Horror Mini Reviews Pt. II: The Haar by David Sodergren & Small Horrors by Darcy Coates

Happy Halloween! Today I have two more mini horror reviews for you all to celebrate the holiday: The Haar by David Sodergren and Small Horrors by Darcy Coates!

The Haar by David Sodergren

Paperbacks and Pugs
Publication: May 17th, 2022

Paperback. 212 pages.

About The Haar:

"'I don’t fear death... but they do.'

Muriel McAuley has lived in the Scottish fishing village of Witchaven all her life. She was born there, and she intends to die there.

But when an overseas property developer threatens to evict the residents from their homes and raze Witchaven to the ground in the name of progress, all seems lost… until the day a mysterious fog bank creeps inland.

The Haar.

To some it brings redemption… to others, it brings only madness and death. What macabre secrets lie within… The Haar.

Romantic and deranged, The Haar is a gore-soaked folk horror fairy tale from David Sodergren, author of The Forgotten Island and Maggie’s Grave."

In a small town in Scotland, a large American company has begun buying out inhabitants in order to build their own private endeavor. Muriel has lived in this town her entire life and refuses to give in to this horrible, which makes her a huge problem for the company. One day, amidst rising drama pertaining to the company and various buyouts, Muriel happens upon something that has the potential to change the course of her life... and perhaps the lives of a few others. 

The blurb for The Haar describes it as "a gore-soaked folk horror fairy tale," and I'm not sure I could describe it any better than that. However, it's also a book with some really carefully written explorations of grief and loneliness that made this much sadder and more touching I expected. Muriel is living alone in her small town, her husband having died years prior, and this book really focuses in on much of her grief and her desire to simply be with her husband and have love in her life again. This is honestly a surprisingly sentimental horror and is one that really made me feel for our protagonist, who is also an incredibly bold, witty, and full of attitude, which means she refuses to let anyone tell her what to do.

I really did not expect to enjoy this book as much as I did, but I'm so glad I happened across it on my library's online app and had a chance to read it. I listened to the audiobook version of this one and thought it was incredibly well done with a fantastic narrator. If you're looking for something delightfully gory, with a great protagonist, and with some incredible otherworldly folktale elements, then be sure to give The Haar a read. Overall, this ended up being a four star read!

Small Horrors: A Collection of Fifty Creepy Stories by Darcy Coates

Poisoned Pen press
Publication: April 5th, 2022

Paperback. 272 pages.

About Small Horrors:

"Push past the curtains of your rational, safe world and explore the un-nameable horrors living in the darkest corners of our consciousness. This is the realm of monsters and shifting shadows, where a single wrong step can plunge you into a terrifying fight for your life, where...

Something mimics human voices as it lures you into the woods.
A corpse had gone missing from its drawer in the morgue.
A friend's eyes are unnaturally bright as they approach you in the dark.

Whatever your choice, these fifty small bites of horror are sure to leave you haunted."

If you like your scary stories short, ominous, and to the point, then this is the collection for you. Small Horrors has fifty (fifty!) unique short stories and range across all types of horror, from murder to the supernatural to the alien and monstrous and everything in between. With fifty stories in just 272 pages, these are all fairly short and don't have a lot of time to set up a scene, but they were able to pack a lot into each story. Some were a bit hit or miss, but I didn't honestly expect to love all fifty, and I think I enjoyed far more than I didn't, so it felt like a very worthwhile read. I had a lot of fun with these and really enjoyed getting such a variety of scary stories to pass the time with--it very much felt like a nice sampler of horror and it made it incredibly entertaining to read.

A lot of these stories had a very flash fiction feel to them where the story ends in a very open-ended manner and leaves you to imagine all sorts of horrible things that could happen, though most were just slightly longer than traditional flash fiction. My only criticism I have for some of these is that I often felt like I'd read a similar story or they just felt as though the author was really trying to hit that fifty mark and was creating stories that didn't really work. I would really love to see some of these stories drawn out in a larger story or book, and I do appreciate when a story leaves me excited for more (although perhaps also a bit disappointed that there's not more when there's so much potential). Overall, this is a really solid collection of horror stories that I think is perfect for when you want to pick something up that can give you a short and sweet scary story fix. 

Horror Mini Reviews Pt. I: The Eyes are the Best Part by Monika Kim & Pyramidia by Stephanie Sanders-Jacob

This week I have a number of horror books to share with you all that I've been reading throughout the month of October! Ideally, I would've had horror reviews for you throughout the month of October, but I think Halloween week is just as fitting. Today, I have mini reviews up for Monika Kim's The Eyes are the Best Part and Stephanie Sanders-Jacob's Pyramidia. 

The Eyes are the Best Part by Monika Kim

Erewhon Books
Publication: June 25th, 2024

Hardcover. 278 pages.

About The Eyes are the Best Part:

"Ji-won’s life tumbles into disarray in the wake of her appa’s extramarital affair and subsequent departure. Her mother, distraught. Her younger sister, hurt and confused. Her college freshman grades, failing. Her dreams, horrifying… yet enticing.

In them, Ji-won walks through bloody rooms full of eyes. Succulent blue eyes. Salivatingly blue eyes. Eyes the same shape and shade as George’s, who is Umma’s obnoxious new boyfriend. George has already overstayed his welcome in her family’s claustrophobic apartment. He brags about his puffed-up consulting job, ogles Asian waitresses while dining out, and acts condescending toward Ji-won and her sister as if he deserves all of Umma’s fawning adoration. No, George doesn’t deserve anything from her family. Ji-won will make sure of that.

For no matter how many victims accumulate around her campus or how many people she must deceive and manipulate, Ji-won’s hunger and her rage deserve to be sated."

