Review: Leech by Hiron Ennes

Rating: Buy it ASAP – a bookshelf essential

What is it? Fiction  

Ideal for fans of: Iain Reid, Alice Feeney

What makes it special? Totally unique story, unexpected twists

Get it in South Africa from: Pan Macmillan South Africa

The Interprovincial Medical Institute has just sent a replacement doctor to an isolated chateau in the countryside. Nestled deep within the mines and soon to be buried under the winter snows, the chateau is run by an ailing baron, whose previous doctor died unexpectedly. Now, the Institute seeks answers. However, the cause of death could shake the very foundations upon which the Institute stands. Buried deep within the deceased is a parasite of undetermined origin. And that should have been impossible, because the physicians are already under the control of the Institute itself.

As the parasite spreads, the Institute faces competition. It begins to lose its grip on the household, and as a result, deadly secrets come tumbling out.

Have you noticed that these days, the entertainment industry seems to regurgitate the same stories, plots or tropes? It’s often pretty easy to predict the plots and twists of stories these days. In fact, critics might just be tempted to loudly declare, “There are no new stories anymore – it’s all been done!” Thankfully, Hiron Ennes has just proven that to be completely incorrect. Not only have they presented a totally unexpected protagonist in a never-before-seen context, but Ennes has also managed to add a refreshing setting, language, and history to the story, to boot. Leech is the literary equivalent of a breath of fresh air. Even better, it ticks all the right boxes for a perfect thriller.

If this story doesn’t get turned into a film, it’s just because it hasn’t been read by the right people yet. So keep your eyes peeled. I would even go so far as to say it could usher in a new type of storytelling. It’s THAT good.

Also, Leech is more than just a page-turning thriller with a riveting plot. It’s an introduction to a world of endless possibility. Clever, thought-provoking, and chilling, Ennes has penned a work of art that’s also a brilliant piece of social commentary. By the time you reach the final chapter, you’ll be hard pressed not to question what you know about humanity, and the monsters that hide within it.

Leech by Hiron Ennes is published by Tor, an imprint of Pan Macmillan.

Review: The Watchers by A.M. Shine

When Mina volunteered to act as a courier for a quick bit of cash, she had no idea that her life was about to change. It started in the woods. After taking a wrong turn or seven, Mina becomes lost, and arrives at the edge of a forest, when her car suddenly dies, leaving her no choice but to try reach her destination on foot. Yet as Mina proceeds through the woods, she can’t help but shake a feeling that something isn’t right, and as the sun sets, her discomfort increases.

When she’s spooked by a strange inhuman cry, Mina is saved from a chaotic sprint through the woods by the sudden appearance of a light, and a woman beckoning.

This is how she learns about The Watchers. Deep within the forest, is a room, where a mirror and a light are all that stand between a handful of wretched survivors and certain death. Now, Mina must come to terms with her new life: scavenging for food in the day, and sheltering in an abandoned concrete room at night, when The Watchers come out.

But how long can Mina’s new family survive like this, and what happens when they can’t outrun the darkness?

The Watchers is an unexpectedly delightful and mature horror. In a world populated with slasher films and jump scares, horror has transformed from the psychological to the visual, but A.M. Shine is changing that. Shine takes us back to the origins of horror – a slow reveal of something so unexpected, it makes you judge your sanity. This is horror for the intellectual, and it’s brilliant.

Not only does Shine build some pretty impressive tension theme of the terror of the unknown, but the author takes a step into the world of fantasy while doing this, twisting and reinventing myths and legends we’ve forgotten from our childhood. The nostalgia, combined with the creeping thrills throughout this book, guarantee an epic binge-reading session, because you will not want to put this book down.

