Sadie Hartmann's Blog

Beneath the Trees- Don't. Murder. The locals. This is small-town serial killer, upstanding citizen, and adorable brown bear Samantha Strong's cardinal rule. After all, there's a sea of perfectly ripe potential victims in the big city just beyond the forest. by Patrick Horvath (like playing serial killers with Calico Critters)

Wait Till Helen Comes- In this graphic novel adaptation of master horror storyteller Mary Downing Hahn's spookiest and most popular tale, two siblings must save their stepsister from the clutches of a vengeful ghost. (One of my favorite childhood ghost stories!) by Mary Downing Hahn

The Night Eaters- Chinese American twins, Milly and Billy, are having a tough time. On top of the multiple failures in their personal and professional lives, they're struggling to keep their restaurant afloat. Luckily their parents, Ipo and Keon, are in town for their annual visit. When Ipo forces them to help her clean up the house next door-a hellish and run-down ruin that was the scene of a grisly murder, the twins are in for a nasty surprise. A night of terror, gore, and supernatural mayhem reveals that there is much more to Ipo and her children than meets the eye. by author Marjorie Liu and illustrator Sana Takeda (I have read both issues and fucking loved them. Hilarious and heartwarming)

Fruiting Bodies- All Frances wants is to start a new life with her new partner in the dreamy Pacific Northwest. To get there, she's forced to join a "bro's trip" with her brother, Charlie, and his annoying best friend, Trent. But their journey is abruptly altered when a wrong turn forces the trio to spend the night in the rain-soaked Oregon woods. As luck would have it, they come across a beautiful, friendly stranger, who is eager to help them-but is her convenient arrival their salvation, or something else entirely? by Ashley Robin Franklin illustrated by Ashley Robin Franklin (the artwork is so good and the story is perfectly disgusting)

Lady Killer- Josie Schuller is a picture-perfect homemaker, wife, and mother--but she's also a ruthless killer! She balances cheerful domestic bliss with coldly efficient assassinations. by Jamie Rich, and Joelle Jones illustrated by Joelle Jones (the 1950s vibes and the artwork are stunning. I was mesmerized)

When I Arrived At the Castle- Like many before her that have never come back, she's made it to the Countess' castle determined to snuff out the horror... but she could never be prepared for what hides within its turrets, what unfurls under its fluttering flags. by E. M. Carroll (sapphic, gorgeous, alluring, and unexpected)

Something is Killing the Children- When the children of Archer's Peak begin to go missing, everything seems hopeless. Most children never return, but the ones that do have terrible stories-impossible stories of terrifying creatures that live in the shadows. Their only hope of finding and eliminating the threat is the arrival of a mysterious stranger, one who believes the children and claims to see what they can see. Her name is Erica Slaughter. She kills monsters. That is all she does, and she bears the cost because it must be done. by James Tynion IV and illustrated by Werther Dell'Edera (the artwork is so brilliant and the story gets better and better as the series goes, worth the long term investment)

Locke & Key- Written by acclaimed suspense novelist and New York Times best-selling author Joe Hill (Heart-Shaped Box) and featuring astounding artwork from Gabriel Rodriguez, Locke and Key tells of Keyhouse, an unlikely New England mansion, with fantastic doors that transform all who dare to walk through them... and home to a hate-filled and relentless creature that will not rest until it forces open the most terrible door of them all...(I have been obsessed with this series forever. I have them all in hardcover editions but it’s cool they are free on hoopla)

Earthdivers- The year is 2112, and it's the apocalypse exactly as expected: rivers receding, oceans rising, civilization crumbling. Humanity has given up hope, except for a group of outcast Indigenous survivors who have discovered a time travel portal in a cave in the middle of the desert and figured out where the world took a sharp turn for the worst: America. Convinced that the only way to save the world is to rewrite its past, they send one of their own on a bloody, one-way mission back to 1492 to kill Christopher Columbus before he reaches the so-called New World. But taking down an icon is no easy task, and his actions could prove devastating for his friends in the future. Join Stephen Graham Jones and artist Davide Gianfelice for Earthdivers #1, the beginning of an unforgettable ongoing historical/sci-fi slasher! (I am on issue 6 I believe and own the original issues plus all the alt covers too—high-stakes, emotional, and badass. The artwork is on point too)

