Rhiannon
TL;DR: đś Not your average psychological grief horror by a long shot...
This review took a while for me to piece together. When I finished this book, I had such strong, visceral feelings about it, and itâs been quite challenging putting them into any sort of cohesiveness.
Thereâs a lot going on in this novel: AI, tech, faith, cults, grief, depression, su*c*de, guilt⌠there is a great deal of very relatable ideas and emotions (some more than others) over the kind of soul-crushing loss and sorrow that Eli, the MC, experiences. The writing is so beautifully fluid and true that itâs almost breathtaking.
âThe unbearable knowledge that someone he loves has shaped her identity from absence. That sheâs been seeking resonance in ghosts, syllables, even the machine she built.â
The book opens with the kind of isolated setting that is both beautiful and haunting in its solitude. I was immediately intrigued to see how the spooky opening of the book, that felt lightly supernatural, would tie back to the more high-tech creep that the story unfolds into.
The text is visually expressive, his screenplay roots suffuse the storytelling and set the scene beautifully. The plot is a slow build after the opening chapter, the tension subtle but pervasive. There was a bit of momentum drag at about the halfway point when I was becoming a little distracted by the (to me) overly esoteric and preachy bits that were becoming a lot more predominant than I was personally comfortable with.
âThe highest truths are not hidden to keep them from the unworthy, but to awaken the worthy to seek them. Only those ready to see will take the time to look beyond the veil.â
I just wasnât prepared for this level of dialogue.
At the same time, I get it, this book deals with some very high-minded issues in a very serious way. It was also around this point where I started to really wonder if I was reading a book on faith, fate, chance, a very subtle creeping horror⌠(there was even some incongruency for me with the tone of the story and the cover of the book.) It turned out to be all of those things â I just needed to be patient.
It was around that halfway mark where the imagery was really becoming surreal and eerie in a most intriguing way (one passage gave me distinct impressions of a very specific scene from Lynchâs Fire Walk With Me) and so brought me back into the mystery. There was a sense of an unnamable and amorphous thing that was neither bad nor good at the heart of it â you donât get evil, but a more cosmic, abyssal, unknowable presence.
There was a feeling of constant unease and disquiet that developed into a kind of anxiety for me, from the imagery and, honestly, from the very distressing and real pain of the MC, his feelings of loss and guilt. There was almost too much despair to take, it hit so intimately and close, in an uncomfortable way. The subtle horror was like a whisper in the text, and strongly disturbing in what wasnât overtly said (around death and su*c*de).
"Grief isnât a riddle to solve. Itâs a dialect of absence, of memory and ache, and only the broken can ever really learn how to read it."
A serious psychological grief horror novel that will stay with me. I will certainly be checking out Coscoâs other offerings.
Many thanks to the author and BookSirens for the advance review copy. All opinions are my own.
Originally posted at www.instagram.com.
TL;DR: đś Not your average psychological grief horror by a long shot...
This review took a while for me to piece together. When I finished this book, I had such strong, visceral feelings about it, and itâs been quite challenging putting them into any sort of cohesiveness.
Thereâs a lot going on in this novel: AI, tech, faith, cults, grief, depression, su*c*de, guilt⌠there is a great deal of very relatable ideas and emotions (some more than others) over the kind of soul-crushing loss and sorrow that Eli, the MC, experiences. The writing is so beautifully fluid and true that itâs almost breathtaking.
âThe unbearable knowledge that someone he loves has shaped her identity from absence. That sheâs been seeking resonance in ghosts, syllables, even the machine she built.â
The book opens with the kind of isolated setting that is both beautiful and haunting in its solitude. I was immediately intrigued to see how the spooky opening of the book, that felt lightly supernatural, would tie back to the more high-tech creep that the story unfolds into.
