S.E. Howard (Author of What Lies Unseen)

S.E. Howard wrote a new blog post My Two Cents: DARK EYES by Rikki Goodwin In "Dark Eyes" by Rikki Goodwin, a boy named Isaac finds more than he bargains for when, on a dare, he sneaks into a vacant house in his quiet, unassu Read more of this blog post »
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S.E. Howard rated a book really liked it Dark Eyes: A Horror Novel by Rikki Goodwin (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
In "Dark Eyes" by Rikki Goodwin, a boy named Isaac finds more than he bargains for when, on a dare, he sneaks into a vacant house in his quiet, unassuming neighborhood. What starts off as an innocent trespass becomes something unsettling, even terrif ...more
Jul 30, 2026 10:50AM · like · see review
S.E. Howard rated a book it was amazing The Residency (The Residency, #1) by Kayla Frederick (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
"One decision can change a person's life." This isn't just the opening line to author Kayla Frederick's "The Residency," but it's also the overall theme of this cautionary tale, a clever take on the "Battle Royale" horror trope. In "The Residency," a ...more
Jul 21, 2026 07:59PM · like · see review
S.E. Howard rated a book really liked it Turn by Megan Stockton (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
One of the earliest descriptions of a werewolf can be found in "The Epic of Gilgamesh," the first-ever recorded story in human civilization. In the millennia since that ancient debut, stories of wolves and men, and the amalgamation of the two, have f ...more
Jul 15, 2026 06:59AM · 1 like · like · see review
S.E. Howard rated a book it was amazing The Drowned One by Desiree Horton (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I fell in love with Desiree Horton's writing last year after reading "The Curse of Marystown." She has such a tremendous talent for description, and creates settings, characters, and creatures you can easily visualize in your mind. No place is this m ...more
Jun 29, 2026 07:37AM · 1 like · like · see review
S.E. Howard rated a book it was amazing Going to the Six by A.C. Hessenauer (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Earlier in the year, I read and absolutely loved A.C. Hessenauer's noirish supernatural story, "Manimal," so I was excited for the chance to check out her new release, "Going to the Six," which released on June 16. And while "Going to the Six" has ve ...more
Jun 22, 2026 10:16AM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Going to the Six by A.C. Hessenauer. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Going to the Six by A.C. Hessenauer <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
S.E. Howard rated a book it was amazing Time of Death: A collection of medical horror by N.J. Gallegos (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
N.J. Gallegos is an ER doctor, but you don't have to have a medical background to enjoy her new short story collection. "Time of Death." She's a fantastic writer, and while if you do work in healthcare, you'll undoubtedly appreciate the industry East ...more
May 26, 2026 11:38AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Time of Death by N.J. Gallegos. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Time of Death by N.J. Gallegos <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
S.E. Howard liked Fatimah Gunn's review of What Lies Unseen: A Horror Novel: "One of the Best Books I don’t even know where To begin…this book gives you everything you want in a horror novel but somehow manages to keep the human aspect. I literally could not put this book down until I was finished. Can’t wait to see if any oth" Read more of this review »
May 19, 2026 08:06PM · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of What Lies Unseen by S.E. Howard. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — What Lies Unseen by S.E. Howard <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
S.E. Howard rated a book it was amazing Ghost Glasses by Rikki Goodwin (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
"Ghost Glasses" by Rikki Goodwin is at times heartwarming or heartbreaking, but always, at its heart, about family. Not just the one we're born with, but the family we make for ourselves, the people in life (and in this case, in the afterlife) who ma ...more
May 13, 2026 01:19PM · like · see review
S.E. Howard rated a book it was amazing They Looked Like People: A Blackwater Pines Mystery by K. E. Koontz	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I love found footage horror movies. Books that emulate that style are a secret guilty pleasure, too. I should qualify these statements by adding "when done well," because anyone who enjoys found footage knows they can be really, really good or really ...more
May 07, 2026 07:11AM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of They Looked Like People by K. E. Koontz. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — They Looked Like People by K. E. Koontz <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

S.E. Howard wrote a new blog post

My Two Cents: DARK EYES by Rikki Goodwin

In "Dark Eyes" by Rikki Goodwin, a boy named Isaac finds more than he bargains for when, on a dare, he sneaks into a vacant house in his quiet, unassu Read more of this blog post »

