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The Morass: Servant of the Fly God
What if you had been kidnapped by a serial killer and your only hope of escape was cut off by rising floodwater?
The Australian Outback is a place mired in myth, folklore, and rumour that’s inspired some of the best horror fiction and creature horror books. Some say it’s full of deadly creatures. Others claim it’s rife with serial killers hunting for backpackers and stranded tourists. Whatever the cause, young people in central Queensland are disappearing and the locals are frightened.
Katy is fresh from college and ready to research and write her magnum opus, a book investigating the many disappearances of outback youths in Australia. When she meets Kip, a guitarist on his way to the city, she knows she’s onto something good and that she can prove her there’s nothing there for the youth of today and they’re running away, searching for employment and prospects in the city.
Unfortunately, she’s wrong. In this terrifying cosmic horror book, there is a killer in the outback. One that thinks God is the ancient creature that lurks in the swamps near his property. With floodwaters rising, he’s certain Katy and Kip are the sacrifices that will allow the entity to emerge from the morass and cleanse the world of sinners. One terrifying abduction later, he has them both imprisoned.
As they struggle to escape the terror and the torture, their desperate fight for survival will lead only to more horror. Because their kidnapper is not crazy. His god is real. His god is hungry, and it is screaming to be reborn.
Aurealis-nominated Australian author Zachary Ashford turns his attention to the isolation of the outback with this fast-paced horror. The tension thrums. The brutality screams. The desperation of his protagonists’ plight bleeds from the page. For fans of extreme horror, splatterpunk, gore, violent films like Wolf Creek , or international movies like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre , and the grotesque creatures of movies like Aliens , The Thing , or The Fly , The Servant of the Fly God is not to be missed.
Will Katy and Kip survive? Will their killer succeed? Will the God in the swamp take over the world. Buy this supernatural thriller book now, and discover their fate.
Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing—Tales from the Darkest Depths.
The Australian Outback is a place mired in myth, folklore, and rumour that’s inspired some of the best horror fiction and creature horror books. Some say it’s full of deadly creatures. Others claim it’s rife with serial killers hunting for backpackers and stranded tourists. Whatever the cause, young people in central Queensland are disappearing and the locals are frightened.
Katy is fresh from college and ready to research and write her magnum opus, a book investigating the many disappearances of outback youths in Australia. When she meets Kip, a guitarist on his way to the city, she knows she’s onto something good and that she can prove her there’s nothing there for the youth of today and they’re running away, searching for employment and prospects in the city.
Unfortunately, she’s wrong. In this terrifying cosmic horror book, there is a killer in the outback. One that thinks God is the ancient creature that lurks in the swamps near his property. With floodwaters rising, he’s certain Katy and Kip are the sacrifices that will allow the entity to emerge from the morass and cleanse the world of sinners. One terrifying abduction later, he has them both imprisoned.
As they struggle to escape the terror and the torture, their desperate fight for survival will lead only to more horror. Because their kidnapper is not crazy. His god is real. His god is hungry, and it is screaming to be reborn.
Aurealis-nominated Australian author Zachary Ashford turns his attention to the isolation of the outback with this fast-paced horror. The tension thrums. The brutality screams. The desperation of his protagonists’ plight bleeds from the page. For fans of extreme horror, splatterpunk, gore, violent films like Wolf Creek , or international movies like the Texas Chainsaw Massacre , and the grotesque creatures of movies like Aliens , The Thing , or The Fly , The Servant of the Fly God is not to be missed.
Will Katy and Kip survive? Will their killer succeed? Will the God in the swamp take over the world. Buy this supernatural thriller book now, and discover their fate.
Proudly represented by Crystal Lake Publishing—Tales from the Darkest Depths.
- GenresHorrorLovecraftian
116 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 14, 2023
3 people are currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
Zachary Ashford
13 books89 followersZachary Ashford is the Aurealis Award-nominated author of When the Cicadas Stop Singing from Horrific Tales, Sole Survivor and Sole Survivor II from Unnerving - and Autotomy Cocktail and The Encampment by the Gorge & Blood Memory from Demain. His short fiction has been featured in Dark Moon Digest, the Elements of Horror: Earth anthology, Trickster's Treats 3 from Things in the Well, and Kyanite Press.
His new book, The Morass: Servant of the Fly God is available for pre-order now. (https://getbook.at/Morass)
Outside of that, he can be found listening to metal, hanging with his wife and kids, or watching as many schlocky horror films as he can.
His new book, The Morass: Servant of the Fly God is available for pre-order now. (https://getbook.at/Morass)
Outside of that, he can be found listening to metal, hanging with his wife and kids, or watching as many schlocky horror films as he can.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
June 26, 2023
I suspect that when someone asks Ashford what subgenre of horror he writes he just says yes. You have pretty much everything in there, body horror, slasher action, creature, medical horror and so on, it's like a horror genres sampler.
The Morass is both bleakly brutal and highly polished without lacking a certain sense of humor. It deviously makes you care about the characters all the while showing you revolting body horror that never seems gratuitous. Seriously, I did not think of it as being either splatter or extreme until I saw someone else refer to it as such, that's how much of a natural part of the story the gore came across as. The story just flows naturally, you get enough about the characters to get invested but not so much that you get sidetracked and there is no obvious red shirting.
