Tag Archives: Paranormal

June 18, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2025

Book cover for Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2025 (Hearth Stories Book 4) by J.C. Pillard, Erin Keating, Amanda Fetters, Alicia Adams, T.R. Steele, Kendra Recht, T.S. Weaver, and Christian Emecheta. Image on cover is a drawing of green leaves still sprouting from the tiny branch they grew on. The leaves are long and thin with rough edges and curl slightly at their ends. They are set against a black background. Title: Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2025 (Hearth Stories Book 4) 

Author: J.C. Pillard, Erin Keating, Amanda Fetters, Alicia Adams, T.R. Steele, Kendra Recht, T.S. Weaver, and Christian Emecheta

Publisher: Heart Stories

Publication Date: June 18, 2025

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, LGBTQ+, Romance, Historical

Length: About 110 pages.

Source: I received a free copy from the publisher.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

Hearth Stories is a speculative fiction magazine focused on cozy fantasy stories. Each issue features a letter from the editor, author bios and interviews, and wonderful stories focused on family, home life, connection, and the natural world.

This issue features the following stories:

A Different Kind of Worship by J.C. Pillard

The Washing Witch by Erin Keating

The Braided Lintel by Amanda Fetters

To the Scribe Who Reads This by Alicia Adams

No More Walls by T.S. Weaver

An Ordinary Love Story by Christian Emecheta

Content Warning: A terminal illness, aging, grief, and death.

Review:

Anything is possible when the forests are filled with the energy and life that summer brings.

In “A Different Kind of Worship,” a minor god named Salix sat at the bedside of his last worshipper, Ruldi. When Ruldi died, so would Salix, but for now they shared the same peaceful existence in a small home together. I adored Salix’s gentle and kind personality and was curious to discover how he would spend his final days. While I can’t discuss the plot twists in this story without sharing spoilers, I can say they were just as beautiful and meaningful as the protagonist was and I finished the final paragraph with a tear gleaming in my eye and a smile on my lips. This would have made an incredible short film!

The first sentence of “Fully Formed” in which the narrator explained that nobody wanted to let Rowan bury his golden apple beetle pupae in their gardens immediately piqued my curiosity. It seemed like such a minor favour to give that I couldn’t imagine saying no to it, but I wanted to learn more. This was an excellent example of how to include world building into a short story that entices the reader to keep going. While I can’t go into much detail about it without sharing spoilers, I can say that the folklore surrounding beetles and apple trees was particularly lovely.

The relationship between Linden and Marna in “An Ordinary Love Story” was sweet and gentle, but what drew me into this chapter of their lives even more deeply was the time they spent learning how to be healers. It was an apprenticeship that lasted about a year and included both herbal and magical remedies. This was the perfect combination of themes in my opinion, especially as their friendship began to evolve into something more than that and they needed to figure out how to break the news to their mentor.

Hearth Stories, Summer Solstice 2025 was a well-written anthology that made me yearn for summer to begin. 

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June 4, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Chasing June

 

Book cover for Chasing June by Holly Schindler. Image on cover shows a straw hat with a red ribbon on it. The hat is lying on top of a little bouquet of white wild flowers that is itself lying on an old leather book.

Title: Chasing June

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: May 30, 2016

Genres: Romance, Paranormal

Length: 29 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #7: What do we discover when we dig deep into our past?

Annie Ames returns to her childhood hometown to begin a project with her lifelong friend, Justin: a book documenting the romantic folklore surrounding the legend of Amos Hargrove, the town founder. But no one likes the fact that she’s rifling through old memories and a more than century-old legend. When Annie visits Mary, the town’s oldest resident, she opens an old trunk—and along with a treasured antique wedding shawl, discovers life-altering truths about her feelings for her closest friend…and about the legend of Amos Hargrove and his sweetheart, Finley.

Chasing June is part of Forever Finley, a series of stand-alone episodes or short stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Previous releases include: Come December, January Thaw, Forget February, Dearest March…, April’s Promise, and Mayday Mayday Mayday. Subsequent releases include: A Hundred Julys, Under the August Moon, Song for September, October Omen, and the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning: Reference to a death from pleurisy.

Review:

Folklore is for everyone.

