The concept for "Homecoming" by Micah Castle is a good one: a young man returns to the town in which he grew up to attend a friend's funeral, and rediThe concept for "Homecoming" by Micah Castle is a good one: a young man returns to the town in which he grew up to attend a friend's funeral, and rediscovers dark moments from his past. Castle's writing is well-paced, and there are creepy scenes involving a subterranean realm, mysterious creatures, and a sinister cult--all the makings of a good backstory and mythos--but I wish the story had been longer to better develop these. Character development was also limited by the short page count. Overall, though, this was a quick read with a satisfactory twist at the end. I look forward to reading what Castle can do with a longer work....more
"The World Turns Red" by Tim Waggoner is a quick read, both because of its diminutive length (83 pages) and because Waggoner's writing grabs you by th"The World Turns Red" by Tim Waggoner is a quick read, both because of its diminutive length (83 pages) and because Waggoner's writing grabs you by the throat in a narrative chokehold from the opening line, and doesn't let up. It's a simple premise: a sociology instructor, Lewis, is grading student essays from his home office in a state of disaffected boredom, when he looks out the window and witnesses his neighbor and young grandson affixing a hangman's noose from a bough in a tree. Lewis's initial puzzlement turns into horror as the neighbor then lovingly drapes the noose around the child's neck.
When Lewis rushes outside to warn them of a danger that should have been more than obvious, the child looks in his direction, gives a hearty wave and an eerie smile, then leaps from the ladder on which he's been perched, committing suicide before Lewis's aghast eyes. When his nonplussed neighbor then nonchalantly walks into the street, and directly into the path of a speeding oncoming pickup truck, followed soon after by the driver of the truck shooting herself in the head, Lewis quickly realizes this is no ordinary October afternoon. Everyone in the small, quiet town where he lives seems to be committing suicide, as further evidenced by the fact when he turns on the local news, he sees a reporter self-immolating on camera. For Lewis, the horror hits especially close to home; as a young child, he discovered his father shortly after he'd committed suicide with a shotgun blast to the head, and the memory of the gruesome sight -- as well as grisly hallucinations of his father's corpse, taunting him from beyond the grave that have lasted well into adulthood -- has left Lewis traumatized and emotionally scarred.
Although similar in premise to the M. Night Shyalaman 2008 movie "The Happening," the outbreak of suicidal tendencies in "The World Turns Red" hasn't affected the entire world just yet, and as Lewis rushes across town in the hopes he can rescue his mother, he eventually learns why. The reason, as well as the outcome of the story, are best left to be discovered on your own. No spoilers from me, but suffice it to say, the answer, my friend, isn't blowing in the wind.
This was such a fantastic story. The ending caught me completely off-guard, and I want to say more, but I'm not going to ruin it. Waggoner's writing is amazing, and the imagery in the story is truly chilling. "The World Turns Red" is a dark, disturbing, masterpiece worth binge-reading in one sitting. ...more
When an enigmatic stranger rides into a small, quiet town in the American Old West, trouble follows hot on his heels. Add in a crooked sheriff, his goWhen an enigmatic stranger rides into a small, quiet town in the American Old West, trouble follows hot on his heels. Add in a crooked sheriff, his good-natured deputy, a couple of town drunks, and a hot-headed local beauty, and you've got the makings of a tale as old as time, one told hundreds, if not thousands of times in the pages of countless pulpy cowboy novels.
However, in "Devil Dancers," authors Bo Chappell and Adrian Medina (writing as A.A. Medina) take those familiar plot devices and turn them on their ears. What starts out as a conventional set-up quickly evolves into fast-paced showdown between good and evil, as a dark force is unwittingly set upon the otherwise idyllic town of Guidance.
When Hector, an erstwhile outlaw, rides into town, he's greeted with suspicion and derision, both because he's Mexican, and because he's an unfamiliar face. He's got enough gold to throw around to make himself at least somewhat welcome, at least until a posse of his former compadres -- fellow outlaws on the lam -- come looking for him. They stir up enough trouble to make Hector beat a hasty retreat, aided by a friendly local and his daughter, Julie Ann. When both the criminal gang and Guidance's smarmy sheriff, Appleton, and his young deputy Jack track Hector down, things go sideways fast. Turns out Hector and his partners in crime aren't the worst trouble headed Guidance's way, and before the night's over, the town is overrun with carnivorous children, killer bees (literally), a murder of murderous crows, and plenty of other strange, grotesque, and downright terrifying phenomena.
