TRAVERSE

The cloud brings with it an overpowering “stench of rot and ruin” and seems to move with malicious intent. It leaves those it encounters covered in a mysterious yellow slime—if it doesn’t completely eviscerate them first. The novel weaves back and forth from the late 19th century to the near future, slowly unfolding the image of a relentless, growing horror that, despite the intervention of a mysterious division of the Central Intelligence Agency, eventually tears its way through Rhode Island and threatens to stretch far beyond. An ensemble cast of characters helps ground the horror and intrigue with intimate relationships and personal stakes in connection with the carnage. Memorable characters include the Gilded Age butler Wilcox Jennings, who finds himself transported to the 21st century after an encounter with the yellow fog, and Cy Warren, the overworked supervisor of a mental health hospital who finds himself dealing with problems that go far beyond anything he could have imagined. Meyers ably blends cosmic horror with the pacing and mystery of a SF thriller against the backdrop of Rhode Island’s estates and seaside cliffs. The resulting novel fulfills the expectations of its genres while injecting something new by investing deeply in New England history, scenery, and culture. Meyers introduces the horror element early on and steadily ratchets up the threat while deepening the mystery, always leaving the reader with more discomforting questions than easy answers. His clear love for the setting helps, too, with everything from the mansions to the cliff walk to even a ruined cityscape (“The skyline remained, partially visible from where he sat, but everything was off—twisted, decayed”) rendered clearly and evocatively, their specificity and eerie atmosphere contributing greatly to the unsettling terror at the story’s heart. All of this would be satisfying enough on its own, but Meyers adds an exciting layer of clandestine government activity, dedicated to investigating the supernatural.