Customer Reviews

Chuggie and the Desecration of Stagwater (Mischief Mayhem Want and Woe)

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4 star:		(2)
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I just finished reading this book today, and I'm glad I did. I'm not really a fan of the horror or fantasy genre, but it was recommended to me by a friend, so I gave it a shot. First of all, this book is hilarious! The author clearly has an excellent sense of humor; I can imagine him being the type of guy that makes everyone he meets laugh. The storyline is action-packed and it's easy to get lost in the book. You stop reading the words and see a movie in your mind of Stagwater and all the characters. Kelley is extremely imaginative and paints pictures with his words of his demented, messed-up, unique world. Best of all is Chuggie. The main character of the book is not your typical protagonist. He's weird, rough, rude, ugly, and absolutely lovable, and dare I say sexy? Just when you think the story couldn't get any more messed-up or twisted, it does until it crescendos at the end. I've never read anything like this book, and I'm hoping there will be more to come. So, long live Chuggie, and long live Brent Micheal Kelley so he can continue to write about him into his old age.

While it's tempting to compare this book to other works of horror, fantasy, or science fiction, Brent Kelley's first novel combines elements of each while defying classification. Brimming with unique characters and tantalizing twists the story moves through a world all it's own.

The author has accomplished something one rarely sees in genre fiction, a truly unique and complex yet likable main character. Chuggie is not your average Joe, though he may pretend to be, he has horns, an anchor attached to him by a chain, and is the embodiment of drought. If that's not enough, he's a raconteur, has a deep sense of loyalty, and a slightly less deep set of morals. He can dry a lake should he choose to, or suck the moisture (and thus the lives) out of a city of people, a power he's none too comfortable with. This makes him a being at conflict with his own raison d'etre. Oh, and he's eternally blotto.

The rest of the cast is equally intriguing. With a witch (not a Wiccan), corrupt politicians, steel encased aliens, putrefied demons, pitiful orphans and more, it's hard not to want to choose favorites, but harder still to choose.

There's nothing about the book that isn't touched by Kelley's demented imagination, and yet the story holds together so well you move through this world as if you belong. Chuggie's adventure's have a feeling of the epic to them, even though he's actually only going to retrieve a purse for a female friend (did I mention it's a goat face purse?), and move to a satisfyingly intense climax.

Well-written, entertaining, and filled with originality, Chuggie and the Desecration of Stagwater is a must-read.

There is a town called Stagewater that has a river running through it. It would seem normal by comparison to any other town, but there are things brewing that most of its citizens don't know about.

The town is under the protections of Steel Jacks (robot aliens from another planet), and run by the magistrate, Haste, and his lackeys. Haste and his tight group of counsel use a method call tourgery to collect the sorrow from Stagewater's citizens. By drinking in the sorrow, they enter into the Pheonal Trance, which allows Haste to predict the future of Stagwater. It's deemed a necessary evil for the greater good of the city.

One of Haste's trances induces the vision of a traveler that will bring the destruction of the town. The word is spread to send any strangers north of the city walls.

Disease, Fire, Flood, and Drought were all born somewhere around the beginning of time. Norchug Mot Losiat, better known as Chuggie, is the incarnation of Drought. His goals aren't by any means hard; he just wants to make it to the ocean with his anchor and chain, which is attached to his ribs.

FROM THE BOOK:
"I'm want. It means I thirst. It means I'm poor. It means something's missing. It means I fall short." Chuggie spat at a mossy log. His eyes pointed at the ground, but his gaze pointed inward.
"That sounds like you get the losing end of the stick. If that's really true, why would you keep on trying."
"It's just true enough." Chuggie squinted. "Result is I don't waste a lot of time makin' plans. Usually just go. Livin' like that can really shake the confidence if you aren't as amazing as ol' Chuggers." His smile returned.
***

On his way to the ocean his anchor gets snagged in a tree outside of Stagwater. Gaurds are sent to direct him north, and by all means, keep him out of the city.
Chuggie grows upset with the way that he has been treated and suspects that the guards have used a spell on him. So he defies their request to head north and wanders south. South of Stagwater he finds a witch that has been banished from Stagwater and bound to the place that she lives. Chuggie has to free her, but first he needs to bring her some items, and this involves entering Stagwater... and heading north. What lies to the north? No one knows, because no one ever comes back.