My Favorite Thing is Monsters 1 & 2- Set against the tumultuous political backdrop of late '60s Chicago, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters is the fictional graphic diary of 10-year-old Karen Reyes, filled with B-movie horror and pulp monster magazine iconography. Karen Reyes tries to solve the murder of her enigmatic upstairs neighbor, Anka Silverberg, a holocaust survivor, while the interconnected stories of those around her unfold. When Karen's investigation takes us back to Anka's life in Nazi Germany, the reader discovers how the personal, the political, the past, and the present converge. by Emil Ferris (so great these are on here so folks can try before they buy, they’re really expensive, and rightly so—the most ambitious graphic novel, visually, I’ve ever read)

Harrow County- Emmy always knew that the woods surrounding her home crawled with ghosts and monsters. But on the eve of her eighteenth birthday, she learns that she is connected to these creatures--and to the land itself--in a way she never imagined. by Cullen Bunn (You haven’t read any horror comics if you haven’t read this or any Cullen Bunn. Iconic status. This is ESSENTIAL)

Wytches- When the Rooks family moves to the remote town of Litchfield, NH to escape a haunting trauma, they're hopeful about starting over. But something evil is waiting for them in the woods just beyond town. Watching from the trees. Ancient...and hungry. Scott Snyder (it says “Part One” but I don’t think Part Two is ever coming. Which is a crying shame because this is GOOD. The artwork, the story, everything)

These are my recent reads and TBR

The Closet-Thom is moving cross-country with his family and dragging the past along with them. When his child, Jamie, sees monsters in the bedroom closet, Thom reassures him that the monsters will stay in the apartment after they move. But Thom is very wrong about many things, and the monsters continue to find young Jamie.

Revival- For one day in rural central Wisconsin, the dead came back to life. Now it's up to Officer Dana Cypress to deal with the media scrutiny, religious zealots, and government quarantine that has come with them. In a town where the living have to learn to deal with those who are supposed to be dead, Officer Cypress must solve a brutal murder, and everyone, alive or undead, is a suspect.

The Low, Low Woods- Shudder-To-Think, Pennsylvania, has been on fire for years. The coal mines beneath it are long since abandoned. The woods are full of rabbits with human eyes, a deer woman who stalks hungry girls, and swaths of skinless men. And the people in Shudder-to-Think? Well, they're not doing so well either.

When El and Octavia wake up in a movie theater with no memory of the last few hours of their lives, the two teenage dirtbags begin a surreal and terrifying journey to discover the truth about the strange town that they call home. Like so many women in Shudder-to-Think before them, all they have is a void where the truth once was. But as time passes, El finds herself needing to know more about what has happened, while Octavia wants nothing more than to forget the forgetting. Can these two teens reconcile their differences before the horrible things lurking beneath their town emerge and swallow them whole? *CURRENTLY READING*

American Vampire-This volume follows two stories: one written by Scott Snyder and one written by legendary horror writer Stephen King. In Snyder's story set in 1920s LA, we follow Pearl, a young woman who is turned into a vampire and sets out on a path of righteous revenge against the European vampires who tortured and abused her. This story is paired with King's story, a western about Skinner Sweet, the original American Vampire - a stronger, faster creature than any vampire ever seen before. (I actually did read the first 3 and own them but didn’t continue on, now I will!)