The text is visually expressive, his screenplay roots suffuse the storytelling and set the scene beautifully. The plot is a slow build after the opening chapter, the tension subtle but pervasive. There was a bit of momentum drag at about the halfway point when I was becoming a little distracted by the (to me) overly esoteric and preachy bits that were becoming a lot more predominant than I was personally comfortable with.
âThe highest truths are not hidden to keep them from the unworthy, but to awaken the worthy to seek them. Only those ready to see will take the time to look beyond the veil.â
I just wasnât prepared for this level of dialogue.
At the same time, I get it, this book deals with some very high-minded issues in a very serious way. It was also around this point where I started to really wonder if I was reading a book on faith, fate, chance, a very subtle creeping horror⌠(there was even some incongruency for me with the tone of the story and the cover of the book.) It turned out to be all of those things â I just needed to be patient.
It was around that halfway mark where the imagery was really becoming surreal and eerie in a most intriguing way (one passage gave me distinct impressions of a very specific scene from Lynchâs Fire Walk With Me) and so brought me back into the mystery. There was a sense of an unnamable and amorphous thing that was neither bad nor good at the heart of it â you donât get evil, but a more cosmic, abyssal, unknowable presence.
There was a feeling of constant unease and disquiet that developed into a kind of anxiety for me, from the imagery and, honestly, from the very distressing and real pain of the MC, his feelings of loss and guilt. There was almost too much despair to take, it hit so intimately and close, in an uncomfortable way. The subtle horror was like a whisper in the text, and strongly disturbing in what wasnât overtly said (around death and su*c*de).
"Grief isnât a riddle to solve. Itâs a dialect of absence, of memory and ache, and only the broken can ever really learn how to read it."
A serious psychological grief horror novel that will stay with me. I will certainly be checking out Coscoâs other offerings.
Many thanks to the author and BookSirens for the advance review copy. All opinions are my own.
Originally posted at www.instagram.com.
Added to listMythology Legendwith 65 books.
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Added to listScifiwith 760 books.
A re-read and I still love this series. Enough that I feel like Iâm gonna just go straight ahead with a re-read of the whole thing, and add in the last few books I didnât get around to (hoping the momentum is consistent with the whole series.)
The action is still fresh, the settings imaginative and engaging. The dialogue is snappy and propulsive. And if this all sounds like just a full-on action ride â yes! It absolutely is. But itâs also teeming with relevant social issues on a grand scale.
These books are hefty but they never seem to feel like long reads. The âscienceâ part of the scifi isnât overly complex (and as a hard-core hard scifi fan I love that too) or too esoteric, so these are probably good for those interested in dipping their toes in the SF realm without being overwhelmed.
A re-read and I still love this series. Enough that I feel like Iâm gonna just go straight ahead with a re-read of the whole thing, and add in the last few books I didnât get around to (hoping the momentum is consistent with the whole series.)
The action is still fresh, the settings imaginative and engaging. The dialogue is snappy and propulsive. And if this all sounds like just a full-on action ride â yes! It absolutely is. But itâs also teeming with relevant social issues on a grand scale.
These books are hefty but they never seem to feel like long reads. The âscienceâ part of the scifi isnât overly complex (and as a hard-core hard scifi fan I love that too) or too esoteric, so these are probably good for those interested in dipping their toes in the SF realm without being overwhelmed.
4.5/5 â, rounded up.
A fantastic creature-feature horror that explores the American myth of the Jersey Devil, this novel is fast paced, fun and creepy in all the right places. Kaine does a great job of creating characters you care about but have mysteries and secrets to keep them intriguing. The monster-horror is perfect - gruesome and terrifying and bound by a curse laid centuries ago that has haunted generations of families and an entire town.
Kaine writes great action. This is my first novel of his - I've read two of his novellas and enjoyed both - and his writing is top notch and consistent. He's able to keep up the pace of the action throughout, while interspersing with an earlier timeline that goes into the dark history of the Devil, and another earlier timeline of our main character, Patrick, all without it being jarring, confusing, or out of place. His detailed research on the Devil paired with his excellent storytelling makes for excellent nightmare fuel.