Some of the most memorable scenes in my opinion were the ones that explored how differently people in a small town behave when they’re around folks they’ve known for their entire lives versus a relative newcomer to the community. Even the main characters exhibited this change of emotions which I thought was interesting as they were otherwise pretty warm and friendly folks. As someone who moved to a rural community that was not particularly kind and accepting to outsiders when I was a kid, I always appreciate seeing this topic broached in fiction and wonder whether this will be of equal interest to people who have lived in small towns for their entire lives and have maybe never experienced this phenomenon.

I would have liked to see more time spent exploring who Finley was as a person. There were some tantalizing details mentioned, including a shawl she created, but given how important this character is to the Finding Finley series as a whole I was a little disappointed by how the instalment that was meant to dive more deeply into her life was written. While I expected something romantic and whimsical as usual, I was also hoping for at least a few anecdotes about what she was like when she was alive. Was her personality playful or serious? What was her favourite subject in school? How did she spend her free time as a child and young woman?  There was so much more they could have done with her, and I would have happily gone for a much higher rating if they did.

With that being said, this short story felt like the month of June in some lovely ways. Certain characters have just finished their studies and so have the summer before them to relax and shrug off the stress of writing papers and cramming for exams. The weather during this month of the year is beautiful in many places as well, including the town of Finley, and so everyone can spend plenty of time outside enjoying the flowers before the heat and humidity of the rest of the summer arrives. I haven’t read many authors who pay this much attention to how the seasons can affect the way their characters feel, so kudos to Ms. Schindler for including it.

Chasing June was lighthearted.

 

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May 28, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Afterglow: Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors

Book cover for Afterglow - Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors by Grist. Image on cover is a drawing of an alien with a small, curled snout who is holding a shovel and standing on a pink, blue, and yellow surface that seems to have vegetation of those colours, too. Title: Afterglow – Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors

Author: Grist (Editor)

Publisher: The New Press

Publication Date: February 7, 2023

Genres: Science Fiction, Paranormal, LGBTQ+

Length: 169 pages

Source: I borrowed it from the library.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Afterglow is a stunning collection of original short stories in which writers from many different backgrounds envision a radically different climate future. Published in collaboration with Grist, a nonprofit media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions, these stirring tales expand our ability to imagine a better world. Inspired by cutting-edge literary movements, such as Afrofuturism, hopepunk, and solarpunk, Afterglow imagines intersectional worlds in which no one is left behind—where humanity prioritizes equitable climate solutions and continued service to one’s community. Whether through abundance or adaptation, reform, or a new understanding of survival, these stories offer flickers of hope, even joy, as they provide a springboard for exploring how fiction can help create a better reality. Afterglow welcomes a diverse range of new voices into the climate conversation to envision the next 180 years of equitable climate progress. A creative work rooted in the realities of our present crisis, Afterglow presents a new way to think about the climate emergency—one that blazes a path to a clean, green, and more just future.

Content Warning: Drug use. Pregnancy. Grief. I will briefly mention the last two items in my review.

Review:

There are many different ways to imagine a better future for humanity.

Augusta decided to begin a worm swap with other communities to improve everyone’s soil in “A Worm to the Wise.” This angle surprised me a little, and I was curious to discover what life was like in her version of the future where fuel costs had grown so high that most people could no longer travel long distances. There were layers of conflict and meaning in this tale that made me wish it had been expanded to something full-length. It had so much information to share with the audience, and I was eager to learn more about her world.

Some of these twelve tales felt uneven to me, and I struggled to connect to them due to the limited information they shared about what the future might be like. “The Tree in the Back Yard” was one such example of it, especially given Mariska’s response to her first visit to her father’s grave. It was completely understandable to see how difficult this experience was for her, but I found myself wishing for more information about why she didn’t keep trying to visit him and pay her respects given how important those things were to her and how much effort she put into selecting the right resting place for him. Having more details would have made this a more satisfactory read, and this was repeated often enough in this collection that I did feel the obligation to mention it in my review.