It will make you squirm and keep the fly swatter handy.
Thank you Mr. Ashford for sending me a review copy it was a pleasure to read you (but also I will not forgive you for what you did to Kip).
The Morass is both bleakly brutal and highly polished without lacking a certain sense of humor. It deviously makes you care about the characters all the while showing you revolting body horror that never seems gratuitous. Seriously, I did not think of it as being either splatter or extreme until I saw someone else refer to it as such, that's how much of a natural part of the story the gore came across as. The story just flows naturally, you get enough about the characters to get invested but not so much that you get sidetracked and there is no obvious red shirting.
It will make you squirm and keep the fly swatter handy.
Thank you Mr. Ashford for sending me a review copy it was a pleasure to read you (but also I will not forgive you for what you did to Kip).
September 5, 2023
Zachary Ashford has written a book that has made a long time horror reader feel sick and disgusted. Part serial killer story, part body horror and part creature feature all wrapped up in an franatic paced gruesome read.
The descriptions of the body horror elements are some of the most putridly disgusting stuff I have read. It's awesome! The plot itself is captivating and very Australian in its slang dialogue and rural outback location. I loved Nguyen and Coghlans banter as police officers trying to solve the string of missing persons cases. They were great characters. I wont give away the plot but if you want to read a creature feature novel with some extreme descriptions of gore, violence and utter nauseous level of body horror elements wrapped around a tension filled story well you must read this! Brilliant work.
The descriptions of the body horror elements are some of the most putridly disgusting stuff I have read. It's awesome! The plot itself is captivating and very Australian in its slang dialogue and rural outback location. I loved Nguyen and Coghlans banter as police officers trying to solve the string of missing persons cases. They were great characters. I wont give away the plot but if you want to read a creature feature novel with some extreme descriptions of gore, violence and utter nauseous level of body horror elements wrapped around a tension filled story well you must read this! Brilliant work.
July 13, 2023
Release July 14.
Wow! Amazingly fast-paced, amazingly engrossing, amazingly gory and Cosmically Horrifying and Implacable! THE MORASS: SERVANT OF THE FLY GOD deserves far more than 5 Stars!
Usually any more I skip Extreme Horror [because once read, never forgotten], but I was enraptured by this cover and the description! How could I not read it! Then once I started the first page, I was lost.
Caution: Gore [plentiful], Cosmic abuse, Cosmic Horror, Obscenity, Gore [had to specify again].
Benefits: total engrossment; satisfaction at a tale both wildly imaginative, and excellently expressed. Major kudos to Zachary Ashford , and to Crystal Lake Publishing for bringing this novella gem into the light!
Wow! Amazingly fast-paced, amazingly engrossing, amazingly gory and Cosmically Horrifying and Implacable! THE MORASS: SERVANT OF THE FLY GOD deserves far more than 5 Stars!
Usually any more I skip Extreme Horror [because once read, never forgotten], but I was enraptured by this cover and the description! How could I not read it! Then once I started the first page, I was lost.
Caution: Gore [plentiful], Cosmic abuse, Cosmic Horror, Obscenity, Gore [had to specify again].
Benefits: total engrossment; satisfaction at a tale both wildly imaginative, and excellently expressed. Major kudos to Zachary Ashford , and to Crystal Lake Publishing for bringing this novella gem into the light!
July 27, 2023
The Morass: Servant of the Fly God by Zachary Ashford is Brutally outstanding. 5 out of 5 stars.
I read almost exclusively all horror, and very little unsettles me, but this, WOW! this unsettled me, I never realised how much maggots and flies bothered me until reading this.
But this book isn’t just limited to grossness, this is a smorgasbord of different horror types, there is also the psychological horror and brutality like that of Wolf Creek, and there is something unnatural about the fly’s and maggots, but I won’t say anymore as not to spoil it, but there is a lot more depth and complexity going on that just a psycho and creatures.
I’ve read a few books by this author now and he is going from strength to strength, the writing like his other works is easy to read with well-developed characters and settings.
If you like horror and don’t mind a few maggots, then I Highly Recommended this book!
I read almost exclusively all horror, and very little unsettles me, but this, WOW! this unsettled me, I never realised how much maggots and flies bothered me until reading this.
But this book isn’t just limited to grossness, this is a smorgasbord of different horror types, there is also the psychological horror and brutality like that of Wolf Creek, and there is something unnatural about the fly’s and maggots, but I won’t say anymore as not to spoil it, but there is a lot more depth and complexity going on that just a psycho and creatures.
I’ve read a few books by this author now and he is going from strength to strength, the writing like his other works is easy to read with well-developed characters and settings.
If you like horror and don’t mind a few maggots, then I Highly Recommended this book!
July 1, 2023
A gripping, well-written read that leaves you itching and squirming. Note: I hate maggots, and this book reminded me why. This was a fusion of genre types whose combination invoked a well-rounded, perfectly detailed, abhorrent picture that will resist your attempts at dispelling.
Great work, Zachary!
