(pictured: a spread from Nowhere by Jon Claytor)

Long time viewers may remember the previous part of this - apparently - ongoing series. The few folks who did respond seemed to genuinely like it, and so I thought I would continue sharing some of the grand and beautiful literature that I’ve spend the last two months reading.

As in the previous part, anything bolded is a particularly strong recommendation, but generally, if I mention something here, it’s something that I’ve enjoyed enough to finish reading. Further to that, anything with an *asterisk next to it is something from my local library. Feel free to follow along with me on StoryGraph if you’re keen to keep up with me in real time.

One thing I want to mention: Incidents Around the House and Horror Movie are books that I started reading last year, and then returned to the library. They weren’t DNF or anything, I just hadn’t gotten back to them - and now I have, so I didn’t start them the beginning or anything.

Speaking of DNF - I actually had my first DNF in April, and sadly it was My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones; though I would like to say this is a me issue and not an issue with the book itself. Jones is a fiercely talented writer, it was more that I just realized I’m not especially interested in slasher stories. Personal preference, not a problem with the book in the slightest.

March:

*The Unworthy (2023) by Agustina Bazterrica

Tales From The Road: Hardcore (2026) by Brody King & Mike Kingston

*Nowhere (2026) by Jon Claytor

*Last Days (2012) by Adam L.G. Nevill

*Walking Practice (2023) by Dolki Min

*Diary of a Haunting (2015) by M. Verano

Everything the Darkness Eats (2023) by Eric LaRocca

*Incidents Around the House (2024) by Josh Malerman

Thoughts:

I am so glad that I went back to the well of Agustina Bazterrica because The Unworthy is, truly, so fucking great. Bazterrica has such special way of writing, and I will be continuing to seek out their work going forward. Also, I don’t want to call it early or anything, but Walking Practice might be my favourite thing that I’ve read this year, delightfully bizarre and bitingly satirical, it’s one that I just keep thinking about. You may notice a couple of comics/graphic novels on the list this time around - and that bears commenting on because there is still this really bizarre stigma against the medium to which I would like to say: grow up. Telling a story can be done any number of ways, and we shouldn’t gatekeep storytelling or denigrate a particular way. Nowhere in particular is really special, and I recommend it. God damn did Incidents Around the House creep me out more than once…

April:

*Model Home (2024) by Rivers Solomon

*Horror Movie (2024) by Paul Tremblay

House of Leaves (2000) by Mark Z. Danielewski

*You Should Have Left (2016) by Daniel Kehlmann

The Extra (2026) by Annie Neugebauer

Thoughts:

In April I decided I would do a re-read of House of Leaves, and so the month was heavily dominated by that one. If you’re not familiar with it, it’s an extremely dense and strange haunted-house story that requires a significant investment from you as a reader. I actually used the fact that I was re-reading it to host a read-along on Storygraph, and had a genuinely good time chatting with folks about it, and even picked up some new insights this time around. I love that fucking book. Also, it was kind of ironic that You Should Have Left was the next book that I read, they almost feel like companions in a way - though You Should Have Left is a significantly easier read. I also absolutely need to shout out Model Home by Rivers Solomon; one of the most unique takes on a haunted house that I’ve maybe ever read - and were it not for Walking Practice, that would be my favourite book of the year so far.

So, there you have it friends. That’s March and April in a nutshell. I recently picked up Strange Buildings by Uketsu and Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones, so those will likely be my next two reads - depending on when the short books I’ve ordered from my local library arrive anyways. Take care of yourselves, read books, go to the library.

See you next time.