-
Daphne by Josh Malerman
Daphne hits you hard and fast right from the beginning. Put on your Nikes and get ready for the most exciting run of your life! The start of the story is a bit slow, and I felt that it was let down slightly by the pace. I had heard so many great things about Malerman’s work and I wanted to give it the best chance. Midway through it really started gaining momentum and I was all in. the seatbelt was engaged, and I braced my hands on the dashboard, expecting to get my head caved in at any moment. Kit Lamb and her friends are having a sleepover, and what’s…
-
Everything the Darkness Eats by Eric LaRocca
Everything the Darkness Eats fizzles with tension, the pages just turn of their own volition. A fierce exploration of grief and power. LaRocca hits you with yet another viscerally compulsive story. You can trust Eric LaRocca to hit that fucked up o’metre and turn your quiet reading day into a bubbling cauldron of angst and apprehension. Everything the Darkness Eats is like LaRocca’s other books, in that, the titles are designed to make you think. His presence is everywhere and with a unique writing style all his own I am his ultimate fan. He’s an auto buy author because well, where else can you indulge in your intrusive thoughts because…
-
A Moonlit Path of Madness by Catherine McCarthy
A Moonlit Path to Madness builds and builds to an ending so satisfying that I couldn’t pick anything up for days. A story like a poignant poem, its elegance leaving you stunned. Let’s be very clear from the offing – A Moonlit Path to Madness is a phenomenal book. McCarthy has captured everything I love about Gothic Horror. It’s quietly disconcerting and wholly compulsive. It’s a story that will not leave you, its imprint etched into he chambers of your heart, a permanent marking from a long-ago era. Catherine McCarthy’s writing is both eloquent and devastating. She has a firm reputation within the horror community for being supportive of other…
-
Hum by Rob Ulitski
Hum is bruisingly brutal. A short, sharp shock to the nervous system, it makes you realise that depraved individuals hide in plain sight. Rob Ulitski is one of my favourite short story horror writers. It’s fucked up, its mental but you are guaranteed to have a good time reading it. The visuals and the narrative take you on the biggest trip to the point if you imagine it all happened in a dream. Hum is no different, in the fact that you say holy shit a lot. Hum is a short story that leaves you traumatised. The horror as always is freaking fantastic. Descriptions of bones being stripped clean with…
-
The Exeter Incident by David Watkins
The Exeter Incident felt fresh and exciting. It was otherworldly and gripping. Watkins genius is his ability to strip away the veil, unleashing the horror contained within. The Exeter Incident was a fantastic foray into creature feature/cosmic horror. Have you ever questioned why life is so boring? Why nothing interesting ever happens? Well, The Exeter Incident might just make you thankful for your nice dull life. You can’t buy excitement from Amazon, but you can buy The Exeter Incident and it equates to the same thing. At the heart of this novel is hope. If humanity does nothing else right, it’s their blind faith that everything will turn out well…
-
Odious Ghouls by Tom Rimer
Odious Ghosts can only be described as a branch of trauma horror – well I am thoroughly traumatised, and I read a lot of horror! This is sick and twisted. Tom Rimer is a horror mastermind. Odious Ghouls. What does those two words mean to you? What is the image that is conjured up when you picture the context in which they’d exist. I went blind with this one. I really enjoyed Malevolent Nevers released by Tom Rimer last year, so I had full confidence that this was going to float my darkened heart. When family elders warn you to stay away from hallowed ground, you better just believe them.…