Brent Michael Kelley did an excellent job of creating a colorful cast of characters for Chuggie and the Desecration of Stagwater. Demons, alien robots, incarnates, witches, and animated objects all come together to create a great dark fantasy that will stick with me. I loved it, and I'm glad that I had a chance to read it.

An excellent first work by Mr. Kelley. Don't pick this up thinking you'll be able to read for a few minutes at a time. You'll want to keep reading for hours.
Exactly how much blood DOES one lose while wielding the mysterious dagger? I can't wait to find out in the next installment!

I blew through this book in about 4 hours, I couldn't put it down, mainly due to the character Chuggie. I love characters that are bumbling drunks. The situation with Shola was a complete surprise to me and I am a huge fan of gore so the descriptions of the Desecration was one of my favorite parts of the book. I'm contemplating getting a corpse/goat/udder head woman tattoo now...haha. I loved the cover artwork too. The only thing I was kind of unclear about his anchor. Was it attached to him or does he just carry it around? Either was that's a tiny detail and didn't detract from the story. Fuggin awesome....

I am a person that loves to read, but has a hard time finding or making the time to do it. When I started reading Brent Kelley's book, however, I felt that I needed to get back to it as often as possible in order to see what happens next. I am a fan of horror and fantasy books and this one fits right into the genre. The books takes you into a new world, but not in a obnoxious or cliche' way. Kelley designed some very original characters. Chuggie, the main character seems drunk, worthless and useless at first, but readers soon discover he has many skills, much wisdom and even some compassion. The "bad guys" are created to be hated, and the "good guys" are created to be loved. The story is fast flowing, exciting and leaves you wanting more. Nice job Brent Michael Kelley! I hope this is just the beginning.

Having been a fan and proud owner of Brent Kelley's paintings for years, I was excited to hear he had ventured into the world of the printed word and was eager to see what he had in store. Sure enough, the intrigue of his creative works flourishes regardless of format.
Chuggie and the Desecration of Stagwater played into many of my areas of interest. The Steel Jacks had a sci-fi feel to them. Stagwater's leadership provided a religous/political bent. Chuggie came away being a fun, likable and dare I say heroic character without delving into the realm of the goody two-shoes. And the Desecration itself was a twisted cesspool of awesomeness! In fact, the descriptions of the Desecration and its inhabitants were the most memorable parts of the book for me.
Besides waiting to see if a sequel follows this publication, I'm curious to see what other forms of media the author marries his ideas to. Chuggie the video game? Why not? Chuggie could totally be the new Mario!

This book keeps you guessing and doesn't let up! Great read! Definitely a page turner. Chuggie is a strangely simple yet mysterious leading character. Got to see what's next!

I absolutely loved this book! It has a mix of characters that no one but Kelley can imagine. Although the characters are somewhat twisted and can't even be described by anyone but the author, you still can't help but get sucked in. I could not put this book down and read the entire book in less than 2 days! I am really looking forward to the next book. Chuggie is an awesome little character!!!!!!! I want to know what he is up to next!!!! Oh, and by the way, who knew he could fly???? There are so many twists in this book, it just keeps you guessing and wanting more! Loved it!!!

I'm going to admit that, based on the cover alone, I probably wouldn't have bought this book. Not that the cover is bad, it's actually quite charming. But looking at it gives me the impression of a YA novel, with the crayon-like colors and the pumpkin-headed things approaching the horn-headed protagonist who appears to be chained to a tree. But the book was recommended so I gave it a go...and I am very glad that I did.

