As if the river voyage on a flimsy raft weren’t treacherous enough, Sue Ellen and her companions find themselves pursued by a killer and an equally dangerous constable and his cronies. He also hires a demented tracker named Skunk to find and kill them. May Lynn’s father tells the town constable that the kids stole money from him, and he makes a deal to share the money if the constable helps him get it back. Imagine a 41 year old woman and three kids riding a raft down the river so they can catch a bus in the nearest big town. Sue Ellen’s mother, Helen, tires of her husband’s beatings and decides to join the youngsters. Of course they have a problem with that, since May Lynn was buried and not cremated.ĭark comedy follows as the three decide to proceed with their plan, leaving them with a can of May Lynn’s ashes and another can of stolen money. The three friends decide they want to leave their miserable town and take May Lynn’s ashes to be spread near the Hollywood sign in California. May Lynn’s dream had been to go to Hollywood and become a famous movie star, but instead she ended up buried in the paupers’ section of the local cemetery. Not only was May Lynn murdered, her body was weighted down by a Singer sewing machine tied to her leg. While fishing in the river, Terry and Sue Ellen, discover a body which proves to be a friend of the three, May Lynn Baxter, the prettiest girl in town. Terry is a “pretty” boy who is called a sissy by the ignorant rural townspeople and Jinx is a “colored” girl with a quick wit and sharp tongue. The storyteller is 16-year old Sue Ellen, who with her two best friends, Terry and Jinx, embarks on an adventure that is at times terrifying, at times humorous, but always entertaining. 'Being dead takes the fun out of living.' This is just one of the dozens of humorous truisms spoken by the unforgettable characters in this unique story set in a bottomland region of East Texas in the 1930’s.

Edge of Dark Water by Joe R. Lansdale