I wanted creepy  and shocking from this book and I may have wished too hard, because it completely delivered on being incredibly disturbing and flat out gross at times–but I still loved every second of it. This story follows Ji-won as she struggles to adapt to life after her appa leaves and her mother is left heartbroken and clinging to a new, abhorrent boyfriend. This book tackles some difficult topics and I really admired how the author approached them; things like Asian stereotypes and fetishization, racism, misogyny, and more are tackled head-on and with some intense consequences. This book isn't super scary so much as fueled by dread and some strong gore-tastic elements, most of which involve eyeballs in one form or another (which you could probably guess at based on the title).

The Eyes are the Best Part is a slow burn and does not rush through any part of the story it wants to tell. It's extremely unhinged in ways that were both predictable and also entirely unpredictable, which I really appreciated. I had suspicions of where this book may go, but it really took those ideas and flipped them on their heads. The ending is one that I think will be a bit hit or miss for some, but honestly fit the story perfectly and will leave a large impact. This book is raw and unfiltered and admittedly a bit bizarre, but I think it's certainly worth the read. Obviously huge warnings for gore involving eyes–which was rough because I hate gore with eyes–but the experience is worth it. Overall, I've given The Eyes are the Best Part four stars.

Pyramidia by Stephanie Sanders-Jacob

Slashic Horror Press
Publication: February 15th, 2024

Paperback. 361 pages.

About Pyramidia:

"When Harriet moves to Bentwood to teach gifted students, her new life doesn’t go as planned. Between her haunted rental and her oddball neighbor, Lucy—who literally won’t go away—Harriet is left questioning her own sanity. The beautiful Kelsey, whom she meets at the farmers market, offers the distraction she needs.

Well, that, and the town’s Multi-Level Marketing (MLM)—or pyramid—scheme.

The enigmatic group of women selling wellness in the form of Serenitea, with their perfect hair, flawless skin, and piercing eyes. She is drawn to the tea, the wellness, the tranquility… So what if she has to sell a few bags of tea?

You have a new descendant.

Sinking deeper into Serenitea, Harriet can’t stop drinking the tea. She keeps getting emails about new descendants—whatever the hell that means—and the gym teacher, Harold, is giving serious pervy vibes. Even Lucy joins the MLM despite claiming the women are vampires. None of that matters, though, because Serenitea makes her feel…well. Tranquil.

Are you well?"

Just in case you didn't already think MLMs were a bad thing, Pyramidia is here to turn them into a whole new level of horrifying. Harriet moves to the town of Bentwood (which certainly makes me think of similar-sounding city...) for a teaching position, and once there she finds that the town seems to have a high number of MLM schemes. Harriet is very much not into pyramid schemes, but after trying some Serenitea, she finds she just can't get enough and in order to get more, she may need to start selling some tea.

I just loved this concept of taking a pyramid scheme and suburbia and adding horror/thriller elements to it, turning this into an entirely new and fun concept–I mean, what's a better fit for some extra horror and supernatural than the horrors of MLMs and suburbia? There are some great little twists in here and a really colorful array of unique characters to meet along the way–some a bit crazier than others. This book was so witty and had so many relatable moments of humor and commentary that made it a really enjoyable experience. It's one of those premises and plots that feels a bit outlandish and absurd, but completely works and ends up making the perfect mix of genres and ideas. I do think this could have been slightly shorter and suffered a bit from being dragged on just a little too long to where the novelty aspects began to wear off, and the ending itself felt slightly off to me, but overall it was a really entertaining read. I've given Pyramidia four stars!

 

Review: The White Guy Dies First: 13 Scary Stories of Fear and Power edited by Terry J. Benton-Walker

  

The White Guy Dies First edited by Terry J. Benton-Walker

Tor Teen

Publication Date: July 16th, 2024

Hardcover. 320 pages.

About The White Guy Dies First:

"The White Guy Dies First includes thirteen scary stories by all-star contributors and this time, the white guy dies first.

Killer clowns, a hungry hedge maze, and rich kids who got bored. Friendly cannibals, impossible slashers, and the dead who don’t stay dead....

A museum curator who despises “diasporic inaccuracies.” A sweet girl and her diary of happy thoughts. An old house that just wants friends forever....

These stories are filled with ancient terrors and modern villains, but go ahead, go into the basement, step onto the old plantation, and open the magician’s mystery box because this time, the white guy dies first.

Edited by Terry J. Benton-Walker, including stories from bestselling, award-winning, and up-and-coming Adiba Jaigirdar, Alexis Henderson, Chloe Gong, Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé, H. E. Edgmon, Kalynn Bayron, Karen Strong, Kendare Blake, Lamar Giles, Mark Oshiro, Naseem Jamnia, Tiffany D. Jackson, and Terry J. Benton-Walker.

A collection you’ll be dying to talk about… if you survive it."

The White Guy Dies First by Terry J. Benton-Walker is a collection of short horror stories that sets out to focus on diversity in horror and subvert typical horror tropes where minority characters are often treated casually and sent to the chopping block first. All of these stories excelled at doing just that, and I particularly appreciated how each story explored different themes and social issues, which allow for some fresh perspectives on horror as well as general contemporary issues we see everyday.

The stories themselves were a bit of a mixed bag for me, with some being excellent tales of terror and others not quite hitting the mark. The anthology opens with a brief story called "Ghoulfriends Online Blog," which acts as an introduction that brings all of the stories together and sets the stage for following horror narratives. As I often like to do with short story collections, I'll select some stories from the collection to share my thoughts on to give you an idea of where my thoughts lay with this book. 

"All Eyes on Me" by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé: This is the opening story, and it certainly started off with a bang. I loved the beginning half of this story, but the ending was a huge letdown for me. The buildup was very promising, but the conclusion felt unsatisfying and left me actually a bit annoyed with the main character.