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Dark Eyes: A Horror Novel
by Rikki Goodwin (Goodreads Author)

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In "Dark Eyes" by Rikki Goodwin, a boy named Isaac finds more than he bargains for when, on a dare, he sneaks into a vacant house in his quiet, unassuming neighborhood. What starts off as an innocent trespass becomes something unsettling, even terrif In "Dark Eyes" by Rikki Goodwin, a boy named Isaac finds more than he bargains for when, on a dare, he sneaks into a vacant house in his quiet, unassuming neighborhood. What starts off as an innocent trespass becomes something unsettling, even terrifying, when Isaac discovers a small, cage-like room inside, and a ghostly presence that seems to follow him home. At first, that presence seems sinister, appearing as a pair of disembodied, dark eyes Isaac can't escape. But soon, he begins to suspect there's a connection between those spectral eyes, the secret room, and his mother, who died of a drug overdose when Isaac had been a baby.

All the while, Isaac finds himself plagued by inexplicable violent urges, and when the people he loves most -- father Quint, best friend Chuck, and babysitter Moss -- begin to fall victim to brutal attacks by an unknown assailant, Isaac fears those dark eyes belong to something that's taken up residence inside him -- something hungry and evil.

I fell in love with Goodwin's writing while reading her novel "Ghost Glasses." As in "Ghost Glasses," in "Dark Eyes," she explores themes of grief, remorse, and regret, as well as the heartbreaking desire many feel to undo the sins of the past. She also touches on the horror of addiction, and the multigenerational trauma it can cause. Goodwin's characters are flawed, fragile, and painfully human. There are no clear-cut villains or heroes, and even the most horrible in her cast (and believe me, there's one who's a real piece of work) still manage to have glimmers of decency and evoke empathy. That's a difficult task for a writer, but Goodwin has it mastered.

There are some unexpected twists in the story, and I don't want to give too much away. Suffice it to say, as Isaac and his loved ones try to unravel the mysterious truth behind the vacant house and its dark-eyed secrets, there are plenty of surprises -- of the good, bad, and gory variety -- to be had. "Dark Eyes" is a suspenseful, scary thrill ride, one you won't want to miss!

"Dark Eyes" releases on September 29, 2026. ...more

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The Residency (The Residency, #1)
by Kayla Frederick (Goodreads Author)

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"One decision can change a person's life." This isn't just the opening line to author Kayla Frederick's "The Residency," but it's also the overall theme of this cautionary tale, a clever take on the "Battle Royale" horror trope. In "The Residency," a "One decision can change a person's life." This isn't just the opening line to author Kayla Frederick's "The Residency," but it's also the overall theme of this cautionary tale, a clever take on the "Battle Royale" horror trope. In "The Residency," a group of starving artists from a wide variety of mediums receive what seems to be the invitation of a lifetime: to participate in a weeklong program on a private island resort, sponsored by an enigmatic and seemingly magnanimous philanthropist. The trip comes with the chance to win not only recognition for their art, but $500,000 to boot, a cash prize none of the participants can afford to refuse.

Among these are Ira, a troubled painter whose gruesome subject matter overshadows her talents with a brush; Isabella and Isaac, twins who specialize in graffiti murals; Tonya, a haughty graphic designer; Derrick, an earnest caricaturist; McKenzie, an ingenuous tattoo artist; Cameron, an idealistic sculptor; and James, a gruff, middle-aged illustrator.

Of course, we all know the old saying about how if something sounds too good to be true, it usually is, and it's a given from the first page that their would-be benefactor isn't quite as benevolent as he seems. In short order, the brutal, bloody truth behind his "contest" is revealed, much to the horrified dismay of his guests and once the game begins, there's only one way out: through it. As one by one, the contestants are eliminated (literally, as well as figuratively), alliances between the surviving players are forged and broken, sacrifices made, and horrific choices abound, all under the watchful, unflinching eye of the sadistic "Curator," their anonymous host.

I think the most difficult part of this book is that while all of the characters are flawed in some way, they're all also likable for the most part, and certainly relatable in their desperate determination to survive. It's hard to read about the terrible things that happen to them, because Frederick puts the reader inside each of their heads, giving us a birds-eye view of their perspectives, making us root for them even as she slowly, methodically picks them off one by one. There's no such thing as plot armor in "The Residency," and in the end, there can only be one winner. If one decision can change a person's life, Frederick forces us to question to just what lengths we might be willing to go -- what we'd suffer through -- to make that decision in the end.

