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Dark Heart of Ilmoure
Years ago, all she wanted was to leave. Now, a web of secrets might ensnare her forever.
When Iris Grey returns to her hometown of Ilmoure years after a bitter parting, she hopes for reconciliation in the face of a tragedy. Instead, she arrives to a town changed for the worse, a cold welcome from people she once loved, and a family that seems to be keeping secrets from her at every turn.
When those secrets become too heavy to ignore, Iris starts to dig deeper. What she finds leads her to question her very perception of reality. Faced with old wounds and new revelations, Iris finds herself mired in a plot that threatens to swallow herself, the town, and the people she once loved.
When Iris Grey returns to her hometown of Ilmoure years after a bitter parting, she hopes for reconciliation in the face of a tragedy. Instead, she arrives to a town changed for the worse, a cold welcome from people she once loved, and a family that seems to be keeping secrets from her at every turn.
When those secrets become too heavy to ignore, Iris starts to dig deeper. What she finds leads her to question her very perception of reality. Faced with old wounds and new revelations, Iris finds herself mired in a plot that threatens to swallow herself, the town, and the people she once loved.
- GenresHorror
160 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 27, 2022
1 person is currently reading
36 people want to read
About the author
Cara N. Delaney
5 books26 followersCara lives in a hole in the ground, where she spends her days building whole worlds with nothing but words on the page and a lively imagination.
She may be summoned with a potion brewed from magic beans, but there is no telling what will happen if you do.
Once in a blue moon, you might catch her out and about on a walk through the local vineyards, soaking up the sun and taking pictures of trees.
(As of 2025, I will rate no more books, just catalogue them. Old ratings stay up, but I won't add any more.)
Ratings:
*** - good
**** - great
***** - excellent
No rating: unsure/wasn't for me
She may be summoned with a potion brewed from magic beans, but there is no telling what will happen if you do.
Once in a blue moon, you might catch her out and about on a walk through the local vineyards, soaking up the sun and taking pictures of trees.
(As of 2025, I will rate no more books, just catalogue them. Old ratings stay up, but I won't add any more.)
Ratings:
*** - good
**** - great
***** - excellent
No rating: unsure/wasn't for me
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
March 28, 2024
Read this one as a finalist in SFINCS, opinion is my own and doesn’t reflect that of the team!
This is a slow burn, small town horror. Iris, who already escaped her dysfunctional family once, has been brought back to town by the death of her nephew. This novella spends a lot of time building into that dysfunction. Her mother’s attitude, her father’s over-accepting responses, and her sister’s seeming lack of grief. For me it didn’t exactly reach a level of atmospheric creepiness, but the author does keep it interesting enough to keep it slow.
At just about the 60% mark the novella starts to take off. The mystery that has been building is finally answered, and to be honest, it felt a lot more “left field” than I was expecting. This is definitely more horror than mystery, and while it worked for me, I guess I was just surprised.
This novella also features an old ex with LGBtQ rep, and I thought it was used well that them meeting back up was one of the reveals for the mystery early on. The photo being forgotten in the library one of the only clues throughout the story.
I enjoyed the explanation and ending, as well as the fact that the small town horror might have been spreading its monstrous fingers out to the surrounding areas.
https://fanfiaddict.com/review-dark-h...
This is a slow burn, small town horror. Iris, who already escaped her dysfunctional family once, has been brought back to town by the death of her nephew. This novella spends a lot of time building into that dysfunction. Her mother’s attitude, her father’s over-accepting responses, and her sister’s seeming lack of grief. For me it didn’t exactly reach a level of atmospheric creepiness, but the author does keep it interesting enough to keep it slow.
At just about the 60% mark the novella starts to take off. The mystery that has been building is finally answered, and to be honest, it felt a lot more “left field” than I was expecting. This is definitely more horror than mystery, and while it worked for me, I guess I was just surprised.
This novella also features an old ex with LGBtQ rep, and I thought it was used well that them meeting back up was one of the reveals for the mystery early on. The photo being forgotten in the library one of the only clues throughout the story.