Dark Spaces: Good Deeds- Scott Snyder's Dark Spaces anthology line returns with an all-new story surrounding a deadly conspiracy from a creative team of rising stars! In search of a fresh start, teenager Cheyenne Rite and her mother, Rebecca, moved to St. Augustine, Florida, where they cross paths with Jean McKnight, a disgraced big-city journalist determined to pay her dues and rebuild her career, starting with a fluff piece on the town's upcoming 450th-anniversary celebration. When the quaint community's festivities give way to bloodshed and Cheyenne is the sole witness,

Eve- (Victor LaValle) When the ice caps melted, most of humanity was lost to the hidden disease that was released. Now, a mysterious girl named Eve has awoken in secret and must deal with a world that's nothing like the virtual reality she was raised in.
In order to save her father and be accompanied only by Wexler, her robotic caretaker and protector sheathed in her favorite teddy bear, Eve must embark on a deadly quest across the country. Along the way, she will have to contend not only with the threats of a very real world that await her but the lies we tell our children in the name of protecting them.

The Vampire Slayer (Sarah Gailey) In the first arc of WILLOWVERSE, trying to help Buffy heal from her trauma proves to be more than Giles and Willow bargained for! She's left without her powers or identity, and it's up to an unprepared and inexperienced new Slayer to take up the mantle-Willow. But thankfully Willow isn't alone, as the spell also leads to another newly-activated Slayer, serving as a guide for this speed-run of training. But even with the threat of 4 terrifying and sometimes zany monsters, the darkest threat may be Willow herself, as she struggles to cope. Can Willow's allies save her from herself?

The Breach- (Nick Cutter) Chief of Police, John Hawkins, must investigate a final case involving a mutilated body with strange wounds found on the banks of a river. I listened to the audiobook, can’t wait to read this!

The Harrowing- In award-winning author Kristen Kiesling and illustrator Rye Hickman's YA graphic novel The Harrowing, a psychic teen hunts potential killers until she discovers the boy she loves is her next target.

Clementine- Clementine and her new friends are rescued by an island community led by enigmatic doctor Miss Morro. But just as Clementine's scars are finally beginning to heal she discovers dark secrets that threaten to tear her new life apart.
Can Miss Morro be trusted? What about the rest of the islanders? And just how far will Clementine go to protect the ones she loves?

The Me You Love in the Dark-Writer Skottie Young (I Hate Fairyland, Deadpool, Strange Academy) and artist Jorge Corona (NO. 1 with a bullet, Super Sons, Feathers) follow up their critically acclaimed series Middlewest with a haunting new tale. An artist named Ro retreats from the grind of the city to an old house in a small town, hoping to find solace and inspiration-only to realize that the muse she finds within may not be what she expected. Fans of STEPHEN KING and NEIL GAIMAN will enjoy this beautiful, dark, and disturbing story of discovery, love, and terror.

Carmilla: The First Vampire- At the height of the Lunar New Year in 1990s New York City, an idealistic social worker turns detective when she discovers young, homeless LGBTQ+ women are being murdered and no one, especially the police, seems to care.
A series of clues points her to Carmilla's, a mysterious nightclub in the heart of her neighborhood, Chinatown. There she falls for the next likely target, landing her at the center of a real-life horror story-and face-to-face with illusions about herself, her life, and her hidden past. (I loved this! Just need to read Part 2)

-Sadie

xx

Audiobook: Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh
More Absurdist/Feminist/Queer books:
Homesick for Another World by Ottessa Moshfegh (audio)
SLUG and Other Stories by Megan Milks (audio)
Violets by Kyung-Sook Shin (audio)
Boy Parts by Eliza Clark
Bad Men by Julie Mae Cohen
Cake Time by Siel Ju

Audiobook: Disturbance by Jenna Clake
More books with Magical Realism
The Upstairs House by Julia Fine (audio)
Ghost Music by An Yu (audio)
Hannah Green and Her Unfeasibly Mundane Existence (audio)
The Change by Kristen Miller
Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuke Tsujimura
My Volcano by John Elizabeth Stintzi

Indigenous Books on Hoopla
I read and enjoyed:
An Ordinary Violence by Adriana Chartrand
White Horse by Erika T. Wurth
Five Little Indians by Michelle Good
Anoka by Shane Hawk
Green Fuse Burning by Tiffany Morris
On my TBR:
Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice
Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden

