People Live Still in Cashtown Corners
by Tony Burgess
"It is what it is. That's her car out there and, well, that's her right there."
Jeremy looks at the woman again. There's a few flies dipping in and out of the back of her skull.
"What happened to her?"
I feel a little uncomfortable. I wasn't really planning to lay it all out like this.
"Well, I hate to say this but I killed her."
Jeremy nods slowly. He's starting to take this in and I'm relieved.
"Don't ask me why. Anything I say is just gonna sound ridiculous."
I rub my hand in my hair. I want to appear frustrated.
"Things just got out of control."
Bob Clark owns the Self Serve in Cashtown Corners. It's the only business there and Bob is the only resident. He's never been comfortable around other people. Until he starts to kill them. And murder, Bob soon discovers, is magic.
People Live Still in Cashtown Corners is Bob's account of a tragedy we all thought was senseless.
Reviews - What's Being Said About Tony Burgess & People Live Still in Cashtown Corners
People Still Live in Cashtown Corners is the product of a literary mind that regularly licks at 12 volt batteries charged with pure insanity.
–Aaron Allen, Horror in the Hammer.
People Live Still in Cashtown Corners is a vibrant example of PsychoLit, a novel that deserves to take its place alongside such classic works as Ellis’ American Psycho and Oates’ Zombie.
–Alex Good, The Toronto Star.
. . . Burgess brings something original and fresh to the psycho-noir tradition . . . . With books like Waste, Bloody Women, The Disassembled Man and short stories like 'Hold You,' 'Pillow Talk' and 'Carpaccio' it looks like the psycho-noir is experiencing a bit of a renaissance for those readers willing to seek them out and People Live Still in Cashtown Corners is a worthy addition. Recommended.
–Spinetingler Magazine
Bob Clark . . . is clearly unhinged. Yet it is his voice, with its plain-spoken common sense, that draws us into the story and is so convincing that we almost don't question the peculiarity of his perspective. Until the murders begin to multiply, of course . . . a most disturbing read.
–Kerry Clare, The Globe and Mail.
Burgess’s newest novel is perhaps one of the cleverest works of fiction readers will encounter, in any genre . . . . Even the best horror novels seldom get this weird, and they rarely approach this kind of taboo . . . all the while being erudite, smart, and technically brilliant.
–Tony Fonseca, Dead Reckonings
Cashtown Corners is dark and demented and kind of awesome. Part of the awesomeness? I spent the whole book a little creeped out because I had no idea if it was based on a true story or not. Why? Because, in the middle of the book, there were black and white photos of the town, the killer and his victims.I will say no more.
–Mitch Adams, Broken Pencil.
After finishing People Live Still in Cashtown Corners, you won’t know whether to applaud Burgess’ impressively large literary cohones or arrange to have him committed to the nearest mental health facility.
–Paul Goat Allen, Barnes & Noble Community Blog.
Burgess uses the conventions of horror fiction to craft a deeply serious fable about human connection and the discordant consequences that can result from an inability to successfully integrate into the conventions of polite society. In this regard, Burgess numbers Flannery O'Connor and William Faulkner among his literary progenitors.
–Steven W. Beattie, That Shakespearean Rag.
A quick read, this compact book . . .is unnerving and unforgettable. Loved it for what it accomplishes in such a brief block of time and space.
–Chris Alexander, Fangoria.
The book tells the story of gas station clerk Bob Clark’s apparently unprovoked killing spree in rural Cashtown Corners, culminating with Clark barricaded in the home of a family he’s murdered. Sounds grim? It is! But it’s also smart, tricky, brainy, entrancing. I was hooked by the first two paragraphs, which read like Robbe-Grillet doing a Thomas Bernhard impression. I’m a sucker for Robbe Grillet and Bernhand so mashing them up? Mr. Burgess, where may I subscribe to your newsletter?
–Matthew Cavnar, The Vook Blog
Tony Burgess combines lyricism with graphic, cinematic violence.
–Quill & Quire.
There isn't an action in People Live Still in Cashtown Corners that isn't unsettling. Gross. Barbaric. But that's why it works.
–Backlisted.
Kudos to the author for taking a fictional story and making it seem incredibly real.
–Roundtable Reviews
(A) stunning achievement . . . an unforgettable and profoundly unsettling experience. You get that dirty, guilt-ridden thrill you get when rubber-necking an accident scene . . . Burgess makes sure you realize that the act of looking might just change you and show you something about others (and, of course, yourself) you didn't want to know.
–Paul Tremblay, Author of In the Mean Time, No Sleep till Wonderland and The Little Sleep.