I enjoyed the explanation and ending, as well as the fact that the small town horror might have been spreading its monstrous fingers out to the surrounding areas.
https://fanfiaddict.com/review-dark-h...
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November 8, 2023I read this as part of Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Championship (SFINCS, pronounced “sphinx”), which is a yearly competition to recognise, and celebrate the talent and creativity present in the Indie Community. The competition is the sister of the SPFBO and SPSFC and is primarily focussed on novellas. This is the first year of the competition.
The Dark Heart of Ilmoure tells the story of Iris Grey as she returns to her hometown of Ilmoure. She has been summoned back after the death of her young nephew to attend his funeral. We learn that she has a strained relationship with her family due to her being gay and that this has led to her moving from her ancestral home.
As the funeral approaches, Iris learns that there are strange occurrences and secrets buried that soon come to light.
I went into this knowing absolutely nothing. I had barely skimmed the book synopsis and went in virtually blind, with only the cover as a reference. I think armed with only the scantest of knowledge, I was under the impression that this would be a gothic horror. However, I ended up being surprised by the direction that the book took, especially when it went into full on cosmic horror (yay! I love cosmic horror).
The book itself gives nothing away that this was the direction that this was the direction it was going to go in, so I was very happy with how things went. The story seems to take inspiration form one of Lovecraft’s more famous stories (I’m not going to tell you which one because I don’t want to spoil it too much, but I am sure those familiar with Lovecraft will recognise it straight away).
On the whole, I really enjoyed this one. It was well written. The characters were good. The plot kept me reading and I was totally invested in determining what the mystery was at the heart of the story. Cara N. Delany builds the tension throughout the story, building the mystery throughout.
There were a couple of minor criticisms for me, nothing major, but they threw me off balance a little when I was reading the story. The main one revolved around the time period. I don’t think it was explicitly made clear which period the story took place in, and some of the language used in the book made me think that it was set later than it actually was.
However, this did not spoil the enjoyment of the book in general.
If you like a slice of Lovecraftian fiction, then The Dark Heart of Ilmoure is a pretty good read and one that can be finished in a short space of time.
The Dark Heart of Ilmoure tells the story of Iris Grey as she returns to her hometown of Ilmoure. She has been summoned back after the death of her young nephew to attend his funeral. We learn that she has a strained relationship with her family due to her being gay and that this has led to her moving from her ancestral home.
As the funeral approaches, Iris learns that there are strange occurrences and secrets buried that soon come to light.
I went into this knowing absolutely nothing. I had barely skimmed the book synopsis and went in virtually blind, with only the cover as a reference. I think armed with only the scantest of knowledge, I was under the impression that this would be a gothic horror. However, I ended up being surprised by the direction that the book took, especially when it went into full on cosmic horror (yay! I love cosmic horror).
The book itself gives nothing away that this was the direction that this was the direction it was going to go in, so I was very happy with how things went. The story seems to take inspiration form one of Lovecraft’s more famous stories (I’m not going to tell you which one because I don’t want to spoil it too much, but I am sure those familiar with Lovecraft will recognise it straight away).
On the whole, I really enjoyed this one. It was well written. The characters were good. The plot kept me reading and I was totally invested in determining what the mystery was at the heart of the story. Cara N. Delany builds the tension throughout the story, building the mystery throughout.
There were a couple of minor criticisms for me, nothing major, but they threw me off balance a little when I was reading the story. The main one revolved around the time period. I don’t think it was explicitly made clear which period the story took place in, and some of the language used in the book made me think that it was set later than it actually was.
However, this did not spoil the enjoyment of the book in general.
If you like a slice of Lovecraftian fiction, then The Dark Heart of Ilmoure is a pretty good read and one that can be finished in a short space of time.
March 17, 2024
Review originally on
JamReads
Dark Heart of Ilmoure is a horror novella, written by Cara N. Delaney, which we are reading as part of the SFINCS' finals. A book that tells the story of the return of Iris Grey to Ilmoure, her hometown, as she has been summoned for the funeral of one of her nephews, after six years separated from the family, as they don't really accept her queer condition.
