Synopsis A Mystery Scene Magazine 2021 Editor’s Pick Trust No One. Especially Your Neighbors. Rachel Drake is on the run from the man who killed her husband. She never leaves her safe haven in an anonymous doorman building, until one night a phone call sends her running. On her way to the garage, she is murdered in […]
Fear For All
Review: Jackal by Erin E. Adams
Synopsis: It’s watching. Liz Rocher is coming home . . . reluctantly. As a Black woman, Liz doesn’t exactly have fond memories of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, a predominantly white town. But her best friend is getting married, so she braces herself for a weekend of awkward, passive-aggressive reunions. Liz has grown, though; she can handle whatever […]
Review: Disseverment by Z.C. Krol
Synopsis When Tyler receives a mysterious letter in the mail from a man claiming to be his stepfather, he is suddenly plunged back into the nightmares of his past, and has to make an important decision that will change him forever. Disseverment is a psychological horror story not for the squeamish. Z.C. Krol lives in Ohio with his […]
Review: This Wretched Valley by Jenny Kiefer
Synopsis: Four ambitious climbers hike into the Kentucky wilderness. Seven months later, three mangled bodies are discovered. Were their deaths simple accidents or the result of something more sinister? This is going to be Dylan’s big break. Her friend Clay, a geology student, has discovered an untouched cliff face in the Kentucky wilderness, and she […]
Review: With a Blighted Touch by J. Todd Kingrea
Synopsis In Scarburn County, Tennessee there is a small mountain community called Black Rock, known for its unusual and prevalent blight that affects all vegetation . . . When an unexpected death forces Christopher “Kit” McNeil to return to his small hometown in the Tennessee mountains after eighteen years, he must confront his past and […]
Review: Holly by Stephen King
Synopsis Stephen King’s Holly marks the triumphant return of beloved King character Holly Gibney. Readers have witnessed Holly’s gradual transformation from a shy (but also brave and ethical) recluse in Mr. Mercedes to Bill Hodges’s partner in Finders Keepers to a full-fledged, smart, and occasionally tough private detective in The Outsider. In King’s new novel, […]
Review: Demon’s Rage (The Bloodwood Saga #2) by David Estes and Ben Galley
Synopsis The war to save the Swathe is far from over.Since the Battle of Shal Gara, the Scions have lurked in the dangerous loam, hunting the survivors of the Last Clan. But a malice grows in the treetops and the canopies of the bloodwoods. Fireborn lies creep like a rot through the Swathe, turning citizen […]
Review: The Hiding by Alethea Lyons (The Seer of York Book 1)
Old York… cobbled streets where dreams are made of Synopsis Arcane archivist Harper has always been plagued by dreams of grotesque creatures and bloody deaths. When she bumps into a ghostwalker in the Shambles and has a visceral experience of his execution, she knows it’s a foretelling. Yet fear of the Queen’s Guard stops her […]
Review: One Eye Opened In That Other Place by Christi Nogle
Synopsis: One Eye Opened in That Other Place collects Christi Nogle’s best weird and fantastical stories. The collection focuses on liminal spaces and the borders between places and states of mind. Though you might not find a traditional portal fantasy here, you will travel across thresholds and arrive at other places and times that are by […]
Review: BestGhost: A Novelette by C.J. Daley
Just outside the town of Cemetery, two teen YouTubers investigate a past mayor’s mansion because it’s rumored to be the most haunted spot for paranormal activity– and it all goes terribly wrong during their two night investigation.
Review: Such Sharp Teeth by Rachel Harrison
Synopsis: A witty, moving tale of monsters and modern life from the award-winning author of Cackle and The Return. For readers looking for a story of sisterhood, complicated families and love with a bit more bite… Rory Morris isn’t thrilled to be moving back to her hometown. There are bad memories there. But her twin […]
Review: The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson
Synopsis: When Springville residents—at least the ones still alive—are questioned about what happened on prom night, they all have the same explanation … Maddy did it. An outcast at her small-town Georgia high school, Madison Washington has always been a teasing target for bullies. And she’s dealt with it because she has more pressing problems […]