They’re feeding on you too.

A father returns from serving in Vietnam with a strange and terrifying addiction; a man removes something horrifying from his fireplace, and becomes desperate to return it; and a right-wing news channel has its hooks in people in more ways than one.

From department store Santas to ghost boyfriends and salamander-worshipping nuns; from the claustrophobia of the Covid-19 pandemic to small-town Chesapeake USA, Clay McLeod Chapman takes universal fears of parenthood, addiction and political divisions and makes them uniquely his own.

Packed full of humanity, humour and above all, relentless creeping dread, Acquired Taste is a timely descent into the mind of one of modern horror’s finest authors.

You can only come out with so many amazing songs, or indeed write so many outstanding short stories, before it’s time for a “best of.” Clay McLeod Chapman’s “Acquired Taste,” which could alternatively have been called “CLAY GOLD,” or “NOW that’s what I call Clay McLeod Chapman,” is just that. A bloody, minor-key mixtape of the greatest hits, from one of the greatest voices in horror, this collection was absolutely “my jam.” It releases September 9th from Titan Books, and in the meanwhile dear reader my advice is to avoid weird-looking marshmallows, buy your breast pumps brand new, do not under any circumstances put your tongue anywhere near an axolotl, and put your pre-order for this one in now.

Eclectic does not quite encapsulate “Acquired Taste.” Absurd in some areas, with demon hammers and salamander worshipping nuns, whilst being truly vile in others, I’d be delighted to talk you through a few of my highlights.

I’d like to start with two that were already favourites if that’s quite alright with you. “Baby Carrots,” and “Knockoffs,” were both initially released as “Chapman Chapbooks,” with Shortwave in 2023. If you have a real hankering for them right this second, you can order them here and here respectively. “Baby Carrots,” follows a narrator who is not haunted only by his imminent separation from his wife Emma but also by a bag of baby carrots- his son’s favourite snack. Whilst I was once partial to the little guys, especially when dipped in hummus, Chapman’s descriptions of them writhing and slithering (yup, mhm) have truly put me off- I have been a baby carrot celibate for the past few months. 

“Knockoffs,” is arguably better yet. If you look deep and hard enough, beneath the tie-dye, it offers excellent commentary upon the internet and consumerism and the toxic symbiosis between the two. It follows an infestation of “Tubby Wubbys,” who wreak havoc upon our narrator, and his home- which becomes ground zero for a neighbourhood-wide plush and plastic pandemonium. I’m afraid if you’re a Labubu owner, you may be particularly eager to jettison it into the nearest incinerator. Both stories are silly and strange, but also, surprisingly insightful, and I’m hugely excited that they’re being republished here so that more hungry, terrified eyeballs can be roved over them. 

Whilst those two happen to be heavy on the charm in addition to the horror, let me assure you, many of these stories have a distinct nastiness to them. In his collection “The Poorly Made and Other Things,” Sam Rebelein has a story called “10PM on the Southbound 6,” which I believe, in a moment of polite understatement, I called “completely uncalled for,” and “undeniably foul.” These very same feelings resurfaced when I read “Pick of the litter,” in which our narrator describes the scene at a playground. All is well until the punchline (that can only be described as CRUEL Clay McLeod Chapman) is delivered. I still loved it. The same could be said about “Posterboard,” (a story that to my knowledge is brand spanking new) in which we read from the perspective of somebody attending a rally. Whilst commentary on obsessive ideological passion and hyper-partisanship were expected, its conclusion was certainly not. More devious work. 

Fans of “Wake Up and Open Your Eyes,” (which I’m assuming is everyone who has read it right?) will be delighted or disturbed to learn that the nightmare did not actually begin with a voice mail to Noah Fairchild. It started way earlier, with a short story called “The Spew of News,” published originally in Andrew Cull and Gabino Iglesias’ “FOUND,” in 2022. The beginnings of what turned out to be an excellent novel are hardly humble, but fascinating to read in retrospect. The themes of political division, media rot, and ideological cannibalism remain, (as well as the excellently named “Fax News,”) but this time the horrors that unfurl are shorter and distinctly more Cronenbergian- as well as inflicted upon an unnamed narrator.

