This novel had much of what I loved about the first collection I read: quiet, twisted women at the forefront. I loved Engstrom’s When Darkness Loves Us and was curious to try more of her work.

That is until she begins to spiral further and further into her darkness. She travels the country, weaving herself in and out of various communities, both respectable and not. This is a vampire novel of a very different sort.Īngelina is a killer. If you haven’t had the pleasure yet, please pick up one of her stories. Hot days and creeping goings-on are my absolute favourites.ĭue is already an icon in the genre, but I feel as though she is increasingly getting the credit she is due (sorry). My favourites were in the first section, Gracetown, which consists of three stories (including the titular “Ghost Summer”). Each story is brought to life with vivid characters that I’m still thinking about. There are monstrous women, zombies, ghosts and pandemics. This collection of short stories and novellas immediately sucked me in. But the time was finally right when an audiobook of Ghost Summer was finally released in the UK. I have been meaning to read Due’s work for a few years now. Moreno-Garcia has great prose – she’s sure to be a hit with anyone who loved Rebecca but thought the plot needed the creep factor of Shirley Jackson injected in the veins. But this book accomplishes everything it sets out to do – it just wasn’t to my tastes. I found it slow and didn’t like the ‘twist’. Something is causing her cousin to behave strangely, and it isn’t long until Noemí begins to see visions herself.Īfter finishing Mexican Gothic, I had to finally admit to myself that I’m just not a fan of the genre in novel form. In short, this gothic novel follows socialite Noemí Taboada as she goes to the creepy High Place, where her cousin is living.

More than any other that I read this month. It won best horror novel at the Goodreads book awards. It’s been named as a finalist for the Gram Stoker Awards’ Superior Achievement in a Novel. Moreno-Garcia’s book has been much talked about over the last year. Though I do think each of these titles has the ability to be someone’s favourite – the writing (and translation in one case) is impeccable in every single one of these.

Granted that was the uninspiring number of “five” – but we take what we can get in these days of rona.Įach book was stunningly different from the next. But this year I tried to read as many horror novels by women as possible. Now, typically I like to highlight women behind the camera. It’s the final Wednesday in February, making it the last week of Women in Horror Month.

Black Ambrosia by Elizabeth Engstrom