Tag: southern gothic

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BOOK REVIEW: Red Summer by Ana Lee

Gifted a copy to review, Red Summer is filled with a unique, gritty Southern Gothic flair, set against the vibrant backdrop of New Orleans. Red Summer gives you hints of a high school Harry Potter orPercy Jackson.

Red Summer (Stone and Scale Book 1)

Published: August 4, 2025

Genre: Urban fantasy, Contemporary Fantasy/ Paranormal fantasy

Ages: Older Young Adult/ Adult Readers

Synopsis –

Seventeen-year-old Wilder Ansley is being followed. By who? He hasn’t got a clue. By people and creatures no one else can see. That’s a good enough place to start.

To make matters worse, he’s also able to do things that make no sense at all — like unintentionally setting fire to his foster brother’s bed, without the help of a lighter or matches.

Wilder prides himself that recently, aside from a few unfortunate incidents, he’s been able to keep whatever happens when he loses his cool mostly under control. That is until a freak lightning storm alerts the mysterious New Orleans Council to his whereabouts.And his burgeoning abilities.

Within hours, Wilder is thrown headfirst into a whole new world, hidden behind a Shroud, and it feels more like home than he cares to admit. Despite his initial hesitations, Wilder finds friendship, and maybe something more, among these new strangers. But it turns out uncovering his place in the Eadar might be harder than he thought. Wilder must force himself to face the truth about who everyone else believes him to be—all while a decades long war escalates within and beyond the Shroud, threatening not only the Eadar and his new found friends, but the human world he’s left behind.

REVIEW

Red Summer: Stone and Scale is “Harry Potter” meets “Percy Jackson” on Bourbon Street. Our hero here is Wilder, an orphan with a reputation for so-called trouble. Things happen around Wilder, and oh, there are those creatures he sees that no one else can. When another episode occurs, landing a foster sibling in the hospital, Wilder’s future looks slim. When he decides to run away, only to encounter and follow an annoying owl, Wilder enters into a whole new realm, and that is in the midst of a war to discover who and what he is. It’s up to Wilder now and his newfound friends to help protect the magical worlds as well as learn more about himself.

GET IT NOW AMAZON

Red Summer was a fun read. It reminded me of a darker take on Harry Potter or Percy Jackson, yet it was its own thing as well. Our protagonist, Wilder, is a good character, and I love his progression as a character so far. Lee also creates a lovely world-building, with the human realm and the magical realm,  filled with lycans (werewolves), fae, vampires, witches, halfbreeds, and more. If you feel you’ve outgrown “Harry Potter” or “Percy Jackson?” Graduate to the grit and magic of Red Summer: Stone and Scale.

My rating is 4 out of 5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐/ 5

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ana Lee is the debut author of Red Summer—the first novel of the upcoming dark, gritty, and fast-paced epic contemporary fantasy series, Stone and Scale.

Ana lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, where she spends her time reading, writing, or dreaming about reading and writing.

Her influences include (but are definitely not limited to) Cassandra Clare, Rebecca Yarros, Sarah J. Maas, Leigh Bardugo, J.K. Rowling, C.S. Lewis, and J.R.R. Tolkien.

Follow Anna and her books at @analeewriters on Instagram.

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Book Spook-light Thursday: Death Comes Slow in the Bayou by Nick Mendoza

Ending our month-long Spooky Spotlight Thursday, we have “Death Comes Slow in the Bayou”, dripping with dread and steeped in Southern mystery — a chilling journey through whispered legends, buried guilt, and inevitable fates.

Death Comes Slow in the Bayou: The Witch, The Bookseller, and The Bride

Release Date: June 2025

Genre: Southern Gothic Horror/ Short Stories
                                                                                                                                                   
Features
⦁	Southern Gothic Horror
⦁	Witches
⦁	Folklore Curses
⦁	Haunted Brides
⦁	Psychological Unraveling
⦁	Vampires with a Folkloric Edge

Something lingers in the Louisiana night—watching, waiting. Vengeance seeps through the swamps, and the past refuses to stay buried.
In this chilling Southern Gothic horror anthology, author and screenwriter Nick Mendoza weaves three haunting tales of supernatural terror, psychological dread, and creeping folklore. These are stories of the cursed and the desperate—of those who seek answers in the dark, only to find something staring back.

The Witch of Acadiana
When his young son falls gravely ill under unexplainable circumstances, a skeptical father dismisses the whispers of an old woman’s curse. But as the sickness deepens and reason unravels, he’s forced to confront the terrifying possibility that folklore isn’t just legend.

Mirrored Opposition
A distraught young man scours the French Quarter for his missing girlfriend, only to discover her last known whereabouts tied to a reclusive bookseller—rumored to have made a deal with the devil. As he searches for answers, he begins to wonder: what if the rumors are true?

Valeria
In the heart of the South, where secrets fester and grudges never die, a charismatic bachelor offers his quiet coworker advice on how to take control in his relationship. But when the bride-to-be finds out—and a series of catastrophic, almost unnatural events unfold—he begins to wonder if she’s coming for revenge… and if anything can stop her.

Perfect for fans of:

Gothic horror
Psychological thrillers
Supernatural folklore
Dark folklore

AMAZON

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nick Mendoza is a writer and Nashville Film Festival Screenplay Semifinalist who blends a background in software development and technical writing with a deep love for storytelling. After earning his B.S. in Computer Science from California State University, Fullerton, he authored a comprehensive book on PHP development and an in-depth video series on WordPress website management.

His creative journey led him to screenwriting and filmmaking, where he wrote and directed the indie horror feature “Video Tape Terror.” His screenplays have earned over 20 domestic and international accolades, including recognition from Cinequest, Vail Film Festival, ScreenCraft, and the Manchester Film Festival. His feature “Operation Wandering Soul” has also been recognized by Stage 32, the Dallas International Film Festival, and the Page Turner Awards.

His debut horror collection, “Death Comes Slow in the Bayou”, adapts several of his award-recognized scripts into chilling Southern Gothic short stories.