“El, The Plastotrophs, and And Me” followed a family who had just been approved to conceive their second child. The society they lived in limited births for ecological reasons, so they were thrilled to have the chance to become co-parents again. I was fascinated by how the protagonist explained the difference between wanting a romantic partner and wanting a child as these two concepts were not necessarily linked in this universe.  There were some plot twists that only made the protagonist’s life plans more complicated as well, and I wished I could have followed them for a longer period of time.

Afterglow – Climate Fiction for Future Ancestors was thought provoking. 

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May 21, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of This House Isn’t Haunted, But We Are

Book cover for This House Isn’t Haunted, But We Are by Stephen Howard. Image on cover is a drawing of a house that was built just over the side of a hill. It’s shortly past dusk and the yellow lights in the house’s windows resemble yellow animal eyes due to how the house is partially hidden by the hill and the shadows of evening. Title: This House Isn’t Haunted, But We Are

Author: Stephen Howard

Publisher: Wild Hunt Books

Publication Date: April 3, 2025

Genres: Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Mystery, Contemporary

Length: 106 pages

Source: I borrowed it from the library.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

A couple mourning the loss of their young daughter take up an opportunity to renovate a rural cottage on the remote North Yorkshire Moors. However, they can’t process their grief as increasingly eerie events unfold. Is it their daughter haunting them or something else?

Content Warning: the death a child that occurred before this novella began. I will be discussing it briefly in my review.

Review:

Moving forward rarely happens on a set schedule.

I adored the house’s motivation for attempting to communicate with Priya and Simon, the couple who just moved in. While I can’t go into detail about this without sharing spoilers, it was a fresh perspective on the haunted house genre that made me eagerly want to learn more. Mr. Howard is a creative storyteller, and these scenes in particular were well done and made me want to check out more of his work.

This would have been a much stronger work if more time had been spent fleshing it out, especially when it came to the character development. While the minimalistic descriptions worked better for the storyline given how straightforward it was for the most part, I found myself wishing I knew more about who Simon and Priya were as individuals. There simply wasn’t enough space in this novella to explore their personalities, histories, and what their marriage had been like before little Lily passed away.

The ending was as unexpected as it was thought provoking. I was intrigued by what it had to say about the process of grief and how easy it is to get stuck in certain phases of it for some people. It takes courage to pull oneself out of those spirals and move forward when what one really wants to do is wallow in the past. While I would have liked to see another chapter added at the end to explain what was really going on in the house, I also understand why the author decided to leave those questions unanswered. Grief in real life is often accompanied by questions that can’t possibly be answered, too, so it made sense to reflect that in fiction as well.

If anyone reading this review would like a recommendation for a similar read, The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters explores similar themes surrounding grief, the loss of a child, and the physical and emotional decay of a home and may be of interest to you.

This House Isn’t Haunted, But We Are made me want to read more haunted house tales.

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May 7, 2026 · 1:00 am

A Review of Mayday Mayday Mayday

Book cover for Mayday Mayday Mayday by Holly Schindler. Image on cover is a black and white photo of one of the engines of an antique two-engine plane. Title: Mayday Mayday Mayday

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: December 7, 2022

Genres: Romance, Paranormal, Contemporary

Length: About 21 pages.

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #6: A tale that explores how holiday magic can carry forward into the rest of the year, featuring Natalie and the mysterious George from “Come December.”

Engagement should be a happy time in a young woman’s life, but for Natalie, it’s plagued with doubts. She’d only known Damien four months when she accepted his proposal, and now, when the two are together, she hears a distinct Mayday distress call. Where is the voice coming from? Does it have anything to do with the enigmatic figure she encountered in the cemetery last winter? Or is Natalie finding a way to tell herself she thinks she’s about to go down in flames?

Mayday Mayday Mayday is part of Forever Finley, a series of stand-alone episodes or short stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Previous releases include Come December, January Thaw, Forget February, Dearest March…, and April’s Promise. Stories following Mayday Mayday Mayday include Chasing June, A Hundred Julys, Under the August Moon, Song for September, October Omen, and the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning:  World War I, a plane crash, and a dangerous accident on a balcony. I will be briefly referencing the first two topics in my review.

Review:

This is one of those rare series that only gets better over time.

