The Devil's Alphabet

[close] As a reader, I operate under a strict "you can't judge a book by its cover" policy. The Devil's Alphabet tested that resolve, though. When I picked it up at the library, my 4-year-old daughter cringed. "Ew, that's scary, mom," she said. And she's right - the cover art is a little dark. But like many books, I quickly discovered that the image on the cover is more unsettling than any of the content within. I was expecting a sci-fi/horror story, but I was surprised to discover that Daryl Gregory's second novel is really neither of these things. Sure, it's sci-fi in that the story takes place in an alternate reality with some pretty fantastic characters unlike anything I've ever encountered. But beneath all that, The Devil's Alphabet reads more like a gothic southern mystery akin to something Charlaine Harris might dream up. The plot is too complicated and rich to sum up effectively in a short review, but here's it in a nutshell: Paxton Martin is the prodigal son returning to his hometown of Switchcreek, Tenn. to attend his childhood best friend's funeral. But Switchcreek is not your average small town --it's the site of the TDS crisis, an unexplained epidemic that swept through the community 15 years ago and left 30 percent of the town dead, and nearly everyone else changed in some way. His best friend, Deke is an "argo" -- the result of the first wave of the disease, which left people gray-skinned, sterile and more than 8-feet tall. His friend Jo, recently deceased, was turned into a beta -- the spontaneously-breeding, bald, burgundy-skinned victims of the second wave of the disorder. Paxton's father, Harlan -- a former pastor -- is a "charlie" -- the morbidly obese clade that emerged in the final stage of the Changes. Paxton himself is a rare "skip" - someone that made it through the TDS outbreak without any physical effects whatsoever. Paxton quickly discovers that all is not right in his hometown. His father seems to be going insane, and needs care Paxton isn't sure he's able to provide. The former church secretary, Rhonda, is now Mayor Rhonda -- and has become a scheming, manipulative leader bent on preserving her town, but most importantly, her Charlie clade at any cost. Half the town is addicted to a strange drug called The Vintage. And all is not as it seems when it comes to Jo's apparent suicide -- or her 12-year-old beta twin daughters. The plot is multi-layered and one of the most creative I've read in years -- I was drawn into the murder mystery as well as all the strange politics and relationships of the town. But the characters are also top-notch. Pax is a great narrator, because his outsider status, lack of life direction and self-understanding allows him to discover the mysteries of the town right along with readers. All in all, don't judge a book by its cover. I feel like many of the people that would most enjoy The Devil's Alphabet might be unwilling to pick up the book just because of the unsettling cover art. Th

This is another great book from Daryl Gregory. I usually do not read this type of book, but it had me from the first page. I hope Daryl continues to write these great books.

When the population of Switchcreek, Tennessee was struck with a mysterious disease, killing thirty percent of the population and transforming the rest, Paton "Pax" Martin was one of the few left--at least outwardly--unaffected. His mother was killed by it. His father was transformed into a morbidly obese "charlie." His two best friends were changed as well: bold Jo Lynn into a wine-skinned, hairless "beta" and timid Deke into a giant, imposing "argo." As soon as the government-issued quarantine was lifted from Switchcreek, Pax fled to Chicago. He returns to his hometown fifteen years later when Jo Lynn commits suicide, leaving behind two daughters and even more secrets. And she's not the only one who has secrets. The mutated (and mutating) populace of Switchcreek have become infinitely weirder and darker than Pax could have imagined. Daryl Gregory's second novel is something to behold. A down-to-earth look at what seems like a far-fetched, sci-fi premise, //The Devil's Alphabet// unpretentiously explores what it means to be human, even if, technically speaking, you aren't human anymore. This is a rare, wonderful book from an author who doesn't just promise--he delivers. Reviewed by Amanda Mitchell