As one by one, the colorful cast of characters is whittled down, it's up to Hector, Julie Ann, and Jack to try and not only make sense of the darkness that's taken over the town, but find a way to stop it before it spreads. To do this, Jack will have to embrace his long-forgotten roots as an Apache, Hector will have to make peace with his tumultuous past, and Julie Ann will have to realize she doesn't need a man to save her.
"Devil Dancers" takes a while to find its stride, but as it progresses, it's a lot of fun to read. Some of the imagery is truly terrifying, and while I wish there had been more explanation as to the origin and source of the evil infecting the good folks of Guidance, the climactic battle pitting our heroes against the "big boss" is exciting and satisfying.
For the most part, "Devil Dancers" doesn't take itself too seriously, and you can tell Chappell and Medina had fun with the prose. There are passages that read as lyrically as any in a Louis L'Amour tale, while others fly with the kind of sardonic, if not vulgar wit you find in a Tarantino movie. In fact, the vibe I got while reading struck me very much as being Tarantino-esque, or Robert Rodriguez-like: violent, witty, gritty, and dark. "Devil Dancers" is pulp fiction at its best, and it makes for a fun time reading. ...more
I love gothic horror, with its beleaguered heroines facing sinister and oppressive forces, brooding atmospheres and gloomy, often decrepit settings. TI love gothic horror, with its beleaguered heroines facing sinister and oppressive forces, brooding atmospheres and gloomy, often decrepit settings. These settings, in fact, are often characters in and of themselves, filled with cobwebs, shadows, and secrets galore. The mansion that's central to the story in Jeff Clulow's "Veil" is no exception, and just as the derelict halls of Aeolus House draw the protagonist, Suze Newman deeper into the mystery that is her family's storied past, so too does it pull the reader in, page by eagerly turned page.
Suze is an orphan, raised since birth in England's foster system. She has always felt disconnected from other people, despite her best efforts to fit in and bond with friends or foster families. She keeps her emotions bottled up inside, or rather, locked away in a metaphorical suitcase inside her mind, and ekes out an isolated, unfulfilled, and meager existence. When the story opens, she's hit rock bottom, having lost her job, which will inevitably mean losing the crummy little apartment that's more of a place where she keeps her few belongings than any real "home." Thus, when she receives notification that she is the sole beneficiary of a large estate belonging to the late Emma Lacey, her luck at last seems to be changing.
Suze learns that Emma was her birth mother, and when she travels to the rural English coast, finds a sprawling mansion called Aeolus House waiting. The home is named after a Greek wind god, and the name is more than fitting: from its lofty perch atop a rocky cliff overlooking the sea, the house is continuously battered by gales. From the looks of things inside the house, Suze discovers it hasn't fared much better. Emma, as it turns out, was a bit of a nut, as well as a hoarder, and the house she left behind is filled with heaps of old papers, books, newspapers, and trash. Among these, Suze finds a couple of curious items: a tattered old wedding dress and matching veil, and a box that once held a pair of antique dueling pistols, with one of the guns missing. All will become key elements as the story unfolds.
When Suze tries the wedding veil on, she's shocked to see the ghostly figure of a young man standing at the bottom of a stairwell. She pulls the veil away, and the apparition is gone. Each time she wears the veil, she sees visions throughout Aeolus House that she soon realizes are memories -- her mother, Emma's memories, to be exact. When one of these evokes feelings of overwhelming terror and dread, Suze realizes that something horrible happened to Emma once upon a time.
Through a series of twists and turns as treacherous as the foot paths from Aeolus House to the beaches below the cliffs, Clulow leads readers through the dark and disturbing mystery as Suze uncovers her family's past.
His writing style is lush, descriptive, and beautiful, and through his deft narrative, Aeolus House comes to life in minute detail. Like in all good gothic tales, it's much more than a setting, and for Suze, it serves as both an anchor to her roots -- a place she can finally call home -- and an albatross, weighing her down with the horrors her mother once endured.
Clulow's character development is likewise well-done. Suze is a relatable, likeable character, one who is easy to root for and empathize with. Again, like in all good gothic horror, there's a hint of romance when she's introduced to a handsome young solicitor charged with helping her inventory the estate to sell in probate, but Suze is no damsel in distress, nor does she need anyone to rescue her. In her, Clulow has created a gothic heroine with a modern mindset: strong-willed, fiercely independent, and more than capable to taking care of business for herself.
