Tag: Horror

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BOOK SPOTLIGHT THURSDAY: The Monsters They Made Us by Frank J. Camacho

It’s October! So be on the lookout for Spooky Book Spotlights all month long! Starting with THE MONSTERS THEY MADE US by Frank J. Camacho! “The Monsters They Made Us” is a haunting debut that blends dark fantasy, supernatural horror, and dark academia on the rocky coast of Massachusetts.

The Monsters They Made Us (The Heirs of Driftmoor Book 1)

Release Date: October 1, 2025

Genre: Dark Fantasy Horror/ Dark Academia

Featuring
⦁	Supernatural coming-of-age
⦁	Found family vs. bloodline
⦁	Monsters as a metaphor
⦁	Character-driven plot
⦁	Coastal decay
⦁	Generational trauma
⦁	Small-town lore
⦁	Faustian bargains


Some monsters are born. Others are made. But the worst are inherited.
Long before Driftmoor was a town, it was a threshold where the veil between the natural and supernatural ran thin. Where wicked bargains were struck in the dark. Bargains that cursed four bloodlines forever.

Dorothy arrives at Driftmoor Academy hoping to leave her past behind and become someone new. But after a car crash leaves her teetering between life and death, dark abilities awaken inside her. Whispers through the halls. Nightmares claw at her sleep. And death follows wherever she goes.

As Dorothy is pulled into the gilded world of Driftmoor’s elite, pieces of a forgotten legacy begin to surface—along with a power she doesn’t understand and a past someone tried to erase. And she’s not the only one marked by what came before.

There’s the boy touched by the sea, who’s drawn to a song no one else can hear. The socialite carved from gold and expectation, clinging to perfection before it shatters. And the son born in shadows, raised by a family that never intended to keep him.
Linked by the bargains of their ancestors, the heirs of Driftmoor must each decide: will they surrender to their curses, harness the power they’ve inherited, or let it destroy them?
AMAZON

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Frank J. Camacho was born and raised in New Jersey. He grew up immersed in CW shows and fantasy books, which sparked his love for emotionally tangled characters, small-town secrets, and supernatural drama. When he’s not writing, he’s making overly specific Spotify playlists or redecorating a room he swore he was done with. The Monsters They Made Us is his first novel and the first book in The Heirs of Driftmoor series.

Follow Frank at @frankjcamachobooks

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BOOK REVIEW: In The House of Root and Rot by Same Weiss

First, I would like to extend a huge thank you to Sam Weiss for providing the gifted ARC copy for review. She graciously gave me a physical copy to review due to my increasing difficulty reading e-books. I am eternally grateful. Now to the book!

In the House Of Root and Rot (Altered Planes Book Two)

Published: Coming October 3rd, 2025

Genre: Psychological horror/Horror/Suspense/ Sci-fi-horror

Features:

Morally grey characters

Cults and Ancient Rituals

Huma diasters

Layer realities

Slow burn

Plot twist

The dead don’t stay silent.

Old Gramps always said the Deadmarsh family was cursed. Will never believed him—until now.

In a last-ditch effort to pay his grandfather’s mounting medical bills, Will signs up for a shady sleep study, ignoring the warning signs. But everything changes the night his grandfather vanishes. In his place, Will’s dead sister returns.

Convinced the sleep study is to blame, Will tracks down Spectre, the enigmatic research firm behind it, only to discover they’ve disappeared. His search leads him to a girl whose father vanished after her own harrowing encounter with Spectre. She also seems to know more about his family’s past than she’s letting on.

Desperate to stop seeing his dead sister and unsure of who to trust, Will forms an uneasy alliance with the girl to find out what Spectre wants with them. Together, they plummet down a rabbit-hole of secrets, discovering Spectre’s true purpose and what it planted in Will’s bloodline centuries ago. Something ancient, something not of this world, has been feeding off his family for generations, growing stronger, hungrier, and desperate to be set free.

