The Scary Reviews

Genre: Horror
Length: 106 Pages
Publisher: Cemetery Dance Publications
Release date: January 26, 2024
Synopsis:

A young boy runs away from his abusive home to live in the fort he’s built in the middle of a Michigan cornfield. But when a cosmic discovery late one night warps reality into a mutating nightmare, it’s up to loyal friends to fix what they can… and bury what they can’t.

My Review-

Chad Lutzke sits on the top of my list for coming of age stories. He’s been killing it since his release of Of Foster Homes & Flies. I always return to his work because of his outstanding characters. Bruises on a Butterfly gives us not just one, but three great characters. Bruises on a Butterfly is filled with horror and the struggles of growing up in equal measure. In Bruises on a Butterfly we meet three young boys, just shy of the magical age of being a teen, Kevin, Jackie, and Taylor. Soon they discover life throws curve balls when you least expect it. Kevin and Jackie have a pretty good home life, but Taylor’s home life is anything but good.

The boys have just completed their clubhouse/fort in the middle of a field. This is, and will always be, the high point in life for any group of boys. They plan a secret overnight outing at the new clubhouse/fort and all is going great until a flash in the sky brings a curveball they can’t imagine. Chad Lutzke now has the reader where he wants them, invested in these boys’ lives, and the adventure of a secret night at their clubhouse. This is where the horror is turned up and lives are sent on a path no one could predict.

I love the coming of age genre since discovering stories like OF FOSTER HOMES & FLIES, HAVEN, and BOYS LIFE to name a few favorites. I return to Chad Lutzke time after time knowing he will grab me and take me on an adventure I won’t soon forget. Escaping to another world he has created is always a pleasure. Like so many previous tales from the mind of Chad Lutzke, Bruises on a Butterfly is another I highly recommend.

Link to purchase Bruises on a Butterfly

Chad Lutzke, Biography-

Chad has written for Famous Monsters of Filmland, Rue Morgue, Cemetery Dance, and Scream magazine. He’s had dozens of short stories published, and some of his books include: OF FOSTER HOMES & FLIES, STIRRING THE SHEETS, SKULLFACE BOY, THE SAME DEEP WATER AS YOU, THE PALE WHITE, THE NEON OWL and OUT BEHIND THE BARN co-written with John Boden. Lutzke’s work has been praised by authors Jack Ketchum, Richard Chizmar, Joe R. Lansdale, Stephen Graham Jones, Tim Waggoner and his own mother.

He can be found lurking the internet at www.chadlutzke.com