Read on hoopla and enjoyed:
Cockfight by Fernanda Ampuero (extreme graphic content)
Dead Girls by Selva Almada (graphic content)
Such Small Hands by Andrés Barba
Elena Knows by Claudia Piñeiro
On my TBR
Burnt Water by Carlos Fuentes
Fury by Clyo Mendoza
Fiebre Tropical by Julián Delgado Lopera
Jakarta by RODRIGO MÁRQUEZ TIZANO

Read and enjoyed on hoopla:
The Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez
When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen
Rootwork by Tracy Cross
Lakewood by Megan Giddings
On my TBR:
Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi
Friday Black Nana Kwame & Adjei-Brenyah
All Her Little Secrets by Wanda M Morris

Read and enjoyed on hoopla:
Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung
Carmilla: The First Vampire- Amy Chu and Soo Lee
Where the Ladies Are by Aoko Matsuda
Flowers of Mold by Ha Seong-Nan
On my TBR
Perfect Little Monsters-Cindy R. X. He
The Hole-Hye-Young Pyun
Bluebeard’s First Wife by Ha Seong-Nan

Gothic books I have enjoyed on hoopla
It Will Just Be Us by Jo Kaplan
Graveyard of Lost Children by Katrina Monroe
Grey Dog by Elliott Gish
Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth
On my TBR
A Good House for Children by Kate Collins
My Darling Dreadful Thing by Johanna Van Veen
The Pecan Children by Quinn Connor
All Things Seen and Unseen by R J McDaniel

Audiobook I’m currently listening to: I Remember You by Yrsa Sigurdardottir

I loved all the following books on hoopla
Come Closer by Sara Gran
Linghun by Ai Jiang
Rosemary’s Baby by Ira Levin
A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay
The Harpy by Megan Hunter
Blizzard by Marie Vingtras
Chlorine by Jade Song

Audiobook I’m currently listening to: The Ritual by Adam Nevill
I loved all the following books on hoopla
Body Shocks Extreme Horror anthology edited by Ellen Datlow
Tenderloin by Joy Sorman
Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill
In the Valley of the Sun by Andy Davidson
Harvest Home by Thomas Tryon
Ghost Summer by Tananrieve Due
Mapping the Interior by Stephen Graham Jones

Sadie
xx

I’m hosting a book club for BELOVED by Toni Morrison on my Patreon. Two paid tier levels unlock various benefits or you can join for free. This book club is for all members. We’re starting today in honor of Juneteenth

JOIN HERE FOR BELOVED

There will be discussion posts on Patreon and you can follow along with my Notes & Highlights through Goodreads if you like, HERE

I own a physical copy of the book but bought the Kindle edition for $1.99 (it’s on sale now) to do the Notes & Highlights.

The audiobook is available on hoopla at participating libraries

I’m so excited to re-read this book and experience it in this season of life. I have read it two other times before. In high school (1990) and again just before the movie came out in 1998. I always include BELOVED when I make my recommendations of the scariest books I have ever read. Nobody ever challenges me on its inclusion but I know some folks don’t consider it a horror book, but it is.

There is nothing more horrific.

No other book has emotionally crushed me the way this one did. (Betty by Tiffany McDaniel came very close but BELOVED still holds that place in my soul)

I hope you will consider joining. Reading iconic, classic, historical, books like this in a community is the best way to get the most out of your reading journey. I’m a firm believer that book discussion unlocks levels in our comprehension we never knew were there. It’s powerful!

PS. I watched this interview with Toni Morrison to prepare and I highly recommend it

Sadie

xx

When you were a kid, did you sign up for summer reading challenges at your library? When you signed up, you got some free library swag like stickers, a reading log you could color, and maybe a t-shirt or tote if you were lucky. Later, Pizza Hut rolled out BOOK IT, a reading challenge where you could win a personal pizza at the end of it! FYI: Pizza Hut is bringing it back but early registration was so popular, that they closed it.

I signed up for the adult summer reading challenge this year at my library for fun. They have a cute app you can track books on and you get some goodies when you complete the challenge. I’m a sucker for nostalgia

I made a Summerween Reading Challenge too! I’ll post this on #bookstagram at noon today. If you want to participate, use the #campmotherhorror hashtag on Insta

I can’t give everyone who signs up a bunch of swag or buy you a personal pizza when you complete the challenge but I encourage you to take yourself out for pizza and post a selfie celebrating your commitment! I will gather all of those up for a post and it will be super cute to see everyone enjoying their bookish pizza rewards.

