In his third novel award-winning author William Gay is sure to astound listeners with his dark themes and memorable characters. When Kenneth and Corrie Tyler become suspicious of the town undertaker, they attempt to discover the truth. But what they find is far worse than they had feared. "Gay successfully uses [the Southern Gothic] form's ability to unsettle readers, forcing them to see anew darker aspects of humanity."-Washington Post Book World
Download and start listening now!
"Bizarre and horrific story about a perverse undertaker who is blackmailed by a teenage brother and sister (the Tylers) who discover his necrophilia through some disturbing photos they steal from the undertaker's briefcase. But instead of giving in to the demands, the undertaker pays a hired kill to go after the Tylers and retrieve the stolen photos. This is really an edge of your seat thriller and the author (William Gay) has described it as a modern Hansel and Gretel which is an apt description. The last half of the book mainly tells how the boy, Kenneth, is chased by the hired killer through a backwoods area in the South called the Harrikin which is full of overgrown machinery, sunken mine shafts, and eccentric characters. This novel reminded me somewhat of "Night of the Hunter" by Davis Grubb - another superb Southern Gothic tale. I would highly recommend both "Twilight" and "Hunter"."
— Frank (4 out of 5 stars)
" Bizarre and edgy. Lots of suspense and twists. "
— Phyllis, 1/28/2014" I'm an avid fan of William Gay. As a native Tennessean, he speaks to me in a language I've heard all myl life. As I read this book I kept saying to myself,"I don't like this ... It's too dark, too morose, too evil but then I could never put it down. I was literally awake into the early morning three nights in a row. Thank goodness I finished it! Maybe now I can get some sleep... "
— Linda, 1/18/2014" This book gave me a shudder that no other book has EVER produced. The writing is simple, yet so moving...amazingly descriptive...and dark. Did I mention the shudder? It is Southern Gothic at its best. I cannot wait to read another of his novels. I was so saddened to learn he passed away in February; he wrote four novels and some short story collections. I plan to own them all. "
— Lezlie, 1/17/2014" I liked this book, recommended by a review I read from Stephen King. It kept me page turning until the wee hours of the night, and I haven't found a book that I have wanted to read like that in a long time. "
— Chris, 1/3/2014" It really caught me off guard. I know there is more to this book than what I grasped and that there is more to William Gay than what he showed in this novel. It's a strange, wonderful and oh-so-very-overwhelming experience to read him. There is something very southern about TWILIGHT, more than with your typical southern novel. It would be real marvellous if it wasn't so damn grim. It was good, don't get me wrong, just an avalanche of data and sensations I was not ready to process. "
— Benoit, 12/29/2013" There is a fantastic bookstore in downtown Franklin, TN, called Landmark Books, owned by an extremely knowledgeable lover of books named Joel. He specializes in First Edition, and talked me into buying this author signed First. William Gay is not for the faint of heart. He deals with the darker sides of humanity through the southern gothic tradition. He does this while telling a great story, ie Steinbeck. Stephen King said in his year end review that this is the best book of 2007. I recommend it if you can handle a very dark subtext. "
— Drew, 12/25/2013" Is it sufficient to say that this was depressing, but not so depressing as to be wonderful? "
— Kesha, 12/20/2013" I didn't even get through 1/4 of this book. It jumped all over the place and couldn't keep up with it. Didn't really care for the author's writing either. No punctuation other than periods. "
— Billie, 11/20/2013" A creepy Southern Gothic tale involving young children, old men, and dead bodies. Some necrophilia throw in as well. Gay writes wonderfully; gorgeous poetic sentences add to the color of this book. "
— Stephanie, 6/29/2013" William Gay turns a simple, straightforward man-hunts-man story into a work of southern Gothic that reads like an allegory. An allegory for what, I'm uncertain. There are some gorgeous and eerie descriptions of backwoods life in here. "
— Kristen, 4/3/2013" I really enjoy reading William Gay. Sentences remind me of Cormac McCarthy. "
— Patti, 1/19/2012" Really enjoyed this greatly written novel. He brought great characters to life and as a unique writing style. It's wonderfully uncomfortable! "
— Bibi, 8/4/2011" Southern Gothic is alive and well. "
— Steve, 4/4/2011" If you aren't a Southerner, you might not get it all. But read it anyway. This is some good story. "
— Stan, 7/15/2010" Gay is an excellent storyteller--if you like bootlegger's daughters and psycho hillbillies and you can get past the purple passages. "
— Craig, 5/22/2010" Dark and rather gross in some parts, but hard to put down. "
— Laura, 3/11/2010" At times I could almost taste the sweat and dirt. The language is direct, at times powerful, and the story moves at a fast clip. Gay does not waste time with trifles, he plows you right through the heart of the tale. Kudos! "
— Sherry, 9/24/2009" Started off great and sort of just lost it with some pretty average writing. Over all I did enjoy it though. It would have gotten one or two stars had it not been for the necrophiliac undertaker angle... I mean who doesn't love those guys? "
— Eric, 5/10/2009William Gay is the author of the novel The Long Home. His short stories have appeared in Harper’s, Atlantic Monthly, GQ, and New Stories from the South 1999 and 2000. He was awarded the 1999 William Peden Award and the 2000 James A. Michener Memorial Prize.
T. Ryder Smith is an American actor. A native of New York state and long-time resident of New York City, he has appeared frequently on stage, particularly in avant-garde theater works, and in film, sometimes as a voice actor.