Book Review: 'Make Sure You Die Screaming' is an absurd road trip novel for modern times
If you can't beat 'em, join 'em on a multi-day, drunk-driving road trip in middle-class middle of America to find their missing father with a garbage goth girl named Yivi whom they met two weeks ago in an Airbnb basement.
That seems to be the mantra for 'Make Sure You Die Screaming,' Zee Carlstrom's debut novel from Flatiron Books. The first-person narration follows no-name Gunderson, nonbinary queer person, at what surely must be their rock-bottom. They stole their ex-boyfriend Clinton's car to drive from Chicago to Arkansas. Also the protagonist has killed their best friend, lost their job, and took an oath of radical honesty.
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Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
Cape Cod family pushing for mandatory short-term rental inspections following Airbnb tragedy
A Cape Cod family is pushing for mandatory inspections of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors after a devastating tragedy at an Airbnb in New York. 35-year-old Shannon Hubbard and her 1-year-old daughter, Maggie Hubbard, were killed in a fire at that rental in Clinton, NY, last October. The homeowners, Dennis and Meredith Darcy, have been charged with second-degree manslaughter for allegedly lying about the presence of smoke detectors in the Airbnb listing. Tim Waldron, of Orleans, told Boston 25 News the deaths of his daughter and granddaughter have prompted him to advocate for the safety of other families. Waldron recently testified about his heartbreak and urgent concern for others at a State House hearing for the Maggie Hubbard Safety Act. It would require that all short-term rentals in Massachusetts are inspected for compliance with approved smoke and carbon monoxide detectors within one year before renting. 'I realized every single one of the towns had different laws, so it was very much patchwork regulations,' said Waldron. Waldron sat down with Boston 25 News on what would've been his daughter's 36th birthday. The Chatham Elementary teacher and her infant daughter died after what had been a beautiful family weekend in the short-term rental. It took a heartbreaking turn after Waldron left on Sunday afternoon. That night, Waldron's son-in-law, a Dennis Police officer, put a log in the wood stove and then went out into the hot tub with Shannon. 'They were out there for about 20, 30 minutes, just really enjoying the night while the kids were in. After about 20 or 30 minutes, they smelled smoke,' said Waldron. Shannon rushed into the room where their infant daughter was sleeping and got trapped inside. Her husband and their three-year-old son escaped, but firefighters were not able to save Shannon and Maggie in time. Fire investigators later determined that the home had no working fire alarms, contrary to what the Airbnb listing stated. 'If smoke detectors had gone off that evening, they would have heard them 20 or 30 minutes before they smell the smoke, and it would been no issue,' he said. Waldron is now determined to expose what he calls an unregulated self-reporting system of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors in short-term rentals. He believes travelers can't trust what the Airbnb and VRBO listing says because there aren't inspections to prove it. 'We're talking about something that could prevent a death,' explained Waldron. 'You should have to have some level of an inspection done by a fire safety individual.' Orleans State Representative Hadley Luddy filed the Maggie Hubbard Rental Safety Act in the House of Representatives, and Cape Senator Julian Cyr filed it in the Senate. 'The safety measures just really are not monitored at a level that's actually ensuring that we can go into buildings or rental situations and know that we're safe,' said Rep. Luddy with the 4th Barnstable district. Rep. Luddy's district stretches from Harwich to Provincetown, where the number of short-term rentals has increased by thousands in recent years. She said a large percentage of them aren't registered with towns. 'We don't want to see any more unnecessary deaths like the two lives lost here,' said the first-time legislator. 'If I could be a part of knowing that there would be more preventable situations like this in the future, it would mean a lot to me personally.' Rep. Luddy is working with fire departments and town managers on the Cape to determine who would do these inspections. She told Boston 25 News that it may vary in each community and would likely involve a fee for those listing short-term rentals. The State Fire Marshal's Office issued the following statement to Boston 25 News in support of the legislation: 'Working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms have prevented countless tragedies in Massachusetts and around the world. They are vital life safety tools and should be installed on every level of every living space, whether it's short-term, long-term, or permanent.' 'It reminds them that there are steps you need to take, that you need dot your I's and cross your T's to make sure the home you're renting to people is as safe as it could possibly be,' said Waldron. Waldron said this law would also mean that his daughter's legacy and granddaughter's name live on eternally by protecting others. 'My granddaughter was perfect, right? She had the beautiful smile. She had the best giggle. If you saw or heard either one of them, you'd never forget it,' he added. 'It's a loss that I'll carry with me every day.' Boston 25 News reached out to Airbnb and VRBO for comment and have not heard back. The owners of the New York Airbnb rental have pleaded not guilty to second-degree manslaughter. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Yahoo
Two teens arrested, manhunt continues for 15-year-old following Elmwood shooting
