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Book Review: The Devouring Light by Kat Ellis

Cover art for The Devouring Light by Kat Ellis

The Devouring Light by Kat Ellis

Harper Collins, 2025

ISBN: 9780063355248

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

Buy: Bookshop.org | Amazon.com

 

 

Another entry in the growing field of horror/thrillers for the YA crowd, The Devouring Light does it right. It’s a good read for the young ‘uns, (this one would be about junior high to early high school level) but it’s also plenty of fun for adults. In other words, for parents that want books they could read and actually have fun TALKING about with their kids, this would be a good choice. It’s what you want– a good plot, quick pacing, and lightweight enough that it can work with the short attention spans of kids today.

 

Despite being an adult herself, author Ellis has a good grasp on how to write younger characters, as the book’s protagonists are ones that kids can easily relate to. Here, they are constantly relying on their phones (until they have little choice), concerned about their social media feeds, worrying about what to post next, etc. The book is about a group of five young wannabe rock stars (well, four, and one who actually is one) riding the tour bus to their next show. The bus gets waylaid and crashes, and the characters find themselves taking shelter in a house in a swamp called the Light, which is one of those urban legends that everyone has heard of, yet of course no one has any first hand experience with. The story is written in the present tense, which seems to be one that again, younger readers prefer (older grouches like me have a tougher time with that format). It does seem to work for the story, though.

 

So… they are stuck in the house, with no contact with the outside world, and weird things happen. Eventually the mystery of the house starts to unfold, complete with nice, straightforward plot devices that don’t need to rely on a gory mess: some creaking sounds, weird footprints appearing, creepy mannequins, and so forth. Nothing really new, but it’s stuff that still works well, so why try to reinvent the wheel? The story’s narrative is nicely intercut throughout, with chapters that consist of police interview transcripts and transcripts of recovered video footage that do a nice job of providing the backstory for the plot. Splitting the narrative into different formats will work well with today’s young readers, the variety keeps it from being uniform. Again, it’s about appealing to your target audience. There’s enough depth to the characters, and enough happening that the younger crowd should easily stay interested in this to the end, and it will work for adults too. The characters do occasionally demonstrate a lack of deductive reasoning that adult readers will consider foolish, but it doesn’t detract from the quality of the story. The ending is a nice wrap up, that ends with a good bang, and it is a rather clever way of stopping the house from devouring all the characters. Chances are, the majority of readers won’t guess it, and that’s what you want in a mystery.

 

Bottom line here: it’s good for all ages, starting with junior high school aged readers, and is certainly a good choice for parents and teachers trying to find some way to keep kids off their phones, even if it’s only a few short hours. Recommended.

 

 

 

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

 

 

Posted on December 28, 2025 by , Reply

Book Review: Somewhere Quiet, Full of Light by Henry Corrigan

 

cover art for Somewhere Quiet, Full of Light by Henry Corrigan

Somewhere Quiet, Full of Light by Henry Corrigan

Slashic Horror Press, 2025

ISBN: 9781763725607

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

Buy:   Bookshop.org |  Amazon.com

 

Somewhere Quiet, Full of Light will probably get categorized as just another haunted house tale, but it is a good deal more. The reader watches a strong family unit disintegrate, due to the influence of a house with its own abilities and desires. It’s a smartly written tale that shows that Corrigan is an author to watch. He creates real tension throughout, while using very simple elements. Corrigan realizes that real scares often come not from fear of the supernatural, but from what people fear in each other– and themselves. This is a story that will stick with you long after the final page is turned.

 

The plot itself is simple enough: Mike and Joe Tillman want to move their two young kids away from the city, but have limited funds. They buy a fixer-upper in a remote location, planning to turn it into their dream home, but the house has other ideas. 

 

Corrigan is very adept at building tension without going over the top. No shrieking banshees or flying body parts with buckets of blood are needed: he keeps it straightforward. That’s very difficult to do, and it works beautifully. Just an occasional shadowy figure, a creak in the house here, a movement there…small stuff, but due to Corrigan’s writing style, very effective and unsettling. The story isn’t about creating big scares (although the ending is a real banger) but instead creates a constant feeling of dread that lingers throughout the pages.

 

Right when the family first arrives at the house, you’ll feel that something is distinctly off with the whole situation, but it won’t be shown to you in any obvious way. Throughout the entire book, the suspense level increases like a tightly-wound string, that finally snaps in the last few pages. Writing suspense and keeping it constant is not an easy task, but Corrigan does it with ease.

 

The house itself plays a large role in the story, and that gives the book a decidedly different flavor. It’s like a living, breathing entity, and a number of chapters are written from the perspective of the house itself. You’ll feel its pain as it goes through renovations, and its joy at seeing parts of itself repaired. When the house has to move something by itself, be it a floorboard or panel, it feels like an immersive experience. It’s another of the reasons the book is a cut above the rest.

Bottom line: just read this one: you won’t be disappointed. Hopefully, the author will write a full length novel at some point. As good as this story was, at just 150 pages I wanted more. Definitely a case of a great story that most readers would have wanted to continue longer. Most certainly recommended!

 

 

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

Posted on November 6, 2025 by , Reply

Book Review: Behind by Bentley Little

cover art for Behind by Bentley Little

Behind by Bentley Little

Cemetery Dance,2024

ISBN: 978-1-58767-970-4

Available: Kindle edition

Buy: Amazon.com

 

 

A new Bentley Little novel is always cause for celebration for horror fans. The author has made a living playing off our primal fears through the lens of what truly causes us terror– school, corporations, identity, dysfunctional families, and the DMV. This time, Little tackles something a bit more recent– the big C (no, not that one. The one that kept us on lockdown and showed us who had brains and who didn’t). Yet instead of focusing on the pandemic itself, the author dives into how life itself changed.

 

Alex Lowry finds himself out of work, thanks to downsizing. He could go the normal route, as many did, seeking another corporate job to bore the life out of him:. his wife, Jennifer, begs him to use her father’s connections to find something “respectable.”. Of course, that doesn’t happen– and that’s where the Bentley Little we know and love, unfolds his story in prime fashion.

 

His ex-colleague, Britta, brainstorms a cool idea. It’s like DoorDash, GrubHub, or one of the other delivery services that rose to prominence during the dark years. Yet, instead of food or toilet paper, they deliver odd items to even odder clients. It begins innocently enough, as most of Little’s plots do, but soon takes a hard left turn. It pays well, once the business takes off. Alex finds himself enjoying his strange new profession.

 

There’s one problem, though. When he was a child, he saw a house behind his own. It wasn’t supposed to be there. By the laws of physics and reality, it can’t be there, but it is.

 

His parents died in an accident, and he moved on– until now.

 

The house is back. His in-laws notice it– and reality begins to unravel.

 

What’s behind it?

 

If you’re familiar with Bentley Little’s work, you know this is where things can get truly odd, but still relevant to the social issues of the day, complete with characters who embody us– although that includes the darker, stranger, hidden sides of us that we keep from the scrutinizing eyes of those on our block, our workplace, and our relationships.

 

Part satire, part horror story, but all entertainment, Behind  is Little’s best work in a long time. Some might say it’s a straight-up ghost story or haunted tale, but fans know it’s something deeper.

 

The writing is smooth and deceptive. It might appear simple at first, but readers will find themselves immersed in the language and relevance to who and what we are.

 

It’s a fascinating, terrifying novel, and one that comes highly recommended. What makes a great horror novel is the people who inhabit them. Little has always known this and loves to screw with his readers– and they love him for it.

 

 

Reviewed by David Simms

 

Posted on August 22, 2024 by , Reply
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