The Siren of Groves Peak by Glenn Rolfe - Be careful what you wish for

I love "Monkey's Paw/Be careful of the bargains you strike" stories and this book fills the bill. A story of a lobstering town's desperation and later, greed, and the secrets that lead to the downfall of everyone involved. We know the responsible party right at the outset, but the methodical deaths slowly begin to reveal the one secret that damns them all. This is not just a horror story of gory deaths. It's a statement on how a person's greed and hunger for power will eventually come back to haunt them. In other words, karma is a bitch.

I am a long-time fan of Glenn Rolfe's books. This is one of his best. I definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys the type of story I mentioned above, and folk horror in general.

My reviews of Rolfe's other works:

August's Eyes

Chasing Ghosts

Things We Fear

Blood and Rain

Boom Town

About the book

Groves Peak, Maine is home to a dark secret. The successful lobstering community is ready for summer, but a murder at sea changes everything. People are dying in the small coastal town, and the lobstermen are on edge.

Only one man knows the truth. His closet of skeletons is about to open, and no one is safe. Not even his daughter or her best friend. As a supernatural fury, homegrown dangers, and buried secrets coalesce into a series of real-life nightmares, friendships are tested, and heroes will fall. The Siren of Groves Peak reveals the true monsters in us all.

Advance praise
"Horror hits like a hurricane in this creature-feature masterfully layered with terror, dread, and scares so jarring they just might leave you seasick without ever leaving land." — Nick Medina, author of The Whistler and Indian Burial Ground

"A rising star in the genre. Highly recommended!" — Ronald Malfi, author of December Park and Senseless

"Rolfe is the real deal, folks, and anything he writes is well worth checking out."
– Gord Rollo, author of The Jigsaw Man and The Crucifixion Experiments

"An intense tale reminiscent of classic works by Jack Ketchum or Stephen King"
– Booklist

Releases June 30, 2026

Preorder: Amazon

Horror Reviews - Black Mouth, The Loney, My Heart is a Chainsaw

I'm writing shorter reviews these days and so have I decided to share digests of a few horror novel reviews at a time. These are in reverse order, with the most recent appearing first. 

Black Mouth by Ronald Malfi (5 stars)

Once again, another riveting story by Mr Malfi. He just keeps getting better and better. I don't say this often (sadly), but this one was on my mind all the time. I just couldn't wait to get back to it. I felt this was partly coming-of-age horror, but the theme reminded me so much of Stephen King's The Outsider (another one I couldn't put down). The solving of a supernatural mystery with very human characters. I don't know how he comes up with these stories. I just hope he keeps doing it for many years to come.

The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley (4 stars)

I've always been drawn to folk horror (Thomas Tryon's Harvest Home, I'm looking at you) so the resurgence of the subgenre in recent years has been a boon for me. The Loney fits nicely in the folk horror niche. I really liked the subtlety of it. While reading, we know there is some menacing local tomfoolery going on. And why is everyone suddenly younger, ailments gone, trees bursting with fruit out of season, etc.? I had a picture of The Loney in my mind, and that's a credit to the author who firmly plants the reader in the scenery. Very satisfying read. I will definitely be reading more Hurley.

My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones (5 stars)

Started off with a bang, then was slow for a bit. The main character, Jade, made up for the slowness. What a great character. About midway through, it took off and didn't stop until the end. Let's just say there's a pretty high final body count. This is a must-read for anyone who loves horror.

30-Day Horror Movie Challenge - Favorite of all time...

Tagline: Just because you're invited, doesn't mean you're welcome.

Synopsis: Now that Chris (Daniel Kaluuya) and his girlfriend, Rose (Allison Williams), have reached the meet-the-parents milestone of dating, she invites him for a weekend getaway upstate with Missy and Dean. At first, Chris reads the family's overly accommodating behavior as nervous attempts to deal with their daughter's interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses, a series of increasingly disturbing discoveries lead him to a truth that he never could have imagined. (Google)

You might ask why I would choose a relatively new movie as my favorite of all time. Well, I love smart horror films and this movie, in my opinion, is one of the smartest ever made. Mildly funny at first, it soon descends further and further into disturbia. I think it almost could be considered folk horror, as this "secret society" looks for strong African American men and women for their nefarious purposes. I won't go into further details, as to avoid spoilers.