I’m centering readers and reader resources all summer which will include some fun giveaways and prizes from indie bookstores, publishers, and other fun surprises. So many podcasts and platforms center on authors and industry professionals—I want to hear from readers, libraries, and indie bookstores! Watch my social media and Patreon for “Meet the Reader” spotlights, interviews, library tours, personal bookshelfies, reviews & recommendations, and more!

Summerween is going to be FIRE!

Sadie

xx

For those folks who were sitting within earshot when my name was called, you know exactly how I was feeling in that moment…

.

.

“Oh fuck”

.

.

Superior Achievement in Long Non-Fiction

WINNER: 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered, Sadie Hartmann (Page Street)

The Black Guy Dies First: Black Horror Cinema from Fodder to Oscar, Robin R. Means Coleman & Mark H. Harris (Saga)

A Vindication of Monsters: Essays on Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley, Claire Fitzpatrick, ed. (IFWG)

The Art of the Zombie Movie, Lisa Morton (Applause)

Unquiet Spirits: Essays by Asian Women in Horror, Lee Murray & Angela Yuriko Smith, eds. (Black Spot)

(the whole list of nominees & winners)

There is a cute family photo of winners HERE

“And the award goes too…”

You know when people say, “my heart was beating out of my chest”, I have never felt a cliched saying so hard in my entire life. It actually did feel like my heart was pounding outside of my body and my mind was scrambled. I don’t remember getting out of my chair or how I got on stage. I do remember giving Sarah Read a hug as she held my statue and asking, “Can I stay here with you?”

(she said no)

So up to the mic I went with my heart in my throat and my mind emptied of anything resembling a thought—you can see what I managed to say in a room full of people perceiving me, here

Now, after the tremors in my body have settled and I have enjoyed some distance from all those urgent emotions, I have more feelings of gratitude to share. First, to acknowledge the importance of the HWA in my life, I joined the HWA back a few years when there wasn’t quite a category for my writing. I was making enough money as a freelance horror fiction reviewer to qualify for Active membership but the HWA didn’t have a method of tracking/verifying so many different revenue streams. It was a dream of mine to be able to recommend books to the reading list and vote on the preliminary and final ballots. I worked very closely with the membership team to initiate my Active member status. And I am very grateful for their efforts to make sure I could be included. A big thank you to the HWA and its members

I also want to acknowledge my fellow nominees,

Robin R. Means Coleman & Mark H. Harris, Claire Fitzpatrick, Lisa Morton, and Lee Murray & just a staggering amount of talented people to be nominated alongside. It is an incredible honor to even be listed among them.

Also, the dream is to find yourself an editor that looks at you the way my editor, Alexandra Murphy looks at me. This book was her idea. She believed in me. She envisioned me as the author of this book and asked me to write it. When I hemmed and hawed, she told me I was the one to write this book. I followed her lead on this journey and it was my goal to make her proud. Alexandra does everything within her power to support me and preserve my voice so that my book sounds exactly how I want it to sound—like a conversation the reader is having with their friend who is obsessed with horror books—that’s all. She gets me. And it’s a gift to have her in my life. She is currently accepting horror submissions! HERE

Everything else I managed to say in my speech. I am so proud of this book, that it’s out there in the world making friends and living its life. It has a sibling waiting to be born but is still in its formative stages, so it’s getting all my attention these days. More on that Horror child soon. A full rundown of my entire and first ever StokerCon experience will be on my Patreon, this Friday

xx

Sadie

The app I use for instructor-led exercise for my bike, cardio, yoga, strength training, and stretching challenged users to do meditation for the entire month of May. I have never tried to practice meditation so this seemed like a good time to check it out for myself. It’s only the 17th and I have done 25 classes. I love it so much, that I committed to myself a daily practice. Just in case you have the app, my two favorite instructors are Ross Rayburn (he has a book too, Turning Inward: The Practice of Introversion for a Calm, Joyful, Authentic Life) and Aditi Shah

Today’s meditation was on peace. Ross told a story about a situation where he felt wronged by a stranger and was immediately reactive. He encouraged us to use the time of silence during our ten-minute meditation to reflect on sacrificing ego and the dopamine hit of being right for the sake of sharing peace through genuine apologies. Not an apology as a strategic move or a demonstration of moral superiority but a sincere act of peace.