The family curse is real. And it’s been waiting for Will to unleash it.

Review

 In the House of Root and Rot, it is the next book in The Altered Planes Trilogy. Along with Atra’s story, as we are introduced to a new character, Will, who starts this book, we learn has an unrelenting connection to Atra, our main lead from the first book.

It’s essential to read the first book (The Afterlife Experiment) before diving into In the House of Root and Rot to get the full emotional effect of this book, though you still might get lost as Weiss loves to send you on a mind trip. Also, everyone is morally gray. Our new character, Will, is no exception; yet, you still love/hate these messed-up people because we are all messed-up people, which is actually refreshing to read.

In The House of Root and Rot, we are first introduced to Will Deadmarsh. Caring for his abusive, stroke-ridden Grandfather. Struggling financially, Will sees an ad for a sleep study that offers a nice payout and decides to join up. Then his Grandfather vanishes, and he starts seeing his dead twin sister Lex. Wanting to stop seeing his dead sister, he goes back to the sleep study to find it abandoned, or so he thinks. When he runs into a strange dark-haired girl who seems to have been held captive, and oddly knows about Will’s family and his dead sister Lex. Will’s life turns upside down. Family secrets are revealed, a curse that ties into life after death, and an ancient evil that must not awaken.

I am thoroughly enjoying this mind-altering series! I LOVE the cast of morally gray characters, and Weiss writes them so well. I am a fan of morally gray characters now, yet I am afraid to read another book with morally gray characters because Weiss has set the bar so high for me.

Weiss has also mastered the art of the slow burn perfectly. Some authors’ slow burn a bit too much, which puts me off, but Weiss simmers us readers beautifully in everything. The whole book is a slow burn with an ending that hints at more to come.

My rating is 4 out of 5 stars.⭐⭐⭐⭐

Don’t forget to check out book 1

Read the review

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sam was named after a dog, a fact her mother disputes to this day.

While she’s terrible at writing “About Me”s about her, she’s been told she’s excellent at writing about what fictional people do. The more miserable she can make them, the better.

Her love of horror films from the 80s, sci-fi shows from the 90s, and alternative music from the 00s have inspired her to write what she’s calling “Weird Sci-fi Horror” although she’s kind of making that up as she goes along.

When she’s not ready to pull her hair out after discovering another plot hole she’s created, she goes camping with her husband as far away from society as possible. So far, this tactic has been mostly successful and she’s only had to physically converse with a grand total of nine people this year. Next year, she hopes to get that number down to six.

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BOOK REVIEW: The Afterlife Experiment by Sam Weiss

A bit of a change this Thursday. As I bring you a book review!

ABSOLUTELY MIND-BENDING!

The Afterlife Experiment (The Altered Planes Book 1)

Published: October 10, 2023

Genre: Dark fantasy/Sci-fi- horror/ American horror

Pages: 310 pages

Reality ends where madness begins.

Atra Hart’s shadow has grown teeth. It moves on its own and whispers her name. She calls it Dread, and it threatens to devour her mind.

When a fire breaks out at the asylum where she’s locked up, Atra seizes the chance for freedom, only to witness an electric-purple rift split the sky open. Like Dread, the rift is visible only to her.

Then, she awakens back in the asylum, unharmed, as if the fire, the escape, and the rift never happened. But everything feels wrong. No one remembers her old life. Her family, her friends—even her past—have vanished. The doctors insist she’s delusional, but the messages scribbled on the mirrors suggest otherwise. The darkness beneath her bed whispers secrets. And the black cat that watches from where the veils thin? It doesn’t belong here.

As Atra ventures deeper into the mystery, she uncovers a chilling truth: this isn’t an asylum. It’s a trap woven between broken realities. The rift isn’t a vision. It’s a crack in the barrier between worlds, and something is trying to come through. Dread isn’t a hallucination. It’s a harbinger, connected to something ancient that moves between realities like a parasite, searching for a perfect host.

