Camp Damascus

by Chuck Tingle

Overview

INSTANT USA TODAY & INDIE BESTSELLER

A Best Book of 2023 (Vulture) and a Best Horror Book of 2023 (Esquire, Library Journal) • A Bram Stoker Award Nominee and CALIBA Golden Poppy Award finalist!

Chuck Tingle's debut, Camp Damascus, is a searing and earnest horror debut about the demons the queer community faces in America, the price of keeping secrets, and finding the courage to burn it all down.

Welcome to Neverton, Montana: home to a God-fearing community with a heart of gold.

Nestled high up in the mountains is Camp Damascus, the self-proclaimed “most effective” gay conversion camp in the country. Here, a life free from sin awaits. But the secret behind that success is anything but holy.

And they’ll scare you straight to hell.

Also by Chuck Tingle:

Lucky Day

Bury Your Gays

Straight

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250874634
Publisher:	Tor Publishing Group
Publication date:	06/18/2024
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	8.20(w) x 5.50(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

CHUCK TINGLE is the USA Today bestselling author of Camp Damascus, Bury Your Gays, and Straight. His books have been finalists for the Bram Stoker and CALIBA Golden Poppy Award. He is a mysterious force of energy behind sunglasses and a pink mask. He is also an anonymous author of romance, horror, and fantasy. Tingle was born in Home of Truth, Utah and now lives in Los Angeles, California. Tingle writes to prove love is real, because love is the most important tool we have when resisting the endless cosmic void. Not everything people say about Tingle is true, but the important parts are.

Editorial Reviews

Fantastic. Camp Damascus is seriously good.”

—Jenny Lawson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Furiously Happy

“A genuinely terrifying nightmare – but it ain’t the monsters you gotta be afraid of. Chuck Tingle is absolutely the best guide through this level of Hell.”

—N.K. Jemisin, New York Times bestselling author

“It’s a bighearted, chilling ride that proves the author’s mantra over and over: Love is, indeed, real.”

—Vulture

“Camp Damascus is as joyous as it is upsetting. It’s a Queer horror novel that neither shies away from the pain of prejudice nor downplays the victory of self-acceptance."

—Esquire

"Camp Damascus is a very entertaining narrative about burning demons, friendship, and the power of love. ...It makes a statement that’s hard to deny: Chuck Tingle can write, and he’s here to stay."

—Gabino Iglesias, Locus

“Chuck Tingle continues to surprise and thrill. Camp Damascus is terrifying, darkly funny, and engagingly humane.”

—John Scalzi, New York Times bestselling author

“This book is highly entertaining, cinematic, and filled with monsters, both human and supernatural, all of which will lure horror fans to its pages, but what holds it all together is the immense love at the heart of the novel.”

—Library Journal (STARRED review)

“A timely, authentically chilling story.”

—Booklist (STARRED review)

“Camp Damascus is a queer horror novel that unpacks the cruelty of conversion camps and that particular brand of religious fervor that actively harms people who are different under the guise of godliness....It is genuinely horrifying.... It is also beautiful and affirming.”

—Reactor Mag

“Camp Damascus feels like a fantastic debut, and a subtle reinvention, and a proper evolution, all at once....a genuinely great horror story.”

—BoingBoing

“This chilling page-turner should win Tingle a slew of new fans.”

—Publishers Weekly

“A joyful, furious romp through dark places, Tingle proves he's as good at fear as he is at love.”

—T. Kingfisher, New York Times bestselling author of What Moves the Dead

"Camp Damascus is a hell of a ride. Tingle is right at home in the horror genre - he delivers all the thrills of a slasher while exploring the deep wounds that can be inflicted by broken systems. This book is worth your time."

—Sarah Gailey, author of Just Like Home

“Jaw-dropping...both frightening and utterly cathartic. A queer nightmare of demonic proportions!”

—Mark Oshiro, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Anger is a Gift

“This book is for anyone who thought they were going to hell for being themselves. Chuck Tingle takes that fear and weaves it into a seamless horror that will keep you up at night. Camp Damascus is a big hug to all of us who had to fight to find each other.”

—J.R. Dawson, author of The First Bright Thing

“Intelligent, cleverly written, and subversive. A strong and brilliant story of identity, love, sincerity, and personal triumphs even when things get dark.”

—R.R. Virdi, USA Today bestselling author of The First Binding

“Thrilling, engrossing, surprising, and ultimately uplifting. Tingle blends horror and sincerity and makes it look easy, producing a mystery of betrayal and righteous justice that you won't forget.”

—Ryan North, New York Times bestselling & Eisner-winning author

“Clever, scary as hell, and deeply satisfying. Love is real, and it transcends genre.”

—Jay Edidin, cohost of Jay & Miles X-Plain the X-Men podcast

"A well-crafted and surprisingly moving novel. And certainly quite different from Tingle’s previous work..."

—CrimeReads

From the Publisher