Great work, Zachary!
July 12, 2023
Aarrrggghhh! This one gets under your skin and wriggles around. Ugh! THE MORASS is a quick read, a fascinating blend of body horror, extreme horror and cosmic horror (with its' Lovecraftian creature.)
A novella, but I took as long to read this as I usually do a novel - - simply because the descriptions were so vivid that I needed to put some pauses between chapters for full appreciation.
If Ashford simply focused on the serial-killer-with-a-serious-fly obsession the story would still be pretty frightening. I was reminded of both the Wolf Creek film and series (Shudder TV) but that creepy thing hanging out around the meteor impact site took this to another level entirely.
The prologue foreshadows enough that I anticipated a horrifying and exciting reading experience, and this did not disappoint. This has to be the most revolting as well as most elaborate depiction of a swarm of troubling black flies as I am likely to read/encounter. The main character is truly deranged and frightening with a grotesque appearance. When Ashford introduces the sentient maggots into the story I could almost taste them. Ugh!
The character depictions are more detailed that you sometimes find in a novella, and go beyond the usual. You'll become attached to some of these characters, and Ashford will make you regret that. I began to feel both their pain and disgust.
Zachary Ashford, thank you for the horrible reading experience!
A novella, but I took as long to read this as I usually do a novel - - simply because the descriptions were so vivid that I needed to put some pauses between chapters for full appreciation.
If Ashford simply focused on the serial-killer-with-a-serious-fly obsession the story would still be pretty frightening. I was reminded of both the Wolf Creek film and series (Shudder TV) but that creepy thing hanging out around the meteor impact site took this to another level entirely.
The prologue foreshadows enough that I anticipated a horrifying and exciting reading experience, and this did not disappoint. This has to be the most revolting as well as most elaborate depiction of a swarm of troubling black flies as I am likely to read/encounter. The main character is truly deranged and frightening with a grotesque appearance. When Ashford introduces the sentient maggots into the story I could almost taste them. Ugh!
The character depictions are more detailed that you sometimes find in a novella, and go beyond the usual. You'll become attached to some of these characters, and Ashford will make you regret that. I began to feel both their pain and disgust.
Zachary Ashford, thank you for the horrible reading experience!
August 18, 2023
I’ve long been a huge fan of Zachary Ashford’s unique brand of Outback-Creature-Feature horror. Whether it be brutal Drop Bears in his Sole Survivor double bill, massive crocs in The Encampment by the Gorge or ‘odd’ roaming reptilian beasties in When the Cicadas Stop Singing, Ashford brings us strong characters, amazing locations and so much bloody gore its fantastic.
With this one, things are a little bit different, in that the cover reveals EXACTLY what’s in store. That THING is waiting, somewhere in the Australian Outback and this ready was gleefully rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
What I liked: The story opens with us getting a solid look at the bad guy, the one doing the creatures bidding. He is searching for ‘the one,’ the specific woman needed for the specific purpose of the creature.
From there, we’re introduced to Katy and Kip. Katy is travelling across the country seeking subjects for her book on those who live far from the cities of Australia. Kip, meanwhile, is about to fulfill his dreams. He’s heading to the city, about to take over as guitarist for his favorite band in the hopes of becoming a huge rock star. They meet up when Kip spots Katy hitchhiking. There’s a storm coming, the sky is about to dump huge amounts of rain and Katy accepts the ride on Kip’s motorbike.
Ashford takes his time setting the stage, and as the rain begins to fall, the three main characters of the book randomly meet up at a road side gas station/food spot and an argument ensues.
After that, it’s all about survival. Katy and Kip have been deemed ‘chosen’ and the creature in the swamp is ready to begin what needs to be done.
With a pair of cops hot on the case, all hell breaks loose and the final quarter of the book is filled with so much blood, gore, ripping and slashing and pulsing. It is just great fun and will make fans of extreme horror giddy with what happens.
The ending is very solid, exactly what you’d expect from the events leading up to it and does leave the door tantalizingly open for another entry.
What I didn’t like: While the main story and content itself was great, I was constantly thrown for a loop from the sheer volume of Aussie slang and references. Alan Baxter’s The Roo had a fantastic slang translation feature in the back of that one, and I think this one would’ve benefitted from that. I’m decently versed in British/Aussie slang – both from friends and ingesting a large quantity of books/movies/TV shows – but there was a significant amount of it where I still had to pause, get my phone and Google it.
Same with a few references to notorious Outback killers. I’ve watched Wolf Creek, but I couldn’t tell you who the real guy was it was based on. When a few of these people were mentioned, I had to search as there was no expansion on whom they had been.
Why you should buy this: From start to finish, this one rips along and the narrative that weaves between the three subplots throughout was a lot of fun. Survival stories are always solid, always a good time and Ashford attacked this one with plenty of gleeful carnage and creature chaos!
With this one, things are a little bit different, in that the cover reveals EXACTLY what’s in store. That THING is waiting, somewhere in the Australian Outback and this ready was gleefully rubbing his hands together in anticipation.
What I liked: The story opens with us getting a solid look at the bad guy, the one doing the creatures bidding. He is searching for ‘the one,’ the specific woman needed for the specific purpose of the creature.