This encouragement led me to meditate on a TikTok video I re-shared last night about emotional immaturity. Please view this list with an inward focus, don’t think of someone else:

Behaviors of people with low emotional intelligence or maturity

lack of empathy

criticism

poor listening skills

blaming others

offending others

poor coping skills

repressing emotions

correcting others

talking negatively about others

seeking validation from others in the form of gossip

always self-focused

relationship struggles

difficulty managing stress and unexpected obstacles

holding grudges

inability to practice control

withholding compliments

never apologizing or giving verbal affirmations of forgiveness

poor social skills

avoiding emotional topics

outbursts

dislikes change/comfort in routine

impulsive behavior

lack of self-awareness in public spaces

My meditation this morning was gentle persuasion from the instructor, Ross, to be intentional about sacrificing ego, and being “right”, for the sake of peace in shared spaces. This manifests itself in so many ways and if you share communal space with other people (most of us do) there will be plenty of opportunity to put this into practice. In just ten minutes this morning, I have spent so much time thinking about my behavior toward others and ways I can be more intentional about promoting peace. Sometimes, that looks like just walking away, quietly. There is strength in control.

So emotional maturity looks like these behaviors:

empathy

encouragement

listening

taking ownership/accepting blame or taking accountability

respecting others

taking responsibility for coping

sharing emotions

patience

building people up

confidence and a healthy sense of self-esteem

thinking about others

pro-active in nurturing relationships

advocating for personal mental health

managing boundaries/generous assumption/ creating space for forgiveness

exercises control

gives compliments

gives and receives forgiveness

good social skills

comfortable engaging in emotional topics

manages expectations

adaptability

consistent behavior

self-aware in public spaces

I wanted to share it this Friday and wish everyone a more peaceful weekend.

xx

Sadie

Social media is fueled by engagement. The idea is for people to engage with you so if your post isn’t starting a conversation or if people can’t relate to it, nobody will engage with it. It will flatline.

Here are 5 things you can post to increase engagement. Mix it up. Have fun. Be creative. If social media is a “necessary evil” or “a chore”, people will feel that from you. Authenticity is your currency and won’t feel like work if it’s coming from a genuine, deep well—you’ll have plenty to give. If it’s fake it will 100% drain you and feel like a real effort.

INFO: Share something people need to know. Who, what, when, where, why. Cover all of those questions all week long. Who are you? What are you working on? When are you on tour? Where are you signing books? Why are you writing this book? Who did you write it for? Who designed your book cover? On and on.

TRUTH: People love to share what they relate to so if you post a universal truth:

Horror Books Saved My Life.

Other people who can relate will share it as if it is their own truth because it is. And now you’re finding your audience. And they will find you. Seems simple and easy and that’s because it is. This is how we have been finding like-minded people since forever.

TIPS OR ADVICE:

Here is this thing I learned and put into practice and it worked and so I’m telling you about this thing so you can see if it works for you. People want this. Give them your tips, your failures, your life lessons…we’re all trying to figure shit out and any advice you have to give is important and they will save it, share it, like it, and engage with it. What do you think I’m doing right now? ;)

RECOMMENDATIONS: People love good movies, books, TV shows, places to eat, recipes, blogs, music, the best mattress to buy, the jeans that make your ass look great, the best hotel, the cocktail you always order…and they will share it and try it and come back for more if it’s worthy

A UNIQUE OBSERVATION: Seinfeld built an empire off of this. Share something about your mundane life that everyone has experienced. Tell a story. You’re a writer, this should be the easy part. Put it in a little graphic that people can share.

