Horror novelist Armando Muñoz has adapted the classic holiday horror film Silent Night, Deadly Night into novelized form. On Christmas Even 1971, a last-minute visit to his grandfather ruins Billy Chapman’s life forever. Once enraptured by the image of Santa Claus, Billy ends up witnessing his parents brutally murdered by a man disguised as Jolly Old Saint Nick. Now an orphan, he and his baby brother are raised in a strict Catholic orphanage under the care of a vicious Mother Superior. As expected, it’s a perfect storm of unresolved trauma wrapped into a nightmare childhood. At eighteen, Billy attempts to create a normal life for himself. When forced to play Santa Claus at the local toy store where he works, Billy snaps and goes on a violent rampage to kill everyone he thinks is “naughty.” He packs his things to give one final bloody gift to the Mother Superior who tormented him.
If you’re looking for a cheerful book for the holidays, the novelization of Silent Night, Deadly Night is absolutely not what you’re going for. Author Armando Muñoz’s descriptions are graphic and intense, capturing the bloody nature of the original film. For those who want to get a bit more of the inner life of the characters from the film, this is a perfect way to relive the film and find out a bit more about motives. Just be aware its one bloody ride.
Silent Night, Deadly Night is now available from Titan Books.