From there, we’re introduced to Katy and Kip. Katy is travelling across the country seeking subjects for her book on those who live far from the cities of Australia. Kip, meanwhile, is about to fulfill his dreams. He’s heading to the city, about to take over as guitarist for his favorite band in the hopes of becoming a huge rock star. They meet up when Kip spots Katy hitchhiking. There’s a storm coming, the sky is about to dump huge amounts of rain and Katy accepts the ride on Kip’s motorbike.
Ashford takes his time setting the stage, and as the rain begins to fall, the three main characters of the book randomly meet up at a road side gas station/food spot and an argument ensues.
After that, it’s all about survival. Katy and Kip have been deemed ‘chosen’ and the creature in the swamp is ready to begin what needs to be done.
With a pair of cops hot on the case, all hell breaks loose and the final quarter of the book is filled with so much blood, gore, ripping and slashing and pulsing. It is just great fun and will make fans of extreme horror giddy with what happens.
The ending is very solid, exactly what you’d expect from the events leading up to it and does leave the door tantalizingly open for another entry.
What I didn’t like: While the main story and content itself was great, I was constantly thrown for a loop from the sheer volume of Aussie slang and references. Alan Baxter’s The Roo had a fantastic slang translation feature in the back of that one, and I think this one would’ve benefitted from that. I’m decently versed in British/Aussie slang – both from friends and ingesting a large quantity of books/movies/TV shows – but there was a significant amount of it where I still had to pause, get my phone and Google it.
Same with a few references to notorious Outback killers. I’ve watched Wolf Creek, but I couldn’t tell you who the real guy was it was based on. When a few of these people were mentioned, I had to search as there was no expansion on whom they had been.
Why you should buy this: From start to finish, this one rips along and the narrative that weaves between the three subplots throughout was a lot of fun. Survival stories are always solid, always a good time and Ashford attacked this one with plenty of gleeful carnage and creature chaos!
July 20, 2023
Oh my… I am shook. I’m an avid extreme horror/splatterpunk reader and this one absolutely got to me!!
Katy, an author, is exploring the Australian outback to source material for her book. What she finds out there is much more sinister than she ever expected.
The creature horror and body horror in this novella was prime. I grimaced, groaned, flinched and cringed most of the way through. It starts of strong and just keeps it coming.
Fantastic read for extreme horror lovers- absolutely recommended!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Katy, an author, is exploring the Australian outback to source material for her book. What she finds out there is much more sinister than she ever expected.
The creature horror and body horror in this novella was prime. I grimaced, groaned, flinched and cringed most of the way through. It starts of strong and just keeps it coming.
Fantastic read for extreme horror lovers- absolutely recommended!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
July 16, 2023
Missing People, Mutant Gods
All Katy wanted was to travel, interview locals and write a book about the myth of the Outback killer; because of course, it had to be a myth.
When she ends up stranded, Kip, a guitarist in a band on the way to his new gig, picks her up on his motorbike and they stop at a service station to dry off from the torrential rain before heading out again.
Just their luck, they attract a weirdo who smells like death and who has flies hanging around him but tries to convince them to let him show them the meteor sites he believes exist.
He is a servant of the Fly God and Katy and Kip are perfect fodder.
Kidnapped by a madman, tortured, terrified, the two fight to survive and escape.
Meanwhile Dt Nguyen is desperate to save them and catch a killer, to at least save one person, as she couldn't save her teenage brother.
Things lurk in the swamp, flies and maggots seem to have supernatural powers and blood is spilled in copious amounts.
Yet this isn't just an Outback serial killer.
This is a cosmic horror with high octane fights and oodles of body horror.
It really is full on '80s style creature feature with a modern slant, and visceral imagery.
Brutal, weird as hell, action packed and scary, and squeamish, with a nod to Clive Barker, it's nightmare inducing.
All Katy wanted was to travel, interview locals and write a book about the myth of the Outback killer; because of course, it had to be a myth.
When she ends up stranded, Kip, a guitarist in a band on the way to his new gig, picks her up on his motorbike and they stop at a service station to dry off from the torrential rain before heading out again.
Just their luck, they attract a weirdo who smells like death and who has flies hanging around him but tries to convince them to let him show them the meteor sites he believes exist.
He is a servant of the Fly God and Katy and Kip are perfect fodder.
Kidnapped by a madman, tortured, terrified, the two fight to survive and escape.
Meanwhile Dt Nguyen is desperate to save them and catch a killer, to at least save one person, as she couldn't save her teenage brother.
Things lurk in the swamp, flies and maggots seem to have supernatural powers and blood is spilled in copious amounts.
Yet this isn't just an Outback serial killer.
This is a cosmic horror with high octane fights and oodles of body horror.
It really is full on '80s style creature feature with a modern slant, and visceral imagery.
Brutal, weird as hell, action packed and scary, and squeamish, with a nod to Clive Barker, it's nightmare inducing.