There was the perfect amount of conflict in this short story, and I’m saying that as a reviewer who previously had constructive criticism about this topic when I was first introduced to this universe in Under the August Moon. It’s important to acknowledge growth when it happens, and I loved the direction Ms. Schindler took her tale for the May instalment of it. Yes, the core of it remained whimsical and romantic, just as I’d expect from this setting, but the inclusion of higher-stakes moments as well kept my interest levels high.

As someone who doesn’t read much romance, I appreciated how that genre was woven into Natalie’s life as she adjusted to living in a new community and dealt with a mysterious figure she’d recently met in the local cemetery. The themes fit together naturally which is always something I enjoy discovering in books that dip their toes into more than one genre. This was an excellent example of how to do just that while satisfying both readers who may not be well-versed in romance or paranormal fiction as well as those who already know they like those types of stories. I love it when authors create these seamless pathways to discovering new genres!

World War I isn’t as common referenced as World War II  is in a lot of modern fiction, so my ears perk up when a blurb mentions references to the First World War. There were no graphic descriptions of war included, but there were a few scenes that mentioned a plane crash from that era. I found them tastefully written yet also heartbreaking given the subject matter involved. These moments also added layers of depth not only to the storyline itself but also to Natalie’s personality as she figured out who was calling for May Day and why.

Mayday Mayday Mayday made me yearn for more.

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February 5, 2026 · 1:00 am

Bittersweet Valentine’s Day: A Review of Forget February

Title: Forget FebruaryBook cover for Forget February by Holly Schindler. Image on cover shows a red heart that’s been broken into a dozen or more pieces and lies shattered on a black surface.

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: December 7, 2022

Genres: Holiday, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal, Contemporary

Length: 17 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

Forever Finley Episode / Short Story #3: A tale of happy accidents, mystical events, and the beautiful things that can happen after (or even as the result of) a broken heart. The legend of Amos Hargrove is nothing more than a silly fairy tale, according to the two people who are arguably the most broken-hearted in the entire town of Finley. His spirit does not still exist, and he does not play matchmaker or bring luck to those who need it…or does he?

Forget February is the third installment of Forever Finley, a series of episodes or stand-alone stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Read together, the stories work like chapters in a novel. Previous releases in the series include Come December and January Thaw. Subsequent releases include Dearest March…, April’s Promise, Mayday Mayday Mayday, Chasing June, A Hundred Julys, Under the August Moon, Song for September, October Omen, and the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning: Death from pleurisy. Drunkenness. Brief references to war. A character accidentally breaks their leg.

Review:

February isn’t a trustworthy month, but it is a memorable one.

I loved the romantic paranormal elements of this story. The myths surrounding Amos Hargrove and his sweetheart Finley provided the perfect backdrop for contemporary life as the protagonists struggled with their own broken hearts along with other misfortunes that found them in this month. The willingness of the author to show why some characters find certain holidays difficult has consistently been one of the things I enjoyed about this series the most. There is definitely something to be said for holding space for both celebration and grief depending on how one reacts to a specific special day, and it worked even better given the tragic backstory of the spirits who protect the town of Finley.

Some of the quieter scenes that described how cold, stormy, unpredictable, and slippery the weather can be in February turned out to be my favorite moments so far while reading these books. Not only did they provide some interesting foreshadowing, they also set the scene for part of the reason why certain characters were struggling and explained why foul moods and foul weather are never a good match. This is something I hope to find more of when I return to this world this spring as it added another layer of meaning to everything that was happening.

The romance between the two living characters was handled sweetly and delicately. Obviously, given that this is part of a series, there was plenty left to the imagination as the year wears on, but this was a cute introduction to one of the many ways that love can begin to shape two people in new and refreshing ways. I’ve already read other instalments in their adventures at this point, and so I know things about them that a brand new reader will not. Still, these stories were meant to be started at any point, and I can confirm that this works perfectly well even if readers who have already visited this world before might get a little something extra out of it.

Forget February was heartwarming and just a little bittersweet.