Two teenagers have been arrested while a 15-year-old remains on the run following a chaotic shooting that left the inside of a Columbia Airbnb looking like a 'warzone' Friday morning, according to police. Jayden Cavon Brackins, 18, was killed after being shot multiple times inside of the short-term rental at 2408 Lincoln St. in Columbia's downtown Elmwood Park neighborhood. Three other teens, two females both aged 18 and one 17-year-old male, were also shot and remain hospitalized in stable condition, Columbia Police Chief William H. 'Skip' Holbrook said at a press conference Sunday afternoon. On Friday night, police arrested a 15-year-old, whose name was not released to the media. In the early morning hours of Saturday, police also arrested Latrell Daniel Dominique Hughey, 18. The two have been charged with murder, armed robbery, three counts of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, criminal conspiracy and possession of a firearm by a person under the age of 18. Hughey is being held without bond at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center while the 15-year-old is in the custody of the state Department of Juvenile Justice. An active search is underway for another, unidentified 15-year-old male who has been charged with the same crimes. While a search for motive is ongoing, Holbrook said that investigators believe the victims and the alleged shooters were 'acquainted.' The scene when officers arrived shortly after 5 a.m. Friday was extremely chaotic, said Holbrook. Screams could be heard from outside the house. Smoke and the smell of gunpowder hung the air where four people were shot. Only blocks away, Columbia Police Department officers on patrol responded to what was first reported as a car break-in. The call was almost immediately upgraded to a person shot. On hearing the screams, Holbrook said the officers broke down the door and rushed to apply tourniquets to the wounded. Roughly 30 spent shell casings from multiple guns, including an assault-style rifle, were found inside of the home where the damage was 'indescribable,' Holbrook said. Police declined to provide any additional information about the caliber of bullets or the type of weapon or weapons that fired the fatal shots. The shooting inside of an Airbnb has shaken the quiet downtown community, which has long been divided over short-term rentals. The motive for the shooting, why the large group was at the Airbnb or even who rented the property remains under investigation, according to police. While the three wounded teens are from Columbia, Brackins was reportedly in town to visit his aunt. While Brackins attended high school in Columbia, it is unknown whether he still resides here, said Deputy Chief Melron Kelly. Holbrook said that the owner of the Airbnb located at 2408 Lincoln St, Cornerstone Properties, has been cooperative in the investigation. However, the police department has issued a notice that it intends to have the house declared a 'nuisance property' wich can lead to fines or penalties from the city. The State was unable to reach Cornerstone Properties on Sunday afternoon. On Friday, residents of Elmwood were split on what blame the Airbnb shouldered in the chaos. John Wilkinson, president of the Elmwood Park neighborhood association, described Airbnbs as 'killing our community, literally.' A search of Airbnb found more than 25 rentals available in Elmwood and the adjoining Earlewood neighborhood. Both neighborhoods are almost entirely residential, primarily made up of single-family homes or small apartments. Controversy over Airbnb has swirled in the city of Columbia and Richland County over the past several years. The city came close to banning Airbnbs in 2022, instead opting to require short-term rentals be licensed by the city. Elmwood resident and state Rep. Todd Rutherford, D-Richland, said that such a shooting could have 'happened anywhere.' Instead, the real problem lay with a failure to address youth gun violence in Columbia, Rutherford said.
Yahoo
21 hours ago
- Yahoo
Two teens arrested after deadly shooting at Columbia, South Carolina Airbnb
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WJBF) — A shooting at an Airbnb in Columbia, South Carolina, left one teenager dead and three others hospitalized. At a news conference Sunday afternoon, authorities said the shooting happened around 5:15 a.m. Friday. Officers were patrolling the Elmwood Park neighborhood when they got a call about a possible break-in. That call quickly escalated to reports of shots fired — and then to someone being shot. When officers got to the home on Lincoln Street, they forced their way in after hearing screams inside. 'They immediately encountered an incredibly chaotic scene with multiple victims,' Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook said. 'Four young people shot multiple times.' Eighteen-year-old Jayden Cavon Brackens died at the scene. 'He died from multiple gunshot wounds and nothing else,' Richland County Coroner Naida Rutherford said. 'Please be mindful of what you post on social media. His mom, his family, his community. They're reading these posts that you're putting out that contain false information.' The three other victims — two 18-year-olds and a 17-year-old — are still in the hospital. All are from the Columbia area. Police described the scene inside the Airbnb as devastating. 'This shooting crime scene can only be described as a war zone,' Holbrook said. 'The level of destruction caused by the gun and the gunfire was really just indescribable.' More than 30 shell casings were found from multiple weapons, including an assault-style rifle. So far, two arrests have been made. A 15-year-old male is facing charges including armed robbery and possession of a weapon during a crime. An 18-year-old has been charged with murder, three counts of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, and more. His full name was not released. Police are still looking for a third suspect, another 15-year-old boy. 'We anticipate additional charges and additional arrests,' Holbrook said. 'This investigation is advancing rapidly and effectively.' Cornerstone Properties owns the house where the shooting happened and was being rented as an Airbnb. Police have issued a notice of intent to declare the property a public nuisance. 'The owner has been ordered to cease operations of the Airbnb immediately,' Holbrook added. 'They've been 100% cooperative.' Some neighbors say they've long had concerns about short-term rentals in the area. Holbrook said that's a separate issue that the city's code enforcement division may address. As for motive, police say it's still unclear. 'We have some working theories,' Holbrook said. 'But we do not have a motive that we're in a position to speak on with certainty.' Anyone with information is asked to contact Columbia Police or call Crime Stoppers. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