Taut and suspenseful, with a truly despicable antagonist, and enough gore to leave you squirming in your seat, in "The Residency," Frederick delivers a fast, fun, bloody summer read you won't soon forget. ...more

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Turn
by Megan Stockton (Goodreads Author)

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One of the earliest descriptions of a werewolf can be found in "The Epic of Gilgamesh," the first-ever recorded story in human civilization. In the millennia since that ancient debut, stories of wolves and men, and the amalgamation of the two, have f One of the earliest descriptions of a werewolf can be found in "The Epic of Gilgamesh," the first-ever recorded story in human civilization. In the millennia since that ancient debut, stories of wolves and men, and the amalgamation of the two, have fascinated and terrified mankind. In her latest novel, "Turn," author Megan Stockton offers an imaginative take on the classic horror trope, combining body horror, creature-feature, and, at its heart, a love story in a gruesome, heart-wrenching combination.

In "Turn," newlyweds Ezra and Holden are on their honeymoon, trading in the familiar skyline of the city for the quiet, wooded foothills of rural Tennessee. Holden grew up in the country, and wants to share his love for these quaint roots with his new husband. Ezra would much rather be vacationing at a deluxe resort with room service, but he loves Holden and thus is willing to play along. And at first, everything seems picture perfect. The cabin they've rented, although out in the middle of nowhere, is charming and cozy, within walking distance of hiking trails, a fire pit, and a beautiful lake that's perfect for fishing or swimming. And even though a woman at a local convenience store warns the lovebirds that they shouldn't go out after dark -- they shouldn't be staying at that cabin at all, she says -- Ezra tries to convince himself that it's not so bad, after all. Besides, he's with Holden, and that's all that matters.

Of course, from there, things start to go wrong. Ezra and Holden catch glimpses of a strange, hulking figure in the woods that seems to be watching them. The power goes out at the cabin, plunging them into darkness, and when the owner of the cabin sets off into the woods to restart the generator, he never returns. A powerful storm lambasts the area, knocking out trees and blocking the only road leading to or from the mountain, leaving Ezra and Holden stranded. Alone in the forest, while trying to track down their wayward landlord, Holden stumbles across something monstrous, and when he tries to flee for safety in the cabin, he's attacked. Although he manages to escape, he's bitten in the scuffle, and from there, things get even worse.

We all know the legends. Once you're bitten, you begin to turn. Stockton leans fully into this tried-and-true premise, but in an interesting twist, Holden's transition from man to monster isn't sudden, swift, or limited to only moonlit nights. Instead, it's insidious, a creeping hunger that begins to grow inside of him, a slow and methodical rewiring of his body's impulses and needs. At first, he mistakes these changes as physical desires, but slowly, to his horror, he discovers they are much worse. As that relentless hunger begins to consume him, he finds himself growing increasingly more helpless to resist it -- and the gruesome urges it compels him to slake.

As a reader, you expect a werewolf story to be bloody and violent, and Stockton delivers. Surprisingly, however, she also manages to portray horror in smaller, quieter moments as well, and it's here that the true terror lies. Holden is disgusted and dismayed by the lengths to which he finds himself -- against his will -- satisfying his new bestial compulsions, while Ezra struggles to reconcile the gentle, caring man with whom he fell in love with this new, bloodthirsty stranger jockeying for control of Holden's body and mind. It's their love that propels the story and allows Holden to hang onto the fraying strands of his humanity while Ezra desperately tries to find a way out of a seemingly hopeless predicament, some means by which he can free Holden from his terrible fate.

"Turn" swings back and forth between intimate-scale horror and big, bold, and bloody, but never feels like it doesn't know where it's going or what kind of story it wants to be. It's a tale told with confidence, sincerity, and heart, with as keen an eye toward the grisly details as it is the tender, heartbreaking moments in between. Stockton takes timeless lore and makes it uniquely her own, and the end result is fantastic. ...more

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The Drowned One
by Desiree Horton (Goodreads Author)

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I fell in love with Desiree Horton's writing last year after reading "The Curse of Marystown." She has such a tremendous talent for description, and creates settings, characters, and creatures you can easily visualize in your mind. No place is this m I fell in love with Desiree Horton's writing last year after reading "The Curse of Marystown." She has such a tremendous talent for description, and creates settings, characters, and creatures you can easily visualize in your mind. No place is this more evident than in her newest release, "The Drowned One," available July 1. Featuring stunning cover artwork by Christy Aldridge at Grim Poppy Designs, this dark tale combines elements of cosmic and body horror, and introduces a nightmarish cavalcade of monstrosities guaranteed to terrify.

