has come to rescue his kidnapped sister. This starts Stu on an epic quest.

Along for the ride are Gus, a walking skeleton who runs the local gas station. Tom is a ten-foot-tall HellRat who fixes cars for Gus. Tom is head-over-heels in love with the beautiful Miss Appleton (the feeling is very mutual). They attempt to answer a set of riddles written years before by a clairvoyant child. To do so, they travel all over the territory of Hell.

It is also a place where the torture sessions are scheduled. We are talking extreme torture, accompanied by fountains of blood everywhere. Give the person a day or two to recover, and they are physically good as new. When Stu misses a torture session because of his quest, Salinger, the Chief Torturer, sets off after him. Does everyone survive until the end? Is the sister ever found?

This is a very bloody and violent story, so it is not for the faint of heart. For everyone else, be prepared for a wild rice, accompanied by a soundtrack of 80's pop music. Think Clive Barker meets Jim Thompson. For those with a strong stomach, this is a gem of a book.