Reading Vicariously

**Thank you to Saga Books for sending an advance copy in exchange for an honest review**

From Bram Stoker Award­–winning author Gwendolyn Kiste comes a chilling novel about three childhood friends who miraculously survive the night everyone in their suburban neighborhood turned into ghosts—perfect for fans of Yellowjackets.

The Velkwood Vicinity was the topic of occult theorists, tabloid one-hour documentaries, and even some pseudo-scientific investigations as the block of homes disappeared behind a near-impenetrable veil that only three survivors could enter—and only one has in the past twenty years, until now.

Talitha Velkwood has avoided anything to do with the tragedy that took her mother and eight-year-old sister, drifting from one job to another, never settling anywhere or with anyone, feeling as trapped by her past as if she was still there in the small town she so desperately wanted to escape from. When a new researcher tracks her down and offers to pay her to come back to enter the vicinity, Talitha claims she’s just doing it for the money. Of all the crackpot theories over the years, no one has discovered what happened the night Talitha, her estranged, former best friend Brett, and Grace, escaped their homes twenty years ago. Will she finally get the answers she’s been looking for all these years, or is this just another dead end?

This novel has premise that really hooked me in early on! A woman named Talitha is one of three survivors from a whole neighborhood that literally became a ghost town one day. In the decades since no one has ever been able to enter the dead zone or figure out what happened, but now Talitha has a chance to go back in and see what happened to her family.

The idea of a mysterious event affecting a specific area in supernatural ways reminded me a lot of Vandermeer’s Annihilation (which I love). The neighborhood’s disappearance is so outlandish, and the emotional impact that it has had on Talitha is so traumatic, the story immediately drew me in. I HAD to know what happened, and why!

I really liked the back and forth between the current world and the “neighborhood world”. Every time Talitha stepped back through that veil I got a surge of anticipation to see what was going to happen next. Unfortunately this excitement began to wear off by the halfway mark, and once I understood the inferences surrounding the character of Brett and her family I had a strong suspicion on how the story was going to end (no twists there). I also wanted a lot more scenes/backstory/development on some of the other characters outside of Talitha, especially the eager young scientists who ropes her back into the mystery.

Someone mentioned this book is less “horror” and more “sad love story” and that definitely hits home. There are some chilling moments, but the larger notes are family drama, grief, and unrequited love. Not everything in this book worked for me, but I enjoy unique takes on traditional ghost stories and this certainly hit the mark there!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

THE HAUNTING OF VELKWOOD is available now from Saga Books. If you’re interested in ordering a copy of the book, go HERE. If you read it, even if you didn’t love it, please leave a review on Goodreads, Amazon, etc. It really goes a long way in helping the author’s gain exposure/future readers!

About the Author

Gwendolyn Kiste is the three-time Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Rust Maidens, Reluctant Immortals, And Her Smile Will Untether the Universe, Pretty Marys All in a Row, The Invention of Ghosts, and Boneset & Feathers. Her short fiction and nonfiction have appeared in outlets including Lit Hub, Nightmare, Tor Nightfire, Titan Books, Vastarien, Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy, and The Dark among others. She’s a Lambda Literary Award winner, and her fiction has also received the This Is Horror award for Novel of the Year as well as nominations for the Premios Kelvin and Ignotus awards.

Originally from Ohio, she now resides on an abandoned horse farm outside of Pittsburgh with her husband, their calico cat, and not nearly enough ghosts. You can also find her online at Facebook and Instagram.

If you want to learn more about Gwendolyn and her work then check out her website and follow her on social media.