July 3, 2023
I LOVED this vile story, but it definitely made my guts roil at some parts 🤮🤮🤮
Two young adults are taken by a serial killer of the Australian Outback. He’s not your typical psychopath, he has purpose, he’s working for the good of his God. His God just happens to be a tentacled, monstrosity hiding in a nearby morass….
The flies and maggots are the stars of this story, and the scenes and imagery were definitely nasty! Don’t read these pages if you’re faint of heart!
Thank you to the author for a copy to review.
Two young adults are taken by a serial killer of the Australian Outback. He’s not your typical psychopath, he has purpose, he’s working for the good of his God. His God just happens to be a tentacled, monstrosity hiding in a nearby morass….
The flies and maggots are the stars of this story, and the scenes and imagery were definitely nasty! Don’t read these pages if you’re faint of heart!
Thank you to the author for a copy to review.
September 15, 2023
A book that is a content warning all on it's own.
This book is sick. Really horribly nasty and gripping, and you feel unclean after reading it. Think of falling into a pigpen covered in days-old diarrhea, with your mouth open, whilst a leper hits you over the head with their dismembered arm, and add flies in your nose whilst it happens.
I think the intelligent part of me probably wanted to stop at some point, but my sick gore-loving alter ego needed to know just how much of a beast Ashford really is, and frankly, you don’t want to or need to. You just need to know that he is, this is fantastically disgusting, un-put-downable, and will make you vomit up whatever you ate. It goes to all the places you don’t want it to, and ends in a place you wish it didn’t, and leaves you thinking that the YouTube video you once saw when you were 14 that you really wish you hadn’t, wasn’t so bad after all.
Huhhh... ghuhhhh. roooolffff.
Buy mouthwash before you read this book.
I loved it.
5 vomit splattered stars, and compliments on the impeccable writing. Really, really f##king great.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Superb, what a blast.
This book is sick. Really horribly nasty and gripping, and you feel unclean after reading it. Think of falling into a pigpen covered in days-old diarrhea, with your mouth open, whilst a leper hits you over the head with their dismembered arm, and add flies in your nose whilst it happens.
I think the intelligent part of me probably wanted to stop at some point, but my sick gore-loving alter ego needed to know just how much of a beast Ashford really is, and frankly, you don’t want to or need to. You just need to know that he is, this is fantastically disgusting, un-put-downable, and will make you vomit up whatever you ate. It goes to all the places you don’t want it to, and ends in a place you wish it didn’t, and leaves you thinking that the YouTube video you once saw when you were 14 that you really wish you hadn’t, wasn’t so bad after all.
Huhhh... ghuhhhh. roooolffff.
Buy mouthwash before you read this book.
I loved it.
5 vomit splattered stars, and compliments on the impeccable writing. Really, really f##king great.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Superb, what a blast.
June 30, 2023
In this novella, Zachary Ashford provides a no-hold-barred tale of dread, combining elements of body horror with backwoods slasher fare and some cosmic implications into a story that should sate most readers’ appetite for extreme modern horror. I’ll just say I received this as an advance review copy, and extreme horror is not my usual go-to.
We start by meeting unsavory Calvin Pastroni as he “helps” a couple having car trouble while traversing the Outback. By the time he’s done assisting them, a smashed windshield is the least of their troubles, and we can tell Pastroni is either psychotic, or involved with something much larger and darker than himself, or both. From there we’re introduced to Kip, a musician on his way to join a new band, and Katy, a woman writing a book intent on dispelling the notion that folks in the outback are hicks, lowlifes, or murderers. After meeting each other and being accosted by Pastroni, Katy may wish to reconsider the slant of her book.
From there things ramp up very quickly and things get as gross and gory as you could want. If you’re squeamish or can’t stomach insects, I’d say steer clear of this one as The Morass is filled to the teeth with giant flies, mutant maggots and wormlike tentacles throughout. Once the book gets going, it keeps the tempo up all the way to the stormy climax.
This one reads like a squirmier version of a Chainsaw Massacre or Hill Have Eyes style story for much of it, but that’s interwoven with more supernatural elements like swarms of insects seemingly responding to commands from higher intelligence, and without spoiling anything, there are some deeper, more monstrous implications to what’s happening as well. The mixture of your classic, backwoods torture story with a more paranormal stuff is pulled off well by Ashford, and it sets an open internal logic where a reader is always on edge, never sure what’s within the realm of possibility. Despite this, things elevate in a way that nothing ever quite feels out of place thematically.
Ashford’s writing is slick, as usual, and he’s not afraid to push things to their limits in terms of gross-outs and character depravity. That said, I tend to prefer some subtlety in stories, and though this is a novella, I think I might have liked a little more of the short page count focused on some more understated character stuff. Not that the characters aren’t fleshed out, but amid the barrage of brutality and constant reminders of writhing larva and buzzing flies, I felt a little desensitized to what was happening at times, and I didn’t quite sympathize with Kip and Katy as much as I might have liked.
If you’re looking for something fast paced and cruel, if a little dour, then The Morass is for you. Ashford sets out to terrorize his characters and his readers, and I think he succeeds here. Trigger warnings for torture, gore, gross-outs, and LOTS of bugs. Just wanna also shout out how awesome the cover painting by Ben Baldwin is. Great stuff!
