Daryl Gregory has quietly become one of those writers whose output I tend to devour on sight. His latest is a quick, razor-sharp novella from Tachyon Publications, We Are All Completely Fine (2014). It’s the tale of a group of troubled individuals who, under the supervision of psychotherapist Jan Sayer, form a support group for trauma victims. But these aren’t your usual trauma cases (if such a thing exists); the things they’ve been through are of the more inexplicable, supernatural variety. Their sessions are hesistant at first, but as they gradually get to know each other, they finally start to see some progress, and, startlingly, to find a connecting pattern to their shocking personal secrets.
After the madcap futurism of Afterparty, We Are All Completely Fine slides more into creepy, supernatural horror territory, and it’s clearly a milieu Gregory is comfortable working in. The narrative is bracing and memorable, full of realistic, sympathetic characters whose histories and fates are deftly intertwined. I loved the methodical reveal of its mystery, its sense of created family, and its secret-history ambience. I could see this one making a perfect little gem of an indie horror film.
