Savage Lake: Interview with author Nick Medina

We're kicking off Halloween week with a fantastic Spooky-Season reading recommendation from friend of the show and author Nick Medina. SAVAGE LAKE is Nick's fourth novel, and it is a fun and suspenseful homage to some of your favorite horror movie motifs. It tells the story of Oscar, an avid horror movie fan, who accompanies his mother to the rundown cabin on Torchlight Lake that she's just inherited. His mother Nell is haunted by the memories of this place and of the strange, still unexplained things that happened to her family here a quarter century earlier. Before long, local road closures make it impossible for them to leave as mysterious occurrences begin to unfold and Nell becomes less and less herself.

As we see Oscar try to make sense of some inexplicable occurrences around him (which he of course filters through the lens of his vast horror film knowledge), we also learn Nell's story from those many years back -- a story of fractured family tensions, community prejudices, and a mysterious unsolved tragedy that tore Nell's family apart. As Nell's past and Oscar's present begin to converge, Oscar is forced to face something far more terrifying than movie monsters.

Reed got the chance to speak with Nick about the inspirations for his book, its propulsive and fun narrative framework, and the richer themes on its mind about the intangible things we inherit from our families: not just eye color or hair color, but wounds and fears and hopes and dreams.

Nick's book is a fantastic choice for Halloween week reading. We hope you'll check it out and we hope you enjoy our conversation!
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Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts here..

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