We start by meeting unsavory Calvin Pastroni as he “helps” a couple having car trouble while traversing the Outback. By the time he’s done assisting them, a smashed windshield is the least of their troubles, and we can tell Pastroni is either psychotic, or involved with something much larger and darker than himself, or both. From there we’re introduced to Kip, a musician on his way to join a new band, and Katy, a woman writing a book intent on dispelling the notion that folks in the outback are hicks, lowlifes, or murderers. After meeting each other and being accosted by Pastroni, Katy may wish to reconsider the slant of her book.
From there things ramp up very quickly and things get as gross and gory as you could want. If you’re squeamish or can’t stomach insects, I’d say steer clear of this one as The Morass is filled to the teeth with giant flies, mutant maggots and wormlike tentacles throughout. Once the book gets going, it keeps the tempo up all the way to the stormy climax.
This one reads like a squirmier version of a Chainsaw Massacre or Hill Have Eyes style story for much of it, but that’s interwoven with more supernatural elements like swarms of insects seemingly responding to commands from higher intelligence, and without spoiling anything, there are some deeper, more monstrous implications to what’s happening as well. The mixture of your classic, backwoods torture story with a more paranormal stuff is pulled off well by Ashford, and it sets an open internal logic where a reader is always on edge, never sure what’s within the realm of possibility. Despite this, things elevate in a way that nothing ever quite feels out of place thematically.
Ashford’s writing is slick, as usual, and he’s not afraid to push things to their limits in terms of gross-outs and character depravity. That said, I tend to prefer some subtlety in stories, and though this is a novella, I think I might have liked a little more of the short page count focused on some more understated character stuff. Not that the characters aren’t fleshed out, but amid the barrage of brutality and constant reminders of writhing larva and buzzing flies, I felt a little desensitized to what was happening at times, and I didn’t quite sympathize with Kip and Katy as much as I might have liked.
If you’re looking for something fast paced and cruel, if a little dour, then The Morass is for you. Ashford sets out to terrorize his characters and his readers, and I think he succeeds here. Trigger warnings for torture, gore, gross-outs, and LOTS of bugs. Just wanna also shout out how awesome the cover painting by Ben Baldwin is. Great stuff!
October 31, 2023
I read this in a couple of sittings: it's engagingly written, actually an easy-read, though not without its uncomfortable, unsettling moments; there's torture, there's body horror, and lots of itch-producing descriptions of flies going into weird places. I hate insects, so this book creeped me out many times, with its detailed imagery of bugs doing all those things I really don't want to know about - from eating to biting to mating. I love horror, however, and 'The Morass' had everything I expect to get from a good horror book: great pacing, cool imagery, relatable people (well, in fact, some really nice people get thrown into lots of horrifying situations here), and really nasty, disgustingly evil entities! Ashford takes the "serial killer in the Australian Outback" trope and gives it a new spin, that kept me thoroughly entertained. Another work by Zachary Ashford not to be missed!
June 22, 2023
I hate everything about this book.....and by that I mean it was fantastic! I'm going to be having nightmares about flies and maggots for weeks, but who needs to sleep anyway?
In all seriousness, I've never read anything like The Morass. It was gritty, disturbing, and, quite frankly, absolutely gross, but I could hardly tear my eyes away from it. Except to cringe, of course. I'll never be able to hear a fly buzz without feeling traumatized, so thank you for that, Zachary.
Poor Katy and Kip....I was really pulling for them, but I had an inkling that things weren't going to go well in the end. Kudos for that ending also, it's not often that you see something that doesn't somehow end in sunshine and daisies, so I appreciate the change even though it was extremely unfortunate.
Some of the slang was a bit hard to catch on to, but there were plenty of context clues around it to help me make a very good guess. I honestly have no complaints here; The Morass is a very solid read, and I'm honestly really impressed by how much character development happened with everything that was going on. Great job, seriously! I'm going to go cry in the corner now while my skin crawls from everything that I just read.
Thank you, Zachary, for sending me a copy of this! Everything in my review is my completely honest opinion!
In all seriousness, I've never read anything like The Morass. It was gritty, disturbing, and, quite frankly, absolutely gross, but I could hardly tear my eyes away from it. Except to cringe, of course. I'll never be able to hear a fly buzz without feeling traumatized, so thank you for that, Zachary.
Poor Katy and Kip....I was really pulling for them, but I had an inkling that things weren't going to go well in the end. Kudos for that ending also, it's not often that you see something that doesn't somehow end in sunshine and daisies, so I appreciate the change even though it was extremely unfortunate.
Some of the slang was a bit hard to catch on to, but there were plenty of context clues around it to help me make a very good guess. I honestly have no complaints here; The Morass is a very solid read, and I'm honestly really impressed by how much character development happened with everything that was going on. Great job, seriously! I'm going to go cry in the corner now while my skin crawls from everything that I just read.
Thank you, Zachary, for sending me a copy of this! Everything in my review is my completely honest opinion!
July 13, 2023
The cover grossed me out but it's amazing!
I can't look at flies the same way 🫣 and I don't think I'll be able to go to the dentist and have my mouth open for any period of time ever 😂.