As much as I’d love to gush more and spoil each story one by one, nobody wants that, so some quick fire favourites it is then… Emily C. Hughes described “Debridement,” as one of the most upsetting short stories she has ever encountered in her life, in an episode of Robb Olson’s “The ARC Party,” and I’m inclined to agree. “Hermit,” is like a sinister crustacean-centred “Ratatouille,” that made my skin crawl. “Nathan Ballingrud’s Haunted Horror Recs,” is the best written inside joke I’ve ever read, I’m now quite scared of Nathan Ballingrud. “Our Summer in the Pit,” is a kids on bikes “Stig of the dump,” meets “The Troop,” gnarly body horror that I don’t think I’ll ever forget. 

Ranging from ear-collecting serial killers to comic book demons, each of these 25 stories, like the rest of his body of work, was unmistakably written by Clay McLeod Chapman. Twisted, tender, deranged, Chapman has a singular voice that is strange and weird and beautiful, and does not falter throughout. What I suppose I’m trying to say, dear reader, is that, truly, earnestly, it is a privilege to be a horror reader who exists at the same time Chapman is writing. Go forth and acquire taste.

Synopsis:

They would have you believe, (the police and mainstream media), that I, Charlie Macall, and my friends, were the deadliest killers since Manson or Bundy. That’s only half true. Yes, we’ve killed, but to put us in the same category as those two I’ve just mentioned, is wrong, a fallacy. For starters, they’d have to be human for us to be considered murderers, right?

What I’m about to tell you is nothing but the truth, the whole truth, as unbelievable as it may seem. Let it stand as testimony to the brave deeds of the people who have fallen in our task. The people who have died trying to free you all from a prison of no walls.

You’ll have to bear with me on this journey, for if you are to believe me, it’s going to take time, time to unravel the illusion of what you believe to be your normal, everyday lives.

Hell, I didn’t even believe it at first and why should I have? This shit is crazy…

Review:

So, where to start? E H Bradley is one of the founder members of the Dark Veil group of authors. Therefore, when taking up the offer to read this ARC, I was expecting a tale tinged with darkness and horror. Yep. Got that. What I wasn’t expecting was a novel that then wove elements of dark, scifi-cum-fantasy in its latter half. It was as if a switch was turned on halfway. The dark, creeping horror of the initial chapters entwined with the grief and emotional pain of a group of friends was well played. You could ‘see’ where you were being led, and it reminded me of some of Ramsey Campbell’s works where you had to read on to prove yourself right as the foreboding darkness ratcheted up.

And then, boom. To say more would be to spoil the book. Let’s say we move worlds, and the hinted at glimpses of our antagonists becomes very real and very physical swiftly after that. The characters retain their believability, and their anguish. The antagonists, however, were a little too over-the-top for me. Not in the boundaries they crossed, but in the lack of shade in their consistent bitterness and desire to inflict pain.

Overall, this was an enjoyable book. I love being taken by surprise and would recommend indie horror fans, and those on the darker fringes of scifi, to give this a read.

“Bravery is not something that’s born in you, it’s something created out of pure love and the will to survive. I knew in that moment, however foolish my decision was, it was the right choice. Evil cannot be allowed to win, not on my feckin’ watch.”

Synopsis

Having just graduated from college, Jason and Eddie are ready to let loose and embark on a cross-country road trip. After some killer partying at a rock music festival in Nevada, they head out into the desert with girls and adventure on their minds. Their situation takes a dark turn, however, when they lose direction and find themselves at the entrance of a ghost town in the bowels of the sprawling desert. The residents turn out to be . . . a little off.

Meanwhile, Carrie has just found herself in the depths of a murky lair. Quick reflexes aid in her concealment, but she soon discovers the utter horrors that lurk within the dark recesses. Survival ultimately depends on her strength and cunning.

Tensions escalate as Jason, Eddie, and Carrie come to grips with their new chilling realities. All the while, a dark evil begins to reveal itself. For within this stretch of desolate landscape exists a cannibal death cult, and they have an insatiable lust for blood.

It’s kill or be killed—and as the bloodshed intensifies, so does the fierce will to live.

Death Cult is splatterpunk: There are graphic scenes of gore and violence.

Review

Been meaning to read something from the author for a bit, so I grabbed a paperback to give it a go. 

Two new friends are taking a cross-country road trip. They foresee booze, laughs, and some time with the ladies. Unfortunately, they get lost and end up in a small town, one with a bit of a sinister twist. It seems as if everyone is trying to lure them somewhere, and the eerie atmosphere builds. When they try to help someone in need, things take a turn. The chaos that ensues is exactly what you’d expect, oh, except for those things you don’t see coming. And it’s nothing short of your favorite horror classics and horror tropes. 

