Customer Reviews

The Worthy: A Ghost's Story

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Conrad Sutton is a heck of a ghost. I could almost smell his Abercrombie and Fitch cologne lingering around me when I was reading this book.

THE WORTHY is one of the saddest, funniest, bittersweet books I have ever read. It was so good that when I finished it the first time, I read it again because I wasn't ready to say goodbye to Conrad or Miss Etta or Sarah Jane or Maggie. The author paints Baton Rouge and Louisiana with with such a sexual and sweaty tinge.

And I know that a lot of people compare this "ghost's story" to THE LOVELY BONES, and it is similar in that both the narrators are dead, but that's where the similarities end. THE WORTHY delves into a 19 year old's soul (Granted that may not be very deep as most frat boys aren't the deepest souls -- even dead ones) Will Clarke spins a tale so beautiful and gothic that it's hard not to cry AND laugh out loud at the end. Something I never do. I am not a cryer! But some of Clarke's disarms you with his humor and then he throws an image at you that hits you right in heart.

THE WORTHY is worth a read or two or three. It's that good.

The Worthy is a fast-paced, often fluffy piece of fiction that grabs you quickly and won't let you go. The first-person account of a frat boy pledge's ghost (murdered by an older "active" in the frathouse during initiation rites) is often funny and often gruesome -- and it truly shows the cruel realities of life, even if seen through a dead man's eyes. The ending has a great twist, too.

I really enjoyed this book, it started off with a bang and never slowed down. I rarely read a book in one day but this was one of those books I couldn't put down. It's hard to believe it was written by a 26 year old young man. I'm a fan!

Will Clarke is such a great author, he reminds me of Anne Rice because you are sucked in and have no idea what is going on around you while you read. This book is so interesting because it is told from the viewpoint of a ghost, but instead of the typical nice naive person who is randomly murdered ghost (Lovely Bones, Dead like me) this is your stereotypical fraternity boy. The frat boy perspective gives it a fresh viewpoint and makes it really relatable because this guy is so normal and not perfect and not all harmonious & pious after death. Like Lord Vishnu, you have no idea where this book is going to go and you can't put the book down. I also liked learning about the inner workings of fraternity rituals which I've always wondered about, hence The Skulls reference above. You can't go wrong with a Will Clarke book and here you have ghost stories, plus the college experience, plus great flushed out characters. If you love interesting books that will make you think, this is for you!

Quite a hard book to describe because it's unlike any I have ever read; it is absent of any predictable path. And that is the very best kind of book to read especially when it's written this well, with this much original imagination. It's a book you will not be able to put down and that fascinates because you do not know where it's going and if Clarke can conclude the suspense successfully, with the same level of imagination and unpredictability. That was the burning question in my mind...'how will the author end this?'...I wasn't disappointed. So I'll let you read it to find out for yourself, and then wonder like I do...who incarnates Will Clarke??!!

Will Clarke has taken two well-trodden premises, a tale of college fraternity hijinks and a narrator from beyond the grave, and grafted them together in a refreshingly original and fun way.

Our disembodied narrator is one Conrad Avery Sutton III, newly initiated brother in LSU's Gamma Chi fraternity. Born into money and committed to the pursuit of frat boy hedonism, the living version of Conrad doesn't sound too likeable. But as a spirit floating about the LSU campus, where he is able to narrate from a first-person omniscient point of view, Conrad entertains with his quirky wit and evokes instant sympathy for his plight. You see, Conrad was struck down at the height of his youth, thrown down a flight of stairs by a psychopath named Ryan Hutchins, who masquerades as Gamma Chi's golden boy president and manages to avoid all suspicion for the murder. So who can fault him for shadowing Ryan and waiting for his opportunity to seek vengeance?

In Hamlet-esque fashion, vengeance becomes a rather drawn-out and deliberate pursuit for Conrad's spirit, who bides his time while following the next crop of Gamma Chis through the grueling pledging and initiation rites. One particular pledge, an earnest farm boy whom Conrad is able to possess when inebriated, becomes the physical medium through which Conrad is able to act.

Throw in a Bible-thumping coed, an eccentric fraternity cook who's able to speak with the dead, and an unlikely bond that forms between Ryan's beautiful girlfriend and the possessed farm boy, and you have a savory jambalaya that's sure to entertain. The story is also laced with some touching themes, most notably the longing for the touch and feel of the material world expressed by a spirit who was unfairly sundered from his body at a time when he was so vital and alive.

-Kevin Joseph, author of "The Champion Maker"

The Worthy is a fast, easy read about life (and death) in a raucous fraternity. Conrad Avery Sutton III has a singular mission: to destroy Ryan Hutchins, a handsome golden boy and chapter president of Louisiana State University's Gamma Chi fraternity. Why? Because Conrad was killed by Ryan during a vicious hazing incident and must now haunt the frat house. He watches the sadistic Ryan snort coke, beat his girlfriend, torture pledges in disgusting ways, and murder other students. He decides to possess the body of one of the new pledges in order to get vengeance upon his vile enemy.
The story is told from the ghost's point of view, and he is as arrogant and foul-mouthed as one would expect a spoiled-rotten son of privilege to be. Each character in the story is a ridiculous caricature, with Christians portrayed as moronic imbeciles and the lone African American portrayed with a demeaning plantation dialect. The women in the story are mindless sex objects or ugly, fat, and otherwise sexually unattractive. The "humorous tone" of the book is not funny, but crass and low-brow--which might have been the author's goal in making Conrad seem believable.
If you are looking for off-beat comedic horror fiction, check out Christopher Moore.

As a college student and Kappa Alpha brother at a large university, I am always interested to read novels about fraternities. I like Mr. Clarke's writing, but the problem with this book as it relates to fraternities- it's just more of the same. The characters are the cookie cutter frat boys that seem to appear in just about every book, movie, or television show. The fraternity aspects are not believable. I don't know if Mr. Clarke intended the hazing, partying, and sex to be so exaggerated and overdone, but he has accomplished this like many others before him. EPSILON ZETA has this beat hands down for a depiction of fraternities.

However, his writing is sharp and I liked it enough to order Lord Vishnu's Love Handles. I would recommend The Worthy, just not if you were trying to learn anything new about fraternities.

Murder victim Conrad Sutton is not cloud-sitting in heaven watching the world continue on without him. He's a callow, sometimes shallow, and sometimes bitter teenager (is there any other kind?) who misses the boozy Frat life that got him killed. So he returns to college to extract revenge for his hazing death. But he has that problem that ghosts usually have: No one can see him, and he can't touch anything. How he gets around the ghost laws of physics will make you laugh. A lot. And out loud. During his haunting, Conrad's motive for his worldly intrusion changes until I was rooting for him to find peace. This is a brilliant piece of work. The humor is sharp-edged and catches you off guard; yet the pathos is there, which made me worry about Conrad's ultimate end.

Once again Will Clarke has blended two (or more) genres for a delightful, fresh and snappy read. Those who enjoyed LORD VISHNU'S LOVE HANDLES with welcome this novel with arms wide open.

THE WORTHY tells the story of a dead teenager who comes back to haunt (and torment) the man who murdered him. The story takes place in Louisana (LSU, to be specific) among the fraternity scene on campus. As usual, the story is packed full of sardonic humor and incisive wit and flows wonderfully from page to page. Clarke has taken the "ghost story" to a new literary level and makes it a journey you will want to take over and over again.

There is a sure-fire hit for Palahniuk fans (especially those with a strong heart for LULLABY and DIARY.) There are too many laughs here to list. Just get it and read it! You won't "ignore the dead" any longer!