With her return to Ilmoure, secrets that were hidden start appearing in front of her eyes, creating confusion and making her wonder what is her family keeping from her; a sensation that slowly grows until a certain moment precipitates the great finale and the encounter with the truth.
A story that is competently written, with a clear prose and which doesn't hide its Lovecraftian inspirations.
However, in my opinion, I feel the structure of the story could be different, as we spent most of the time building a tension that finally ends being unresolved, keeping many questions in vague states and not really creating a payoff for the slow burn in the terror.
Said that, this is a competent novella, probably being closer a "not for me"; if you like classic Lovecraftian horror with some added queer elements, Dark Heart of Ilmoure might be the perfect one for you.
Disclaimer: This novella has been read as part of the SFINCS. This review/rating only represents my personal opinion and it might differ with what the team decides.
Dark Heart of Ilmoure is a horror novella, written by Cara N. Delaney, which we are reading as part of the SFINCS' finals. A book that tells the story of the return of Iris Grey to Ilmoure, her hometown, as she has been summoned for the funeral of one of her nephews, after six years separated from the family, as they don't really accept her queer condition.
With her return to Ilmoure, secrets that were hidden start appearing in front of her eyes, creating confusion and making her wonder what is her family keeping from her; a sensation that slowly grows until a certain moment precipitates the great finale and the encounter with the truth.
A story that is competently written, with a clear prose and which doesn't hide its Lovecraftian inspirations.
However, in my opinion, I feel the structure of the story could be different, as we spent most of the time building a tension that finally ends being unresolved, keeping many questions in vague states and not really creating a payoff for the slow burn in the terror.
Said that, this is a competent novella, probably being closer a "not for me"; if you like classic Lovecraftian horror with some added queer elements, Dark Heart of Ilmoure might be the perfect one for you.
Disclaimer: This novella has been read as part of the SFINCS. This review/rating only represents my personal opinion and it might differ with what the team decides.
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March 6, 2024I’m a judge on the Before We Go Blog team. We’re in the final round!
RTC
Until then, learn more here:
https://sfincscompetition.wordpress.com
RTC
Until then, learn more here:
https://sfincscompetition.wordpress.com
March 29, 2024
This book was reviewed as part of the Speculative Fiction Indie Novella Championship, or SFINCS, which I am judging as part of Team Jamreads. This review contains my honest thoughts and does not represent the opinion or final rating of the team.
Dark Heart of Ilmoure is a standalone novel which makes a change from all the prequel novellas I’ve been reading lately, and thus I’m safe to dive into it without needing any background context. That said, this is a book about a woman whose background comes to haunt her, featuring a creepy town and a family hiding many secrets.
Characters
Our main character is Iris Grey, a woman who couldn’t stand living in their hometown and escaped to the big city, leaving behind her family and friends. This is very relatable to me, as I did the same thing! Iris is then forced to return home for a family funeral and isn’t at all comfortable with it, which is again relatable. When she returns, the family situation is tense, and she does all she can to avoid them… Until she realises some odd things are happening.
As well as being relatable, I liked Iris’s character for her determination to try to help her sister and her friend while sticking to her stubborn nature. My favourite characters are women who refuse to toe the line.
There are a range of side characters as well that don’t feel quite as fleshed out as Iris, as well as creepy family members.
Setting
The story is set in the old mining town of Ilmoure which has seen better days. Since the mine closed, many of the stores and even hotels have closed down, and the whole town is dejected. There are a few families who seem to be doing well despite this, however, and insist that everything is fine. I can completely imagine Ilmoure as a poor and dilapidated northern English coastal town because I’ve visited many. But I’m not entirely sure if it’s supposed to BE England.
There were a few things that threw me off the setting. For one, I couldn’t tell if this was supposed to be set in England or America. I got both vibes from it, and it confuses me because I live near Durham in England, but I’m aware there is also a big Durham in America. Also, I had trouble placing the time period, and the book cover didn’t help me with this. The opening chapter made me picture the modern day, but there are details throughout, including the dialogue, that are more vintage. By the end of the book, I still wasn’t sure what year we were in.