It's such A fabulous book, well written, great story that draws you in and it's brilliantly disgusting at the same time. You definitely need to check it out its deeply disturbing and I could t stop reading I was to engrossed.
I definitely can't wait to read more books by him I'll be reading When the Cicadas Stop Singing next. 🖤
I can't look at flies the same way 🫣 and I don't think I'll be able to go to the dentist and have my mouth open for any period of time ever 😂.
It's such A fabulous book, well written, great story that draws you in and it's brilliantly disgusting at the same time. You definitely need to check it out its deeply disturbing and I could t stop reading I was to engrossed.
I definitely can't wait to read more books by him I'll be reading When the Cicadas Stop Singing next. 🖤
August 17, 2023
What a creepy, little gore fest that was. I read it in one sitting, and enjoyed it immensely. All horror genres seem to be represented here; cosmic horror, body horror, and some extreme horror thrown in there for a bit of flavour.
With a real Wolf Creek start, this quickly turns into something far more gross and gory. If you like your horror to be fast paced and gruesome, then you should probably read this.
With a real Wolf Creek start, this quickly turns into something far more gross and gory. If you like your horror to be fast paced and gruesome, then you should probably read this.
July 3, 2023
I live in Texas, so in the summer my house is overrun with flies. They come whenever anyone goes in or out. The Morass made those flies terrifying.
It's an awesome book, Wolf Creek meets the Cosmic Bug King, with some badass characters trying to survive and the ending is an absolute shocker. This is a horror novella you're not going to want to miss.
It's an awesome book, Wolf Creek meets the Cosmic Bug King, with some badass characters trying to survive and the ending is an absolute shocker. This is a horror novella you're not going to want to miss.
August 16, 2023
Reader beware: this is gory and has a LOT of swearing, but it’s certainly horror if you’re into that.
June 20, 2023
Thank You Zachary Ashford
Wow A Truly Original Elritch/ Lovecraftian Tale with a Splash of Demented crazed Maggot Man( Rocket Man).
This book has a easy flowing reading style that is extremely Descriptive. I would recommend it to lovers of Slasher films and Eldritch Tales.
Life is a question of nerves and fibers that slowly build up of cells in which thoughts hides itself and passion of its dreams
Oscar Wilde
Cosmic Horror
Speculative Fiction
Crime Fiction
Triggers
Australian Outback
Wow A Truly Original Elritch/ Lovecraftian Tale with a Splash of Demented crazed Maggot Man( Rocket Man).
This book has a easy flowing reading style that is extremely Descriptive. I would recommend it to lovers of Slasher films and Eldritch Tales.
Life is a question of nerves and fibers that slowly build up of cells in which thoughts hides itself and passion of its dreams
Oscar Wilde
Cosmic Horror
Speculative Fiction
Crime Fiction
Triggers
Australian Outback
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 15, 2023
First of all, as I finished reading the Morass, all I could think was “oh my gosh…oh my gosh…OH” intermixed with stomach churning and the odd need to side eye the fly in my kitchen.
The extreme vivid imagery, the attention to each gory detail…all absolutely phenomenal.
It all begins in the Outback, a young woman on an adventure, a young wannabe rocker, and a weird pockmarked man. And then come the flies. A perfect blend of good old fashioned kidnapping and supernatural horror.
As an individual who prides herself in being thick skinned and not easily unsettled, this book leaves me feeling disgusted and horrified in the best way possible. Zachary is not afraid to brutally beat his characters down, and then beat them a bit more for good measure.
Now that I am finished reading and have had time to contemplate the story, I am absolutely restarting this from the beginning just to experience the horror again! A 5 out of 5 read for me.
There is a lot of body horror featured in this book (which I personally like) so if that bothers you perhaps this isn’t the right story for you.
The extreme vivid imagery, the attention to each gory detail…all absolutely phenomenal.
It all begins in the Outback, a young woman on an adventure, a young wannabe rocker, and a weird pockmarked man. And then come the flies. A perfect blend of good old fashioned kidnapping and supernatural horror.
As an individual who prides herself in being thick skinned and not easily unsettled, this book leaves me feeling disgusted and horrified in the best way possible. Zachary is not afraid to brutally beat his characters down, and then beat them a bit more for good measure.
Now that I am finished reading and have had time to contemplate the story, I am absolutely restarting this from the beginning just to experience the horror again! A 5 out of 5 read for me.
There is a lot of body horror featured in this book (which I personally like) so if that bothers you perhaps this isn’t the right story for you.
June 19, 2023
A pulse pounding, bloody thrill ride!
This was a quick, fun read. The pacing is fast, the story kicks off and never really lets up. It feels like you're watching a slasher movie at times. It was described to me as a cosmic horror take on Wolf Creek, and honestly, that's exactly what you get, plus some very gooey and graphic gore. I'll definitely never look at maggots and flies the same ever again!
This was a quick, fun read. The pacing is fast, the story kicks off and never really lets up. It feels like you're watching a slasher movie at times. It was described to me as a cosmic horror take on Wolf Creek, and honestly, that's exactly what you get, plus some very gooey and graphic gore. I'll definitely never look at maggots and flies the same ever again!