I don't know if Kelly does this, but when I write a book sometimes I imagine a particular actor, celebrity or even a friend as a character when I'm writing them. It just makes it play out in my head better. I also do this when I'm reading a book. So, I can't say for sure who Kelly had in mind when he was writing Norchug (Chuggie) but I can tell you who I imagined: Tom Waits. Except with horns. And it worked perfectly for me.

Despite being as old as the world itself, Chuggie is a pretty simple fellow. Unfortunately, he lives in a world full of ulterior motives. Chuggie's motivation is simple: he just wants to live a simple life...whatever that means for a living embodiment of a force of destruction. Stuff keeps getting in the way, like a town run by three evil bastards: Stagwater. Though Chuggie's plans there are rather simple (he wants a boat...he's already got the anchor) all the power players there have other plans for him. Some want him dead, some want to recruit him, a couple want to marry him. Chuggie doesn't want any part in this, but he gets pulled in against his better judgement.

Chuggie is an entertaining character, kind of an O, Malandro rogue. He's as old as the world itself, but still seems to fit into it somehow. As the avatar of drought, Chuggie is always thirsty and, if he wishes, can drain the liquid out of everything. He's not particularly comfortable with this ability, so he doesn't enjoy using it. Still, it's always there in the background, haunting him. He learned a while back that being drunk quiets the voice, so he made that permanent--which apparently he also has the power to do. Chuggie is therefore drunk at almost all points in the book. As such, people tend to assume he's just a common drifter, and he likes it that way. Unfortunately, those in the know see him for what he really is, or at least can tell he's more than that.

The story is compelling: Chuggie tries to enter Stagwater to buy a boat for a trip to a warmer place. All he has is a bag of junk, the clothes on his back, and an anchor (in the shape of a lady) at the end of a chain he wraps around his body. Chuggie uses the anchor as a flailing weapon at several points in the book, which is hilarious because getting hit with an anchor WOULD HURT SO MUCH! If you're like me, you'll laugh out loud the first time he tosses the anchor into someone. Anyway, Stagwater lets him know he isn't welcome and tries to send him north, even using magic to try and compel him to go there. They definitely don't want him going south, or entering the town. So, Chuggie goes south just to piss them off. That's where he meets a woman living in the forest, a witch seemingly imprisoned by a magical spell, but attended by an army of animated scarecrows (no, they don't sing). Chuggie, who has been alone most of his life, falls in love with the witch and is motivated to free her. She sends him back to Stagwater to look for an item that can save her. And that's where things start to get complicated.

The most entertaining part of the book are Chuggie's dialog, both internal and external. Chuggie is creative with his profanity, using terms like "slime tits!" and "goat rammin frog dicks!" Chuggie's biggest flaw is that, despite his age, he's relatively naive and trusting. Despite living in a world full of people who don't care about anything but their own agenda, Chuggie takes people at their word a lot and that's what leads him to almost getting killed a lot. But it's understandable that he'd be that way. Chuggie is a simple creature: a force of nature, more or less. The world is far more complicated, and Chuggie's outsiderness makes him ill equipped to operate in it with the same level of guile as those around him. He gets along best with other characters with similar, simple motivations; two city guards who only care about their families, a child who just wants a home, and a conjurer who just wants to practice her art. I enjoyed watching Chuggie maneuver through whatever they threw at him, always on the very edge of losing everything. It was very endearing.

Despite it's kind of playfulness, the book has an undercurrent of darkness and horror. There are evil, unspeakable, disgusting things lurking in the woods north of the city. Terrible things happen in the city, too. Evil and destruction is present in all forms, from undead abominations, greed, lust, envy and revenge. Ironically, Chuggie is the only power player in the field who doesn't want to destroy anything.

I highly recommend this book to fans of fantasy or horror. The world is compellingly built, giving just enough details about thing and place outside the immediate sphere of the narrative to make you want to hear more. The characters are attractive and deep. The writing is good. On the downside, there were a couple of parts where POV was murky, but it doesn't throw you out of the story. Chuggie, in particular, is one of the most endearing characters I've met since Tyrion Lannister from the A Song of Ice and Fire series. I couldn't get enough of him. And I think you'll enjoy him too.