Hope this helps!

PS. The world sucks. Be kind online.

Now share the thing and get outside for some fresh air.

xx

Sadie

A decade after its release, I finally finished, True Detective, Season 1. It was one of the best shows I’ve ever watched. I wanted more, to be honest, and when I’m not ready to leave certain vibes, I turn to books. I curated a reading list for myself (and you) based on the vibes, tropes, themes, and aesthetics of True Detective, Season 1. Some of the books, the ones by women especially, were chosen to give a voice to the victims.

Here are the books I chose and why:

A God in the Shed by J. F. Debeau- “Rural small town”, “folk horror”, “murdered & missing people”, “police procedural”, “serial killer” “corruption”, “religion”

The King in Yellow (on my TBR) by Robert W. Chambers- “exploring themes of the supernatural, spirituality, and the potentially corrosive influence of belief in the afterlife.” This book plays an important role in the show

if the creek don’t rise (on my TBR) by Leah Weiss- “Southern Gothic” “rural small towns” “poverty”, “rich characters” “strong sense of place”

Moon Trees and Other Orphans (on my TBR) by Leigh Camacho Rourks- focuses on themes of desperation, loneliness, and love. Filled with hard-living characters who are deeply lonely, it tracks the ways they fight for survival, often making very bad decisions as they go. Populated by gun-toting women, ex-cons, desperate teens, and other outsiders, it is a collection about what life is like in hard places, both beautiful and dangerous.”

Child of God (on my TBR) by Cormac McCarthy- *free audible audiobook. “mental illness”, “violence”, “gruesome & grim”, “disturbing, visceral, and gross” I think the tone of Cormac McCarthy’s storytelling matches True Detective vibes

Salvage This World (on my TBR) Michael Farris Smith- “A fierce zealot has gained a foothold, capitalizing on the vulnerability of a dwindling population and a burning need for hope. As she preaches and promises salvation from the light of the pulpit, in the shadows she sows the seeds of violence. Elsewhere, Jessie and her toddler, Jace, are on the run across the Mississippi/Louisiana line, in a resentful return to her childhood home and her desolate father. Holt, Jace's father, is missing and hunted by a brutish crowd, and an old man witnesses the wrong thing in the depths of night. In only a matter of days, all of their lives will collide, and be altered, in the maelstrom of the changing world.”

Wise Blood (on my TBR) by Flannery O’Conner- I have been dying to read some Flannery! “Southern Gothic”, “Religion”, “haunting”, “false prophets”

Dark Places by Gillian Flynn- “murder”, “satanic sacrifice”, “rural small town”, “secret societies”, “crime/murder mysteries”

The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock- “Southern Gothic”, “rural small towns”, “serial killers”, “corruption”, “predatory religious figures”, “gritty & gruesome”

On the Savage Side by Tiffany McDaniel- “murdered & missing women”, “crime/murder mystery”, “rural small towns”, “bleak & gruesome”, “serial killer”, “corruption”

The House of Dust (on my TBR) by Noah Broyles- “Southern Gothic”, “rural Tennessee”, “crime”, “sex work”, “bizarre symbols”, “darkness”, “menacing”

The Boatman’s Daughter by Andy Davidson- “Southern Gothic”, “a mad preacher”, “human monsters”, “swamps & bayous”, “noir thriller”

The Devil Himself by Peter Farris- “Southern noir” “human trafficking” “young women victims” “revenge”

Provinces of Night by William Gay- “Southern Gothic”, “violence”, “murder”, “literary” “rural small town” this one sounds like True Crime vibes…

It's 1952, and E.F. Bloodworth is finally coming home to Ackerman's Field, Tennessee. Itinerant banjo picker and volatile vagrant, he's been gone ever since he gunned down a deputy thirty years before. Two of his sons won't be home to greet him: Warren lives a life of alcoholic philandering down in Alabama, and Boyd has gone to Detroit in vengeful pursuit of his wife and the peddler she ran off with. His third son, Brady, is still home, but he's an addled soothsayer given to voodoo and bent on doing whatever it takes to keep E.F. from seeing the wife he abandoned. Only Fleming, E.F.'s grandson, is pleased with the old man's homecoming, but Fleming's life is soon to careen down an unpredictable path hewn by the beautiful Raven Lee Halfacre.