I knew this movie was becoming a favorite as I found myself watching it over and over again. The story never gets old. Jordan Peele took a risk with this one, and it paid off. His next offering was this past summer's "Us," which I also liked, but perhaps not as well as "Get Out." I hope Peele keeps coming up with brilliant films in the future.

What is your favorite horror film of all time?

Well, that's it for this year, and it has been fun! A big thank you to Leah for introducing me to this challenge. I wonder what horror movies will make the list next year? Exciting to consider.

Happy Halloween...Blessed Samhain!

30-Day Horror Movie Challenge - A film no one’s ever heard of...

Tagline: Take a trip… into the past

Synopsis: Two men capture a small group of deserters during England's civil war. After the captives ingest some wild mushrooms, they fall victim to the powerful energies of a mystical field.

I was going to go with Hagazussa: A Heathen’s Curse, but then my friend (Heather) mentioned she had it on her list to watch so...had to choose something else. As Hagazussa is, A Field in England is also considered folk horror. It really is a weird movie. It has some creepy moments, and some rather grotesque ones as well. It's worth a watch if you like weird, obscure movies like I do. (Google)

What's your favorite film no one's ever heard of?

30-Day Horror Movie Challenge: Favorite Occult Horror...Midsommar

Tagline: Let the festivities begin

Synopsis: A couple travel to Sweden to visit their friend's rural hometown for its fabled midsummer festival, but what begins as an idyllic retreat quickly devolves into an increasingly violent and bizarre competition at the hands of a pagan cult. (Google)

I've talked about this before in recent posts. I'm really fascinated by folk horror and I guess I always have been. I can remember when I first saw The Wicker Man film from the 70s, and the Harvest Home TV mini series (The Dark Secret of Harvest Home) based on the excellent book by Thomas Tryon. I was immediately intrigued and it became a lifelong fascination. With the release in recent years of movies like The Witch and Hereditary, the subgenre is having a revival and I'm loving it. When Midsommar dropped over the summer, I was so excited to see it, and I wasn't disappointed. Admittedly, it's a slow burner, but that just adds to the increasing menace as the film progresses.

Occult means hidden, and the sect in Sweden these friends travel to for Midsommar has definitely stayed hidden...and for good reason. I don't think what they're getting up to would be smiled upon. All I can say is, I know me, and I can spot a cult from a mile away. I would have left way before getting to the actual "village." Of course, then there wouldn't be a movie.

I like the direction Ari Aster is going with his film making. I can't wait to see what he comes up with next.

What is your favorite occult horror movie?

P.S. I'm hosting a Midsommar watch-along in conjunction with my Something Wicked Fall event. The watch-along will be Saturday, October 19 at 10:00 pm Eastern/9:00 pm Central.

We will be using Slack for discussion while we watch (It's free!). Click the Invite link below to join/signup: https://join.slack.com/t/seasonsofreading/shared_invite/enQtNzU2Njc0MTkyOTEzLWEwMWE2NzdjOGMzYjAwNmZjMjk2MmUwODRmNTRhYzIwZjBkODVkY2U3ZTMwZGIxNmI0ZWU1NmE4MjcwNDI5YmI

30-Day Horror Movie Challenge: Supernatural Horror Film...Hereditary

Tagline: Every family tree hides a secret.

Synopsis: When the matriarch of the Graham family passes away, her daughter and grandchildren begin to unravel cryptic and increasingly terrifying secrets about their ancestry, trying to outrun the sinister fate they have inherited. (Google)

This movie is SO good. The genre that is talked about in conjunction with this film (and others, more recent, and those of the past) is a new (or rather, revived) field in horror studies: folk horror. I love that term. I talked about it in my post about Shirley Jackson's The Lottery. The key elements of folk horror are landscape, isolation, skewed belief systems and morality, and the summoning/happening, and Hereditary certainly fits with these elements. I can't say too much about the film without giving away the story, but to say this one blew me away is an understatement. Ari Aster is a genius writer and film maker (his film, Midsommar will be featured in another upcoming post) and I can't wait to see what he comes up with next.

If you've seen Hereditary, you should check out this article, Hereditary as Folk Horror.

What is your favorite supernatural horror film?

