The Girl on the Porch

by Richard Chizmar
150 pgs

I might be a fan of Richard Chizmar. My introduction to his writing was Gwendy's Button Box, which he co-wrote with Stephen King, and which I liked, but wasn't sure at the time how much I should credit Chizmar vs. King. Then I read his solo follow-up to that book, Gwendy's Magic Feather and enjoyed it just as much, sans King.So, I decided to pick up his novella-length story The Girl on the Porch, and the hits keep coming.

The story centers around the identity of a girl who in the middle of one night rings the doorbell of a couple of houses in a small neighborhood. None of the neighbors answered the door, since it was around 3:00 AM, but the next day, when Kenny and Sarah Tucker check the footage of their home security system, they see that it was a half-clothed woman with a shackle hanging from one of her wrists, who frantically rang their doorbell numerous times before running away and disappearing. When the police begin investigating, and when the girl's body turns up a short time later, tensions in the small community begin to build as neighbors begin turning on each other, questioning how much they really know and should trust one another.

The story is short and only takes an hour or two to read, which is both a positive and a negative. Chizmar doesn't waste much time with backstory and character development. He just throws you into the heart of the mystery and takes you for a ride. Unforunately though, I felt like the premise of the story merited a lengthier book. I would have loved for a longer and more gradual build up, along with an ending that didn't feel quite so abrupt.

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