"Hedge" by Kalynn Bayron: This one was fun in nature and I enjoyed the premise, but unfotunate it didn't stand out as much as I hoped. It was missing something for me to make it feel like more than it was, and I also feel like the author kept treating the younger brother as if he were ten instead of old enough to not actually need a babysitter and I"m not sure why. 

"The Golden Dragon" by Kendare Blake: This was a solid story–not something that I'd go out of my way to read or recommend, but certainly hits the right paranormal note. It wasn't a favorite, but I still found it really well-written and engaging, and I was glad to read something from Kendare Blake.

"Everything's Coming Up Roses" by Tiffany D. Jackson: Probably my favorite of the bunch! I really loved the epistolary format and how it effortlessly leads readers down a dark path to understanding exactly what is going on. Absolutely creepy and delightful.

"Heaven" by Adiba Jaigirdar: This one was really imaginative and had some really great (though not entirely unpredictable) twists that made it an intriguing read. The concepts explored were intriguing, and I appreciated the creativity and depth of the premise and brief world-building.

While this may not be the strongest collection of horror stories I've ever read, it is a solid anthology with some real gems. The focus on diversity and subverting typical horror tropes was apparent but not overt, which made for a refreshing and thought-provoking read. Overall, I've given this collection three stars!

*I received a copy of The White Guy Dies First in exchange for an honest review. This has no effect on my rating.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: Nestlings by Nat Cassidy

         

Nestlings by Nat Cassidy

Tor Nightfire

Publication Date: October 31st, 2023

Paperback. 304 pages.

About Nestlings:

"Nat Cassidy is at his razor-sharp best again with his horror novel Nestlings, which harnesses the creeping paranoia of Rosemary's Baby and the urban horror of 'Salem's Lot, set in an exclusive New York City residential building.

Ana and Reid need a break. The horrifically complicated birth of their first child has left Ana paralyzed, bitter, and struggling―with mobility, with her relationship with Reid, with resentment for her baby. Reid dismisses disturbing events and Ana’s deep unease and paranoia, but he can't explain the needle-like bite marks on their baby."

I'm a little late in getting this review up, but for a book this good I think better late than never is perfectly apt here. Nestlings is a supremely dark, creepy, and intelligent story that builds up tension in such a slow burn manner that I felt constantly on edge and unsure of what was lurking around the next page. I'd been looking for a horror that would leave me feeling uneasy and disturbed, and Nestlings is the book that did just that and more. 

We follow Ana and Reid, new parents who have been having an exceptionally rough go of things since Ana's complicated and traumatic birth that left her physically paralyzed. Since then, it's been a struggle for the two as they not only have to go through the process of learning how to live with a newborn and be parents, but also must learn how to adapt to a brand new way of living for Ana. Ana also begins to struggle with feelings of resentment towards her new baby as a result of everything going on, which leaves Ana and Reid struggling to care for one another as well as they work through these many different struggles. 

It looks like their luck may have improved when they win a lottery for the chance to live in one of the luxury apartments at the famed Deptford building, known for its rich inhabitants. Unfortunately for Ana and Reid, life at the Deptford doesn't end up being as idyllic as they'd hoped, as their baby has been more upset than ever, their new neighbors are... odd, and things in the apartment have been putting Ana on edge in ways she can't quite describe. Reid's been digging into the Deptford's past with an interest almost bordering on obsession and has discovered it has quite a colorful past. And if old gargoyles perched on the tops of buildings have ever freaked you out, then this book is not going to make you feel better about them. 

Ana is an excellent character, especially for a horror novel like this. She's a bit of a badass for how she's managed to carry on with her life through all the traumas and struggles that have been thrown at her. Although she is now confined to a wheelchair, she really doesn't let this stop her and has adapted incredibly well to her new way of life--there's really nothing she can't do. Ana and Reid both have their own respective mental struggles, though Ana's postpartum depression has hit her hard and really led to some dark, scary moments for her. It's hard to watch Ana struggle through all of this sometimes, but I think the difficult journey that we follow her on is an important one that Cassidy handles with care and effectiveness.  

I have to say that Nestlings is not for the faint of heart because things do get really weird and really disturbing in ways that I'm not entirely sure I'd be able to adequately describe. This book is not only full of things that'll make you scratch your head and wonder what the hell you're reading, it's also got some pretty gnarly and gross moments that suited the ton and story perfectly. There are also some really intense  moments where I found myself sitting extremely tense as I rooted for Ana to get away from something or someone and I felt so incredibly creeped out watching it all unfold. Cassidy is truly an excellent horror writer who I think will only continue to write great things to shock us all. 

Something I also wanted to touch on was how well I think Cassidy managed to capture the rough, raw edges of grief and depression. Nestlings is horror and obviously very obviously dark in tone and subject matter regarding the Deptford and its internal happenings, but it's also very dark with regards to mental health and the dark places our minds can take us. I found myself highlighting an excessive amount of areas that I felt really captured my own feelings about many difficulties in life and that really set this book apart from others in its genre for me. There's a lot of thought and discussion around life and everything it throws at us, whether we are meant to look for signs that may help us, if there's ever hope for something more, and whether we as people can ever do enough or be strong enough to be who want to be and live how we want to. Based on the author's note at the end of the book, it sounds like he had some really rough times over the past couple years, and I think this is really reflected in the story and the sheer realness and rawness of the descriptions, and I appreciated his dedication to telling this story. 

Overall, I've given Nestlings 4.75 stars! I've still yet to read Nat Cassidy's previous horror novel, Mary, but I think my experience with Nestlings is going to be the kick in the pants I need to finally get around to it. 