In "The Drowned One," young mother Bea and her daughter, Hailey, are trying to escape the past. Fleeing from an abusive marriage, they find refuge in an isolated coastal community in Maine, and among the congregants of an enigmatic religious sect called the Cathedral by the Sea. Ránsdottr, the sect's leader, welcomes Bea and Hailey with open arms into their fold, and when Bea is nearly killed in a drowning incident, Ránsdottr likewise offers support to Bea's estranged twin brother, Finn, who rushes to Bea's side.

His sister's immersion in the church strikes Finn as out-of-character, and his suspicions are roused by their near-constant vigil at Bea's bedside as she recovers. The more he learns about the Cathedral by the Sea and the ancient sea goddess they worship, the more Finn begins to doubt their good intentions toward his sister and niece. Along the way, he meets Andromeda "Andy" Watts, a government operative sent to investigate bizarre migratory abnormalities among the area's sea creatures. Finn and Andromeda both suspect a connection to the Cathedral by the Sea. The truth, however, is darker and more horrific than either can ever imagine, and the goddess of the deep more ruthless and vengeful than even her most devoted followers could devise.

I'm not going to lie: there are parts of "The Drowned One" that still haunt me. Horton is able to capture the true essence of thalassophobia, or the fear of what's lurking unseen in deep waters, and carry that pervasive sense of dread throughout the entire book. Not only that, but the idea of being completely helpless, of having your body forcibly altered and mutilated at the whim of an ancient and omnipotent force induces its own primal terror. The creatures Horton has imagined -- and the creature that commands them -- are gloriously awful.

In short, Horton delivers a truly terrifying deity from the deep and a story that draws you in like a siren's song, weaving together chilling elements of both eldritch and body horror. Filled with wildly inventive and monstrous grotesqueries straight out of a nautical nightmare, "The Drowned One" explores just how far you might go to protect those dearest to you, and how blindly you might be willing to serve -- and suffer -- in the name of faith. Come on in, dear readers. The water is fine, and the goddess is waiting. ...more

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Going to the Six
by A.C. Hessenauer (Goodreads Author)

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Earlier in the year, I read and absolutely loved A.C. Hessenauer's noirish supernatural story, "Manimal," so I was excited for the chance to check out her new release, "Going to the Six," which released on June 16. And while "Going to the Six" has ve Earlier in the year, I read and absolutely loved A.C. Hessenauer's noirish supernatural story, "Manimal," so I was excited for the chance to check out her new release, "Going to the Six," which released on June 16. And while "Going to the Six" has very different narrative style, setting, and theme compared to "Manimal," at its heart, it showcases what I've discovered is Hessenauer's strongest suit as a writer: complex characters embroiled in complicated relationships.

"Going to the Six" is presented in the same "found footage" style as "Episode Thirteen" by Craig DiLouie., with a series of film transcripts, news clippings, personal interviews, medical records, and journal entries. Through these, the crew of a documentary film series called "Secrets of the Deep" joins an ecological research team traversing Lake Superior. While researching invasive algae growth in the Great Lake, the scientists have inadvertently stumbled across the shipwrecked remains of the Keuka, a Prohibition-era pleasure barge. "Secrets of the Deep" plans to dive and explore the site to try and find out why the Keuka mysteriously sank in 1932, killing more than 100 people aboard.

The film team consists of host/showrunner Owen Wheeler; actress turned cohost Arielle "Ari" Stone; cameraman Duncan Holcomb; and sound technician Kirk Lannigan. They're a well-oiled machine, and as they set off with the research vessel The Channel Cat and its crew, it seems pretty much like business as usual. Except that Ari has a bad feeling she just can't seem to shake, a persistent dread that lingers like the storm clouds gathering along the horizon. Owen can't seem to stop thinking about his grandfather, and a traumatic incident in Owen's youth in which the old man accused him of "letting the lake in." Duncan doesn't like the way an unusual flock of seabirds seems to be following them on the voyage. And Kirk's not a big fan of the way Owen and Ari keep making moon eyes at each other. There's a storm brewing in more ways than one for our intrepid filmmakers, and an unexpected detour to a tourist island leads to a disturbing encounter with peculiar locals, and the disclosure of even more disturbing local lore known as "Going to the Six."

