Ordinary Horror

Frank Delabano is a retired science teacher living an unremarkable life in an unremarkable suburb. But in a sunny corner of his backyard lies his secret treasure: a magnificent rose garden. When his beloved blooms are threatened by a mysterious burrowing pest, he sends away for an organic remedy: an exotic tropical plant guaranteed to be "antithetical to garden varmints but harmless to pets and everything else." The strange "gopherbane" plants take care of the problem . . . and much more. Building to an unforgettable climax, Ordinary Horrortells an unsettling, richly atmospheric tale of creepily evolving menace. "An elegantly literary debut . . . Like a Stephen King novel written by Joseph Conrad." (Laura Miller, Salon.com) "Searcy's prose is a razor-like tool for dissecting the surreal mundanity of suburbia." (Los Angeles Times) "In controlled and lyrical prose, Searcy imbues the ordinary with the horrific . . . His skill is to keep us guessing." (The New Yorker)

David Searcy was recently awarded an NEA Creative Writing Fellowship grant.