Review: Heroin in the Magic Now by Terry M. West.

Heroin in the Magic Now by Terry M. West
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"Heroin in the Magic Now" is a brutal, unflinching trip down the rabbit hole of addiction and lands the reader in and alternate universe version of New York City where Gary Hack, a once respected filmmaker, is churning out adult films to make fast money and feed his debilitating heroin addiction. In this version of NYC, the monsters of horror novels and movies shakily co-exist with humans. The undead are used for prostitution while werewolves and vampires hustle the streets making money in any way that they can. Gary eventually takes up work doing a specific kind of fetish film, monster porn. He doesn't want to, but the amount of money offered will set him up with enough heroin to numb the disgust he feels with himself and the industry that feeds the monkey on his back.

This a dark and deeply personal tale as Terry uses his own experiences in the softcore porn industry and with heroin addiction to craft an antihero that is so tragic the reader can't help to feel empathy for a character that seems irredeemable. Very rarely does a novel reach me so deeply in so many ways. It left me shaking not only out of fear, but revulsion and bitter sorrow for Gary Hack.

Only Terry M. West could spin a tale so dark and brutal and still make it transcend horror and become a work of literary craftsmanship.

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