The closer Owen and his friends get to discovering the truth about what "the Six" is and what really befell the Keuka, the greater the danger and depravity they face. Without giving too much away, suffice it to say that heads will roll, hearts will be broken, and eyes will be gouged out.

"Going to the Six" is a fun, fast-paced, frightening read, filled with jump scares, escalating dread, unreliable narrators, and horrors of both the ecological and supernatural varieties. As I mentioned earlier, however, the real centerpieces of the story are the characters. With their secrets, flaws, unrequited affections, unspoken rivalries, and hidden resentments, each of the protagonists--Owen, Ari, Duncan, and Kirk--are realistic, sympathetic, and relatable. Hessenauer knows how to sink her writing hooks into readers by crafting characters you identify and empathize with, and whose fates you feel emotionally invested in. No matter how bloody, terrifying, or just plain weird the scene, her characters keep you grounded, while also feverishly turning the page to find out what happens next. She's a gifted author, one who has earned a spot on my list of horror authors to watch, and I'm excited to see where her imagination takes us next. ...more

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Time of Death: A collection of medical horror
by N.J. Gallegos (Goodreads Author)

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N.J. Gallegos is an ER doctor, but you don't have to have a medical background to enjoy her new short story collection. "Time of Death." She's a fantastic writer, and while if you do work in healthcare, you'll undoubtedly appreciate the industry East N.J. Gallegos is an ER doctor, but you don't have to have a medical background to enjoy her new short story collection. "Time of Death." She's a fantastic writer, and while if you do work in healthcare, you'll undoubtedly appreciate the industry Easter eggs she peppers into her stories, that foundational knowledge isn't critical to the any of the tales. All you need walking into "Time of Death" is a love of horror fiction, and all its many and varied subgenres, because Gallegos serves them up wonderfully.

The collection's opening salvo, "Full Code?" sets the mood and pace: it's business as usual late one night for an ER physician, right up until the moment when a little old lady recently declared dead turns out to be anything but.

Other personal favorites include:

"Home Visit" - Not all medical horror takes place in a hospital. Home health is a booming business in America, as insurance companies find ways to hustle patients home from the hospital sooner. Home health nurses face just as many challenges and crises as those in a more traditional clinical setting. You never know what's you're going to find when you walk through a patient's front door...as the unfortunate nurse at the center of this story discovers.

"Continuing Education" - A serial predator meets his match in a would-be victim who turns out to be more cunning and dangerous than expected.

"All is Fair Amongst Vermin and Germs" - A cautionary fable about how quickly the tables may turn, when the scientists become the specimens, and test subjects develop quick -- and terrifying -- learning curves.

"The Trouble with John Doe" - The crew of an emergency flight transport struggle to keep a patient alive en route to the hospital. They soon come to regret this.

"Death Knell" - A doctor's near-death experience gives a bird's-eye glimpse into the horrors awaiting in the afterlife.

"Primum Non Nocere" - Short, sweet, and giving The Bride! vibes.

"Close Encounters of the ER Kind" - A doctor encounters a most...unusual patient.

"The Call Shift" - Hope springs eternal, even during the zombie apocalypse.

Gallegos delivers the goods in this collection. You want zombies? Check. Werewolves? Check, check. Historical horror? Check, check, and check. Splatterpunk? You betcha! Biological horror? Yes, please!

Each of the stories in "Time of Death" were previously published in different outlets, but all fit together seamlessly as if Gallegos had this collection in mind for them the entire time. In addition to the horror elements, which she nails, Gallegos also captures not only the stress and fatigue all-too-often experienced by healthcare professionals, but also the underlying sense of optimism, compassion, and hope that keeps most motivated, even during the busiest shifts, even with the most complex or confrontational of patients. While you don't have to work in healthcare to appreciate this latter, hopefully you'll walk away with a deeper appreciation for the trials and tribulations healthcare workers face on an ongoing basis. Zombies, werewolves, and the vengeful dead might be a welcome reprieve in comparison. ...more

S.E. Howard liked Fatimah Gunn's review of What Lies Unseen: A Horror Novel:

"One of the Best Books

I don’t even know where To begin…this book gives you everything you want in a horror novel but somehow manages to keep the human aspect. I literally could not put this book down until I was finished. Can’t wait to see if any oth" Read more of this review »

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Ghost Glasses
by Rikki Goodwin (Goodreads Author)

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"Ghost Glasses" by Rikki Goodwin is at times heartwarming or heartbreaking, but always, at its heart, about family. Not just the one we're born with, but the family we make for ourselves, the people in life (and in this case, in the afterlife) who ma "Ghost Glasses" by Rikki Goodwin is at times heartwarming or heartbreaking, but always, at its heart, about family. Not just the one we're born with, but the family we make for ourselves, the people in life (and in this case, in the afterlife) who make us feel needed, important, and above all else, remembered.

At the center of the story is Poppy, the ghost of a young woman killed in the 1960s when she is struck by a garbage truck on her way to work. Since that time, she has wandered the streets of Chicago, completely invisible to everyone around her. Not even her own mother realized Poppy's presence, no matter how desperately Poppy tried to be seen or heard. She can still touch objects, move them around, turn things on and off, but to the casual observer, these things go unnoticed or dismissed as coincidence. When the story opens, it's been 60 years since Poppy's untimely demise. Her mother is long-since dead and her childhood home now inhabited by strangers. Poppy had hoped when her mother died, they'd be reunited in the afterlife, but unfortunately, that didn't happen, and she's found herself as she's been all along: alone.

At least, almost. During her lonely wanderings through the city, Poppy encounters other spirits, hideous and terrifying monsters that frighten and chase her. She does her best to avoid them, but one day, a monster manages to follow as she flees across a subway platform and onto a train. The other passengers are oblivious as it stalks the narrow aisles, searching for Poppy -- until Poppy hears one of them scream, a young man who clearly not only sees the monster among them, but Poppy herself.

She tries to catch up to him as he bolts in terror, but is unable to. She becomes determined to find him again, and her search inadvertently leads her into the company of a long-haul truck driver named Buddy, in whose cab she hitches a ride. He's not a bad traveling companion, even though he has no idea she's tagging along, so she sticks with him a while, eventually ending up at his mother's house with him for the holidays. There, she's stunned to meet another ghost: that of Buddy's young daughter Addie, who was killed along with her mother, Buddy's wife, in a car wreck.

Addie is the one who names Poppy, because in the story, ghosts lose their memories over time, a conundrum Poppy has tried to combat in part by carrying a notebook with her, and writing down events and facts from her life to remind herself. Her name, however, was one thing she could never recall, and she's happy to accept the designation Addie picks for her.

As Addie and Poppy grow closer, she learns no one in the girl's family can see or hear her, either. Sometimes Addie says she has break-through moments with her grandmother, much as Poppy has had with Buddy, brief interludes in which they are heard, or glimpsed. These are all only too fleeting, however, and Poppy longs to find a way for them to communicate better with the living.

She realizes her chance when she discovers the man she'd seen on the Chicago subway is a psychic named August Waters. He's a rising internet celebrity who explores haunted places and tries to capture spectral phenomena to share with his viewers. Although it's a risk, Poppy tries to send him an email using Buddy's phone, explaining who she is, who she is with, and asking for August's help. By nothing short of blind luck, August receives this message, and within no time, he has his army of followers on the hunt to track down Poppy, Buddy, and his family.

From there, things get complicated. For one thing, Buddy doesn't believe in ghosts, and when August shows up at his mother's house, livestreaming, he grows angry and defensive. Even when Buddy begins to believe in Poppy's existence, as well as Addie's, the massive amount of attention August brings to his family and their private tragedy only enrages and alienates him further.

Along the way, Poppy discovers a horrifying truth: the things she considered monsters are really spirits like herself and Addie, ones whose memories have completely eroded away. With no sense of identity, belonging, or their pasts, these poor wayward souls are left twisted and deformed by their own loneliness and sorrow into grotesque caricatures of the people they once were. When a furious Buddy rejects Poppy, demanding that she leaves, she finds herself at risk of slipping into a similar state of despair, and of becoming one of the creatures she's so long feared.