30-Day Horror Movie Challenge: The horror film you most relate to...The Witch

I thought this would be a fun challenge to participate in. According to the rules (see below), you don't have to participate every day. That's good because I'm going to have to skip the first prompt. There really is no "horror film no one would expect you to love but you do" since I pretty much love all of them. lol So, I'm starting today with the second prompt "The horror film you most relate to." I've included all the details below in case you want to join in. Thanks to Leah at Unleash the Flying Monkeys! for hosting this fun challenge (originally created by Dollar Bin Horror in 2011).

Here’s how to join the 30-Day Horror Movie Challenge:
You can start on whatever day you like.

(1) Make your picks and share it on your blog or site;

(2) Or, just leave a comment on the individual blog posts (linked above).

Here are the rules:
Simply pick your favorite horror film for each day based on that day’s theme. But there’s a catch: you can’t pick the same horror film more than once. So, if you pick SCREAM (1996) for your favorite slasher film, you can’t use it again for any other day including favorite horror film.

Collected below are the 30 prompts for the 2019 challenge:
Day 01 – A horror film no one would expect you to love but you do
Day 02 – The horror film you most relate to
Day 03 – Your favorite slasher film
Day 04 – Your favorite werewolf film
Day 05 – Your favorite monster movie
Day 06 – Your favorite vampire movie
Day 07 – Your favorite supernatural horror film
Day 08 – Your favorite anthology
Day 09 – Your favorite exploitation / grindhouse type film
Day 10 – Your favorite psychological horror film
Day 11 – Your favorite science fiction horror film
Day 12 – Your favorite horror film involving the occult
Day 13 – Your favorite horror comedy
Day 14 – Your favorite zombie film
Day 15 – Your favorite horror film involving serial killers
Day 16 – Your favorite childhood themed horror film
Day 17 – Your favorite horror film remake
Day 18 – Your favorite foreign horror film (outside of your country of origin)
Day 19 – Your favorite horror film involving the powers of Hell or Satanism
Day 20 – Your favorite horror film involving a killer animal
Day 21 – Your favorite medical horror film
Day 22 – Your favorite horror-themed TV show
Day 23 – Your favorite made-for-TV horror film
Day 24 – A horror film in which you prefer the edited version over the director’s cut
Day 25 – A horror film you used to hate but now like
Day 26 – Your favorite horror film to watch as a child
Day 27 – Your favorite guilty pleasure
Day 28 – Your favorite horror film no one’s ever heard of
Day 29 – Your least favorite horror film of all time
Day 30 – Your favorite horror film of all time

Tagline: Evil takes many forms

Synopsis: In 1630 New England, panic and despair envelops a farmer, his wife and their children when youngest son Samuel suddenly vanishes. The family blames Thomasin, the oldest daughter who was watching the boy at the time of his disappearance. With suspicion and paranoia mounting, twin siblings Mercy and Jonas suspect Thomasin of witchcraft, testing the clan's faith, loyalty and love to one another. (Google)

The horror film you most relate to...The Witch

The reason I relate to this one? Because religious persecution and hysteria, as occurred in the Salem Witch Trials, and other similar events across Europe during the witch craze, are things I think about quite frequently. What made this film scary was how the family's deep-seated religious beliefs basically tore the family apart, and led to tragedy after tragedy. Was there really witchcraft in The Witch? Well, yes, though we really don't see much of, or about the witches. What was far more frightening was how readily a mother would turn on her own daughter and accuse her of being a witch. Also, how easily a family who falls on hard times was much more likely to blame witchcraft and superstition for their hardship, rather than taking a good hard look at what led them to the hardship in the first place. 

Which horror film do you most relate to?

Doctor Sleep #Read-Along - Week Four #SomethingWickedFall

I'm running way behind this week! Sorry! It's going to be short and sweet so I hope you will help me fill in on anything I miss. Thanks!

Things are really starting to escalate. Once again, I found I had to force myself to stop reading. SO good! I loved that Dan finally met Abra in person, though he has to be very careful so no one thinks he's a perv. lol Abra is such a great character. SK really knows how to write children. I've always admired him for that.