*I received a copy of Nestlings courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: Knock Knock, Open Wide by Neil Sharpson

         

Knock Knock, Open Wide by Neil Sharpson

Tor Nightfire

Publication Date: October 3rd, 2023

Hardcover. 336 pages.

About Knock Knock, Open Wide:

"Knock Knock, Open Wide weaves horror and Celtic myth into a terrifying, heartbreaking supernatural tale of fractured family bonds, the secrets we carry, and the veiled forces that guide Irish life.

Driving home late one night, Etain Larkin finds a corpse on a pitch-black country road deep in the Irish countryside. She takes the corpse to a remote farmhouse. So begins a night of unspeakable horror that will take her to the very brink of sanity.

She will never speak of it again.

Two decades later, Betty Fitzpatrick, newly arrived at college in Dublin, has already fallen in love with the drama society, and the beautiful but troubled Ashling Mallen.

As their relationship blossoms, Ashling goes to great lengths to keep Betty away from her family, especially her alcoholic mother, Etain. As their relationship blossoms, Betty learns her lover's terrifying family history, and Ashling's secret obsession. Ashling has become convinced that the horrors inflicted on her family are connected to a seemingly innocent children's TV show. Everyone in Ireland watched this show in their youth, but Ash soon discovers that no one remembers it quite the same way. And only Ashling seems to remember its a small black goat puppet who lives in a box and only comes out if you don’t behave. They say he’s never come out.

Almost never.

When the door between the known and unknown opens, it can never close again."

I don't know exactly how to describe what Knock Knock, Open Wide is other than a complex, multilayered, and unbelievably eerie horror story centered around Irish folklore. This was a fascinating horror story that left me both intrigued and uncertain at different points. I feel like this book is not going to work for everyone because of everything it has going on and how it's all put together, but if you have the patience and find yourself intrigued by the first couple chapters, then I'd say it's a read that's well worth it. 

Knock Knock, Open Wide opens with a punch and caught my attention right away. It's eerie, highly atmospheric, and sets the tone perfectly for the rest of the book. I loved how we slowly learned about Celtic myth and folklore from the very start and continued to be introduced to more and more of it throughout the rest of the book. We start out following Etain as she comes across a corpse in the middle of the road deep in the country, and from this moment on everything for the rest of the book is set into motion. I'll confess that I was a little disappointed at first when I realized we wouldn't be sticking with Etain throughout the rest of the story, as I found myself immediately intrigued by her and her story. However, as the story progressed I came to become invested in plenty of the other characters and loved seeing how the author developed each one and their individual stories and backgrounds–and also realized how Etain would still play a role.

There are a lot of different storylines going on in Knock Knock, Open Wide, and with these storylines come a lot of different jumps in timelines, character focuses, and tone of the story. The first third and last third of this book were easily the strongest, with a some parts in the middle that I personally felt dragged a little. All of these shifts affected the overall tone of the story and often felt a bit abrupt or took me out of previous storylines and left things feeling a bit disjointed, or almost at times like they were part of different stories. Because of this, the pacing also felt very stop and go and I was constantly wavering on how much I actually liked the story. For instance, I loved the first portion of the story following Etain's storyline and Betty's initial storyline, but then there were some shifts mid-story that lost some of my interest and almost made me consider whether I wanted to continue the story. Fortunately, anytime this feeling felt too strong the book would shift again and I'd be interested once more, so the end result was overwhelmingly positive for me. 

What I appreciated about all these different storylines and characters, however, was seeing how they were all interconnected and eventually came together in some really genius and intriguing ways. Neil Sharpson is an author I want to keep my eye on and whose previous work I'd like to check out. There is so much detail and careful plottingin Knock Knock, Open Wide, and I loved how well he managed to develop each character in such a way that I felt fully invested in their lives. Ashling, in particular, had so many intriguing layers that I actually started out feeling unsure about her and ended up really rooting for her and wanting to see how her relationships with her mother, Betty, and her aunt would work out. 

I've also already mentioned how eerie and well-crafted the atmosphere of this story is, but I really just want to emphasize and drive that point home. This book is not constantly throwing out crazy things left and right, but the overwhelming sense of dread and a sort of "waiting" for something to happen was strongly present throughout the entire book. There are things constantly lurking that just feel unnatural and wrong. You know when you watch a movie and the entire thing is sort of bathed in a dreary fog or misty backdrop that tells you 'hey, this is a dark movie?' That's exactly what this book felt like, and I couldn't have found the kid's TV show featured in this creepier any creepier than I did. This book absolutely nails atmosphere and creating a setting that brings the horror and creepiness to life. 

Lastly, I just have to note that the ending of Knock Knock, Open Wide is honestly pretty wild, and I really loved and appreciated everything about it. The author knew what story he wanted to tell and he really went for it. Everything came together and provided me with constant surprises and some shocks–I really do mean it when I say things get weird and somehow eerier than that they were.

Overall, I've given Knock Knock, Open Wide four stars! If you need a fall read to make you feel weird, then this is the book for you. 

*I received a copy of Knock Knock, Open Wide courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle

  

Camp Damascus by Chuck Tingle

Tor Nightfire
Publication Date: July 18th, 2023

Hardcover. 256 pages.

About Camp Damascus:

"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.

They’ll scare you straight to hell.

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."

I honestly don't think I ever expected to be posting a review of a Chuck Tingle book (or at least a serious one?), but here we are! Camp Damascus is the perfect summer horror novel to read on vacation–what's more relaxing than some religious trauma, anyway? This book was definitely not what I expected and I ended up having some fun with this one. Before diving in to this review, I would like to advise caution for anyone who may be sensitive to reading a book that centers around a conversion camp and everything surrounding that topic, as those are obviously quite prominent topics featured throughout the story. I also think this fits somewhere between the YA and adult categories, as there was nothing that really made it seem like it had to be an adult book and could easily be read as YA, in my opinion.