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November 27, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of Come December

Book cover for Come December by Holly Schindler. Image on cover is a closeup photo of a tree whose branches are covered in snow. The ground, too, is covered in a thick layer of snow. The title is written in a fancy red font which stands out nicely against the black, brown, and white background. Title: Come December

Author: Holly Schindler

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: December 7, 2022

Genres: Holiday, Paranormal, Contemporary

Length: 24 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the author.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

A sweet, short holiday tale about opening yourself up to magical possibilities. Natalie is new to town, and feels invisible and painfully alone…until a mysterious stranger in a cemetery changes everything. Come December is the first installment of Forever Finley, a collection of stand-alone episodes or short stories that released once a month throughout 2016. Subsequent releases include: January Thaw, Forget February, Dearest March…, April’s Promise, Mayday Mayday Mayday, Chasing June, A Hundred Julys, Under the August Moon, Song for September, October Omen, and the Forever Finley Finale (Pale November / December Bells). Stories can be purchased individually, or readers can purchase all installments in Forever Finley: An Episodic Novel.

Content Warning: Grief and loneliness.

Review:

Loneliness only makes the holidays even harder.

Thanksgiving isn’t a common setting in the books I read, so I was intrigued when I realized that November and early December was when Natalie had the experiences she had here. I also appreciated the fact that she was such a lonely character as that isn’t a typical theme in Thanksgiving stories either. There is definitely something to be said for exploring a few of the many reasons why someone might find the holidays difficult and why not everyone is filled with cheer at the end of the year. I would read Thanksgiving and other  holiday-themed stories much more often if this were commonplace.

This included a light, friendly paranormal twist that was in no way scary, so no worries to anyone reading this who might be a little nervous at the thought of reading about a ghost. It was an important part of the storyline in the sense that Natalie valued those conversations and the first friendly person she met after moving, but it could also be read as a metaphor for adjusting to a new town and having to start all over again with making friends and putting down roots.

The romantic subplot, too, was handled gently, so I also want to reassure anyone who doesn’t usually enjoy that genre that this is a sweet introduction to it. Romance is interesting to me when it’s a small part of a much bigger story whose main conflicts involve other aspects of life, and that’s exactly what happened in this tale. If you ask me, this is a great example of how to seamlessly incorporate romantic elements without allowing them to overshadow everything else that’s going on with the characters, so kudos to Ms. Schindler for finding the perfect balance here for everyone from diehard romance fans to those of us who are more hesitant about the genre but occasionally willing to visit it.

Come December was a heartwarming and life-affirming Thanksgiving read.

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November 20, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of Hearth Stories, Winter Solstice 2023

Book cover for Hearth Stories, Winter Solstice 2023 by Sarah Jackson, Adriana C. Grigore,  Em Harriett, Alicia Adams, Catherine Yeates, Akis Linardos, Jennifer Shelby, Katherine B. Randall, Emily Yu, & A.P. Howell. Image on cover is a drawing of a dandelion that has fully turned from yellow to white and is ready for all of its seeds to be blown away. Title: Hearth Stories, Winter Solstice 2023

Author: Sarah Jackson, Adriana C. Grigore,  Em Harriett, Alicia Adams, Catherine Yeates, Akis Linardos, Jennifer Shelby, Katherine B. Randall, Emily Yu, & A.P. Howell

Publisher: Hearth Stories

Publication Date: December 21, 2023

Genres: Fantasy, Paranormal, LGBTQ+, Historical, Contemporary

Length: 128 pages

Source: I received a free copy from the publisher.

Rating: 5 Stars

Blurb:

Hearth Stories is a speculative fiction magazine focused on cozy fantasy stories. Each issue features a letter from the editor, author bios and interviews, and wonderful stories focused on family, home life, connection, and the natural world.

Content Warning: Brief references to domestic violence, broken bones (not from domestic violence), blood, loss of bladder function, climate change, and mild household injuries.

Review:

Nature is for everyone.

“Dandelion” was a heartwarming tale about a tiny, human-like creature who helped an injured duck. The kind and brave protagonist, Dandy, made me smile. I also appreciated how much this felt like a traditional fable with its straightforward descriptions of the setting and characters and gentle tone. As much as I’d like to go into greater detail here, it’s better for other readers to get to know Dandy for themselves and be surprised by the wholesome plot twists along the way.