The Watchers by A.M. Shine is published by Head of Zeus and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers

Review: The Burning Girls by CJ Tudor

After Reverend Jack Brooks leaves Nottingham following an unfortunate incident among her congregation, she is transferred to the small town of Chapel Croft. With a teenage daughter in tow, Jack worries how they will adjust to the village, which is steeped in superstitious history and myth. However, from their first day in Chapel Croft, both Jack and her daughter Flo can’t shake the feeling that the odd occurrences in Chapel Croft are more than just superstition – someone has to be behind it. Not only is Jack receiving threatening notes, but Flo has been having strange vision of burning girls, and her growing paranoia is spoiling the only friendship she’s yet to make.

Soon, Jack finds herself delving into the village’s past to come to terms with its history, and the strange events set into motion by her arrival. More than anything, she wants to keep Flo safe and away from harm, no matter the cost. But how much can a reverend do when faced with a possible murderer?

The Burning Girls hits all the right notes to be a great book. An excellent and twisted narrative is enhanced by well-written prose and just a sprinkling of horror and the supernatural. CJ Tudor has a talent for showing us the dark side of humanity, and making us enjoy it. This book will have your adrenalin kicking up a notch a few times, and it’s the best feeling in the world. Not since the likes of Stephen King have thrillers been so nuanced and edgy, and it is marvelous. I cannot wait for my next hit, so I really hope Tudor is holed up somewhere in an office hunched over her keyboard, because the world needs more of what she has to offer.

The Burning Girls by CJ Tudor is published by Michael Joseph, a Penguin Random House company, and is available in South Africa from Penguin Random House South Africa.

Review: The Witch Hunter by Max Seeck

What started off as an unusual but straight-forward case for Detective Jessica Niemi soon spirals into a literal witch hunt. When famous fantasy author Roger Koponen’s wife is killed in the couple’s home in what seems to be a parody of a murder from his own books, Jessica’s team are at a loss. But then when more bodies start appearing, each matching a grisly scene from Koponen’s books, Jessica can’t help but notice an eerie connection between the murders, and her own life.

As Jessica hunts a twisted serial killer, she can’t help but wonder if these murders have something to do with her, and her own tragic past. Either way, then the team needs to catch the killer before Jessica herself becomes the next victim, and also while not revealing any of her carefully guarded secrets.

The Witch Hunter is a truly bewitching read, if you’ll pardon the pun. As you flit across the pages, you can’t help but wonder if Max Seeck hasn’t applied some magic of his own. From a carefully crafted plot and loveable characters, to prose that is beautifully crafted and doused with an intriguing macabre undertone, this book offers someone for everyone. The Witch Hunter is the perfect marriage of whodunit and horror, with just enough of the occult to get your heart racing.

The only problem with this book is that is ends too soon, and on a cliffhanger of sorts. While I’m already eagerly anticipating the next installment in what promises to be an amazing series, I can’t help but feel a little cheated that I didn’t get to spend more time with the characters. All that’s left to do now is try ignore my need for closure, and stalk Max’s social media for hints about a sequel, because the world needs to see way more of Jessica Niemi.

The Witch Hunter by Max Seeck is published by Welbeck Fiction Limited, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers

Review: The Invention of Sound by Chuck Palahniuk

Mitzi has a very unique talent that’s invaluable to the film industry. The secret to taking a film to the next level lies in the details, and this is where Mitzi comes in – she’s responsible for the sound effects in a film – from a head being smashed in, to a stab wound – she knows just how to mimic the right sound to leave the audience traumatized and wanting more. But what the producers who furiously bid millions of dollars for her sound clips don’t know is that Mitzi has a special talent for getting her work to be so realistic. It’s murder.

Each hair-raising soundbite that Mitzi releases into the world started off as a recording of a real murder, and Mitzi has a collection of hundreds of clips, some of which were made by her father, before she got into the profession.

So when Foster Gates hears what he thinks is a clip of his long-missing daughter screaming in a film, he tracks Mitzi down to question her, and doesn’t like what he learns.

Chuck Palahniuk has a vastly underrated talent – he makes the macabre fascinating. As he delves into a possible underbelly of a well-known industry like Hollywood, he sows seeds of doubt and derision, and it’s glorious. Few writers have the skill to make a seemingly implausible storyline so convincing and engaging, and yet Palahniuk does it every time he writes a new book.