In all honestly, I expected Camp Damascus to be a little more predictable in how the conversion camp was set up and what the horror elements would be, but it ended up being much different than I anticipated and really brought some new (and truly terrible) ideas to the table. I was absolutely riveted for the first half of this book as I watched everything slowly build up and eventually unravel, and I think the author does a great job of really creating a story that will keep you entertained. 

We follow Rose Darling, resident of the somewhat secluded, sheltered town of Neverton, Montana. This town is also home to well-known conversion camp run by the local church, Kingdom Pine, that is considered to be one of the best and most successful (yes, residents actually are proud of this fact). Rose is a proud member of Kingdom Pine and happily commits her life to following God and her religion. Rose lives an extremely sheltered life when we are introduced to her, and I really liked getting this glimpse into her thought process, both from the start and through the many different tumultuous events that occur throughout the story. I won't be going into many more plot details than that because I feel like giving anything else away would be a bit too spoiler-y, so I'll be leaving the plot details a bit vague for this review.

I liked getting to know Rose and all of the different figures that make up her life, both those she knows when the story starts and subsequent characters we meet along the journey of this book. I would say that most of the characters felt somewhat like stereotypes of the roles they were meant to play, which works well for the story, but also gave it a bit of a 'campy' vibe than anything else, which was enjoyable to read while removing a bit of the more serious elements. The villains were bad in all the ways expected, and most of the things they had to say felt very predictable as well. There is definite character development of growth from Rose, but it also felt as though it went along a path that was well-defined by many stories before her. None of this predictability negates the enjoyment of reading this book, but it moreso took away from some of the more unique elements that this story does incorporate (such as the unique incorporation of demons in this story, which I won't say more about). 

The pacing felt fairly consistent throughout and I think this book's shorter length worked in its favor. This story is very efficient at doing what it sets out to do. There aren't really any subplots or additional things to consider–the main plot is what we get and the story sets out to follow along that plot. There's nothing wrong with this–in fact, in a way it's somewhat nice–but it does leave this feeling much more like a one dimensional story that arrived to tell one story and did just that. I applaud Tingle for managing to convey such an important message of tolerance, acceptance, and found family in such a concise and entertaining way. 

Lastly, I am not a religious person at this point in my life and, in all honesty, am not a huge fan of religion in general, and I really appreciated the author's rather nuanced take on religion and exploring the various consequences and influences of religion, both for the good and the bad. Although there are certainly plenty of anti-religion sentiments in this book, I actually appreciated that it wasn't outright hateful of all religion and actually does offer some strong points about why religion may work for some people–this felt like a more balanced approach than I sometimes see and I really liked how it was incorporated into a story that clearly poses the religious church as the main antagonist to our main character. 

Overall, I've given Camp Damascus 3.75 stars! This is a super solid horror novel that incorporates plenty of demons and sin and all the best things that go into a horror book with a strong religious components. 

*I received a copy of Camp Damascus courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: The Militia House by John Milas

 

The Militia House by John Milas

Henry Holt and Co. 
Publication Date: July 11th, 2023

Hardcover. 272 pages.

About The Militia House:

"Stephen King meets Tim O’Brien in John Milas’s The Militia House, a spine-tingling and boldly original gothic horror novel. It’s 2010, and the recently promoted Corporal Loyette and his unit are finishing up their deployment at a new base in Kajaki, Afghanistan. Their duties here are straightforward―loading and unloading cargo into and out of helicopters―and their days are a mix of boredom and dread. The Brits they’re replacing delight in telling them the history of the old barracks just off base, a Soviet-era militia house they claim is haunted, and Loyette and his men don’t need much convincing to make a clandestine trip outside the wire to explore it.

It’s a short, middle-of-the-day adventure, but the men experience a mounting agitation after their visit to the militia house. In the days that follow they try to forget about the strange, unsettling sights and sounds from the house, but things are increasingly . . . not right. Loyette becomes determined to ignore his and his marines’ growing unease, convinced that it’s just the strain of war playing tricks on them. But something about the militia house will not let them go.

Meticulously plotted and viscerally immediate in its telling, The Militia House is a gripping and brilliant exploration of the unceasing horrors of war that’s no more easily shaken than the militia house itself."

The Militia House is the perfect quiet, creeping horror to fill your long summer days. It is John Milas’ debut horror novel and is set in Kajaki, Afghanistan in 2010 during the war. I listened to the audiobook version of The Militia House and absolutely devoured it–this is sure to be a book that I will continue to think about and possibly re-read for many years.

We follow Corporel Loyette as he and his unit are moved to a new base in Afghanistan where a British unit has already been stationed. Loyette is unsettled by a few odd occurrences he notices around base, but thinks nothing of it outside of his mind playing tricks on him. However, Loyette and his unit are soon informed by the British unit of an abandoned militia house nearby that was the site of a violence battle and is now believed to be haunted.

Since Loyette and his unit are sufficiently bored on base, they manage to plan a visit to the site, where they have a deeply unnerving experience that they op to ignore and not talk about with anyone else once they make it safely back to base. Unfortunately, things don’t go right back to normal as each individual person seems to begin having uniquely odd experiences that begin to put strains on the group as they attempt to maintain an existence in this war-torn area where all they have is themselves and one another.

Milas does an excellent job at conveying the monotonous reality of living on base in Afghanistan and the many different ways in which it can begin to affect each person’s mental wellbeing. At the same time, Milas also does an excellent job at exploring the psychological aspects of being at war, including PTSD, difficulties adapting to civilian life, and how the aforementioned monotony can create varying levels of uncertainty among a unit.