Paxton Abel Martin is returning home. Fifteen years earlier, he left everything behind believing that was the last he would ever see of Switchcreek, Tennessee --- and he was fine with that. Now, the death of a childhood friend, Jo Lynn, is pulling him back to a place he has done his best to forget. When Pax was a teenager, Switchcreek residents were infected with a strange disease. The people who survived began transforming. The disease, known as Transcription Divergence Syndrome (TDS), created three new branches of humans --- argos, giant-like and gray skinned; betas, hairless and wine-colored; and charlies, intensely obese individuals. Pax is what is known as a skip, someone unaffected by TDS and who remains human with no discernible change to his DNA. Those close to Pax were changed dramatically: his mother succumbed to the disease; his father, the town's preacher, became a charlie; and his best friends, Deke and Jo Lynn, were transformed into an argo and a beta, respectively. Not understanding anything about their new bodies or the disease, the town's residents are left to figure out on their own what the transformations mean. When Jo Lynn becomes pregnant, Pax is forced to leave town by his father, not understanding that betas are capable of self-fertilization. He never stopped thinking of her or the child, and it is her death that brings him back to Switchcreek. This is not the same town he left all those years ago. His father, one of the original charlies, is now producing an addictive chemical called vintage that no one seems to understand, but is very much in demand. Pax soon finds out the cost of the vintage to the town's mayor, Rhonda, and the locals. Suddenly, for a man who hasn't spoken to his father in over a decade, Pax becomes very protective of him. Pax tries his best to comprehend what happened to Jo Lynn and come to some understanding of her and her death. No one wants to talk about her supposed suicide and what may have led to it. He becomes suspicious of Rhonda and what she's planning, and everyone in Switchcreek is guarded in their opinions of her. As a charlie, she's formidable, and though the female charlies are smaller in comparison, she's still a force of nature that no resident wants to anger. When a new outbreak in South America threatens the residents of Switchcreek with another government quarantine, Pax finally comes to terms with his new life and what he must do to protect his family and friends. I have to admit that I didn't like the Pax character very much. He didn't ask questions, had a curiosity level that bordered on zero, and does his best to remain aloof and unforgiving the entire time he's home. He constantly looks for a moment to leave but couldn't muster the courage to actually get in the car and go. He doesn't have a great life to return to, but spending his time feeling left out also doesn't appeal. You begin to wonder why he's in Switchcreek and if he cared for his friends and family at all. In t

I stumbled onto one of Daryl Gregory's short stories ("Unpossible") in a yearly anthology and instantly became a fan of his work. THE DEVIL'S ALPHABET is entirely different than Unpossible, but because of reading the story first, I expected to be left with a great feeling in the end, and I was not disappointed. I found something from Gregory himself in an interview he gave to Locus Magazine, and not surprisingly it describes the book well: START QUOTE "I turned in my second novel, and it's totally unrelated to Pandemonium. Instead of a fantasy that feels like science fiction, it's a hard SF book that feels like fantasy. It's got a working title of Oh, You Pretty Things, a riff on the David Bowie song. It's about quantum evolution running wild in a tiny Tennessee mountain town. I'm calling it a Southern Gothic/science fiction/murder mystery." END QUOTE I would've rather seen Gregory's suggested title and a less creepy-looking cover for the book, because I think that would have portrayed the book more accurately (plus, David Bowie). There is definitely enough suspense in the book (its biggest mystery is a whodunnit), but it isn't a fast-paced thriller, and it comes across much more charming than it does frightening. Yet its premise is a sufficiently weird SF/F one, and I mean that as a compliment. It's not a black and white story either, so no character fits a plainly good or bad mold. The book reads like a rich "literary" work, especially I think towards the beginning. As the book goes along, I thought the pace picked up some and there is a bit less description. I thoroughly enjoyed the book from start to finish, though, and Gregory provides an excellent sense of place in the small southern town in the Tennessee mountains where the book takes place (cue: John Cougar Mellencamp music); I grew up some in the south, and I think Gregory did a rather good job describing it. Its characters are well-developed (Paxton, the main character, especially towards the second half of the book), and its premise remains interesting and oddly "believable." Oh, and I don't think I'll ever be able to get the image of Rhonda out of my head. If she starts haunting my dreams, I will have to track Daryl Gregory down and seek revenge. What I liked most about it, though, was the sense of humor running through a good story. My favorite thing about Gregory's writing is his ability to throw in a hilarious line that fits completely within the context of the story he's writing; I laughed out loud about a dozen times. I also appreciated the realistic (and funny) references to modern Americana. One key character, for example, used to slick his hair down with Alberto VO5. That was in the second chapter, and at that point I knew it was going to be a fun ride. Publisher's Weekly named it one of the top five SF/F books of 2009. Here's what they said about it, which I agree with: START QUOTE "This subtle, eerie present-day horror novel mercilessly dissects and reassembles the c