That’s not necessarily to say he’s glorifying the seediness of the world, but in making readers uncomfortable, he’s starting important conversations and raising an important point; there’s no escaping the ugliness of the world. Reading a Palahniuk novel often feels like a bad trip – situations and events are turned on their heads, and a quiet unease permeates the storyline, but that’s exactly what makes his work so appealing. Simply put, he’s a pioneer, and the world he’s creating is a dark mirror or truth.

The Invention of Sound by Chuck Palahniuk is published by Corsair Books, an imprint of the Little, Brown Book Group, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: All of Us by AF Carter

As a child, Carolyn Grand was abused by a sadistic father. In order to cope with the ordeal, she developed numerous distinct personalities. Now, nearly three decades later, only six personalities remain, and each has a role to play in Carolyn’s day-to-day life. However, when one of those personalities propositions an undercover cop, their carefully constructed life is blown apart, and Carolyn is forced into therapy to determine if she can really function on her own. Then, to add insult to injury, her father is released from prison. When he’s murdered shortly after his release, Carolyn is the main suspect, although the police are having a hard time working out which of her six personalities was actually responsible.

All of Us is a refreshing new take on a classic whodunnit – with all the suspects limited to a single body. With the added complexity and intrigue of Carolyn’s psychological issues, this book morphs into a next-level whodunit that will have you on the edge of your seat and questioning your own sanity throughout, and it’s glorious.

Carter has presented an interesting and clever way to really enter the mind of the protagonist while highlighting the struggles faced by those suffering form mental illness. Part social commentary and part classic thriller, All of Us is a neatly packaged way to get your mind working, and your adrenalin soaring. Of course, this book isn’t just about murder and mayhem; with the added dynamics of romance, drama and social commentary, it has a little something for everyone. Given that the book is fast paced and easy to read, All of Us is the perfect solution to escape the drudgery of the pandemic.  

All of Us by A.F. Carter is published by Head of Zeus and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: Harrow Lake by Kat Ellis

Twenty years ago, Nolan Nox directed one of the best horror films of our time; Nightjar. Set in the small town of Harrow Lake, and starring a local girl called Lorelei, the film went on to be a famous cult classic. However, not long after filming the movie, Lorelei disappeared without a trace, leaving her daughter Lola alone with Nolan. Now, when Lola is sent to stay with her grandmother in Harrow Lake, she can’t help but wonder if there’s more to her mother’s disappearance than she initially thought. Being in Lorelei’s childhood home, and retracing her steps across the town and film, Lola is surprised by how superstitious the town seems to be, and how desperate the locals are to escape – just like her mother did. In discovering the truth about her family and her past, Lola learns that some monsters aren’t just relegated to our imaginations and scary stories – but that all darkness has roots in truth.

Harrow Lake is suspenseful and fast-paced from the start, making it almost impossible to stop reading. The longer Lola stays in the town, the stranger the story becomes, until the reader is questioning not just Lola’s sanity, but their own. Dark, chilling and thoroughly entertaining, Harrow Lake is a perfect read for fans of thrillers and intrigue. A sneakily tangled and embroidered narrative flits between the real and the unreal in a nightmarish rhythm that’s as mesmerizing as it is impressive. Ellis has created a young adult novel that lacks the melodrama of the genre, instead presenting a protagonist who is mature and sophisticated, adding to the gravitas of her situation and inexplicable events in which Lola finds herself. If you like intrigue, you’ll love this book – it’s one hell of an adventure from start to finish, and I’ve no doubt it’ll be eyed for a film adaptation.

Harrow Lake by Kat Ellis is published by Penguin Random House.

Review: Gallows Rock by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

When Huldar’s team is called to investigate a suicide within sight of the presidential palace, it seems straight-forward enough. Remove the hanging corpse before any of the political big-wigs can spot the body. However, once they arrive at the scene, it is evident that this hanging was no suicide. As if a murder disguised as a suicide wasn’t bad enough, when the police search the dead man’s apartment, it contains a four-year old boy not related to the victim, with no recollection of how he got there.

