New Horror for Readers Who Want to Be Completely Terrified

Curdle Creek

By Yvonne Battle-Felton

The town at the center of Yvonne Battle-Felton’s new novel, CURDLE CREEK (Holt, 292 pp., $27.99), is a small, all-Black, separatist community with a strict population policy: “One in, one out.” To keep the enclave safe, there are many yearly rituals required of residents, including Moving On, Warding Off, the Calling and the Running of the Widows.

Osira has always lived in Curdle Creek, but she fears her standing because her children broke the town’s rules and ran away. Then her father’s name is called for a murderous ritual, but rather than submit, he flees. With her position jeopardized, Osira is forced to prove herself by traveling into different realms to answer for Curdle Creek’s sins and make things right … whatever that means.

“Curdle Creek” explores the sacrifices people are willing to make for safety, and how surrendering freedom for the common good can sometimes morph into self-immolation. Power struggles, pettiness, violence perpetrated in the name of religion, along with dark secrets hidden in the fabric of the community, make life in the small town a repressive, stressful nightmare. With tight dialogue, elegant writing and a startling ending, this is a wonderful novel about the worst monsters of all: people.

Nether Station

By Kevin J. Anderson

Iä! Iä! Cthulhu fhtagn! Rejoice, Cthulhu devotees, Kevin J. Anderson’s NETHER STATION (Blackstone, 308 pp., $27.99) is a fun, pulpy mix of science fiction and cosmic horror that clearly admires, and pays homage to, H.P. Lovecraft.

Cammie Skoura is a neurodivergent astrophysicist who investigates wormholes. She and a professor have spent years studying one wormhole in particular, Nether, but after losing an important research probe, they had to abandon the project.