Clulow is a new writer to me, but one I'll seek out again. "Veil" is both haunting and harrowing, an exploration of a family's horrific past, and a young woman's triumph in overcoming it.
Have you ever closed your eyes and noticed strange shapes and colored globs that seem to float through the darkness? Did you ever stop to wonder what Have you ever closed your eyes and noticed strange shapes and colored globs that seem to float through the darkness? Did you ever stop to wonder what these things really are, or why we're still able to "see" them, despite our eyes being shut?
This strange phenomenon is at the center of M.J. Mars's upcoming release, The Fovea Experiments, available July 4, 2025 from Wicked House Publishing. In it, a group of students volunteer to take part in research exploring "phosphenes," or the perception of light even when no outside source is present. The study focuses on the fovea in particular, a center point inside the eye, where vision is sharpest, and its relationship to phosphenes. Sounds innocent enough, and easy money for a handful of college friends looking for some quick cash and credit for a homework assignment. Within a week of participating, however, the students begin to die one by one, each in mysterious and gruesome ways, their bodies found with their faces mutilated, with their eyes torn out, jaws wrenched apart and broken.
Only one manages to escape unscathed: a young man named Josh who, in the ensuing decades that follow, lives under a heavy shroud of suspicion that he was involved somehow in the deaths of his friends. Now an adult, he's moved to another town to escape the unbearable stigma, and built a quiet life for himself as a high school teacher. He drinks too much, self-medicating against the guilt, shame, and horror of his past, but has tried to move on as best he can, at least until one of his students, a plucky teen named Nala, digs up the proverbial dirt on both the experiment and his involvement. When she broadcasts her findings on social media, Josh is once again thrust into a spotlight of suspicion, and when he discovers the enigmatic Dr. Ellis, who had conducted the original study, is enlisting new volunteers for a repeat of the same research that cost his friends their lives, he has to decide whether or not to face the truth, and his past, or lose everything -- and everyone -- he holds dear.
This is unsettling, disturbing, and scary as hell. Mars won the inaugural Books of Horror Short Smack competition for her wonderfully wicked short story collection, We've Already Gone Too Far, so there's no question she's a skilled storyteller, drawing her reader into her narrative web, building layer upon layer of tension and dread with every page. The truth behind Dr. Ellis's research is far darker than Josh or the reader can imagine, but it's worth tucking into The Fovea Experiments to find out. But be forewarned: You may never dare to close your eyes again... ...more
I recently had the chance to read an advance copy of "A Splinter In Your Mind," a collection of short speculative stories by author Jeremy Eads. He prI recently had the chance to read an advance copy of "A Splinter In Your Mind," a collection of short speculative stories by author Jeremy Eads. He prefaces the book by sharing that these were written during a period of personal loss and financial difficulties, and those themes recur throughout the stories to varying degrees. They're all well written, and effectively creepy. To me, the standouts include:
"Mountain Stranger," which introduces readers to a traveling sales rep and all around loathsome guy who finds himself trapped in an endless and inescapable nightmare as punishment for his selfish, despicable ways. It's the collection's opening salvo, and reminded me of a cross between the Greek fable of King Sisyphus, doomed to roll a boulder up a mountainside over and over for eternity, and the old "Twilight Zone" episode called "Valley of the Shadow," in which a man can't escape a creepy small town in the middle of nowhere.
The chilling, dystopian "We The People" takes the concept of a political debate between rival candidates to a whole new, and extreme level. I loved the imagery Eads evokes in it (a phalanx of armored donkeys, for example, known as "Battle Brays," and a thunderous parade of "War Elephants").
My favorite of the bunch was "The Corpse Eater," in which a young woman discovers a journal written by her great-grandfather that had been locked away, along with a mysterious ring, for decades. It's in these journal entries, chronicling a young, idealistic soldier's experiences in the brutal trenches of the first World War, that Eads (clearly a history buff) seems most in his writing element. The titular creature is truly disturbing, but I wish Eads had fleshed the story out more in the end, perhaps made it novella-length or more, carrying the creepy vendetta further, more of a family affair.
"Black Hollow" is another one that I felt had potential to be reworked into something longer. The premise is pretty basic: a group of teens explore a house rumored to be haunted, only to regret it. But the horrors of that house -- in particular, an upstairs bedroom from which a strange and ominous buzzing can be heard -- are unique and terrifying, enough to have carried the story further than it goes.
