Horror Books I Read Recently

These are four horror books I read and finished recently. Here are my reviews.

Grief Eater By Emma Osborne 4.75

This a short yet emotional horror story following a recently turned zombie, who before she is lost to the mindless red mist of the undead decides to get revenge on her abusive, homophobic family. While she makes her journey back we learn more of her past and her relationship with her family and why she wishes to kill them. We also learn of her friendship with Josh a trans man who was the only person who loved her for who she was . There is a moment where she does run into him after becoming a zombie and she toys with the idea of eating him to get his memories to see if he truly loved her as the undead in this world can experience the memories and feelings of those they eat, she doesn't eat him but gets from a small bit of his spilled blood to know his true feelings. The ending is bittersweet in that Kristina gets to have some partial vengeance but also after devouring her mother sees nothing of her in the memories, so is left a little bit empty at knowing her family erased her but I weirdly hope she got some closure before she let herself got mindless. This was short, brutal and emotional and would definitely read more form this author.

The No End House by Jeremy Bates 3.75

This was a good audiobook and did have scares but after a strong start the ending was a bit of a let down. We follow Joe who is backpacking around the world after the grisly death of his wife, while in Barcelona he overhears about the No-End House challenge from two kiwi backpackers. He is intrigued but has no interest in doing it, but he meets Helen who convinces him to do it. They soon find out that this challenge is no joke and soon find their deepest fears and secrets are brought out in the course of going through the rooms and find they're fighting for their lives and souls. Like I said I enjoyed it but the ending was a bit of a let down.

The Man in the Watch Still Visits Me at Night by Joshua Chaplinsky 4.75

I enjoyed this book it is very lynchian and I was absorbed in it but it was also confusing and the ending I didn't quite get so it knocked my rating to 4.75. The book deals with multiple POVs mainly Jenna and Mrs Vogel and Jenna's mother Nancy has a couple of chapters with the action taking mostly at the Vogel house . This book does get trippy at one point I thought a editing mistake had had happened with a chapter till I realise it was intentional. This is my first work by this author and I would like to read his other work. If you like horror that is a little trippy and gives of David Lynch vibes this is for you.

Zombies of the Upper East Side by Jason Zeffir 5.0

This was a surprise for me and a great funny and at times quite gruesome. We follow Charmaine who is going through a divorce with her slimeball husband, and her disapproving mother in law is determined to make sure she is left with nothing and back to Yonkers where she belongs, we come just at the zombie is heating up with Charmaine oblivious after a night of drinking with her pal Mitzi it was funny how she didn't register the odd happenings as she makes her way to her apartment. The book switches from the current and past events showing how things were going strange and Charmaine of course is kinda of wrap up in her own issues such as the divorce and not wanting to commit so social suicide like her from friend Sylvia and or Margot Payne who is now known as the Upper East Side Spitter after her brutal divorce left her penniless and roaming the neighborhood causing chaos. When Charmaine does finally become aware of the zombie situation her main thoughts are if her sons who are missing, she then goes on a journey to look for them trying not to think on the fact of the idea of them possibly being one of the undead. This was good and the twist which looking back I should have guess when Charmaine mentions how the noises the zombies make are just grunts and growls to the living but to other zombies are just normal words. It didn't end the way I would have wanted but it was so funny that I didn't mind it and if it does lead to a another book in the same world I'd be down for it especially if it focused on Mitzi.

I do find it interesting that the two zombies stories I rated highly even though I gave Zombies of the Upper East Side a 5 whereas I gave Grief Eater a 4.75 either though both ended in a way I didn't particularly like but maybe the humour of the former made the ending more palatable where the latter was just a bit too bittersweet.