What I'm Reading: The Ghost That Ate Us by Daniel Kraus

The May 1 issue of Booklist is the biggest issue of the year, both in page count and anticipation. It is the annual spotlight on Mysteries and Thrillers and this issue also has a spotlight on True Crime. And in this issue I have a STAR review of one of the best fiction, true crime stories I have ever read. And this one is 100% Horror and by one of the best practitioners of the genre for all ages. 

Let me stop being vaguely effusive and just give you the review:

STAR

The Ghost That Ate Us: The Tragic True Story of the Burger City Poltergeist

By Daniel Kraus

July 2022. 300p. illus. Raw Dog Screaming, $31.95  (9781947879423); paper, $18.95  (9781947879553). First published May 1, 2022 (Booklist).

June 1, 2017, 6 people were killed at Burger City #8 at Exit 269 off I-80 in Iowa. Books and movies were produced about the mascare. Was Kit Bryant a murderer, or were they all the victims of an evil poltergeist? Bestselling author Daniel Kraus sets out to write the definitive True Crime account, visiting the charred remains of the crime scene, interviewing survivors, who have all had considerable weight loss, and Bryant himself, plagued by uncontrolled weight gain, incarcerated in a high security mental health facility. Criss-crossing miles, following leads, battling Covid restrictions, supporting his findings with research, documentation, and footnotes, Kraus recounts his exhaustive work from 2020-21. Except, none of it happened. The entire book– the crime, the YouTube videos, the intimately detailed humans at the center of this immersive story of relentlessly escalating dread– all of it is a work of fiction. The verisimilitude is disorienting, forcing the reader to question everything on the page, their own memories, and at times, their sanity. Add to this anxiety rich meal an ending so creepy it will induce a full body shiver. For fans of titles as varied as I’ll Be Gone In the Dark by McNamara or Reprieve by Mattson.  

YA Statement: With a majority of the characters in high school during the crux of the action, a Blair Witch Project vibe, and the author’s excellent track record with this audience, teens will be lining up for a chance to have a taste of a Beefyburger no matter the psychic coast.

Further Appeal: This book was excellent, but what made it a STAR was the ending. The ending, the final "reporting" and the anxious and desperate epilogue, staged as having to be turned in by a certain time or else it wouldn't be included, and was only going to included at the cost of the author himself, and the final line-- all of that pushed this unequivocally into STAR territory.

Kraus stuck the landing so well, you could read the last page first. Don't do that, because it is better if you don't, but when you get to the last page, you will be glad you read the entire book. And you will have a whole body shiver. What more could you ask for from a horror novel.

I will also say, as immersive and unsettling as this book was to read, it was also fun. You get totally wrapped up in the characters and the story, you believe it all, you even think to go check on some of the YouTube videos, and then you put the book down for a second, and you are like, wait.....this is all fiction.

I also enjoyed how Kraus worked himself into the "reporting." He used his own popular YA novels as a plot device and with a self effacing angle.

[On a side note: I had a lot of fun writing this review as well.]

This will be popular with Kraus fans from adults to teens, but since he purposely chose to publish it with an independent press, you have to work a tiny bit harder to get it. Raw Dog Screaming Press is available through your regular ordering platforms. Please get this one. With it's excellent cover, big name author, and true crime cross over, this will be in high demand.

Three Words That Describe This Book: verisimilitude, immersive, escalating dread

Readalikes: As a good a true crime book as I'll Be Gone in the Dark except NONE OF IT IS REAL. And yet, people who love True Crime will love the realism here. I could see a few hard core True Crime readers getting mad that it isn't real and that there is a supernatural angle, but it is so true to the form that many will appreciate the homage.

Fake true crime is becoming a trend, but unlike Chasing the Boogeyman by Chizmar, this one is not meta. There is very little of Kraus' actual life here except being from Iowa and understanding the people. It is not a bio with a crime-- it is a true [fictional] crime with so much realism that it is immersive and creepy because of how much you believe it happened while reading it. I think it is more like Reprieve by James Han Mattson which I listed above in terms of feel and character centeredness.

You can use the links for the readalike titles to find even more readalikes.