Have You Read This? Full Throttle by Joe Hill

It is a story trope that the son must, if not outdo the parent, at least find their voice and identity outside of the parent’s influence. This is possibly because, like many tropes, it’s something both parents and children experience is subtle and not-so-subtle ways every day. Children can rebel to escape the parent’s shadow or simply accept that parental influences are forever stamped on their consciousness and attitudes. Some manage to do both, like Joe Hillstrom King, who writes under the pseudonym Joe Hill and is the son of horror icon Stephen King. Hill’s newest collection Full Throttle features some stories that demonstrate his dad’s influence while also reveling in Hill’s own unique voice.

The collection features many stories that are found in other anthologies, as well as two collaborations with Stephen King. The first is “Throttle,” an homage to Richard Matheson’s novella “Duel” that has a biker gang tangle with a truck driver who uses his massive vehicle both to pursue and to destroy. The second is “In the Tall Grass,” already a movie from Netflix, this is a deliciously disturbing tale of two young people isolated and hunted within a seemingly benign field of grass. However, there are also tales that show Hill as a distinct writer that has exceeded his father in his detailing the fantastic clashing with the familiar. “Mums” showcases a militia family that holds some dark family secrets, secrets which cannot stay buried. “All I Care about Is You” is a heartwarming and heartbreaking tale of friendship in a bleak future where friendship only costs a few tokens. “By the Silver Waters of Lake Champlain” showcases childhood friendship, and the fragility of life, as two kids discover a dead dinosaur in their lake. Hill has expanded beyond King’s own talent for down-to-earth characterization in this new era of smartphones and not-quite-nuclear families while also showing a genuine love of the past, including his father’s work, ultimately creating his own unique voice that finds horror not just in nuclear war or wolf men but by how we as human beings foster connections that can go from solid to tenuous in the space of seconds.

Stephen King got me interested in horror, but Joe Hill is one writer that always keeps me coming back. The lessons from both father and son are that horror doesn’t have to be soaked in blood or steeped in anger. The ultimate lesson of horror, as taught by King and Hill, is that there is joy in life that can be stolen away, so enjoy the good things, and that for me includes books by Joe Hill. This means I will be disposed to give many Joe Hill books, and his much fresher voice, good reviews, so be warned.