If Atra can’t sever her connection to Dread, she won’t just lose her grip on sanity—she’ll become the vessel that lets the horror in. She’ll open the door to something that could end reality itself.

AMAZON

REVIEW

As I prepared to receive my ARC for the upcoming book, “In the House of Root and Rot” (book two in the Altered Planes Trilogy), I had to read book one, which the author had kindly gifted me as well. This book mind *ucked me and I liked it!

We are introduced to Atra, who has spent most of her life in an asylum. She sees a dark shadow companion whom she calls Dread, which no one else can see. We also meet Tom, her father, who had abandoned Atra, leaving her for dead after a sinister experiment went wrong.

 A rift has opened in the fabric of time, and only Atra, Tom, and some others can see it. An ancient evil wants to break through. Atra has the final piece it needs.

Think Stranger Things meets Sliders meets The Travellers or Fringe. I don’t know! This book makes you question the very reality you are reading!  This is the very first book where I couldn’t predict what would happen next! THE VERY FIRST! I was reading for my sanity, so there was that. These characters become you. 

I love unreliable characters, and Weiss delivers cause this whole book is full of them. The ending leaves you craving what is next.  What horrors and madness await us in the next book? Stay tuned, as I’m set to read the second book “In the House of Root and Rot” soon!

My overall rating is 5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐out of 5 stars. This book gave me a trip, no drugs needed.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sam was named after a dog, a fact her mother disputes to this day.

While she’s terrible at writing “About Me”s about her, she’s been told she’s great at writing about what fictional people do. The more miserable she can make them, the better.

Her love of horror films from the 80s, sci-fi shows from the 90s, and alternative music from the 00s have inspired her to write what she’s calling “Dark Science Fantasy” although she’s kind of making that up as she goes along.

When she’s not ready to pull her hair out after discovering another plot hole she’s created, she goes camping with her husband as far away from society as possible. So far, this tactic has been mostly successful and she’s only had to physically converse with a grand total of nine people this year. Next year, she hopes to get that number down to six.

Follow Sam and her books on IG @Weiss Author 🇨🇦

Get The Afterlife Experiement today!

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BOOK REVIEW: Alpha Male by Mark Allen

I did a book spotlight, and now I have READ THE BOOK! ALPHA MALE is one of the most enjoyable horror thrillers I have read in a long time.

ALPHA MALE (a Caleb Jacobsen novel)

Published: April 15, 2025

Genre: Horror/Suspense/ Thriller

Pages:434

Synopsis

Since defeating the evil Global Alpha saving mankind from annihilation, Caleb and Marla have gone back to their quiet lives.

Sadly, “quiet” never lasts.

A werewolf delegation explains to Caleb that by killing the last Alpha and then not assuming the position himself, the werewolf world has fallen into chaos, fractured packs, and bitter infighting. Born followers, the werewolves NEED a strong leader to restore balance and order.

Realizing his responsibility for this situation, Caleb must step up and be the leader they need, even though it is the last thing he wants to do.

But there are those who do not recognize him as legitimate. Rejecting his policy of détente with humankind, they still want a Werewolf Apocalypse and a Human Holocaust. And they are willing to kill anyone who gets in their way.

War is brewing, and no one can remain neutral. Everyone must choose sides. It all comes down to one cataclysmic fight to the death between Caleb and the rebel leader, Logan Olivier. The survivor will guide the combined destinies of both werewolves and humans for the next thousand years.

 There’s only one ALPHA MALE. 

REVIEW

The cover hooks you before you open the pages, and once you do, author Mark Allen doesn’t disappoint. Alpha Male is the second book in Allen’s Caleb Jacobsen werewolf series, with Blood Moon being the lead in. Even though I didn’t read the first book, Allen welcomes you. I was not lost one bit, and I instantly felt invested in these characters.

