Radioland by Matt Cahill | The Miramichi Reader

In Matt Cahill’s novel, Radioland, something evil is stalking the streets of Toronto and people are dying in grisly fashion. Kris, a musician whose band has recorded some albums and attained a plateau of success and acclaim (shortlisted for the Polaris Prize!), has heard the rumours. But Kris has other pressing matters on his mind. A sexual abuse incident from his childhood has reared its ugly head. The man responsible is finally facing charges and Kris is sure he’ll be called upon to tell his story. But the thought of doing so makes him squeamish because years earlier his silence allowed that man to escape unpunished, free to harm other children. The guilt has left Kris feeling vulnerable and unmoored from his life as he struggles to focus on his music and sustain an emotional connection with his girlfriend, Heera.

Elsewhere in the city, Jill, who has also heard the rumours of murder, is facing a different kind of struggle. Jill is, depending on your perspective, cursed or gifted with over-developed, ultra-sensitive powers of perception and communication. She has been recruited by Geoff (one of the novel’s many shadowy figures) to work as a “cleanser”—that is, she will enter a house that a client is thinking of buying and suss out depraved or bloody events from the structure’s history. But Jill is also feeling vulnerable: she does not know where her powers come from, or even what they signify, and the death of her sister Angelica has left her with a bad case of survivor’s guilt. Jill is questioning her sanity as well, and not without reason: she drinks too much and carries on lengthy conversations with an imaginary therapist.

In their worst moments, Kris and Jill suffer blackouts and memory loss, both later fearing they might be responsible for the murders. With Kris and Jill spiralling—engaging in reckless behaviours, desperate to connect with someone who “gets” them—they join forces in the oddest way: Jill posts an anonymous advert on a power pole and Kris answers it. Their subsequent communications work better than therapy ever could: texting anonymously with another person grants them freedom to confess and disclose without fear or repercussions, and as time goes by, they develop a trusting bond, even though they never actually meet. The story reaches a climax when the two go on separate but simultaneous quests outside the city, looking for guidance and validation from others in their respective communities. Kris seeks out an old musical mentor, and Jill, who by this time has discovered Geoff was not who she thought he was, accepts an invitation from a “sensitive” named Mona (another shadowy figure).

In Radioland, his second novel, Matt Cahill has fashioned an unapologetically eccentric work of fiction. In these pages, “Radioland” is a place where connection and communication take place via alternative means: Kris speaks through his music, Jill is able to send and receive messages telepathically. The murders, which take place offstage and remain frustratingly remote from the main action, are perhaps a reminder that all communication carries risk, and that trust should not be granted lightly. Billed as a “literary thriller,” the novel does not actually generate much suspense. For all the feverish movement that happens here, the story proceeds slowly. Cahill weighs down his narrative with a burden of detail and distracting minutae. There are numerous scenes in which we follow Kris or Jill as they venture, step by step by step, through Toronto streets and/or environs, their heads filled with questions that nobody can answer. In the end, Radioland, as exhausting as it is entertaining, asks a great deal of the reader. Visit at your own risk.

Matt Cahill is a Toronto writer whose debut novel, The Society of Experience, was picked as a must-read by Harper’s Bazaar magazine. His short stories have appeared with Found Press, The Quarantine Review and Fusion Fragment. His essay “On Madness Within Imagination” was selected for Best Canadian Essays 2017. He has a private practice as a psychotherapist.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Buckrider Books (Oct. 18 2022)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 300 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1989496571
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1989496572

Ian Colford

Website

Ian Colford’s short fiction has appeared in many literary publications, in print and online. His work has been shortlisted for the Thomas H. Raddall Atlantic Fiction Award, the Journey Prize, the Danuta Gleed Literary Award, and others. His latest novel, The Confessions of Joseph Blanchard, was the winner of the 2022 Guernica Prize and was published by Guernica Editions in 2023. He lives in Halifax.