To me this was like an epic amalgamation of horrors. The road trip, getting lost, the fateful warning that goes ignored, the car trouble. It’s The Descent meets Saw meets The Devil’s Rejects meets The Hills Have Eyes meets (very specifically) The Walking Dead S11E6 ‘On the Inside’ where there are feral humans living in the walls. Oh and on top of all that, it’s bringing you right into the heart of the good old 80s satanic panic. This was gruesome and gory, with some killer contraptions and traps, more cannibalism and ritualism. It also features a strong female fighting for survival, and two male best friends that give emotional beats to the piece. And although you hope for all three of them to escape together, they certainly end up having a devil of a time. 

This felt like coming home and popping a tape in the old VCR. Like catching an old favorite on cable—I could see myself watching the screen with all its low budget grainy goodness. Like the kind of thing that would be getting its own legacy sequel in theaters right now.

Synopsis

Spring Break, 1997. A group of college friends sets out for an unforgettable trip to Mexico, but their adventure takes a horrific turn when they are abducted by a satanic cult in the Tucson desert. Their captor? Zeena Graves—a strikingly beautiful yet merciless cult leader who commands her followers from the darkness of an abandoned church.

As midnight strikes on Easter night, she prepares to enact a ritual drenched in blood and terror that can only be completed After the Pink Moon. Bound by fear, surrounded by zealots, and with time slipping away, the captives must find a way to escape before they become unwilling participants in a nightmare beyond comprehension.

A relentless and unsettling descent into the horrors of the Satanic Panic era, After the Pink Moon is a gripping tale of faith corrupted, innocence shattered, and the terrifying price of belief.

Review

I’m pretty much on auto-buy here, so naturally had to get a physical copy of this new one. As I did cover reveals for some things that didn’t end up happening in 2024, I’m glad for a new story any which way…

This is a short satanic panic novel. It takes place kind on the tail-end/after the end of it in the nineties, but it has all the goodies you’d want. As always, Reyes really knows his horror, and that often bleeds and creeps into everything he gives us. In classic summer slasher style, a group of teens are planning a getaway to Mexico. Looking for nothing more than relaxation and alcohol in a hot place, is that so much to ask for? But when Zeena Graves’ perfect plan goes sideways, she needs to quickly switch lanes. Oh, and she just so happens to be the figurehead of a satanic cult, known for ritualistic murders all around Tuscan under the moniker of the Catalina Satanists. The accompanying news reports the author shared really made it feel not only real, but very on brand for Devil Terror. 

The house the cultists lived in felt very much so like the book’s references of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Which was fitting, but I was a little confused by the squalor, when Zeena had some high class donors. Maybe she was just using those donations elsewhere? (The author has since posted, stating that she was trying to be smart, hiding in plain sight! I think that makes sense.) The scenes of captivity felt real and weighted, and the violence was brutal and heavy handed. Zeena’s sycophants ran the whole gamut from following blindly to the naively deceived. The mixture of which, as well as some of the finale’s plot points, reminded me of the show Evil, but with less religion and much more murder. 

A release that stands well next to Reyes’ others.

Justice for Mary, who suffered her third-act final girl moment 100 pages too soon.

SYNOPSIS

When a video depicting the brutal murder of a former classmate leaks online, Kylie Bennington’s—whose dreams of becoming a successful influencer remain frustratingly elusive—curiosity gets the better of her, leading to the discovery of an off-the-grid social media app called MonoLife. As it turns out, there are certain cryptic rules in the user agreement that must be adhered to, such as interacting with other users at least twice daily or risk losing it all…and never, ever speaking of MonoLife’s existence to non-users or risk dire consequences.

For this is a platform that primarily rewards the worst in human behavior, and which begins chipping away at Kylie’s sanity across post after post for an ever-increasing audience of immoral fans. Now Kylie’s going to find out just how far she’s willing to go on her unyielding rise to the top—even if that means coming face-to-face with the frightening and ruthless forces behind MonoLife, who see all from deep within the shadows…

REVIEW

Feeders is a fast paced, descent into the darkest corners of the internet and the human mind. Jealousy, greed and depravity pave the way to hell as we watch how far Kylie Bennington is willing to go for internet stardom.