In the great Southern tradition of Faulkner, Styron, and Cormac McCarthy, William Gay wields a prose as evocative and lush as the haunted and humid world it depicts. Provinces of Night is a tale redolent of violence and redemption-a whiskey-scented, knife-scarred novel whose indelible finale is not an ending nearly so much as it is an apotheosis.

If you enjoyed this list, just know that my second book (coming Fall 2025) is all about curated reading lists with dark fiction & horror by women storytellers.

Have a great weekend!

Sadie

If I could, I would research books all day and do absolutely nothing but read my discoveries. But real life makes me take these long pauses to buy groceries, take the car to get an oil change and run a business.

But writing my second book does give me an excuse to research books all day and read them. Librarians have noticed me blathering on about how my library enables my reading addiction and one of them, a very cool one named, Yaika Sabat, asked if she could interview me about it. I said yes, so here it is:

example:

What is your favorite thing about using NoveList Plus? 

It is an invaluable resource. I have librarians that I'm a fan of because of their recommendations. Librarians will do those recs and you can hover over the book, and they put notes as to why they recommended it. It opened the door to so many new authors that I had never heard of before and then became an instant fan. For instance, after I read The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell, I read every single one of the librarian recommendations on the sidebar. One of them was An Unthinkable Thing by Nicole Lundrigan, who is a British author. I've never heard of her. I read the book and it completely blew my mind. Now I am a total fan of this author and will read everything this author puts out. 

A few days ago, I finished an Alexis Henderson book, House of Hunger. I looked it up on NoveList Plus and then there were all these recommendations. I've been going through all of those.  

I found Gilda Stories by Jewelle Gomez. I've been reading it all morning. I'm completely obsessed with it. Now, I'm going to recommend it to everyone. You never know when you’ll find your next favorite book or your next favorite author, and then you can snowball from there on NoveList Plus. 

Not only do you find these books in the list recommending similar titles, but it tells you at the bottom if it's available at your library, and you can get it with one click. It's the coolest thing ever.  A lot of times, it's a book that's not even available yet. It will say if it's forthcoming, and you can request it. If you're requesting a brand-new book, you might be first in line, which is almost impossible. At my library, for brand new titles, the waitlist is super aggressive. I somehow got The Berry Pickers! 

Read the whole interview HERE

and thank you Yaika and NoveList Plus!

Are you hungry for…

__DAILY__

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__RECOMMENDATIONS__

Night Worms and its co-owners, myself and Ashley “SpookishMommy” have made some social media changes and we want to make sure you know where to get daily horror book recommendations and important information about Night Worms, our monthly, curated, horror fiction subscription service.

Ashley can be found on Instagram & TikTok

She hosts book clubs, loves translated fiction by latine authors, and enjoys non-fiction books about weird, morbid, and murdery things

Find me on Instagram & TikTok
I post recommendations for horror books based on themes, vibes, tropes, and sub-genres. I have a Patreon where I have a weekly sampling of in-depth book reviews, new book releases every Tuesday, and curated reading guides. I’m currently reading horror and dark fiction from women authors as research for an upcoming book

Night Worms is exclusively on Instagram you can sign up for our newsletter by giving us your contact information at the bottom of our website we also have a YouTube

We are only interested in connecting with other readers that share our passion for all things books and reading. We no longer use or see the benefits of “water cooler apps” like Twitter, Threads, or Bluesky.

Other relevant links for Sadie Hartmann

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We’re both very dedicated to the ongoing success of Night Worms and continued love for the bookstagram community. Family life is very important to us so we work hard during the week Monday-Friday 8 AM - 4 PM and are available by email if you need to reach us nightwormsreviews @ gmail.com we do not conduct business or engage in customer service through social media.
Thank you, and happy reading!