We pick up with Caleb and Marla again, three months after Caleb killed the Global Alpha, refusing to take the throne as his replacement. When a group comes a calling, saying the werewolf community is in disarray.  Caleb finally rises up, considering he is to blame for the chaos in their community. We also meet Logan Oliver, a German Alpha of the German pack, who decides to claim the empty Global Alpha spot and pick us up where the former left off, which was revealing their kind to humanity and showing them who the true A-PEX predator is. When he learns Caleb is finally claiming the Global Alpha role and opting for peace, Logan sets out a challenge. Caleb accepts, but when Logan brutally attacks his own kind for not following him, then tries to go after his mate, Caleb is coming after Logan. Still, it is a fight to the death as both Logan and Caleb come with surprises.

I truly enjoyed Alpha Male so much. Allen is also a screenwriter, and if you are familiar with screenwriting, you can tell. Allen’s visceral description and detail are superb. I love it when a book plays like a film in your head, and Alpha Male does that. Allen’s writing is gifted in this genre. The final battle between Caleb and Logan is written brutally, yet it’s not overkill or overly gruesome. I mean, I did wince a bit at every punch and crunch. It was supported, though, so it worked. There is a third book coming out, so I am excited to see where Caleb and Marla go next.

My rating 5 out of 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

ALPHA MALE IS AVAILABLE NOW ON AMAZON

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Spooktacular Book Spotlight Thursday: UNNAMEABLE by Andrew Schrader

Halloween is just around the corner, so when I saw this book I had to spotlight it. UNNAMEABLE by Andrew Schrader. “Unnamable” is a gripping work of horror fiction. If you like supernatural thriller books, horror and suspense, and brooding terror, you will love Andrew Schrader’s page-turner that seethes with raw power. Let’s dive in!

Unnameable

Publication Date: October 25, 2024

Genre: Horror

A captain with a haunted past...
One last daring rescue mission...
A stalking evil even he can't outrun...

Nathaniel Carter is ashamed of his dark secret.
For eighteen years he's fled from his past, desperate to escape his dreaded memories forever.

In search of gold and a fresh start, he leads his men on a rescue mission deep into the mountains. But as they venture on, he begins to suspect something other than war-crazed Confederates is stalking his men...

As the team nears their destination, Nathaniel fears that the entities abducting his crew are linked to his buried sins — and the malformed brother who seeks his revenge.

Can he confront his inner demons to save his troops, or will he doom them all to a fate worse than death?

COMING OCTOBER 25th ON AMAZON

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrew Schrader is a Los Angeles-based author and filmmaker. In addition to directing feature films and music videos, he wrote several episodes of the animated show Tig n’ Seek for Cartoon Network. He was also a script consultant on “Afterlife,” the horror series from Crypt TV.

His three-book series, What Goes On In The Walls at Night, was featured on the Reddit No Sleep podcast and twice won the Red City Review Book of the Year for fantasy and horror.

Yes, of course he loves cats.

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Book Spotlight: Open the Casket by J.N. Eagles

It’s a book spotlight triple-header as we start to enter the fall season. As the days get shorter and the air crisper delight yourself with Open the Casket by J.N. Eagles.

Open the Casket

Publication Date: April 2023

Genre: Paranormal/ Horror/ Poetry/ Young Adult

A ghost, he has the freedom to roam as long as he stays within the black gates. What he didn’t expect was to fall in love. Can he protect the grave she’s mourning? Can he restore the guidepost for all spirits who pass through the cemetery? Should he remain or transcend? So many questions, and yet one thing is for certain—he must protect the guidepost at all costs.

AVAILABLE NOW ON AMAZON

About The Author

J. N. Eagles currently lives in Alabama with her husband, daughter, two cats, and a flock of chickens. She runs a reading blog where she posts reviews about the books on her shelves, and she plans to write many books of poetry. She graduated from Athens State University with a Bachelor’s in English/Language Arts and graduated from the University of North Alabama with a Master of Arts in Writing. When she’s not reading or scribbling new stories, she’s enjoying the outdoors and working in her garden.

Learn more about J.N. at JN Eagles