Floater By Gary Brandner

Floater
By Gary Brandner
1988 Fawcett
Paperback, 295 pages

                The entire story is told on the back cover; straightforward and simple. But in Gary The Howling Brandner’s hands, it is a compelling and intricate narrative that satisfies right up until its somewhat abrupt but still rousing ending. No, it’s not about an unflushable turd. Grow up.

 

                Lindy is the prettiest girl in school, Roman is her jock-star boyfriend and Alec is their hanger-on friend. They are in the upper tier of popularity in high school. At the polar opposite end of the spectrum is Frazier. Smart as hell, but nerdy, pimply and chubby. He has a crush on Lindy (but who doesn’t?) but he knows he’ll never have a chance. But he does have one thing: the hard-earned ability to astrally project.

 

                One night while floating around outside Lindy’s window, he accidentally catches her in a moment of self-intimacy. She breaks a family heirloom in her excitement, and Frazier decides to replace it to get on her good side. Hey- how did he know about that? Peeper much? Lindy, Roman, and Alec plan a way to get even, but their practical joke goes too far, and Frazier dies. His body does anyway. His spirit lingers on and 20 years later, he forcibly invites the three back to Wolf River, Wisconsin to the scene of the crime to get even. It’s payback time.

 

                The story is told in flashbacks and throughout, Lindy is the only person who is the least bit likeable. Frazier, as a floater, is an evil-tempered spirit thinking only of revenge. His post-mortem floater- possession training are some of my favorite parts, starting on a baby, elevating to preschoolers and finally an old man. Straightening out the man’s arthritic fingers is a wonderfully wince-worthy scene. Sure, you need to suspend disbelief quite a bit with this book, but Brander’s characters are fully explored and that helps keep the story from becoming too far-fetched.

 

                With a subtle but very effective cover by Stanislaw Fernandes, Fawcett’s Floater paperback is a good way to experience this excellent addition to the Gary Brandner section on your shelf. It’s still pretty easy to find on the cheap, too.