Goodwin's narrative style is warm, comfortable, and engaging. The story goes to some pretty dark places, but she knows how to balance it with touches of lightheartedness and humor. She has a gift for descriptions, providing just the right amount of detail at just the right time for the reader to feel completely immersed in her world and characters. The monsters she's imagined are truly terrifying and unique, and it's gut-wrenching to read Poppy's point of view shifting as she slowly devolves into one, her thoughts slipping into morose, hopeless despair, her memories abandoning her one by one. And while the ending isn't exactly happy, it's definitely something hopeful, a promise that, if only for a short time, our lost loved ones can live again when we choose to remember them. ...more

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They Looked Like People: A Blackwater Pines Mystery
by K. E. Koontz

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I love found footage horror movies. Books that emulate that style are a secret guilty pleasure, too. I should qualify these statements by adding "when done well," because anyone who enjoys found footage knows they can be really, really good or really I love found footage horror movies. Books that emulate that style are a secret guilty pleasure, too. I should qualify these statements by adding "when done well," because anyone who enjoys found footage knows they can be really, really good or really, really bad. Like really bad.

"They Looked Like People" by K.E. Koontz definitely falls into the former category. It's a fantastic book, fast-paced, taut, and truly terrifying. Told from the perspective of a story within a story, it's the chronicle of a documentary film called 'Blackwater Pines: The Family that Left,' that investigates the mysterious disappearances of a trio of siblings--identical twins Bethany and Bailey Westpoint and their older brother Avi--in the Blackwater Canyon region of West Virginia. The twins vanished while hiking together, and Avi went missing shortly afterwards while searching for them. No evidence of what happened to any of the siblings has ever been found, except for a series of short, cryptic video messages Avi sent to his best friend, Caleb, on the night he vanished. In these, a distraught Avi is seen running through the dense woods, barefooted and only in his pajamas despite freezing temperatures and snow on the ground. He's calling out to someone or something in the woods that remains unseen and unheard, but that he insists is one or both of his missing sisters.

When official searches for Avi end with more questions than answers, Caleb turns to the paranormal investigative team behind a popular YouTube show, 'Strange and Bizarre' for help. The Strange and Bizarre team--pretty, perky Camilla; pragmatic Leslie; and cameraman Mike--agree to meet Caleb and follow him into the rugged forests of the Allegheny Mountains to search for clues into the Westpoint siblings' fates.

'Blackwater Pines: The Family that Left' documents that investigation, interviewing all three members of the Strange and Bizarre crew and utlizing footage they'd shot while traveling with Caleb, as well as a young woman named Sam, a friend of both Caleb and Avi, who had accompanied them.

Caleb is sure Avi's still alive, despite the fact the young man has been missing for more than a month in the stark wilderness in the dead of winter, with no supplies, coat, or even shoes. Caleb's determination to find him borders on desperation. Sam, on the other hand, believes Avi and the twins are dead and unlikely to be found. She's agreed to join in the Strange and Bizarre trek because she's worried about Caleb and hopes that through this endeavor, he'll find some semblance of closure.

What Caleb finds instead -- what they all find -- is something much darker, stranger, and far more chilling.

Koontz handles the complexities of this plot format expertly, jumping from the past to the present seamlessly, as well as from one character's perspective to another. She builds equally complex characters, each of whom is struggling to face ghosts from his or her respective pasts, some closer to the surface than others. As the team delves deeper into the woods, the tension and mystery mount, and with each new clue, each fragile splinter of hope they discover, that mystery only deepens.

At its heart, "They Looked Like People" is about grief and loss. Avi relentlessly searched for his sisters out of guilt and a misplaced sense of responsibility. Caleb searches for Avi for these exact same reasons. It's implied that there was more than friendship between Avi and Caleb, that Caleb's devotion to Avi extends well beyond what he's willing to admit aloud, and the reader spends much of the book wondering if that has driven Caleb to madness. Sam certainly thinks so, as do Leslie and Mike. Camilla is more willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, if only because of inciting incidents in her own past that have led her to want to learn more about the supernatural.

Throughout the story, the landscape itself becomes as much a character as any of the cast or crew, with Koontz's wonderfully descriptive prose drawing you into the midst of this shadowy, liminal setting and leaving you truly unsettled. She captures the quiet, disconcerting stillness that being deep within the woods evokes, that primal fear that we are no longer the apex predators once out of our natural elements, and have, in fact, become prey.

This is dark and powerful stuff. Be prepared to stay up way too late, reading long into the night, then thinking about what you've read well after that. This is the kind of fiction that haunts you in all the best ways. ...more

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