Social media is terrifying enough as it is, and in Feeders, Matt Serafini takes it to another level. We follow Kylie as she struggles in the shadow of her friend Erin and her ever growing social media stardom. Kylie grows increasingly envious of the endorsements and opportunities, her envy quickly turning into resentment. So when Kylie learns of a new app called Monolife, she jumps at the chance to surpass her friend on a new platform, no matter how shady it seems.

Feeders has a lot to say about social media and the influence it has on today’s youth. Worth is defined by likes and followers. It also has a tendency to bring out the worst in people. There’s an anonymity you can only get online and sadly, most people will take advantage of that to show their ugliest attributes.

The violence in this novel is visceral and more than a few moments may be triggering to some. Monolife is basically Twitter meets early 4Chan or the infamous rotten dot com. The worst things humanity is capable of are rewarded in the only way that matters, likes and praise from strangers.

Watching Kylie go down an increasingly dark path to achieve what she believes is success is both heart-breaking and fascinating. Serafini makes the reader an unwitting participant in her descent. I found myself at one moment wanting her to see it’s not worth it and turn back, then the next, curious about what she’s going to do next.

Like a great episode of Tales from the Crypt or Black Mirror, Feeders is a cautionary tale wrapped in blood, gore and bad decisions. A train-wreck you can’t take your eyes off of. Dark, satirical and violent, this novel is a wild ride straight to hell. Fans of Grady Hendrix should definitely check this out.

Synopsis:

“I’m gonna take that gold right from under them and disappear with what I have always deserved – the fortune we have always deserved…”

It’s the turn of the 20th century and times are getting harder for aging gunslinger John Arthur and his adopted daughter Bethany ‘The Blade’ Mason. After reuniting with an old friend they are offered an opportunity promising the haul of a lifetime but the unexpected is waiting in the small, strange town of Haddington.

Heist turns to horror as a battle for survival blurs the lines between law and outlaw.

Review:

I came into this novella on the back of a recent penchant for loving western style scenarios and settings for unusual genres. Be this fantasy, fantasy scifi or even Lovecraftian elements. It was a logical step to enter the realm of western horror, and I have been intrigued by author Lee Hall’s work for quite a while. I was not disappointed. Hall establishes a strong back story that emerges throughout the novella, leaving the denouement both satisfying and the reader eager to read the rest of the author’s work. The character of John Arthur, a world-weary outlaw with a huge responsibility on his shoulders, drags you through what starts as a heist and delves into creepy and later demonic horror. And the major side characters feel real, something difficult to achieve within such a short book. If you love westerns, horror and grizzled antiheroes, give this book a read.

Synopsis:

Noah Fairchild has been losing his formerly polite Southern parents to far-right cable news for years, so when his mother leaves him a voicemail warning him that the “Great Reawakening” is here, he assumes it’s related to one of the many conspiracy theories she believes in. But when his own phone calls go unanswered, Noah makes the long drive from Brooklyn to Richmond, Virginia. There, he discovers his childhood home in shambles, a fridge full of spoiled food, and his parents locked in a terrifying trance-like state in front of the TV. Panicked, Noah attempts to snap them out of it and get medical help.

Then Noah’s mother brutally attacks him.

But Noah isn’t the only person to be attacked by a loved one. Families across the country are tearing each other apart-–literally-–as people succumb to a form of possession that gets worse the more time they spend watching particular channels, using certain apps, or visiting certain websites. In Noah’s Richmond-based family, only he and his young nephew Marcus are unaffected. Together, they must race back to the safe haven of Brooklyn–-but can they make it before they fall prey to the violent hordes?

This ambitious, searing novel from “one of horror’s modern masters” holds a mirror to our divided nation, and will shake readers to the core.

Review:

I’ve loved everything I’ve read from Clay McLeod Chapman, and I’ve read quite a bit. His What Kind of Mother is right up there at the top of my list for the great horror novels of the twenty-first century, and it’s emblematic of all the things I love about his work: deep character work, literary style, palpable grief, and the kind of horror that creeps up on you and finally leaves you saying, “Hey, what the actual fuck?”

There’s plenty to admire in Chapman’s latest, Wake Up and Open Your Eyes, but it doesn’t bear much of a resemblance to anything else in his oeuvre. Here, the horror is in-your-face, brutal almost to the point of comedy, the characters are (very intentionally) types, and much of the latter half is narrated by an imaginary Anderson Cooper.