Plot
I don’t read many horror stories, and I’m not sure if I would define this as a horror or a thriller, but more of a folk horror mystery that takes its time. We begin with Iris returning to her family home, and while things seem a bit strange, it wasn’t until the half-way mark that we get a big clue that something is actually wrong. From there, the mystery unravels and the true dark nature of Ilmoure is revealed. The story is quite slow paced as it drip feeds clues, but I kept reading on as I was hoping for a big payoff at the end.
Writing
The story was well written but could have been paced a bit better. The first half was quite slow and I felt like the tension build up wasn’t quite there.
Enjoyment
I wanted to like Dark Heart of Ilmoure, but unfortunately, I didn’t feel as though the story reached a satisfying ending. There are some plot threads that are left hanging and no real conclusion or closure to the mystery. Perhaps I am simply bloodthirsty, but the reveal wasn’t as dark or shocking as I wanted it to be and I’d hoped for more. I did enjoy Iris character however and found her very relatable!
Cover Art and Formatting
I think the cover art threw me off with the time period.
Dark Heart of Ilmoure is a standalone novel which makes a change from all the prequel novellas I’ve been reading lately, and thus I’m safe to dive into it without needing any background context. That said, this is a book about a woman whose background comes to haunt her, featuring a creepy town and a family hiding many secrets.
Characters
Our main character is Iris Grey, a woman who couldn’t stand living in their hometown and escaped to the big city, leaving behind her family and friends. This is very relatable to me, as I did the same thing! Iris is then forced to return home for a family funeral and isn’t at all comfortable with it, which is again relatable. When she returns, the family situation is tense, and she does all she can to avoid them… Until she realises some odd things are happening.
As well as being relatable, I liked Iris’s character for her determination to try to help her sister and her friend while sticking to her stubborn nature. My favourite characters are women who refuse to toe the line.
There are a range of side characters as well that don’t feel quite as fleshed out as Iris, as well as creepy family members.
Setting
The story is set in the old mining town of Ilmoure which has seen better days. Since the mine closed, many of the stores and even hotels have closed down, and the whole town is dejected. There are a few families who seem to be doing well despite this, however, and insist that everything is fine. I can completely imagine Ilmoure as a poor and dilapidated northern English coastal town because I’ve visited many. But I’m not entirely sure if it’s supposed to BE England.
There were a few things that threw me off the setting. For one, I couldn’t tell if this was supposed to be set in England or America. I got both vibes from it, and it confuses me because I live near Durham in England, but I’m aware there is also a big Durham in America. Also, I had trouble placing the time period, and the book cover didn’t help me with this. The opening chapter made me picture the modern day, but there are details throughout, including the dialogue, that are more vintage. By the end of the book, I still wasn’t sure what year we were in.
Plot
I don’t read many horror stories, and I’m not sure if I would define this as a horror or a thriller, but more of a folk horror mystery that takes its time. We begin with Iris returning to her family home, and while things seem a bit strange, it wasn’t until the half-way mark that we get a big clue that something is actually wrong. From there, the mystery unravels and the true dark nature of Ilmoure is revealed. The story is quite slow paced as it drip feeds clues, but I kept reading on as I was hoping for a big payoff at the end.
Writing
The story was well written but could have been paced a bit better. The first half was quite slow and I felt like the tension build up wasn’t quite there.
Enjoyment
I wanted to like Dark Heart of Ilmoure, but unfortunately, I didn’t feel as though the story reached a satisfying ending. There are some plot threads that are left hanging and no real conclusion or closure to the mystery. Perhaps I am simply bloodthirsty, but the reveal wasn’t as dark or shocking as I wanted it to be and I’d hoped for more. I did enjoy Iris character however and found her very relatable!
Cover Art and Formatting
I think the cover art threw me off with the time period.
Read
March 16, 2024I received a free copy of this book as part of the SFINCS novella competition. The views of this review are my own and do not represent my team’s final score.
This is not the kind of book I would normally pick up and read. In fact, the beginning is such that I would probably nope out of it before the end of the first page.