While The Militia House is military horror and there are many war experiences mentioned, there is not much of an emphasis on military action itself in the present, which for me worked well on keeping the attention focused on Loyette and some of the more psychological components of the story. I really appreciated Milas’ exploration of war and introspection concerning the moral and ethics surrounding war and the soldiers’ experiences.

The Militia House is not a horror story that really throws things in your face and focuses on gore and shock value, but rather one that focuses on the slow burn build up of unease and a sense of haunting that slowly builds into a crescendo that truly echoes long after the last page is closed. It is incredibly disquieting is the type of book that is full of images and ideas that are sure to stick around in your head for far longer than you’d like them to.

Milas has a writing style that is both simple and complex in how he crafts his ideas and subsequently conveys them in ways that left me riveted to every word. There is a perfect blend of detail and description mixed in with just enough left unsaid to really impart a sense of terror at the unknown. I will also warn you that this is a story that falls into more of the open ending territory, and I think this was the perfect choice for Milas to end his story with. It probably won't be for everyone–in fact, I'm sure some people will probably end up quite frustrated–but I thought it was the perfect ending to match this atmospheric tale of creeping horror. 

Overall, I’ve given The Militia House five stars! This is a stunningly written work of military horror that filled me with dread until the very last page (and honestly still does) and I genuinely cannot wait to see what’s next from Milas.

*I received a copy of The Militia House courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: Maeve Fly by C.J. Leede

 

Maeve Fly by C.J. Leede

Publication Date: June 6th, 2023

Hardcover. 288 pages.

About Maeve Fly:

"By day, Maeve Fly works at the happiest place in the world as every child’s favorite ice princess.

By the neon night glow of the Sunset Strip, Maeve haunts the dive bars with a drink in one hand and a book in the other, imitating her misanthropic literary heroes.

But when Gideon Green - her best friend’s brother - moves to town, he awakens something dangerous within her, and the world she knows suddenly shifts beneath her feet.

Untethered, Maeve ditches her discontented act and tries on a new persona. A bolder, bloodier one, inspired by the pages of American Psycho. Step aside Patrick Bateman, it’s Maeve’s turn with the knife."

Maeve Fly is not for the fainthearted, and I really mean that. Stephen Graham Jones blurbed this as "gory and brutal and beautiful and painful and terrifying and a pure delight," and I couldn't agree more with that. This is horror that is centered around its characters, but that does not mean it is without plenty of gore, violence, and other things that the squeamish would probably prefer to avoid. There is a relentlessness to the sex and violence portrayed in this book and the perverse nature of it is certainly not going to be for everyone. That being said, if you are able to stick with it, it's going to be one ride that you are not going to be forgetting any time soon, and I would even go as far to say that you'll end up as riveted by it as I was.

Maeve Fly follows Maeve, a somewhat unsympathetic character who has recently moved in with her grandmother in Los Angeles and works as a meet-and-greet princess at a popular theme park nearby (yes, it's most likely what you're thinking of) with her fellow princess friend, Kate. There's not all that much in the way of hard plot going on outside of following Maeve in her new life and observing her adaptation, exploration, and descent of her own life, but it is this character exploration that really carries the story. Her grandmother is currently on her deathbed, unresponsive due to a recent medical event, and as Maeve struggles to come to terms with this development she instead spends her time at work and partaking in a variety of unique (and, uh, slightly concerning?) personal activities. Maeve cares deeply for Kate, and soon develops much stronger feelings for a man named Gideon who shows up in her life as well, which leads her down some difficult paths as she tries to make sense of her feelings. 

Maeve has a penchant for what most people would describe as 'dark things,' and this is hallmarked by her love for Halloween and Halloween music (which I'll agree is pretty fun), among other things. Maeve has a difficult personality to connect with and a somewhat stilted worldview, which makes her a fascinating character who brings something new to the table. She is very much someone who seems to be attempting to find herself and sort of throws herself into a variety of different things to do so, many of which are very questionable and seem to her left her with a somewhat misanthropic worldview at times, and she almost seems to treat the entire world as her own experiment (some of her free time is spent attempting to get random people 'cancelled' online and to ruin their lives, for example). I found Maeve absolutely fascinating, and I was so impressed by how well C.J. Leede was able to craft her narrative voice. She has an incredibly strong voice that I found utterly compelling, and as I listened to the audiobook I found myself nearly on the edge of my seating just waiting to hear what our protagonist would say next.

As mentioned, Maeve Fly takes place largely in LA and surrounding areas, and I really think Leede captured aspects of it incredibly well. I saw one blurb describe this as "a blood-soaked love letter to Los Angeles," and that's exactly what it is. It's hard to describe, but it almost felt as though as it was a bit of a blend of satire, commentary, honestly, and a hint of fantasy in its tone when describing LA. I grew up in the greater LA areas and currently live in the middle of LA and I found myself utterly entertained by Maeve's consistent narration of the city and its people. She really hits the nail on the head at times while also maintaining an extra layer of almost stereotypical perceptions that I think made this that much more fun.

The atmosphere is deliciously dark, at times almost nihilistic, and has a strong sense of morbid curiosity that is present throughout the entire story. Maeve Fly is a hard book to nail down succinctly, but I would say the tone often alternately shifts between being rather manic and unhinged and being contemplative and reflective. I loved the morbidity in this book and how Maeve (and therefore author) didn't really seem to find any topic off limits. Maeve wasn't afraid to try out the darkest and most unhinged thoughts that crossed her mind, and she explored the depths of depravity to her heart's content. Although this is not behavior that should be replicated, of course, I found a strange sense of awe watching her navigate her current life. 