Magic wasn’t something everyone was capable of doing, so the fact that Naomi could do it was meaningful. “Primeval” followed her as she adjusted to yet another school and tried to figure out how to cast spells. The world building in this entire collection was well done, but this piece in particular stood out to me due to how many layers of meaning the author was able to squeeze into a short story. Honestly, this felt like it could be the first chapter of a novel or the first instalment of a long series due to how much I learned about Naomi as well as how many future conflicts and moments of pure joy were just barely hinted at.

While I didn’t necessarily connect with every tale in this collection on a personal level, this is my own shortcoming as all of them were well written. Style is such a subjective topic that I can’t possibly take off any stars due to this, but I did want to mention it in case other readers have similar experiences. Yes, the themes remained the same from beginning to end as far as the magic of forests and the importance of looking after nature goes, but the writing styles varied so much that in my opinion there should be something here for many different types of readers.

There was kindness woven into every moment of Ginny’s life in “The Second Form of Ginny Elder.” She was a senior citizen living with a few physical disabilities who looked after every sick or injured animal who showed up in her garden. Her sweet personality made me adore her immediately, especially once the narrator shared a little bit about her tragic backstory, and my feelings for her only grew warmer and deeper as I saw how careful she was to look after all of her charges. There was a beautiful twist to this tale that I didn’t see coming but that fit Ginny’s personality and history perfectly. Do keep an eye out for it as you read!

Hearth Stories, Winter Solstice 2023 made me yearn for cozy winter days spent tucked into warm blankets while reading.

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October 23, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of I Found a Lost Hallway in a Dying Mall

Book cover for I Found a Lost Hallway in a Dying Mall by Ben Farthing. Image on cover is a possibly AI-generated shot of a dimly-lit hallway in a mall that doesn’t have anyone walking around in it. The atmosphere is chilly and ominous due to the dull fluorescent lights and many dark spots between where the light can reach. Title: I Found a Lost Hallway in a Dying Mall

Author: Ben Farthing

Publisher: Self-Published

Publication Date: June 18, 2024

Genres: Horror, Paranormal, Contemporary

Length: 162 pages

Source: I borrowed it from the library.

Rating: 3 Stars

Blurb:

Somewhere among the shuttered stores…

Lisa hears a call for help.

She finds her senile old coworker, Saswin, lost in an abandoned hallway. He’s talking to a circle of mannequins, their limbs twisted and fused in unnatural ways.

When Lisa looks away, she swears the mannequins have moved…

And that this abandoned hallway has grown longer.

After Saswin disappears down the impossible hallway, Lisa goes to find him, but she’s unprepared for the horrors that await her in the mall’s forgotten depths.

I Found a Lost Hallway in a Dying Mall has been compared to creepypastas like NoSleep stories or SCP entries. It’s a chilling tale of identity, liminal spaces, and the horror of leaving the past behind, from Ben Farthing, “The King of Creepy” (MJ Mars, author of The Suffering).

Each book in the I Found Horror series is a STANDALONE. They can be read in any order.

Content Warning: Disability from a stroke. Dementia. Emotional abuse.  Mannequins.

Review:

Everything declines eventually.

This was a good example of how the horror genre doesn’t have to include a single drop of blood in it in order to scare its audience. Dying  malls are eerie enough on their own if you ask me, and adding in mannequins that are anything but the inanimate objects they’re supposed to be only added an additional layer of dread to the setting. The explanation for why such innocuous things could suddenly become terrifying was well done, too, and made me wish for a prequel or a sequel as there was still plenty of space to explore how this dying mall transformed into something so unlike its formerly cheerful self.

Lisa’s illogical decisions were the only thing holding me back from giving this book a higher rating. My first impression of her was of an intelligent woman who used her wisdom to try to make the world a better place if or when she had the opportunity to nudge it in that direction, so it was confusing for me later on when she began making choices that put her and those around her in danger. This didn’t seem to match the dependable Lisa I’d already met and grown to like, and there was never quite enough character development for me to reconcile these different aspects of her personality.

With that being said, I loved the exploration of disability and aging in this piece. Lisa and Hank had reached a point in life where their physical health was beginning to slow them down in ways they could no longer explain away as a bad day. Adjusting to that wasn’t easy for them, especially when they began to face the small moments in life that would have been effortless a few years ago but not required some planning and energy management in order to accomplish.

