I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading The Boys on the Mountain, as this is the first book by John Inman that I've read, but I was looking for a good haunted house novel, and this came up in a random search. Let me warn you, this is not for the squeamish or faint of heart, as there are events that take place in this novel that are quite disturbing.
We've all seen the premise before in countless other novels - horror writer buys house that is reputedly haunted. The house belonged to celebrated horror movie actor Nigel Letters, who died of autoerotic asphyxiation. But apparently Nigel isn't the only ghost inhabiting the house. From the first night James Brandon spends in the house, the ghosts make themselves known. That's right. There's more than one ghost haunting the old Letters house. As it turns out, there are at least fifteen spirits in the house, not including Letters himself, and each spirit is that of a young man who had fallen victim to Nigel Letters's kinky obsession, that of torturing and murdering young hustlers. They are all trapped in the house, forced to relive the moments of their deaths over and over again. James takes it upon himself to be the liberator of these "children," who he believes he can free by writing their stories as told by the spirits themselves. And it is through Jim's eyes that we relive the final moments of several of the young men trapped in the house. Inman doesn't shy away from details, as the scenes he paints are sexually graphic, horrifying, and gory.
In order to relieve the tension created by these horrific scenes, Inman introduces humor in the form of several friends Brandon has invited to spend the weekend, not realizing at the time that the house was as haunted and dangerous as it has revealed itself to be. Letters isn't afraid of making his presence known to the group of men, and neither are the ghosts of the hustlers. Letters is actually trying to drive them from the house because he realizes what Jim is trying to do. And once Jim explains to his friends what is going on, they agree to help as much they can. But what's a gathering of gay men without the campiness and flippant and sometimes bitchy humor. It might seem inappropriate, and even irreverent considering what the victims have gone through, but it works, as the reader often finds themselves chuckling in response to the reactions of these men to the horrors going on around them. Some might think it unrealistic, but the way Inman weaves it into the narrative so fluidly, it just seems natural. After all, folks often deal with traumatic events with humor.
I'm not going to offer any spoilers. If you want to see if James and his friends survive the ordeal and if they're successful in liberating the unfortunate victims and exorcising the ghost of Nigel Letters, you'll just have to read the book. I rarely have to put books aside because of content, but some of the scenes contained in this book are emotionally draining, and I was forced to set the book aside to allow myself to regroup before pushing on. I do have to admit, however, that the ending, at least for me, gets a little muddy and raises a big question, but the overall ride was intense and enjoyable. I do want to re-emphasize that this book has a number of triggers that can upset readers, so if you are put off by rape scenes, gay sex, or child abuse, this is not a book you should read, but if you can deal with those issues and are looking for an excellent haunted house story, this is one to consider. Beyond the horrors endured by the young men in this book, Inman has created some disturbingly creepy instances as regards the haunting. I'm curious to see what his other books are like, so I will definitely be reading more of Inman's work.
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