By Robert R. McCammon
1988 Pocket Books
Paperback, 346 pages
Robert McCammon was one of the
titans in the Golden Age of Paperback Horror. His books were everywhere and unanimously
praised. I even bought Mystery Walk back in my youth but I never got
around to reading it. His books are long, between 350 and 500 (or more)
pages and that usually puts me off. I do have a bunch of his books in my “To Be
Read” pile so I picked the slimmest one with which to break my cherry. First
published in 1980, I had the 1988 Pocket Books first print paperback of The
Night Boat sitting there and went for it. Pretty damn good book. I love
when that happens.
David Moore is diving in the
water outside of Coquina, a Caribbean island that he’s adopted as home,
exploring the deep, when he sets off an old depth charge. This uncovers and
releases an old World War II Nazi U-Boat which rises to the surface and sticks
on the rocks there. Coquina is a small island that was almost burned to the
ground during the war and the villagers are not happy to see the boat.
They know… it is evil.
They’re right. Moore and the
local constable Kip go into the boat and discover the mummified crew. Did they
actually see one move? Damn skippy, they did. The skeletal crew go on nightly
raids in Coquina, seeking human blood and flesh. This is where the book really
worked for me. McCammon’s gory descriptions are fabulous and I was wiggling my
feet as I read about the carnage. Drinking blood from bite wounds… “They
broke open new rivulets of fluids, like dark wine from fleshy casks.” Oh
yeah, that is my kind of poetry! The attacks are pretty chilling and a few
times I wondered if skeletons with dried, brown flesh and tattered clothes were
standing in the dark outside my bedroom door as I read.
The book is not without its
problems, though. Until the halfway mark, every woman is a prostitute, then we
get a woman who researches wrecks and seems pretty courageous and capable but
she never really gets to shine and she becomes little more than a love interest
for Moore. Many of the islanders are referred to only as “the black” by the
narrator which just feels wrong in today’s world. (I know, this was written 40+
years ago.) With 100 pages to go to an exciting and fiery climax, a new
character is introduced for nothing more than exposition and a barely mentioned
character becomes the top dog in the fight against the zombies. It seemed to me
that the book could have used some editing or rearranging, but overall I
enjoyed it a lot and I look forward to my next McCammon book. Luckily, all of
the ones I have on deck have beautiful covers by Rowena Morill, like this one
does.
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