It’s an introduction that speaks of hushed up family secrets, traumatic childhood memories, and abuse. It speaks of shame, cruelty, and unpleasantness, and I while I can handle that in books I read, I tend to shy away from stories that focus on exploring those aspects of life.
If I hadn’t been reading this book to judge it for the SFINCS, I probably wouldn’t have even picked it up.
In light of that, I’m really happy I pushed through the first few chapters and discovered what came to be one of the biggest positive surprises of the competition.
Yes, it’s got the deeply toxic family relationship at the heart of it, but as with so many other things, the anticipation was a lot worse than the actual thing.
In a lot of ways, the storytelling makes very good use of that very principle.
Iris returns to her family’s hometown for her niece’s funeral, and she dreads what she’ll find after she left on bad terms so many years ago. It’s never explicitly said what those bad terms were, but there are enough hints for the reader to make up their own version of it, and that makes the backstory all that much stronger – and the same goes for many other aspects of the story.
It’s not about painting a picture for the reader, but about giving them a canvas and some colours and letting them create their own masterpiece. It’s a principle I love, and here, it’s very well executed.
The book is short, but the stage it plays out on has the solidity of a full length novel. I think, perhaps, this is what impressed me most about this book. It doesn’t tell me all I need to know. It gives me hints and lets me make up my own story.
As the story progresses, slowly, it becomes clear that something isn’t quite as it should be. It’s not just the death or Iris’ niece, or her toxic-perfection family, but something even deeper, more sinister, and it’s got the entire town in it’s grip.
It’s dark and sinister and spooky, and maybe this is what could be called gothic horror, or rural horror, but whatever it is, I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected I would, and I’d be happy to check out other works by the author.
This is not the kind of book I would normally pick up and read. In fact, the beginning is such that I would probably nope out of it before the end of the first page.
It’s an introduction that speaks of hushed up family secrets, traumatic childhood memories, and abuse. It speaks of shame, cruelty, and unpleasantness, and I while I can handle that in books I read, I tend to shy away from stories that focus on exploring those aspects of life.
If I hadn’t been reading this book to judge it for the SFINCS, I probably wouldn’t have even picked it up.
In light of that, I’m really happy I pushed through the first few chapters and discovered what came to be one of the biggest positive surprises of the competition.
Yes, it’s got the deeply toxic family relationship at the heart of it, but as with so many other things, the anticipation was a lot worse than the actual thing.
In a lot of ways, the storytelling makes very good use of that very principle.
Iris returns to her family’s hometown for her niece’s funeral, and she dreads what she’ll find after she left on bad terms so many years ago. It’s never explicitly said what those bad terms were, but there are enough hints for the reader to make up their own version of it, and that makes the backstory all that much stronger – and the same goes for many other aspects of the story.
It’s not about painting a picture for the reader, but about giving them a canvas and some colours and letting them create their own masterpiece. It’s a principle I love, and here, it’s very well executed.
The book is short, but the stage it plays out on has the solidity of a full length novel. I think, perhaps, this is what impressed me most about this book. It doesn’t tell me all I need to know. It gives me hints and lets me make up my own story.
As the story progresses, slowly, it becomes clear that something isn’t quite as it should be. It’s not just the death or Iris’ niece, or her toxic-perfection family, but something even deeper, more sinister, and it’s got the entire town in it’s grip.
It’s dark and sinister and spooky, and maybe this is what could be called gothic horror, or rural horror, but whatever it is, I enjoyed it a lot more than I expected I would, and I’d be happy to check out other works by the author.
August 26, 2024
A book that is hard to put down!
An intriguing mystery that kept me wanting to read just one page more, until there was nothing more to read.
Cara's writing style is so approachable and inviting. I recommend this book with all my heart.
An intriguing mystery that kept me wanting to read just one page more, until there was nothing more to read.
Cara's writing style is so approachable and inviting. I recommend this book with all my heart.
