The Wretched: A Horror Novella

by Harlan Black

Some things cannot be contained.

In 1782, a night traveling stagecoach is attacked and the passengers torn to pieces. News spreads swiftly through the rural village of Westenshire as people whisper about unnatural beasts. Elspeth Clark doesn’t believe any of it. As a skilled herbalist and midwife, she knows the forests better than any hunter.

But when she meets an outsider who needs her help, she’s thrown into the middle of a deadly conflict she didn’t create.

A conflict that will scour her life with claw deep grooves and change it forever.
But danger doesn’t just lurk in the forest.

Elspeth must also fight against a man who wants to control her, a man who will destroy anything that gets in the way of what he wants.

As fear turns into hysteria, Elspeth becomes the target of a village that never trusted her and a pawn to a group of strangers who have a score to settle.

Now nobody is safe. As the full moon rises, the road to vengeance gets soaked in blood.

If you love supernatural horror stories that slither along occult edges with a dash of folklore and mayhem, you’ll love this book.

191 pages, Paperback

Published April 1, 2023

Reviews

[Milt Theo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-written werewolf story, focusing on what it means to be a werewolf, rather than going simply for gore and blind action. Not that Harlan Black's novella isn't action-packed - anything but! It starts in the 18th century with a terrific, bloody scene of a werewolf attack, goes into a hugely interesting plot around a newly minted werewolf and the woman who tries to help him, managing to cover the whole spectrum of what makes a good werewolf tale! By the end of the story, you will feel like these are people you know, whose concerns are also yours. There are, of course, some characters you'd never enjoy encountering! So if you want to be involved and entertained by a book, if you crave some good old emotional enjoyment, read this book. I am grateful to the author for the ARC, giving me the chance to review his new work.

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Trigger warning: there is murder of adults (very gruesome) & an infant.
What a story! Harlan Black weaves an amazing tale of werewolves and the awfulness of humans. It's dark, tragic, and has you rooting for the werewolves.
I'm not a huge fan of 'historic' stories, but this reads like Dracula. It's entertaining, with great characters and world building, and just non-stop action. First, you dread and fear the coming werewolves, but then you want them to thrive. I'm not entirely sure how Black even did it. That's how masterful if is.
If you like a bit of gore and retribution with your horror, definitely read this!