This is a book that really draws on the idea of a gradual descent from dark longings and occasional questionable missteps to what eventually become sudden shifts from sanity to absurdity. It's that idea of having dark thoughts, tentatively acting some out, then one big things happens out of necessity, and after that it's almost a deluge of events that make it harder and harder to maintain a grasp on reality.

The ending of Maeve Fly was one of the most brutally tragic and heartbreaking for so many different reasons, and its one that readers can almost see coming, but you still have to wait and find out along with Maeve how it's going to pan out anyway. This book is not afraid to test boundaries and to make a mark, and I think it absolutely succeeded in both of those. It's weird sometimes to say that I loved a book like this because of how fucked up it is, but I did. This book spoke to me on a weird level and I had a hell of a time on this adventure. 

If you're ready for heavily graphic scenes and open discussion of dark topics, then I would absolutely recommend this one. It was ultimately a rewarding and unforgettable experience and sure to be one I'll re-read. I read the audiobook version and it was perfect. Sosie Bacon did an excellent job and I would highly recommend the audio version if you like audiobooks. Overall, I've given Maeve Fly 4.5 stars!

*I received a copy of Maeve Fly courtesy of the publisher in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: The Broken Darkness by Theresa Braun

The Broken Darkness by Theresa Braun

Independently Published

Publication Date: February 13th, 2023

Paperback. 294 pages.

About The Broken Darkness:

"In her debut collection, Theresa Braun explores the inner workings of the human heart and what it is we most desire—forgiveness, acceptance, love, fame, or merely to escape who we really are. Whether we are battling ghosts, demons, mythical monsters, the past, or other dimensions, we are really facing the deepest parts of ourselves. These thirteen tales of horror and dark fantasy may appear to be a matter of good versus evil, but they are all a reflection of the hidden corners of the soul that are often shades of broken darkness. The characters in these stories must face their inner and outer terrors, or else suffer the consequences."

Theresa Braun's The Broken Darkness is a chilling collection of horror stories that all center around what it means to be a human and deal with all the many emotions that come with that. I don't think I expected this collection to be quite as dark as it was, but I found that to be a pleasant surprise and enjoyed seeing the different levels Braun managed to take each of these stories. Before jumping into this review, I'd like to note that there are a lot of content warnings for these stories, so just be aware going into it that there are some intense topics. 

There are thirteen stories (coincidence? I'm thinking not!) in this collection, each containing a general horror vibe, while some had more paranormal elements in them than others, as well. Braun includes a really strong variety of stories ranging from hauntings and the aforementioned paranormal elements, to the deranged actions of some individuals, to the influence of some folkloric and mythic elements that took things to new levels.

A few of my favorites were:

"Dead Over Heels": This story follows Veronica and Sebastian as they meet for a first date, hit it off, and then notice something a bit peculiar happen while on their first date. They move on from this first happening, but as their relationship progresses they decide to figure out just what happened on that first date... and it's definitely not something they ever could have expected. This was a great introduction to the collection as a whole. It wasn't too intense (well, maybe a little at the end!) and laid just enough foundation to really lure me in to wanting to read the rest of the collection.

"Collecting Empties": I really can't say much about this story of a drunken night because it was so short that just about anything would give away too much. I loved how much Braun was able to pack into this short delight of a story and appreciated how much it kept me entertained. It's the short stories like this that often make me really appreciate when authors are able to craft something compelling and succinct.

"Stillborn": This one is probably not for the faint of heart, but I really liked this crazy and shocking story. We follow a nurse, Sylvia, as she begins working for a doctor who has a terrifying side hustle that makes Sylvia realize she is in way over her head. This was a rollercoaster from start to finish and definitely left me feeling uneasy–which is exactly what I want from a horror story!

"Stay Tuned": This one hooked me from the start. We follow a group of 'vigilantes' of sorts who take a lot of matters into their own hands... with methods that probably aren't exactly ones most people would condone. There were some huge twists and shocking moments in this one that left me completely unsure how to feel. I didn't find the latter half quite as compelling as the beginning when we are still getting to know these vigilantes and what they do, but overall I really enjoyed this particular story. 

Overall, I found this to be a very solid collection of stories. As with any anthology, there were certainly stories I enjoyed more than others, and I found just a few that didn't quite live up to the others. There were some with abrupt endings that fit well with the story and left you with an open ending that works well with horror, whereas others felt a bit too abrupt and I felt like there was too many things left unsaid or almost as if the story wasn't as complete as it could have been. However, even if I didn't think a story quite hit the mark in a way I expected it to, I still found myself captivating by at least one aspect in each story and I really liked the different ideas Braun played with throughout this collection. I've given The Broken Darkness four bloody stars!

 

*I received a copy of The Broken Darkness courtesy of the author in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Review: The Hollow Kind by Andy Davidson

   

The Hollow Kind by Andy Davidson

MCD

Publication Date: October 25th, 2022

Hardcover. 448 pages.

About The Hollow Kind:

"Andy Davidson's epic horror novel about the spectacular decline of the Redfern family, haunted by an ancient evil. 

Nellie Gardner is looking for a way out of an abusive marriage when she learns that her long-lost grandfather, August Redfern, has willed her his turpentine estate. She throws everything she can think of in a bag and flees to Georgia with her eleven-year-old son, Max, in tow. 

It turns out that the estate is a decrepit farmhouse on a thousand acres of old pine forest, but Nellie is thrilled about the chance for a fresh start for her and Max, and a chance for the happy home she never had. So it takes her a while to notice the strange scratching in the walls, the faint whispering at night, how the forest is eerily quiet. But Max sees what his mother can't: They're no safer here than they had been in South Carolina. In fact, things might even be worse. There's something wrong with Redfern Hill. Something lurks beneath the soil, ancient and hungry, with the power to corrupt hearts and destroy souls. It is the true legacy of Redfern Hill: a kingdom of grief and death, to which Nellie's own blood has granted her the key."