I Found a Lost Hallway in a Dying Mall was thought provoking and makes me hope that Mr. Farthing will release some more stories soon.

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October 9, 2025 · 1:00 am

A Review of The Hunger We Pass Down

Book cover for The Hunger We Pass Down by Jen Sookfong Lee. Image on cover is a dark watercolour painting of a young Asian woman who is looking over her shoulder at the audience with a serious and longing expression on her face. Her shoulders are slightly hunched as if she’s tired or maybe doesn’t have good posture. Title: The Hunger We Pass Down

Author: Jen Sookfong Lee

Publisher: McClelland & Stewart

Publication Date: September 9, 2025

Genres: Mystery, Fantasy, Paranormal, Contemporary, Historical

Length: 384 pages

Source: I borrowed it from the library.

Rating: 4 Stars

Blurb:

 

Jordan Peele’s Us meets The School For Good Mothers in this horror-tinged intergenerational saga, as a single mother’s doppelganger forces her to confront the legacy of violence that has shaped every woman in their family.

Single mother Alice Chow is drowning. With a booming online cloth diaper shop, her resentful teenage daughter Luna, and her screen-obsessed son Luca, Alice can never get everything done in a day. It’s all she can do to just collapse on the couch with a bottle of wine every night.

It’s a relief when Alice wakes up one morning and everything has been done. The counters are clear, the kids’ rooms are tidy, orders are neatly packed and labeled. But no one confesses they’ve helped, and Alice doesn’t remember staying up late. Someone–or something–has been doing her chores for her.

Alice should be uneasy, but the extra time lets her connect with her children and with her hard-edged mother, who begins to share their haunted family history from Alice’s great-grandmother, a comfort woman during WWII, through to Alice herself. But the family demons, both real and subconscious, are about to become impossible to ignore.

Sharp and incisive, The Hunger We Pass Down traces the ways intergenerational trauma transforms from mother to daughter, and asks what it might take to break that cycle.

Content Warning: Alcoholism, kidnapping, rape, pregnancy, abortion, miscarriage, childbirth, mental health (depression and, depending on how one interprets certain scenes, delusions and hallucinations), domestic violence, car accident, cancer, murder, and demonic possession.  I will not be discussing these topics in my review. 

Review:

What does it mean to be a survivor?

This was a heavy read at times, but it was also an important one. It’s easy to sanitize the past but much more difficult to take a clear look at what previous generations endured and how their experiences can still affect even those descendants who were born decades after their deaths. I found it especially interesting to take note of the personalities of the various women in this family – as nearly all of the characters were women – and see how the same habits and mannerisms echoed through the generations with some individuals being able to express much healthier versions of these traits than their mothers or grandmothers did depending on what their lives were like and how much they’d been able to heal from their trauma. I must tip my cap to Ms. Sookfong Lee for all of the work she put into crafting their personalities and giving readers small hints of how everyone was similar to each other. 

The ending did feel a little rushed to me after spending 300+ pages building up tension and digging deeply into the secrets and mysteries of the Chow family. I was expecting the final confrontation to take up much more space in the storyline than it did, and so I was let down by how quickly things were resolved. If more time had been spent on those last few chapters, I would have happy chosen a full five-star rating as this novel was otherwise an excellent example of how the horror genre can be used to explore all sorts of serious, real-world topics that many families can be reticent to talk about.

My favorite scenes were the ones that invited the audience to think about the multitude of ways that intergenerational trauma can be passed down over and over again even if someone is aware of what is happening and knows their behaviour isn’t emotionally healthy. I loved the way the author left space for readers to interpret certain scenes from a wide variety of psychological and supernatural perspectives. Was the antagonist literally real, a vivid metaphor for how generations of unresolved trauma have metaphorically haunted this family, or some combination of these two possibilities? I have my own theories about that topic but don’t want to influence anyone else’s perspective before they’ve read this. What matters is that new readers think for themselves as they encounter new clues about what is going on and trace every thread of this story from 1939 to 2025.

The Hunger We Pass Down made me yearn for a sequel.

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