Genre Fiction
![Clay McLeod Chapman - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_B001KHHLNG.jpg)
What Kind of Mother: A Novel
"What Kind of Mother mixes Southern Gothic, a missing child story, and body horror into an entertaining brew sure to inform your nightmares."-Paul Tremblay, author of The Cabin at the End of the World and A Head Full of Ghosts
After striking out on her own as a teen mom, Madi Price is forced to return to her hometown of Brandywine, Virginia, with her seventeen-year-old daughter. With nothing to her name, she scrapes together a living as a palm reader at the local farmers market.
It's there that she connects with old high school flame Henry McCabe, now a reclusive local fisherman whose infant son, Skyler, went missing five years ago. Everyone in town is sure Skyler is dead, but when Madi reads Henry's palm, she's haunted by strange and disturbing visions that suggest otherwise. As she follows the thread of these visions, Madi discovers a terrifying nightmare waiting at the center of the labyrinth-and it's coming for everyone she holds dear.
Combining supernatural horror with domestic suspense into a visceral exploration of parental grief, What Kind of Mother cements Clay McLeod Chapman's reputation as a "star" (Vulture) and "the twenty-first century's Richard Matheson" (Richard Chizmar, Chasing the Boogeyman.)
After striking out on her own as a teen mom, Madi Price is forced to return to her hometown of Brandywine, Virginia, with her seventeen-year-old daughter. With nothing to her name, she scrapes together a living as a palm reader at the local farmers market.
It's there that she connects with old high school flame Henry McCabe, now a reclusive local fisherman whose infant son, Skyler, went missing five years ago. Everyone in town is sure Skyler is dead, but when Madi reads Henry's palm, she's haunted by strange and disturbing visions that suggest otherwise. As she follows the thread of these visions, Madi discovers a terrifying nightmare waiting at the center of the labyrinth-and it's coming for everyone she holds dear.
Combining supernatural horror with domestic suspense into a visceral exploration of parental grief, What Kind of Mother cements Clay McLeod Chapman's reputation as a "star" (Vulture) and "the twenty-first century's Richard Matheson" (Richard Chizmar, Chasing the Boogeyman.)
Editorial Reviews
One of Book Riot's Best Horror Books Of 2023
"Chapman (Ghost Eaters) is becoming a not-to-miss horror novelist. Suggest this one to a varied audience of fans who enjoy intense psychological tales like Paul Tremblay's The Pallbearers Club, body horror like Ahmed Saadawi's Frankenstein in Baghdad, and parental horror like Zoje Stage's Baby Teeth; don't forget fans of the pulp classic "Clickers" series, originated by J.F. Gonzalez."-Library Journal
"Bristling with uneasy energy, What Kind of Mother seizes you by the throat and never lets go. An ink-black story about grief, courage, and what we'll do for those we love."-Catriona Ward, author of The Last House on Needless Street and Sundial
"There's a moment in What Kind of Mother when a character worries that he's telling the story all wrong. The opposite is true of Clay McLeod Chapman. His lyrical prose shimmers, moving us seamlessly from one wounded soul to another. A good old-fashioned salty summer scare about the beautiful, terrifying power of belief."-Caroline Kepnes, New York Times best-selling author of the You series
"What Kind of Mother mixes Southern Gothic, a missing child story, and body horror into an entertaining brew sure to inform your nightmares."-Paul Tremblay, author of The Cabin at the End of the World and A Head Full of Ghosts
"A tremendous, heartbreaking work of dark fiction, where the horror seeps in quietly until you're left drowning. You won't forget about this tale anytime soon. A masterpiece."-Ronald Malfi, best-selling author of Come with Me
"I'm not sure how Clay McLeod Chapman manages to be both tremendously tender and brilliantly hideous in What Kind of Mother, but he does-in this strange, poetic, and gut-wrenching portrait of parenthood."-Erika T. Wurth, author of White Horse
"Another stunner . . . one of horror's modern masters. Beautifully written, de...
"Chapman (Ghost Eaters) is becoming a not-to-miss horror novelist. Suggest this one to a varied audience of fans who enjoy intense psychological tales like Paul Tremblay's The Pallbearers Club, body horror like Ahmed Saadawi's Frankenstein in Baghdad, and parental horror like Zoje Stage's Baby Teeth; don't forget fans of the pulp classic "Clickers" series, originated by J.F. Gonzalez."-Library Journal
"Bristling with uneasy energy, What Kind of Mother seizes you by the throat and never lets go. An ink-black story about grief, courage, and what we'll do for those we love."-Catriona Ward, author of The Last House on Needless Street and Sundial
"There's a moment in What Kind of Mother when a character worries that he's telling the story all wrong. The opposite is true of Clay McLeod Chapman. His lyrical prose shimmers, moving us seamlessly from one wounded soul to another. A good old-fashioned salty summer scare about the beautiful, terrifying power of belief."-Caroline Kepnes, New York Times best-selling author of the You series
"What Kind of Mother mixes Southern Gothic, a missing child story, and body horror into an entertaining brew sure to inform your nightmares."-Paul Tremblay, author of The Cabin at the End of the World and A Head Full of Ghosts
"A tremendous, heartbreaking work of dark fiction, where the horror seeps in quietly until you're left drowning. You won't forget about this tale anytime soon. A masterpiece."-Ronald Malfi, best-selling author of Come with Me
"I'm not sure how Clay McLeod Chapman manages to be both tremendously tender and brilliantly hideous in What Kind of Mother, but he does-in this strange, poetic, and gut-wrenching portrait of parenthood."-Erika T. Wurth, author of White Horse
"Another stunner . . . one of horror's modern masters. Beautifully written, de...
