Throat Sprockets is an erotic horror novel by Tim Lucas, published in 1994.
Plot
It concerns an unnamed protagonist's obsessive quest to learn all he can about a mysterious film called
Throat Sprockets. As fixation on the film consumes his personal life, he develops a sexual fetish for women's throats, an affinity which begins spreading to global and apocalyptic proportions, as the film's cult status and legend grows.
Throat Sprockets in Taboo
Throat Sprockets began life as a graphic novel, written by Lucas and illustrated by Mike Hoffman. Two chapters of the comics project appeared in
Steve Bissette horror anthology comic
Taboo, issues #1 and #3. A third chapter, illustrated by David Lloyd was published in issue #8.
Editions
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November, 1994, Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc paperback,
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1994, Fourth Estate Limited, hardcover
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1997, as "Salles Obscures", Pocket "Collection Terreur" (France), paperback, French translation by Simon Lhopiteau
Recognition
Since its publication,
Throat Sprockets has been singled out as one of the outstanding works of contemporary horror fiction by two reference books,
Dark Thoughts by
Stanley Wiater and
Horror: Another 100 Best Books edited by Stephen Jones and
Kim Newman. In October 2006,
Rue Morgue magazine included
Throat Sprockets on their list of 50 essential alternative horror novels.
Ellen Datlow selected it as the best first horror novel of 1994, describing
Throat Sprockets as "an unnerving, sophisticated, and passionate novel. . . . Suspenseful and terrifying, with some beautiful writing."
["Summation 1994: Horror," The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror: Eighth Annual Collection, p.xl]