As Huldar and Freja team up to find the little boy’s home, it becomes increasingly obvious that the there’s a link between the murder, and the child’s missing family, they just don’t know what it is yet, and time is running out.

Sigurdardottir hasn’t earned the title of the Queen of Nordic Noir for nothing – this fourth installment in the Freja and Huldar series is simply brilliant. Not only does Sigurdardottir have a talent for dark story-telling, but she has created characters they never bore, and are still fresh and interesting after several installments. Add to this her flair for the macabre, and you have all the makings of a great book, that keeps you hooked from the first page.

Gallows Rock is a brilliant commentary on the social ills of class, wealth, and gender-based violence, all while being action-packed and deliciously dark. The author has a definite skill for discussing important themes through a lens that’s dusted with a bit of horror and a dash of the mind-blowing, making her books enjoyable and addictive, and Gallows Rock is no exception. With good writing and a great story line, what more could you want?

Gallows Rock by Yrsa Sigurdardottir is published by Hodder & Stoughton, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: Imaginary Friend by Stephen Chbosky

Christopher and his mom are starting over; just the two of them in a new town. Despite his learning difficulties and inability to keep words in place on a page, he tries to make the best of second grade. Embarrassed at his struggles to learn, and bullied regularly, there’s no doubt that Christopher’s young life is filled with challenges.

One day, everything changes. Seized by a sudden and inexplicable desire to enter the woods near his home, Christopher disappears for six days. On his return, everything is different. Christopher has no recollection of the time away other than the presence of a nice man who helped him home. In addition to this apparent amnesia, Christopher and his mother realise that after the woods, he suddenly has no problems reading or with math – he seems to have been imbued with instant academic brilliance.

As Christopher and his mom try to come to terms with these changes, she can’t but worry about him. Her son, usually such an open boy, has become secretive, sneaky, and dedicated to building a treehouse in the woods at all costs. Led by the nice man, Christopher knows things that his mother does not. It is integral that he follows the man’s instructions, or the horrors contained in the imaginary world will break though to the real one.  

There’s something incredibly sinister and disconcerting about having such a young protagonist in such a mature story, and all the more so given the enormous emotional, physical and psychological trials he experiences. In addition to the cruelty of subjecting a young child to a narrative filled with mental illness, religious fanaticism, and a horde of adult taboos, it creates somewhat of a barrier between reader and story. That a not-yet eight-year-old child can handle such immense darkness with such grace, selflessness and maturity screams unrealistic, regardless of the supernatural or preternatural cause. However, the brilliance of this risky move is that we see Chbosky’s world through eyes not yet dulled by cynicism or society – every event (no matter how unbelievable) is taken at face value – through the eyes of a child, anything is possible.  

Regardless of one’s desire to spare the protagonist from what he experiences, Imaginary Friend is completely absorbing, and completely disturbing. It is a feat of literary prowess, with a philosophical backbone that lays a foundation for exploration, reflection, and discussion of so many topics society deems unbelievable, impossible, or improbable. Imaginary Friend speaks our sense of normalcy – of what is right, what is wrong, and what is not discussed. 

Perhaps Chbosky realized that only child-sized feet could navigate the literary minefields of morality, religion, mental illness, and societal degradation. Whatever the reason, this book is powerful, dark, distressing, and brilliant, and no review could do justice to such a layered story without giving too much away, or flattening a larger than life narrative. 

Imaginary Friend by Stephen Chbosky is published by Orion Fiction, a Hachette company, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay

It would be safe to say that a murder would be the low point of your week. However, for the New York Police Department, this murder is just the start of a nightmare. Following the appearance of an unrecognisable corpse on a Sunday, the city is also victim to an elevator accident on Monday. And again on Tuesday. And Wednesday. With evidence that the elevators have been tampered with, and the possibility of the entire city being a target, Manhattan is basically on lock down. In an area with so many homes and offices above the ground, without elevators, chaos erupts.