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes focuses on the extended members of the Fairchild family, a “typical” suburban American family. Noah lives in Brooklyn with his wife and young daughter, while the rest of his family lives back in Virginia. As the story opens, Noah realizes something is wrong when his parents won’t answer the phone, and the next thing you know, he’s driving down to check on them. When he arrives, he finds his parents transformed into zombie-like near-catatonics, repeating television catch phrases, wallowing in their own filth, and finally turning violent.

What Noah doesn’t realize yet is that this is no isolated incident. Similar scenes are occurring all across the nation, transforming the U.S. into the site of an apocalyptic paranormal event. And soon we’re following Noah on a trek from Virginia to New York, trying to make it home amid the violence and orgies of a populace gone mad.

One thing that makes Wake Up and Open Your Eyes different is that it’s much less a horror novel (despite its horrific content) than a satire. What makes the satire hard to carry off is the fact that modern American life is already so ludicrous that it’s almost satire-proof. The Onion can’t write a headline that rivals the real-world events bombarding us every single day.

But Chapman gives it his all.

Over the course of the novel, Chapman takes shots at Fox News, ipad babies, incels, and the through-line from hippy wellness culture to fascism, refiguring them all as demonic influences, possession through our screens, a great spiritual attack on a world too secular–and too isolated from one another–to fight back.

In isolation, many of these topics have been tackled in horror literature (E.K. Sathue’s Youthjuice being a personal favorite), but Chapman’s aim is so broad that it leaves little room for nuance. They seem like easy targets, which seems like a weird thing to say while we live through the literal end of democracy due to the impact of just these social influences.

One problem might be that none of these influences are ever allowed to appear actually appealing. They are all cartoonishly vapid and evil from the get-go, even (or especially) the viral youtube video, “Baby Ghost.”

Chapman is sure to save some vitriol for those city-dwelling liberal elites (Fair and Balanced, after all), but it feels a bit like an afterthought in a book that is really a kind of primal scream at the abhorrent stupidity of this historical moment. And structurally, the book spends a bit too much time with Noah’s brother’s family, watching them plunge further and further into the demonic rabbit hole, while there might have been a much more satisfying road trip structure to guide us through the carnage.

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes shows Chapman stretching, flexing his muscles, aiming for something a little different, and even if it doesn’t always connect, it’s still a wild ride conducted by a writer of great skill, and it’s certainly worth the cost of the ticket.

Synopsis

From the author of White Horse (“Twisty and electric.” —The New York Times Book Review) comes a terrifying and resonant novel about a woman who uses her unique gift to learn the truth about her sister’s death.

Olivia Becente was never supposed to have the gift. The ability to commune with the dead was the specialty of her sister, Naiche. But when Naiche dies unexpectedly and under strange circumstances, somehow Olivia suddenly can’t stop seeing and hearing from spirits.

A few years later, she’s the most in-demand paranormal investigator in Denver. She’s good at her job, but the loss of Naiche haunts her. That’s when she hears from the Brown Palace, a landmark Denver hotel. The owner can’t explain it, but every few years, a girl is found dead in room 904, no matter what room she checked into the night before. As Olivia tries to understand these disturbing deaths, the past and the present collide as Olivia’s investigation forces her to confront a mysterious and possibly dangerous cult, a vindictive journalist, betrayal by her friends, and shocking revelations about her sister’s secret life.

The Haunting of Room 904 is a paranormal thriller that is as edgy as it is heartfelt and simmers with intensity and longing. Erika T. Wurth lives up to her reputation as “a gritty new punkish outsider voice in American horror.”

Review

Thanks to Flatiron Books and NetGalley for this audiobook arc. 

This is my first experience with the author, and I really enjoyed it. This is like a mix between ghost hunting and being a ghost medium, with Olivia having not only the sight, but abilities. She’s like a paranormal detective but also a kind of spirit weaver. The novel opens with her solving a few lesser incidents to get your blood flowing, but they all end up coming back in connection. 