March 5, 2024
SFINCs finalist
What an intriguing, mysterious mystery novella. I kept reading because I just had to know what was going on in Ilmoure. At first, it was almost Stepford Wives vibes, but then suddenly, it became something entirely different and so much more! I both don't want to know but also MUST know - I've come this far!
CAWPILE Breakdown:
Characters: 5 - For me, this is a hard category to rate becuse the characters weren't bad, really. They were just all very secretive and held their secrets real close to their chests. So it was hard to really get a read (no pun intended) on any of them.
Atmosphere/Setting: 9 - One of Delaney's strongest categories by far. I could see the setting at all times and feel the creepy atmosphere. I never questioned our atmosphere or setting. It felt like I was also in Ilmoure - or at least had been there before.
Writing Style: 7 - Delaney's writing style was solid. The pacing was good, story was strong. I wanted to keep reading. There were a few grammatical/editing errors but not enough to distract me.
Plot: 8 - I thought that the plot was written well. It was easy and interesting enough to follow, yet didn't give anything away.
Intrigue: 9 - The intrigue in this novella was a unique kind. It kept changing as I read further and further. I felt like I had to but also wanted to keep reading. At first just for the characters - trying to figure them out - and then for the story.
Logic/Relationships: 6 - Nothing made sense, but it wasn't supposed to - really. Relationships - I wanted more, but I always want more. They also worked, in their own way, kind of.
Enjoyment: 8.5 - I truly enjoyed reading The Dark Heart of Ilmoure and would absolutely read more works by Delaney.
CAWPILE Total: 52.5 / 7 = 7.5 = 4 stars
What an intriguing, mysterious mystery novella. I kept reading because I just had to know what was going on in Ilmoure. At first, it was almost Stepford Wives vibes, but then suddenly, it became something entirely different and so much more! I both don't want to know but also MUST know - I've come this far!
CAWPILE Breakdown:
Characters: 5 - For me, this is a hard category to rate becuse the characters weren't bad, really. They were just all very secretive and held their secrets real close to their chests. So it was hard to really get a read (no pun intended) on any of them.
Atmosphere/Setting: 9 - One of Delaney's strongest categories by far. I could see the setting at all times and feel the creepy atmosphere. I never questioned our atmosphere or setting. It felt like I was also in Ilmoure - or at least had been there before.
Writing Style: 7 - Delaney's writing style was solid. The pacing was good, story was strong. I wanted to keep reading. There were a few grammatical/editing errors but not enough to distract me.
Plot: 8 - I thought that the plot was written well. It was easy and interesting enough to follow, yet didn't give anything away.
Intrigue: 9 - The intrigue in this novella was a unique kind. It kept changing as I read further and further. I felt like I had to but also wanted to keep reading. At first just for the characters - trying to figure them out - and then for the story.
Logic/Relationships: 6 - Nothing made sense, but it wasn't supposed to - really. Relationships - I wanted more, but I always want more. They also worked, in their own way, kind of.
Enjoyment: 8.5 - I truly enjoyed reading The Dark Heart of Ilmoure and would absolutely read more works by Delaney.
CAWPILE Total: 52.5 / 7 = 7.5 = 4 stars
February 17, 2024
First time delving into the author Cara N. Delaney's world. I really enjoyed this dark and mysterious story. It was a bit slow at the start, but once it got going, I couldn't put down till I finished it in one sitting.
The author keeps you glued with it's intensity as the story unfolds. It captivates you with it's fantastic storytelling and worldbuilding. The dark setting gives you that eerie feeling as you uncover twist after twist.
When Iris returns to the family home of Ilmoure for the funeral of her nephew, not all as it seems after being away for few years. It's run down and derelict and seems like a ghost town
Not looking forward to seeing her parents after their fallout the last time she saw them, she bites the bullet for the sake of her sister Laura. But when she meets them, it's like nothing never happened. Things start to go wayward after the funeral when Iris learns that all the kids of the town are disappearing.
When she starts to investigate what is really happening, things in the town of Ilmoure get dark very quickly in place she once called her home.
A good urban mystery thriller that will on tender hooks throughout. I very highly recommend it.