Barbara Matheson, a journalist with a penchant for pointing out the failings of the mayor, could easily use the elevator crisis as fuel for her column. However, when she starts to see a pattern between the incidents that leads back to the mayor, she must overcome her distaste for him, swallow her pride, and warn him.

I know what you’re thinking (I mean that I hope that I know what you are thinking – there’s no way to be sure, I’m no psychic) – just how can a thriller be set on an elevator – besides the possibility of going into free-fall, or getting stuck, is there anything really dangerous about it? If I hoped correctly, and you’re nodding at my pseudo-psychic ability to make deductions, I am pleased to tell you that we were both wrong!

Elevator Pitch is gritty, dark, and immense fun. I thought, pretty early into this story, that I had it all worked out, went to far as to allow myself to consider that I’d predicted the ending. I am delighted to inform you that I was way off the mark. It turns out, Linwood Barclay has an immense skill; the ability to blindside. Satisfying and sexy, this book hits all the marks. Elevator Pitch is a great addition to the thriller genre; it’s a next-level ride that will leave you floored.

Elevator Pitch by Linwood Barclay is published by HQ, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: The Girl in Red by Christina Henry

It’s the end of the world as we know it. Ever since The Crisis, in which people were infected with a deadly and highly contagious cough, society has unraveled. When Red and Adam’s parents fall victim to the Crisis, the siblings are forced to make their way across the woods to their Grandmother’s cabin, where they will hopefully be safe.

Despite Red’s preparation and obsession with what could go wrong (loosely based on horror films and an interest in epidemiology), the journey is perilous and frustratingly slow. Eventually, Red must complete the journey on her own; a young woman in a red coat making her way through the woods.

The closer she gets to her grandmother’s house, the greater the danger. Red is not ignorant of the ways of the world – The Crisis may have made people heartless and desperate, but here were always evil people and deeds to begin with. Scariest of all, however, is that the infection is not all they have to worry about. Thriving in a world of sickness and contagion is something else; something far more sinister and horrifying than any pathogen, and Red is about to meet is head on.

The Girl in Red is a modern and decidedly dark retelling of the well-known fairy tale. Set in a post-apocalyptic world filled with monsters both seen and unseen, it is ideal for fans of disaster and doom with a happy ending. Red may be alone, but she is not vulnerable – this is an empowering retelling of a badass woman on a mission, who can look after herself in a world of chaos and predators.

The Girl in Red is a great escape from the drudgery of the real world. At times somewhat slow, with the protagonist’s flaws and strengths repeated far too often to be forgotten, this remains a good read. Action packed, logical and fun, this book clearly demonstrates that you’re never too old for fairy tales.

The Girl in Red by Christina Henry is published by Titan Books and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: Flowers over the Inferno by Ilaria Tuti

Massimo Marini’s first day on the Travenì police force begins with a gruesome murder. In the small village in the Italian Alps, no such crime has taken place for years. When a second victim is discovered, Superintendent Teresa Battaglia has no choice but to show the newcomer the ropes while she tracks a killer. Despite her decades of experience and almost clairvoyant understanding of psychopaths, Teresa soon realizes that these crimes have no basis in her books and studies; this killer is something altogether new, and just as unpredictable.

Hindered by her health, her new partner, and her unheard-of inability to understand the killer, Teresa has so much to resolve in so little time.

Flowers over the Inferno is beautifully dark; a perfect marriage of dazzling prose and a sinister plot. The characters are unique and refreshing; no stereotypical detective lads with their vices and broken families – here is a unique insight into the relationship of an unexpected duo. Our protagonists also unassumingly mirror the concepts of duality that appear regularly throughout the story. His youth and silence against her studied experience and crass outbursts make for interesting drama and welcome breaks in the tension created by a looming, faceless killer that remains an enigma to police and reader alike.

There is also immense satisfaction to be had in the search for the killer; through clever diversions and multiple well-crafted sub-plots, we’re immersed in adventure throughout. In concluding her story, Tuti manages to neatly skirt the pitfalls of predictable plots and anti-climactic finishes that have claimed the pens of many others.