When hired to investigate room 904, Olivia is facing far more than just a simple haunting. The room is the place where her sister was last seen alive, before she took her own life, and it’s believed that this is directly linked to the haunting itself. Every year like clockwork a woman checks into the hotel, whether or not they try to lock up room 904 tight, without fail, three weeks later there’s another death. And Olivia’s investigation is hit with another layer of desperation when she finds out her mother has been to the hotel…

The in between is filled with a couple of repetitive beats, where she is struggling back and forth with solving the mystery. There are some shared locations that made it feel like similar things were happening. But I was a really big fan of these small sections at the beginning of chapters that served as little advertisements for different ghost hunting equipment. And as my version was narrated, it added almost a comedic beat to break things up. What was kind of strange to me though, was how much research must have gone into the equipment, when the items themselves take a serious backseat in the story. The author mentions that they are there, or that they are using them, but then it always defaulted to Olivia reaching out with her powers anyway. 

The novel deals with indigenous mistreatment and culture erasure, not only in its past plot line of a massacre, but also in the way those around Olivia speak and treat her. There’s this incredibly nasty journalist after her, and she is a great example of the way people speak about American Indians in a way they feel they can claim is not a racial commentary. And I found this not only informational, but a good facsimile for readers of what people actually have to deal with. A solid first read for me.

To eight-year-old Bela, her family is her world. There’s Mommy, Daddy and Grandma Ruth. But there is also Other Mommy, a malevolent entity who asks her every day: ‘Can I go inside your heart?’

When horrifying incidents around the house signal that Other Mommy is growing tired of asking Bela the question over and over, Bela understands that unless she says yes, her family will soon pay.

Other Mommy is getting restless, stronger, bolder. Only the bonds of family can keep Bela safe, but other incidents show cracks in her parents’ marriage. The safety Bela relies on is about to unravel.

But Other Mommy needs an answer.

You know when a contestant in a cooking show is serving a relatively simple dish, and the judges, with a poorly-concealed sado-masochistic glint in their eyes say “Ooohhh… pork chops, there’s no room for error there…” In that respect, Josh Malerman’s “Incidents Around The House,” is very much a spag bol in the masterchef final. Through the unadorned, short and snappy narration of 8 year old Bela, the entire “pre-possession,” plot of Malerman’s most-discussed work to date is laid bare, but to underestimate it would be a grave mistake. I assure you, the writing, which seems to drip with guileless curiosity and childhood innocence (whilst not leaning too far into precocity or naivety), is but a trojan horse, a cruel trick, because pretty damn quickly things get pretty damn creepy. I am nothing if not fashionably late, and there is barely anything remotely original I have to add to the thousands of reviews the book has already received, but I’ve also never been one to read a book and not remind the whole world that I can in fact read. A novel that meets the towering expectations I rather unfairly stacked against it, “Incidents Around The House,” is childhood terror, every witching hour sprint between the bedroom and the bathroom, every time we lost sight of mum or dad in the supermarket, every monster in every closet, distilled, bottled and served with a smile. 

Most importantly, today, March 27th, “Incidents Around The House,” is not only available in paperback for the first time, but available in the UK. Thank you to Tor Nightfire UK and Pan Macmillan for my ARC.

Bela is eight. She lives with Mommy and her best friend Daddo, who very much have their own issues. Unfortunately those marital problems (you know, infidelity, emotional distance, the general malaise of adult life) pail in comparison to the spot of trouble Bela has found herself in. At first she just stayed in the closet and stared, before they slowly became friends. Of course, friends do nice things for each other, but when Other Mommy turns to Bela and asks “Can I go into your heart?” well, I’ll pause to let that marinate.

You with me? “Can I go into your heart?” is, whilst rather polite, of course one of the most horrifying and fundamentally wrong notions in horror literature. It’s a literal and metaphorical violation, the ultimate transgression, that demands Bela not just surrender her innocence, something that pulses at the black, beating heart of this book, but relinquish her entire being. Whether this is a coming-of-age or a coming-apart story, is something I’m afraid you’ll have to find out for yourself, but at the very least she is a catalyst which forces Bela to grow up quickly, and come to the leaden conclusion that Mommy and Daddo can not protect her. In that way, in regard to the revocation of innocence, in regard to the friendship she attempts to form with Bela, in regard to the fact that she is a crude caricature of the mother, someone who should be nurturing and caring and of course in regard to the fact that she is fucking creepy, she is very much like a predator. 

