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2026 Reading Challenge

2026

READING

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Erick Mertz has read 5 of 42 books.

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Erick Mertz

Goodreads Author

Born

in Portland, The United States

January 21, 1976

Website

http://www.erickmertzauthor.com

Twitter

emertzwriting

Genre

Fiction, Mystery, Paranormal

Influences

HP Lovecraft, Paul Doiron, Stephen King, Shirley Jackson, ee cummings, ...more

Member Since

November 2011

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/erickmertz

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Erick Mertz is an author, born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, a place he is still lucky enough to call his home. He writes a paranormal mystery series, “The Strange Air” , described as “Longmire” meets “The X-Files”, set in the fictional central Oregon town of Whistler’s Grove.
In a previous lifetime, while a student at the University of Oregon, he studied English literature and played records late at night on campus radio 88.1 KWVA. After school was finished, he worked in group homes and as a case manager for community based adults with developmental disabilities. This is an area where he continues to work.
If he’s not writing, you can probably find him worrying about the Portland Trailblazers, drinking a local beer, or exploring that ...more

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Combine Editions
Erick Mertz’s books

Average rating: 4.07 · 402 ratings · 107 reviews · 35 distinct works • Similar authors

	Forgotten Shadows (The Strange Air #1) 3.75 avg rating — 77 ratings — published 2024	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Permanent Shadows (The Strange Air #2) 3.95 avg rating — 64 ratings — published 2021 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Chasing Shadows (The Strange Air #3) really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 42 ratings — published 2022 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Book of Witness: 13 Peculiar Paranormal Tales From Canyon County 3.97 avg rating — 38 ratings — published 2019 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dead Still: A Black Springs Saga Paranormal Mystery (The Black Springs Saga Book 1) 4.42 avg rating — 19 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Season of the Shadow (The Strange Air #4) 4.40 avg rating — 15 ratings — published 2023 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Accidental Stranger: A Black Springs Saga Paranormal Mystery (The Black Springs Saga Book 2) 4.38 avg rating — 13 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Meeting at Bishop's Rest 3.79 avg rating — 14 ratings — published 2019	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Shadow Signals: A Strange Air Paranormal Mystery (The Strange Air Book 5) 4.25 avg rating — 8 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Tales From Fog World: A Companion Collection it was amazing 5.00 avg rating — 6 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Erick Mertz's Blog

Comment on Alaska Writers Guild �� An Adventure Log by Miranda Summerset

Fingers crossed

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Published on October 12, 2023 17:59

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Series by Erick Mertz

The Strange Air (4 books)
by

Erick Mertz (Goodreads Author)

3.96 avg rating — 266 ratings

Erick is Currently Reading

Erick Mertz is currently reading

The Sarvàn

by Douglass Hoover (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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15 hours, 57 min ago

Erick Mertz is currently reading

Lost in the Dark and Other Excursions

by John Langan

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Aug 11, 2025 09:40PM

Erick Mertz is currently reading

The Imago Sequence

by Laird Barron (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading, 2025-reading-list, horror

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Apr 16, 2025 03:36PM

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Erick’s Recent Updates

Erick Mertz is currently reading The Sarvàn by Douglass Hoover (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
15 hours, 57 min ago · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Sarvàn by Douglass Hoover. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Sarvàn by Douglass Hoover <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Erick Mertz rated a book it was amazing The Deviant Vol. 2 by James Tynion IV	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed this one. Featuring a more diverse use of setting and characters, I felt like I got to see/experience more of the story world.
Jan 27, 2026 08:15AM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Deviant Vol. 2 by James Tynion IV. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Deviant Vol. 2 by James Tynion IV <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Erick Mertz rated a book really liked it Eden's Clock (The American Novels) by Norman Lock	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Enjoyed this book quite a bit. The prose was fantastic and the character musings were interesting. Genuine insight through the novel, ones on America today and American history. This was the first of "The American Novels" that I read. I will, on the s ...more
Jan 27, 2026 08:11AM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Eden's Clock by Norman Lock. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Eden's Clock by Norman Lock <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Erick Mertz rated a book really liked it Boris the Potato Child by Anne Simon	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
One of the strangest, yet, most entertaining graphic novels I've picked up in quite a long time. Maybe a little light on story -- obviously, no one should pick this up for that -- but the absurdity and whip cracking wit is worth reading. ...more
Jan 11, 2026 08:20PM · 1 like · like · see review
Erick Mertz rated a book it was amazing Swim Home to the Vanished by Brendan Shay Basham (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
More like 4.5 Stars. Really enjoyed this read. Strong characters, warm and welcoming PNW/SW USA setting, with lots of animal/human weirdness. Enthralled, for the most part.
Jan 10, 2026 11:25AM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Swim Home to the Vanished by Brendan Shay Basham. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Swim Home to the Vanished by Brendan Shay Basham <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Erick Mertz rated a book liked it Kafkaesque: Fourteen Stories by Peter Kuper	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
While I was excited to pick up a book by the guy that took over Spy Vs. Spy (my favorite Mad section) this was a let down. I liked some of the weird, random stories, they didn't really hold together very well as a complete volume. It's worth picking ...more
Jan 10, 2026 10:06AM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Kafkaesque by Peter Kuper. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Kafkaesque by Peter Kuper <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Erick Mertz is now following Brendan Shay Basham Author of Swim Home to the Vanished
Jan 09, 2026 08:43AM · like
Erick Mertz is currently reading Swim Home to the Vanished by Brendan Shay Basham (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Jan 09, 2026 08:42AM · 1 like · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Swim Home to the Vanished by Brendan Shay Basham. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Swim Home to the Vanished by Brendan Shay Basham <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Jan 09, 2026 08:42AM · like
Erick Mertz rated a book really liked it Brigands & Breadknives (Legends & Lattes, #2) by Travis Baldree (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
LISTENED TO THE AUDIO BOOK: As expected, I enjoyed the "Brigands & Breadknives" experience. The characters, of course, popped, and the story was as sharp as a blade. This one felt a little more edgy than previous volumes, more frequent profanity and h ...more
Dec 26, 2025 02:18PM · 1 like · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Brigands & Breadknives by Travis Baldree <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">