The author keeps you glued with it's intensity as the story unfolds. It captivates you with it's fantastic storytelling and worldbuilding. The dark setting gives you that eerie feeling as you uncover twist after twist.
When Iris returns to the family home of Ilmoure for the funeral of her nephew, not all as it seems after being away for few years. It's run down and derelict and seems like a ghost town
Not looking forward to seeing her parents after their fallout the last time she saw them, she bites the bullet for the sake of her sister Laura. But when she meets them, it's like nothing never happened. Things start to go wayward after the funeral when Iris learns that all the kids of the town are disappearing.
When she starts to investigate what is really happening, things in the town of Ilmoure get dark very quickly in place she once called her home.
A good urban mystery thriller that will on tender hooks throughout. I very highly recommend it.
April 14, 2024
Eerie novella that reads as part Gothic mystery, part weird science fiction. When Iris reluctantly returns to the hometown and family she left behind years ago, it quickly becomes apparent that the town and its inhabitants have changed radically since she left (and not for the better). The author does an excellent job of setting an atmospheric scene and building tension. While the mystery unfolds slowly at first, there is an exciting payoff toward the end while still leaving open questions for the reader to ponder long after finishing this creepy horror tale. (Also, there is a charming cat. Always a big plus for me!)
January 18, 2026
slow burn with a haunting mystery, the twist/reveal didn't do it for me and i wasn't the most invested- just not my taste :0
December 24, 2023
This review is also featured on Behind the Pages: Dark Heart of Ilmoure
Iris escaped the town of Ilmoure and her family. But when her nephew passes away she returns to pay her respects. Iris expects to find her family in mourning, yet when she arrives there is nothing but cold indifference. Her brother-in-law is nowhere to be found and her family barely speaks of her departed nephew. But Iris will soon find out, her family’s behavior is the least of her worries. Something dark is lurking in the town of Ilmoure, and Iris is about to ask a few too many questions.
When Iris arrives, she fully expects to stay at the local hotel, only to find it has closed. Forced to stay with her parents, Iris braces for the unhappy reunion. There is a lot of history between them. And it doesn’t help that no one will mention her nephew. Tensions grow as Iris tries to understand her family’s behavior and braces for her parents to bring up the past.
Cara Delaney does a wonderful job allowing readers to unpack the animosity between Iris and her parents without too much information. It helps add to the unease readers will feel as Iris digs deeper into the town’s secrets. Iris is not a character to give up when faced with a dead end. She’ll keep asking questions until she uncovers the truth. A sense of foreboding will settle along the reader’s shoulders as Iris steps closer and closer to that truth.
Dark Heart of Ilmoure grabs readers from the start. It will draw them into the unknown as they venture alongside Iris. Each page will bring readers closer to unveiling the disturbing reality within the town. Fans of horror stories should give this a try!
Iris escaped the town of Ilmoure and her family. But when her nephew passes away she returns to pay her respects. Iris expects to find her family in mourning, yet when she arrives there is nothing but cold indifference. Her brother-in-law is nowhere to be found and her family barely speaks of her departed nephew. But Iris will soon find out, her family’s behavior is the least of her worries. Something dark is lurking in the town of Ilmoure, and Iris is about to ask a few too many questions.
When Iris arrives, she fully expects to stay at the local hotel, only to find it has closed. Forced to stay with her parents, Iris braces for the unhappy reunion. There is a lot of history between them. And it doesn’t help that no one will mention her nephew. Tensions grow as Iris tries to understand her family’s behavior and braces for her parents to bring up the past.
Cara Delaney does a wonderful job allowing readers to unpack the animosity between Iris and her parents without too much information. It helps add to the unease readers will feel as Iris digs deeper into the town’s secrets. Iris is not a character to give up when faced with a dead end. She’ll keep asking questions until she uncovers the truth. A sense of foreboding will settle along the reader’s shoulders as Iris steps closer and closer to that truth.
Dark Heart of Ilmoure grabs readers from the start. It will draw them into the unknown as they venture alongside Iris. Each page will bring readers closer to unveiling the disturbing reality within the town. Fans of horror stories should give this a try!
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