Eads is a new author for me, and overall, "A Splinter In Your Mind" is a great introduction. His writing evokes just the right amount of dread to hook you as a reader, reeling you in deeper until each story reaches its chilling conclusion....more
Recently read “On Behalf of All Wonen” by Camille Danciu. It’s a short, bloody read, with a similar premise to the movie “Promising Young Woman,” but Recently read “On Behalf of All Wonen” by Camille Danciu. It’s a short, bloody read, with a similar premise to the movie “Promising Young Woman,” but it turns the revenge motif up to the proverbial 11. While the movie keeps things relatively tame, Danciu doesn’t hold back, and neither does her protagonist Taryn, who literally beats the ever-living sh!t out of any and every guy she deems to be deserving of her wrath (which is every single one she encounters).
Unlike the titular character in “Promising Young Woman,” Danciu’s Taryn has no bones to pick with specific guys (or at least not as the story opens). She’s not out to avenge herself or anyone else for some grievous wrong. She’s just pissed at men in general and sick of their crap. And it shows.
It’s important to note that Danciu presents Taryn as self-centered, arrogant, and arbitrary as the men she targets. Even though during the course of the story, Taryn discovers another character who admires and venerates her as a hero acting “on behalf of all women,” Danciu leaves it up to the reader to decide for themselves. Is Taryn a vigilante avenging angel? Or is she as despicable and sadistic a sociopath as her actions suggest? Whatever your choice, it’s a bloody good time....more
Woke up early because I'm a night shifter so my sleep schedule is always out of whack. Instead of fighting insomnia, I decided to take advantage of itWoke up early because I'm a night shifter so my sleep schedule is always out of whack. Instead of fighting insomnia, I decided to take advantage of it for a change and get in some long overdue reading. "Insurrection" by Ruth Anna Evans has been on my TBR list for awhile and while this isn't the kind of story you enjoy, it's definitely one you will never forget. Beautifully written, compelling, heart wrenching, and horrifying because it could be real, this story is brutal, bleak, and impossible to put down. You know the ending even before it begins, but cling to the hope that you're wrong, that compassion and basic human decency might somehow prevail even in the sorts of nightmarish circumstances Evans depicts. This is powerful stuff, with shades of Cormac McCarthy's "The Road," only without the glimmer of hope for humanity's redemption in the end....more
"This world is a cruel and arbitrary place." Tucker Gibson is just a child when he first hears these words, uttered by a deranged man who has murdered"This world is a cruel and arbitrary place." Tucker Gibson is just a child when he first hears these words, uttered by a deranged man who has murdered his fellow crewmen aboard a Coast Guard boat. Tucker and his father, out on a clam-digging expedition, discover the boat marooned on the shoals and board it to investigate. The grisly scene that greets them, and those enigmatic words -- offered moments before the killer takes his own life -- will come back to haunt Tucker as an adult when, serving as a law clerk, one of his firm's new clients tells him the exact same thing. The client commits suicide shortly after this fateful meeting, leaving Tucker wondering what the cryptic phrase could possibly mean. When he meets an equally mysterious woman named Rebekah, those answers suddenly seem tantalizingly within his reach.
Psychologist Carl Jung once posited: "In all chaos there is a cosmos, in all disorder a secret order." This theme runs throughout K.N. Gould's "Path of Totality," where nothing is as random as it first seems. In fact, the chaotic events that shape and shift not only Tucker's life, but Rebekah's as well, and those of everyone with whom they come into contact, all have one common thread: Charlotte, a young woman whose outward beauty belies her truly dark and twisted nature as an agent of chaos dealing in her trade with a cruel and ruthless fervor.
Delving into themes of occultism and dark magic, Gould draws the reader along with Tucker into a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse as he and Rebekah try to stop Charlotte's havoc once and for all. Charlotte, however, has no intention of going down easy or without a fight, and what a final showdown Gould gives us.