A thoroughly enjoyable horror novel!
My thanks to NetGalley, Horror House Publishing, and James Kaine for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
4.5/5 â, rounded up.
A fantastic creature-feature horror that explores the American myth of the Jersey Devil, this novel is fast paced, fun and creepy in all the right places. Kaine does a great job of creating characters you care about but have mysteries and secrets to keep them intriguing. The monster-horror is perfect - gruesome and terrifying and bound by a curse laid centuries ago that has haunted generations of families and an entire town.
Kaine writes great action. This is my first novel of his - I've read two of his novellas and enjoyed both - and his writing is top notch and consistent. He's able to keep up the pace of the action throughout, while interspersing with an earlier timeline that goes into the dark history of the Devil, and another earlier timeline of our main character, Patrick, all without it being jarring, confusing, or out of place. His detailed research on the Devil paired with his excellent storytelling makes for excellent nightmare fuel.
A thoroughly enjoyable horror novel!
My thanks to NetGalley, Horror House Publishing, and James Kaine for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
2.5/5â, rounded up
A pretty chaotic mild horror/dark academia that doesn't seem to know what it wants to be. The initial premise was decent â nothing spectacular or noteworthy. The MC, Robin Quain, is an academic who applies to a mysterious Colorado Rockies institute to finish up her thesis on something-something witches-were-actually-an-ancient-fertility-cult, which in all honesty didn't really seem groundbreaking, but sure ok, the reason for the start of this journey is kinda weak, but go with it.
Off she goes to Colorado in the summer, when there are no students at this obviously well-funded college (that she's also never heard of before) and just a handful of professors? students? employees? left to have sophisticated parties. They all immediately behave oddly around her, she starts wandering off into rooms and areas that she's not supposed to looking for an artifact of this ancient cult. And then the plot gets muddled and befuddled with all manner of annoying behaviour and pretty much every horror trope thrown in for good measure. We already have witches, cults and then comes: best friend betrayal, science & medical experiments, missing and murdered folks, neuroscience, game theory, old gods, werewolves, secret island, weird lake, Greek temple, sacrifices, big government, grow-op, hallucinogenics, cryptography, data safety, cosmic horror (maybe kaiju) and the current state of our chaotic world...
WHEW.
I got to the end but with a good dose of whiplash and a desire for one remotely likeable and not-stupid character, and about 2/3 reduction in plot points, MacGuffins and red herrings.
Out October 7, 2025
2.5/5â, rounded up
A pretty chaotic mild horror/dark academia that doesn't seem to know what it wants to be. The initial premise was decent â nothing spectacular or noteworthy. The MC, Robin Quain, is an academic who applies to a mysterious Colorado Rockies institute to finish up her thesis on something-something witches-were-actually-an-ancient-fertility-cult, which in all honesty didn't really seem groundbreaking, but sure ok, the reason for the start of this journey is kinda weak, but go with it.
Off she goes to Colorado in the summer, when there are no students at this obviously well-funded college (that she's also never heard of before) and just a handful of professors? students? employees? left to have sophisticated parties. They all immediately behave oddly around her, she starts wandering off into rooms and areas that she's not supposed to looking for an artifact of this ancient cult. And then the plot gets muddled and befuddled with all manner of annoying behaviour and pretty much every horror trope thrown in for good measure. We already have witches, cults and then comes: best friend betrayal, science & medical experiments, missing and murdered folks, neuroscience, game theory, old gods, werewolves, secret island, weird lake, Greek temple, sacrifices, big government, grow-op, hallucinogenics, cryptography, data safety, cosmic horror (maybe kaiju) and the current state of our chaotic world...
WHEW.
I got to the end but with a good dose of whiplash and a desire for one remotely likeable and not-stupid character, and about 2/3 reduction in plot points, MacGuffins and red herrings.
Out October 7, 2025