July 28, 2023
Brilliant Read. Such a sad ending.
June 6, 2024
This is a truly terrifying novella from the ever-improving Zachary Ashford. It's a weird book because while it's perhaps his most accomplished to date in terms of prose (alongside Polyphemus), it's also by far the most gruesomely unpleasant.
In The Morass, he really captures the coldness of the Outback killers we see in Wolf Creek and other Ozploitation titles. There are times, as a reader, when you genuinely want to look away from the action.
The portrayal of decay and ruin at the heart of the man's lair is sickening, the pace of the story relentless and all the while, the determination of Kip and Katy keeps you turning the pages.
Great stuff, highly recommended.
In The Morass, he really captures the coldness of the Outback killers we see in Wolf Creek and other Ozploitation titles. There are times, as a reader, when you genuinely want to look away from the action.
The portrayal of decay and ruin at the heart of the man's lair is sickening, the pace of the story relentless and all the while, the determination of Kip and Katy keeps you turning the pages.
Great stuff, highly recommended.
August 20, 2023
Please note: I am a judge for the 2023 Aurealis Awards. This review is my personal opinion and does not reflect the opinion of any judging panel or the Aurealis Awards management team.
Good, pulpy fun. A hearty blend of body and cosmic horror.
Good, pulpy fun. A hearty blend of body and cosmic horror.
April 11, 2024
I'll be doing this review in my best Stefon from SNL voice.
The Morass: Servant of the Fly God comes from the mind of Zachary Ashford. This stomach churner takes place in the outback where a city girl named Katy takes her general lack of self-preservation and a sense of entitlement to the road where she's following in her grandfather's footsteps of hitchhiking around so that she can write a book about all the "colorful characters" she meets and to prove that these uneducated brogans are just people. People who may not know what petrichor is, but people none the less!
Then we have Kip who is going to Brisbane to join a band. Oh, and a couple of cops looking into some abductions.
On the way they encounter the Maggot Man who has been abducting and murdering people to serve his God who lives in a morass behind his house and helps him control special flies and maggots.
This book has everything! Body horror, cosmic horror, flies with teeth, singing maggots, mouth mutilation, LASAGNA TOPPER!
You'll feel like things are crawling under your skin too as this greasy, grimy, flyblown story burrows into you. Probably not a good choice for those who are easily made queasy but an action packed read for the strong of stomach.
The Morass: Servant of the Fly God comes from the mind of Zachary Ashford. This stomach churner takes place in the outback where a city girl named Katy takes her general lack of self-preservation and a sense of entitlement to the road where she's following in her grandfather's footsteps of hitchhiking around so that she can write a book about all the "colorful characters" she meets and to prove that these uneducated brogans are just people. People who may not know what petrichor is, but people none the less!
Then we have Kip who is going to Brisbane to join a band. Oh, and a couple of cops looking into some abductions.
On the way they encounter the Maggot Man who has been abducting and murdering people to serve his God who lives in a morass behind his house and helps him control special flies and maggots.
This book has everything! Body horror, cosmic horror, flies with teeth, singing maggots, mouth mutilation, LASAGNA TOPPER!
You'll feel like things are crawling under your skin too as this greasy, grimy, flyblown story burrows into you. Probably not a good choice for those who are easily made queasy but an action packed read for the strong of stomach.
February 10, 2024
WTF is going on in Australia? (I say that with love) This book is extreme, both in physical body horror and philosophical outlook. I felt queasy from the precise descriptions of maggots writhing under the skin, and then heartbroken when characters met vile fates. It operates as an extended chase--think Mad Max meets Cronenberg, if that makes any sense--and given that it's a short novella, that action packed narrative is the right choice here. I'm not sure I'd re-read it though, cause I said..it's bleak AF. Also, this can't help but feel like a metaphor for COVID and the world's reaction to it--not sure if Ashford intended that, but with the ending he gives us, it was hard to not feel that. Proceed with caution.
October 13, 2023
A very much in-your-face horror, oozing with Oz authenticity (and body fluids in abundance), and I liked it a lot... in parts, not in toto. Because it also is not quite done - starts strong, then loses a lot of the impetus, only to hurry up in the final blood orgy. Imbalanced, is what it is. So, can't give more than 3 stars, but applaud the vim and vigor.
May 7, 2024
I'm generally not a fan of 'extreme' horror, but this book turned out to be the unputdownable, white-knuckle, horror/sci-fi mashup I never knew I needed to read. Ashford's prose puts you right in the middle of the action, as a couple of travellers through outback Australia find themselves at the mercy of a murderous cultist worshipping something very nasty that lives in the nearby swamp. It's terrifying, disgusting, and utterly engrossing; a blend of Wolf Creek, Xtro and 80s creature-features that's bound to delight readers.
November 19, 2024
Not a big fan of abduction stories or body horror but have to admit I thoroughly enjoyed this. A nice touch of cosmic horror. And I've always been a sucker for surprise/shocking endings.
November 13, 2024
This little nasty from Ashford was pretty sick, bloody and well quite stomach churning… bloody loved it!
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