As readers we see only fragments of “Other Mommy,” the hair on the back of her arms, the eyes that are only sometimes located on her chin, the fact that she “slithers,” across floors, but aside from that… Hwhat (with a capital h) is she? There’s not quite the same, opaque level of mystery shrouding her as there is in something like Stephen King’s “The Mist,” or indeed Josh’s own “Birdbox.” Other Mommy is tangible enough to scare the bejeesus out of us, yet hovers just outside of the frame of comprehension. Let’s not mince words: “Other Mommy” is terrifying. This is not news. But that terror lies largely in her elusiveness and her duality- a creature that is eerily familiar whilst, as aforementioned, largely a mystery, an antagonist who encapsulates childhood fears whilst embodying the anxieties of adulthood. 

A book that certainly will go inside your heart, and stay there, I suddenly understand just how “Incidents Around The House,” has landed itself on so many best of 2024 horror lists, that of course includes my good friends, Charlie Battison’s and Anna Dupre’s. If you haven’t read this book yet, (fellow disadvantaged UK folks, I’ll let you off) consider this your nudge. It’s a novel that unpacks its bags, rearranges the furniture, and claims squatter’s rights in your mind. It is both disarmingly simple and profoundly unsettling, a tale that makes us consider what we think we know about fear, family, the sanctity (or lack of) of the home. It lingers, it festers, and it whispers softly “Can I go into your heart?”

Synopsis

Most Anticipated by Goodreads, People, BookRiot, Reactor, Screenrant, and more!

For fans of Jordan Peele’s films, Stranger Things, and The Other Black Girl, Listen To Your Sister is a laugh-out-loud, deeply terrifying, and big-hearted speculative horror novel from electrifying debut talent Neena Viel.

Twenty-five year old Calla Williams is struggling since becoming guardian to her brother, Jamie. Calla is overwhelmed and tired of being the one who makes sacrifices to keep the family together. Jamie, full of good-natured sixteen-year-old recklessness, is usually off fighting for what matters to him or getting into mischief, often at the same time. Dre, their brother, promised he would help raise Jamie–but now the ink is dry on the paperwork and in classic middle-child fashion, he’s off doing his own thing. And through it all, The Nightmare never stops haunting Calla: recurring images of her brothers dying that she is powerless to stop.

When Jamie’s actions at a protest spiral out of control, the siblings must go on the run. Taking refuge in a remote cabin that looks like it belongs on a slasher movie poster rather than an AirBNB, the siblings now face a new threat where their lives–and reality–hang in the balance. Their sister always warned them about her nightmares. They really should have listened.

“A knockout debut.” -Ashley Winstead

“Incredibly original and seriously scary.” – Nick Medina

Review

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the audio of this one. The trio that is Eric Lockley, Kristolyn Lloyd, and Zeno Robinson did a really well balanced narration—each taking on a sibling and giving them life. 

This novel is a lot of things. It’s a critique on race relations and police involvement, in kind of an à la Jordan Peele-style. It mixes hyper-violence and realism with humor, in a way that I’ve found makes it more palatable for a lot of people that wouldn’t listen/read/watch these types of things otherwise. It’s also a family saga. Dysfunctional as all hell, each jaded in their own way, and each nursing scars they’re too hurt to discuss…even if they claim they have. Calla is broke, forced to take in her younger brother Jamie—who her other brother, Dre, most definitely said he’d help way more than he is with. And most of all she’s tired. Jamie, an aspiring musician, can’t get out of his way enough to realize that he’s way less street than he realizes. And Dre is stuck somewhere in between—too annoyed by Calla to be of much help, and too ‘straight and narrow’ to reach Jamie. And then there’s the nightmares. 

On top of tackling all the real world horrors, the author has also blended in nightmarish horrors kind of à la Stranger Things and Love Craft Country (I’m primarily recalling the twin girls scene, but also the idea of shedding skins works well here). Except these strange things are rather more R rated, come from within, and only want to murder the three of them. I struggled with the build up to the climax, wondering if it was about to fumble the twist, and luckily, the author really pulled it off. The explanation of the Calla’s really worked for me, and that unique spin on sacrificing yourself for your siblings, that breaking yourself down into smaller and smaller pieces—or versions of yourself—even when you have nothing more to give, was really powerful. 

This book also tackles anger. Being angry with the world, with the hand you’ve been dealt, with not being loved and wanted, with your family, and even with yourself. Jamie can’t get over the way life has treated him. He’s angry, and he’s even angrier that as a black teen, the world isn’t build to accept his anger. It’s raw, it’s real, and I found this novel to be a really strong way to talk about the subject. There’s things to learn here below the surface, and it also works as a functional horror if that’s not your thing.