There’s a distinct halting prosody to his twangy speech, and he has a vernacular all his own: people in general are “buds” while Tingle fans are “buckaroos.”

Is…is Chuck Tingle deep south? Idk about anyone else, my mind always pictured the actual Tingle from LoZ. A helpful, latex wearing, distinctly uncomfortable little man who means well in a fun way but is also clearly insane. Now he has a cowboy hat.

high-concept in Pounded in the Butt by My Own Butt, which realizes its conceit through some unexpectedly intricate sci-fi worldbuilding.)

No. No, I am not prepared to accept anything with that title has intricate, carefully planned world building, no. There is no way this could be happening to me. I can’t even read this in front of anyone to find out. Books with titles like that go deep in the attic for people to find after I’m dead.

Tingle situates Camp Damascus within the current boom of queer horror, but also within a less developed subgenre he terms “neurodivergent horror.”

The protagonist, 20-year-old Rose, is a devout member of the Kingdom of the Pine, a Christian sect famed for its conversion therapy camp. Whenever Rose’s thoughts linger too long on attractive women, she endures cold spells, coughs up insects, and witnesses bizarre apparitions.

As cracks form in her faith and she realizes her sexuality, it’s heavily implied that Rose’s ability to break through the cult’s brainwashing is due to the fact that she’s on the autism spectrum.

Really mad that this sounds fantastic. I’m considering that now. What I need in my house is another book.