Wasn't it awesome that he was able to talk to Dick Hallorann again? At first, I thought it was his mom, but I realized Dick was the one he went looking for (and found had died) so then I knew it had to be him. Great scene between him and the old woman, her sudden passing, and Dick taking her over. That should be interesting in the movie, if they do it.

Dare I say that I felt almost sympathetic toward Rose the Hat at one point. It's obvious that she cares about her people, and her worry over Grandpa Flick actually gave her a bit of humanity. Of course, that won't last long.

Looking forward to continuing on...

Share your thoughts on this week's section in the comments, or leave a link to a post. We'll be back next week for the next section. If you need the reading schedule, find it here.

A note on our watch-along of The Shining. Dare I say...I strongly dislike that movie. I know. Probably shocking to many who find it scary. I really don't. It's actually incredibly boring at times, and Kubrick really messed up the story. The book is SO much better. The casting of Shelley Duvall (who I like otherwise) was way off, and was an enormous cause of displeasure to Stephen King. His Wendy was not a victim, as portrayed in the film, so when things started going south, it was a real shock to her. Unlike the Wendy in the film, who was already acting like she lived on the point of a knife. I would recommend digging up the TV miniseries of the story. It was a lot closer to the book. This is one case where I would really like to see a major motion picture remake.

Our next watch-along will be Midsommar. The date is set for October 19. We're deciding on the time. You can weigh in by commenting on the post in our Facebook group, reply in the Goodreads group, or comment on my Tweet on Twitter (@truebookaddict).

Gothic Stories Master Post #SomethingWickedFall

This is the master post for Gothic books or short stories read during Something Wicked Fall. I will be updating this post with my thoughts on stories I've read during the event.

Please share what you've read/your thoughts on what you've read in the comments. I think this will make for some hearty conversation!

Feel free to continue sharing any Gothic stories you read in October in the comments. I'll keep the tab in the blog menu.

************

My thoughts on...

The Lottery and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson

Shirley Jackson, probably the most famous 20th century Gothic author. I'm about halfway through this book now. When I first started it, I skipped to the end to read The Lottery first. Oh my goodness! What a story. Veins of Harvest Home by Thomas Tryon, The Wicker Man, and even the recent Midsommar. A subgenre moniker I recently stumbled upon thanks to Katherine Nabity, Folk Horror. There's an excellent article about the three films which are considered the "progenitors of folk horror" here, and it also outlines the definition of the genre itself (below).

Folk horror is concerned with characters and communities who are located out of the way of urban environments. As such, they have developed their own skewered belief systems, which results in violent and twisted acts being carried out on the unfortunate victims who find themselves caught up in the madness. These communities have ranged from pagans to hoodie gangs, and they can be any group of people who live beyond the fringes of normal society.

I love the subgenre myself so The Lottery was a real treat for me. Another favorite, which I've read previously, is The Witch. It's very short, but has a menacing quality, especially for anyone who is a mom. 

Most of the stories aren't particularly scary so far, but I like them because they touch on aspects of human nature and society. Stories about lying (Like Mother Used to Make, Charles, Afternoon in Linen) betrayal (The Daemon Lover, Like Mother Used to Make), deception (Like Mother Used to Make, The Daemon Lover) and racism (After You, My Dear Alphonse, Flower Garden). Studies of communities and the nature of gossip (The Renegade, Flower Garden). 

Looking forward to reading the rest of the book. I'll be back to share more thoughts soon.

10/2/19
I finished The Lottery and I have to say, I was mildly disappointed because I was hoping for more scares, or at least some more stories along the lines of The Lottery. To say that story is the gem of this collection is an understatement. That being said, there's something about the way Jackson captures human nature. It's compelling, and it kept me reading.

One story that really had me squirming, I have to admit...The Tooth. I have a hard time with going to the dentist so this story was relatable. Talk about a traumatic experience with dental issues. Ack!

Another one was Pillar of Salt. In this one, the female character starts to have trouble dealing with the hectic and deteriorating nature of the big city. I can relate once again. I live in Nashville, Tennessee and this city just keeps growing and growing. I'm moving back to my home town in Michigan next year, and I really can't wait to escape the traffic, the heat...all of it. lol

I did not get to any other Gothic stories, but I'm still reading various short stories so I'm going to leave this post up for anyone who is still reading Gothic stories in October.

There will be a separate master post for horror stories in October.