If you read this book, make sure you’re comfortable – you won’t be stopping until the final page.

Flowers over the Inferno by Ilaria Tuti is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson, an imprint of  Orion Books, an Hachette UK company, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: I Always Find You by John Ajvide Lindqvist

As a boy, John Ajvide Lindqvist witnessed something strange; a young boy stumbled into his tree house, and had evidently been brutally mistreated. Deciding to house the younger boy for a time, John’s attempts at having a pet came to an abrupt end when the boy’s father, a policeman, found the tree house and threatened John; leaving a scar to buy his silence. Years later, trying his hand at being a magician harboured in a cramped and dank apartment, John begins to discover oddities which remind him of the boy, the treehouse, and the policeman with a knife.

Due to his sub-par housing, John must use a communal laundry room and rusted bathtub for bathing. As if an eerily abandoned and poorly lit bathroom across the courtyard didn’t have enough reason to be hair-raising on its own, strange happenings begin to occur in the laundry room, and his neighbours become embroiled in some activity behind the building’s closed doors – activities which alter their personalities and leave them adorned by a myriad fresh wounds.

Perhaps one of the most-frequently asked questions about true horror is what inspires the story? Bordering the line between realism and macabre fiction, Lindqvist’s answer is his own past, albeit it embroidered with a darker thread; a shadow that spreads behind the stitching. Lindqvist’s talent is so stark that it is often impossible to tell the line between his past and his imagination, making the story all the more powerful and sinister.

Lindqvist reels you in with easy style and dark humour, and what is heralded as the true story behind his career as a horror writer soon becomes impossible to believe, and disturbingly otherworldly. I am embarrassed to admit that part of me thought the author a madman, claiming horrific acts which shaped him into the world-renown weaver of tales he is today, so convincing was his writing and conviction. While, for the sake of his own ‘sanity’, I was relieved to scan ‘fiction’ in the book’s fine print, my utter speechlessness and distress at he content are one of many signs of Lindqvist’s talent as a creator and story-teller.

John Ajvide Lindqvist has a talent for making the morbid intriguing and classy, and dare I say stylish? He relies not on the shock factor which dampens many a promising horror, but on the pure threat that something impossible, something awful, could be real and unfolding in a damp corner of the world. It’s hard to resist his craft, particularly in the autobiographical offering of I Always Find You, and I daresay this book will leave you contemplating horror, nature and the weakness of the human mind when you are done. A brilliant, dark and addictive read – this is my kind of poison.

I Always Find You by John Ajvide Lindqvist is published by Riverrun books, an imprint of Quercus, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: Knucklebone by NR Brodie

Ian left his days as a cop behind him, and is now a student; research has overtaken crime as his primary daily focus. However, when he's on a routine call out at the security company that is helping him gather research for his paper, things go awry. A panic button heralds two young men in an apparent robbery, in which one of the duo is pronounced dead on the scene. Yet when questioned, the deceased arrested partner falls into a diabetic coma. yet according to a nurse at the hospital, the young man is afflicted by more than low blood sugar. she tells Ian and Captain Reshma Patel that their suspect has been possessed.

Soon enough, the duo discover that the young man was training to be a sangoma, and that dark deeds previously isolated to urban legends and stories are, in fact, real. In uncovering the young man's history, from magic and mayhem through to muti and money, Ian and Reshma find themselves immersed in a world as far removed from ordinary policing as they could ever imagine.

I was initially hesitant to read anything that promised to marry a traditional detective drama with magic and demons, yet there's no beating around the bush here: NR Brodie has married the two in a union of literary perfection! Knucklebone is as dark and macabre as it is shocking and brilliant, and so cleverly and artfully written that the reader can hear the characters' voices in their head, and feel the goosebumps that appear after a particularly gruesome discovery among the pages. This book is sheer literary brilliance, and creates an immensely enjoyable, albeit horrifying, world.

