In a ruined house at the end of Yellow Street, an angry outcast hatches a scheme to take revenge for all the wrongs he has suffered. With the help of three alienated kids, he plans to hide razor blades, poison, and broken glass in Halloween candy, maiming or killing dozens of innocent children. But as the clock ticks closer to sundown, will one of his helpers—an innocent himself, in his own streetwise way—carry out or defeat the plan?
Told from the child’s point of view, in a voice as unforgettable as A Clockwork Orange, Kraus’ novel is at once frightening and emotional, thought-provoking and laugh-out-loud funny. It’ll make you rethink your concepts of family, loyalty, and justice—and will leave you double-checking the wrappers on your Halloween candy for the rest of your days.
I’ve seen Daniel Kraus refer to BLOOD SUGAR as one of his favorites of his own novels a handful of times. It’s been super high on my list to read for awhile now (along with all of Kraus’s backlist!), but knowing that the book takes places on/around Halloween, I wanted to time it just right!
Also, it’s so cool to have a Hard Case Crime book by one of your favorite authors! I started collecting HCC books when it launched in 2004. The timing of that was just perfect for me, because at the time I was reading TONS of crime fiction. I even joined their club when they launched & would get two new books sent to me each month, it was so fun!
But there’s nothing in the HCC catalog (that I’ve read, anyway!) that could have prepared me for BLOOD SUGAR. Likewise, there was nothing I’ve read by Daniel Kraus that could have prepared me for this book, either. Which just goes to show that he is not an author who is in the habit of repeating himself.
When I think of how different some of his books are…WHALEFALL to ANGEL DOWN. The whole TEDDIES SAGA to THE LIVING DEAD. And then yeah, BLOOD SUGAR has gotta be one of the wildest, most fucking bonkers things I have ever read in my entire life.
This is one of those reviews that feels difficult to write & will probably wind up being short/nonsensical. Because I think BLOOD SUGAR is something you need to really read for yourself to get any sense of what this book is all about. Even though the synopsis does a reasonable job explaining the overall premise…it doesn’t really convey the tone of the book. And also…while the cover is very on brand for Hard Case Crime & actually ties *directly* into the story, note that that’s a pinup calendar page & that (spoiler alert?) there are no actual witches in this book!
The majority of the story is told from the first-person POV of Jody, a young boy (I think he’s maybe 13?) living a pretty rough life. The style of narration takes some getting used to, and could potentially be a bit off-putting. Here’s a passage so you can get a sense for what I’m trying to describe:
“You cant punch a light switch long before your knuckles get torn up. I get stomach pains cuz a how the light switch starts getting all these little red smears. I guess Midget experiences it too cuz she starts squeaking. That doesnt sit right with me cuz Im her brother now and even if Im just a kid and mad short and have pinkeye I still have to man up and stand tall. So I go up to Dag and say real sensitive < Dag, hold up, we got you, my bitch> and that must be the magic words cuz she looks at me passionate with her pretty wet eyelashes before she takes a glare at all them apples. For a second I think I got it worked out in my mind. Dags upset cuz she doesnt like Robbies Halloween plan after all, she thinks its mean to children that dont deserve dangerous drugs and razor blades. And I think thats a real interesting perspective.”
BUT STICK WITH IT! Because amidst all the bizarre slang & lack of punctuation & WILDLY offensive observations, there’s something so endearing about Jody (even if he might be contagious with his pinkeye) and the more you read this, the funnier it gets. Jody is also fanatical about The Lord of the Rings (the movies), and his extreme devotion to that world is both relatable & very funny.
Jody spends his days hanging out with Dag (short for Dagmar), a girl from a nicer neighborhood/background who he has a big crush on. Also along on all their adventures is Midge, Jody’s adopted sister who doesn’t really speak, and has an affinity for insects.
And where they spend a lot of their time is in a rundown house on Yellow Street, owned by a guy named Robbie (who I believe is in his early twenties). Robbie is a miserable, angry person who has a lot of grudges & axes to grind (and as we find out, rather heartbreakingly, some of his gripes are totally legit), and he devises a horrible plan to sort of get back at the world: it’s Halloween soon, and he decides to lace Halloween candy with drugs or poison or razors or…something. Anything. Robbie isn’t great at planning.
So he enlists Jody, Dag, and Midge to help.
That’s…kind of the story in a nutshell.
BLOOD SUGAR is for sure one of the most unique reading experiences I’ve ever had. There were times where I was laughing hysterically. Times where I was legitimately shocked. Times I felt angry about the roughshod way these kids were living. This is like a coming-of-age story, but in the most twisted way imaginable. Like CATCHER IN THE RYE if Holden Caulfield were a juvenile delinquent who drank “Supermilk,” milkshakes with an unspecified variety of drugs blended in.
I loved this, wholeheartedly. I can see this book being challenging or upsetting for people, but there’s really something tender & beautiful here, buried under all the offensiveness & debauchery. Daniel Kraus just continues to blow me away with his incredible storytelling ability, and with the deftness he shows in switching up his writing style. Yeah, this one is fucking radical.
Grimdark Dad 