I was introduced to Gould's writing through his novella "Out of Whack," and when I read that, I knew he'd be an author to watch. This is his debut novel, but it reads with the confident pacing and descriptive worldbuilding of a seasoned storyteller just finding his stride. The book's title is a reference to the narrow area on the surface of the earth that's cast into darkness during a solar eclipse. In the story, Charlotte uses the term to refer to those like Tucker and Rebekah who are unfortunate enough to find themselves in her path of destruction. "Path of Totality" is a dark, disturbing fable reminding us that some secrets are best left undiscovered....more
In “Close the Door,” Cassandra O'Sullivan Sachar introduces us to Natalie, a woman struggling (as many of us do) to find a a balance between all of liIn “Close the Door,” Cassandra O'Sullivan Sachar introduces us to Natalie, a woman struggling (as many of us do) to find a a balance between all of life’s physical and emotional demands. She’s a single mother barely able to make financial ends meet, who tries desperately to maintain a brave and independent facade for friends and family. Her relationship with a mentally ill ex has left her filled with insecurity and self-doubt. She doesn’t invest much in herself or her own needs, but when she starts to suffer from blackout spells, blocks of time during which she indulges in reckless activities she has no memory of in the aftermath, she begins to fear that life’s pressures are driving her crazy. The truth, as it turns out, is a whole lot worse.
Sachar’s compelling narrative and relatable, sympathetic characters help drive this unsettling story to a dark, surprising conclusion. You may never look at a yoga class the same again. ...more
This is a great mix of stories, in both length, tone, and fear-factor. Mars deftly transitions from cheeky, gore-soaked humorous horror ("Monastery BlThis is a great mix of stories, in both length, tone, and fear-factor. Mars deftly transitions from cheeky, gore-soaked humorous horror ("Monastery Blood Moon" -- where a punk rocker and her bandmates struggle not only to survive a monstrous assault -- literally -- but also the humiliation of having to play obligatory smooth jazz at a snooty art installation opening), to the insidious and strange ("Jeff Through The Trees" -- the author's opening salvo in this collection and, in my opinion, the best of the lot). In all of her stories, Mars demonstrates an engaging narrative style and a talent for dialogue that makes it hard not to race through the entire book in one setting. I tried to stretch my reading out for several days, if only because I wanted the enjoyment to last, but it was hard because I wanted to see where she took me next as a reader. ...more
A crowd of social media influencers, trust-fund heirs, and crypto-currency investors pay tens of thousands of dollars per person to flock to a tropicaA crowd of social media influencers, trust-fund heirs, and crypto-currency investors pay tens of thousands of dollars per person to flock to a tropical island for an over-hyped music festival extravaganza. Grace, the beleaguered personal assistant to one of these spoiled, privileged attendees, finds it oddly suspicious that said festival bills itself as being "nothing like" the disastrous Fyre Festival in 2017. She also finds is peculiar that the beautiful mansion on said tropical island, where her influencer employer and the other A-list investors of the event are to stay, looks a little rundown and careworn upon close inspection. And what, she wonders, is up with all of the festival employees, who seem to remain eerily silent all the time -- not to mention with their boss, Julius, who keeps looking at her in this weird, creepy way? It doesn't take long for Grace to put two and two together: Julius and the gang are vampires. And not in the sparkly, Twilight-kind of way. They've been alone on that island for a long, long time. And they're HUNGRY.
"Thyrst Festival" is a fun, gory rollercoaster ride. Lenz's writing draws you in from the opening page, and her return to the old-school style of vampire is a welcome respite from the "kinder, gentler," more romanticized versions that have become mainstream over the years. With "Thyrst Festival," Lenz reminds us that these are creatures that have terrorized and terrified people for centuries -- and why. ...more
Three kids are chosen at random as unwilling participants in an ancient tradition: one of them must die to appease the maniacal whims of an unhinged gThree kids are chosen at random as unwilling participants in an ancient tradition: one of them must die to appease the maniacal whims of an unhinged god. Ben is a kindhearted but timid boy who seems the most likely candidate for sacrifice. Sam is a self-centered and sadistic bully, who seems to deserve death the most. Athletic Maggie has a life filled with opportunity and promise--and dark secrets she can't escape. Over the course of one fateful Halloween night, they must face both by the apparitions of the rite's previous victims, as well as the ghosts of their pasts, if they hope to survive until dawn.
Reid does an excellent job of combining more innocent aspects of early adolescence with the darker elements in the story. (I definitely got vibes of "the Losers Club" from Stephen King's "It" at times.) Ben is the most likable of the trio of main characters, and Sam, the least, but even with these distinctions made early in the narrative, we learn there are reasons for Sam's cruelty and that Ben isn't always the pushover he first appears to be. And while Maggie initially appears as no-nonsense and tough, we learn she has a softer, more empathetic side, too, as the story unfolds. No one is exactly as they first seem to be, and that goes for the god who instigates the entire ordeal. In the end, however, a difficult and horrible choice must be made, and until the very end, Reid keeps you guessing which one must go....more
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