When the Wolf Comes Home by Nat Cassidy Book Review

 

Goodreads

 

5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Nat Cassidy is quickly becoming a must-read author for me. When the Wolf Comes Home is a fast-paced, emotional, and terrifying blend of psychological and supernatural horror. This isn’t just a werewolf story. At its core, it's about trauma, survival, and the ways fear can shape and destroy us.

The story follows Jess, a struggling actress whose life takes a wild turn when she finds a five-year-old runaway hiding behind her building. As they hit the road together, she realizes his fears aren’t just in his head, they’re becoming real.

Cassidy does such a great job weaving action, emotion, and horror together. Jess is a deeply flawed and raw but relatable character, and her bond with the boy broke my heart in the best way. Cookie, Jess’s eccentric mother, adds even more chaos and heart to the story. The family dynamics are just as intense as the horror.

The writing is vivid and grounded, full of gut-punch moments, dark humour, and metaphors. The creature horror is wild and unpredictable, but it’s the emotional weight behind it that sticks with you.

This was one of the most unique and emotionally resonant horror novels I’ve read in a while. Emotional, terrifying, and totally unforgettable. The audiobook is fantastic too. Highly recommend if you love emotional horror, road trip thrillers, and dark, gritty storytelling.

The Sirens by Emilia Hart Book Review

   

Goodreads

3.5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Sirens by Emilia Hart is a beautifully written historical fantasy with strong themes of sisterhood, resilience, and transformation. The story moves between two timelines: in 1800, Irish sisters Mary and Eliza are sentenced to transportation to Australia aboard a harrowing convict ship, and in 2019, Lucy returns to a coastal town searching for answers after her sister Jess disappears.

The dual timeline format is a strength, with the historical narrative standing out as the most compelling. The atmosphere is immersive, especially around the sea, the coastal setting, and the eerie small-town mysteries. Hart’s writing style remains lyrical and evocative, with clear echoes of her debut Weyward.

Where the book faltered for me was in the pacing and emotional engagement. Lucy’s chapters, written in third person, felt distant and repetitive, slowing the pacing and making it harder to connect. Although the themes of transformation and inherited trauma were interesting, many of the major revelations came too late to be satisfying. I also found the student-teacher subplot in Jess’s arc unnecessary and distracting.

While the concept was strong and the writing lovely, I didn’t feel as gripped or emotionally invested as I hoped. Readers who loved Weyward may still enjoy the lyrical style and themes, but The Sirens never fully hooked me.

The Cut by C.J. Dotson Book Review

  

Goodreads

2.5/5 ⭐⭐⭐

The Cut started off strong with a great premise and an eerie atmosphere. I was immediately drawn to the story of Sadie, a pregnant mother fleeing her abusive husband, trying to protect her toddler while starting over as a housekeeper at the L’Arpin Hotel on Lake Erie. The locked-room vibe and supernatural hints had me hooked early on.

But the story started to lose me as it went on. The plot became repetitive and dragged in places, and some of the twists took strange turns that didn’t quite land. I was hoping the domestic violence backstory would tie more directly into the horror elements, but instead it felt like two disconnected storylines. While Sadie’s character arc was one of the book’s strengths, I think the themes could have meshed together more effectively.

I really enjoyed the creepy hotel setting and the early supernatural buildup. But once the story shifted into full-on creature horror, it lost some of that grounded tension. The ending felt rushed and didn’t quite work for me.

Overall, The Cut had a lot of potential, and I was disappointed it didn’t end stronger. The setup pulled me in, but the execution fell flat. Still, if you’re into atmospheric horror with a locked-room feel and a creature twist, it might be worth a read.