The Hollow Kind is a dense, complex epic horror story that covers two different timelines and an intense family saga. This is the first book I've read by Andy Davidson and I was immediately drawn in by his writing and ability to create an atmosphere that was absolutely dripping with a sense of darkness and unease. 

The Hollow Kind follows generations of the Redfern family as they find themselves haunted by an otherworldly evil. The story is split into two timelines: one timeline follows August Redfern, grandfather to Nellie, starting in 1917 and spanning several decades; and the second timeline takes place in 1989 and follows Nellie and her son Max as they move into their inherited family estate. 

In 1989, Nellie has recently discovered that she was left as sole heir to the family turpentine estate and sees this as her opportunity to take her son Max and leave her husband/Max's father and start life anew somewhere else. Upon arriving at the estate, however, Nellie and Max both slowly begin to realize that something at the house holds a dark and discontent feeling that threatens their attempts at a new beginning. The earlier timeline follows August Redfern's life on the turpentine estate and the many perilous ups and downs that occurred during his lifetime. I found it really interesting and helpful to get this insight in August's life, including meeting his wife, children, and the other important people in his life. There is an ever-present eeriness in both timelines, but the earlier timeline definitely shows more origins of that and feels somewhat more mysterious and terrifying in its own right. 

I found myself much more engaged in the 1989 storyline because Max and Nellie were personally more compelling and I liked seeing what was going on with the house at this later time. I also really liked seeing Nellie and Max as a team trying to get by. Nellie is a tough character who comes across as someone who doesn't like to show a lot of her feelings to just anyone, but rather works hard to appear strong and prepared, especially in front of her son. This doesn't make her closed off to him, however, and in fact I really liked seeing the moments when Nellie was very straightforward with Max and didn't shy away from realities just because he was a kid, all without burdening him too much with things because he is, of course, still a kid. Max is very perceptive and immediately sense that something about the house is not right, but seeing his mom's hope for this new place causes him to give it a chance. 

There are so many creeping elements that make this book such a strong horror pick, including an mystifying woods and an otherworldly sense of something wrong. In addition to this type of horror, however, are plenty of characters in this book who have done terrible things and are capable of doing terrible things. It's these characters that really help build an overall sense of unease and terror throughout the story. 

Although this story is meant to be unfolded at a slower pace that worked really well and excelled in developing a gradual unveiling, I did think that there were some parts that dragged on just a little too much. I found this occurred more often in the older timelines than the 1989 one–which is possibly why I was more drawn to the 1989 timeline–and these are the times when I found my attention waining ever so slightly. This happened the most right around the halfway points and a little after; I found the beginning and ending of The Hollow Kind to be very strong. 

Overall, I've given The Hollow Kind four stars! I really liked this atmospheric epic horror that covered multiple generations of a family story and will be checking out more of Andy Davidson's work. 

*I received a copy of The Hollow Kind courtesy of MCD in exchange for an honest review.*

Buy the book: Amazon | Bookshop.org

Horror Mini-Review Pt. IV: We Are All Completely Fine by Daryl Gregory

Welcome to part four of my mini horror review series, featuring We Are All Completely Fine by Daryl Gregory! Previous mini horror reviews can be found below: 

Part I: Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
Part II: We Can Never Leave this Place by Eric LaRocca
Pt. III: Winterset Hollow by Jonathan Edward Durham

We Are All Completely Fine by Daryl Gregory

Tachyon Publications
Publication: July 21st, 2014

Paperback. 182 pages.

About We Are All Completely Fine:

"Harrison is the Monster Detective, a storybook hero. Now he’s in his mid-thirties and spends most of his time not sleeping. 

Stan became a minor celebrity after being partially eaten by cannibals. Barbara is haunted by the messages carved upon her bones. Greta may or may not be a mass-murdering arsonist. And for some reason, Martin never takes off his sunglasses. 

Unsurprisingly, no one believes their horrific tales until they are sought out by psychotherapist Dr. Jan Sayer. What happens when these likely-insane outcasts join a support group? Together they must discover which monsters they face are within and which are lurking in plain sight."

We Are All Completely Fine follows a group of people through their time in a therapy support group together. However, this is no ordinary group of people, but rather is composed of people who have survived their own horror story and have been living their life dealing with the aftereffects ever since. I’ve read a few books with this similar set up and have really enjoyed them, so I was pretty excited about this one.

What I liked: I really liked getting to know each character and their backstory since they all come from very different circumstances with some very unique, tragic history, and it was fascinating to see them come together and share these experiences with one another. It was particularly interesting to see how they all chose to deal with their experiences; for instance, some embrace it and are public with their experiences, whereas other try to hide from it and embrace as much invisibility as possible. Throughout the story, we visit each group member’s POV and get to see everything from their perspective, which I appreciated and I think allowed for a more well-rounded and compelling narrative to see how each perceived the rest of the group. I also liked Daryl Gregory’s writing style overall, and it definitely makes me want to read more books from him.

What I didn't like: There is a bigger overall plot that comes to light more near the end of the book, and although this plot was really interesting to explore, I did feel that things were just a little rushed and out of place at times for me. I liked seeing how individual characters ended up at the end, but I just didn’t necessarily love the pacing and I did find my focus wavering a bit in the latter portions of the book.

Overall, this is a very solid horror story following some intriguing characters straight from their own horror stories. It wasn’t as spooky as some horror novels are, but it will definitely still hit the spot for anything in the horror realm.