NR Brodie artfully weaves a story of the ordinary in a backdrop of the extraordinary. Hers is a world in which magic and dark deeds dance beyond the notice of her characters, and yet the power of the inexplicable is both attractive and unavoidable. Furthermore, Brodie's characters are likeable and Sout African without being subjected to horrible bouts of colloquialisms and cliches. Brodie may really be heralding the start of fresh South African literature that honestly and seriously delves into the culture, myths and realities of this amazing country. Don't call yourself a true bibliophile if you've not read this, because it's brilliance begs to be read.

Knucklebone by NR Brodie is published by Pan Macmillan South Africa.

Review: The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell

Elsie Bainbridge may be newly married, yet she’s to be in mourning for a year. Following the sudden death of her husband Rupert, Elsie and her late husband’s cousin, Sarah, are on their way to The Bride, the family home that Rupert was in the process of restoring when death felled him. However, what the ladies discover is an estate in dire need of attention, run down and ill-suited for their stay. The staff are few and hardly trained, and Elsie feels both anger and hopelessness as she realizes that staying at The Bridge is to be her fate.

Among the ruins of a formerly splendid estate, Elsie and Sarah discover links to the past. A diary of one of Sarah’s ancestors, forgotten and dusty, sets the scene for the misery that befell The Bridge two hundred years ago, leading to its current ruin.

The diary recounts deception, magic and shame, and despite the two centuries that have passed between the buildings occupation, Elsie and Sarah can’t help but notice that history seems to be repeating itself, and The Bridge is host to a series of misfortunes not unlike those experienced before. When deaths start occurring, Elsie and Sarah can no longer blame superstition or bad luck, but turn to the strange relics of Sarah’s ancestors; the silent companions.

The Silent Companions is such a marvelously penned gothic tale. Set in the 1860s, yet with a second narrative in the 1600s, it spans a time of superstition, mistrust, and witch hunters. As reluctant fear dawns in Elsie, so does the possibility of horrors from beyond the world of man – of ghosts, haunting and magic. Laura Purcell presents the reader with a subtle chain of events evolving from disbelief to sheer horror, and it is a delightful (albeit shadowy) trip. If romantic yet dark ghost stories or tales of witchcraft and woe are your poison of choice, this is an ideal read for you. If not, you should still give it a chance, if for nothing else but the poetic prose and delicately mounting scares.

The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell is published by Raven Books, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.

Review: The White Road by Sarah Lotz

Simon Newman is basically a shit. Once a decent rock climber, an accident knocked his confidence enough to let him sink to the world of website listicles. His new assignment involves going into (read: breaking into) a cave system to film the bodies of a couple young man who died in the cave. He’s done this by hiring a random caver from the internet, and without admitting his real reason for being there. But karma is a bitch, at the best of times, and things go horribly awry once Simon is in the bowels of the earth. Rescued three days later, and decidedly psychologically scarred, his regret at going to film the bodies is tempered only by how many hits the video receives on his website.

Naturally, bigger is better, so Simon and his business partner Thierry need to one-up themselves, and decide that where they once went low, they need to go high – this time, Simon is tasked with filming the bodies of fallen climbers on Everest. I warned you; he’s a shit.

Of course, amid his deception, things are bound to go wrong. And they do; horribly. But Simon is not alone in this – he’s come across the diary of Julia Michaels, a female climber who has her own horrible experiences on the mountain, and using her as a secret motivation, Simon powers through, or at least, tries to.

Sarah Lotz is a manipulative genius of the best kind – she presents the reader with a truly morally inept protagonist, yet one can’t help but cheer him on, despite his lacking of common humanity. In addition, the vastness of the story from the dark crevasses below the earth to some of its highest peaks is absolutely exhilarating and fresh. The White Road takes horror to a new, sneaky level, and it is brilliant. Lotz has no need for monsters or murderers, because she has utilised one of the scariest things in the world – the human mind. Go on, get your goosebumps on, and join Simon on hellish adventures.

The White Road by Sarah Lotz is published by Hodder & Stoughton, and is available in South Africa from Jonathan Ball Publishers.