The nitty-gritty: Disturbing and creepy, Nestlings is the perfect horror story to curl up with this Halloween. “What does it mean to be a mother? This, she realized. Doing what was best even though it killed you.” Nestlings arrives just in time for Halloween, and I couldn’t have picked a better book to end October […]
The nitty-gritty: Horror, music and nostalgia combine in surprising ways in this chilling debut. “A sound unlike anything any of them had ever heard bloomed through the air like black ink on wet paper. It no longer came from the PA speakers; it came from everywhere. It came from the floor, the ceiling, from the […]
The nitty-gritty: Truth and fiction blur together in Catriona’s Ward’s latest, a complex tale about death, love and stories. “Friends can break your heart, it seems, just like love.” I never know what to expect from a new Catriona Ward book, other than it’s sure to be complex and different, and Looking Glass Sound is […]
The nitty-gritty: Chuck Tingle tackles some big themes in his latest, a fun, entertaining and heartfelt story about being yourself. “This is my parents’ worst nightmare,” I announce, gazing at the living room ceiling with a pillow behind my head. “Their gay daughter and her lesbian girlfriend in a spooky old farmhouse doing drugs with […]
The nitty-gritty: Evil takes over a boys’ orphanage in this gory, claustrophobic tale. I’m so glad I finally read a book by Philip Fracassi, and after my experience with Boys in the Valley, I’m eager to read more of his work. This is a tightly plotted, emotional horror story involving demonic possession, and I went […]
The nitty-gritty: A dark and gritty look at a codependent relationship, with vampires. “At six o’clock, I break a teacup from the kitchenette against the wall and use a shard of porcelain to cut a second hole in my arm. I let it pool into a paper Dixie cup and tell Mom to come drink […]
The nitty-gritty: Shocking and audacious, Maeve Fly combines repulsive violence with unexpected emotion, and I could not put it down. “Having stripped most of the flesh down with chemicals and the slow cooker, and having worked my muscles to a place beyond fatigue with the hacking, I now have to dry the bones outside in […]
The nitty-gritty: A grotesque but beautifully written tale of revenge and love. “I bite down on my smile instead, straightening, aware of how I must look: transparent hair, translucent skin, lips red as arteries. Iridescent eyes, stained-glass oceans, so large that they are nearly alien, their breadth magnified by thick, sweeping lashes. With every hour […]
The nitty-gritty: The Scourge Between Stars had plenty of thrilling action, but the story itself was too big for the short format. Horror in space is one of my favorite tropes, and Ness Brown’s story of a generation ship being attacked by a hidden predator was extremely tense and scary. I also thought it was […]
The nitty-gritty: T. Kingfisher mashes together Southern gothic creepiness, a cast of unforgettable characters, and plenty of humor in A House With Good Bones, a thoroughly entertaining haunted house story. “There is probably something more awkward than the morning after you’ve found a jar of teeth and your mother has admitted she thinks she’s being […]