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The Black Lord
There’s something knocking on the window.
Eddie’s parents may be arguing about the disappearance of his infant brother Danny, but Eddie’s facing a terror all of his own. There’s a strange figure outside that claims it has Danny safe and sound—all Eddie needs to do to get his brother back is open that window.
Eddie’s father is filled with guilt over his relationship with his own lost brother. His mother has been abandoned to navigate her grief and terror alone. His grandmother carries with her a disturbing and all-too-relevant truth about their shared family history. As minutes tick by and hope for Danny grows ever smaller, the very fabric of their world disintegrates, welcoming eldritch terrors of unspeakable provenance to their doorstep.
The family is losing a decades-long struggle against an entity that is not of this world, and its hunger threatens to swallow them whole.
Eddie’s parents may be arguing about the disappearance of his infant brother Danny, but Eddie’s facing a terror all of his own. There’s a strange figure outside that claims it has Danny safe and sound—all Eddie needs to do to get his brother back is open that window.
Eddie’s father is filled with guilt over his relationship with his own lost brother. His mother has been abandoned to navigate her grief and terror alone. His grandmother carries with her a disturbing and all-too-relevant truth about their shared family history. As minutes tick by and hope for Danny grows ever smaller, the very fabric of their world disintegrates, welcoming eldritch terrors of unspeakable provenance to their doorstep.
The family is losing a decades-long struggle against an entity that is not of this world, and its hunger threatens to swallow them whole.
114 pages, Paperback
First published September 12, 2023
13 people are currently reading
488 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
August 31, 2023
Review originally on JamReads
The Black Lord is a highly atmospheric folk horror/cosmic horror novella, which marks the debut of Colin Hinckley as writer, and published by Tenebrous Press. A book which grips you from the start, blending elements of folklore and horror in equal parts, following the story of a family from the different POVs of each one of its members.
Eddie's family broke into a million shards after the disappearance of his infant brother Danny; each one is using its own coping mechanisms to deal with it, but Eddie is living his own nightmare. Something is knocking outside, claiming that Danny is safe, and that will get returned if Eddie opens that window; a supernatural entity that is related to his father's family is trying to destroy the family.
Guilt is getting over his dad, as this is a secret that he and his mother are keeping from the rest, separating them and letting alone his wife. If they want to survive, telling the truth about this entity is the first step of a battle they need to fight.
Hinckley creates a really oppressive atmosphere from the start, going from a progressive sensation of discomfort to a more general and cosmic horror; the nature of the creature threatening the family is a big part of it. The story is cleverly structured, with every chapter being narrated from a distinct viewpoint, giving us the chance to piece together the puzzle it creates; we understand how each one of the members feel.
While most of the elements used in the story are classic, the way they are mashed together is certainly innovative; it deserves a special mention how each chapter goes back a little in the timeline to continue the story from where we left it, weaving and creating additional context for us.
Hinckley's debut is a delightful novel for any horror lover, proving that you can use a classic trope and create something totally new and innovative. The Black Lord shows a promising writer behind.
The Black Lord is a highly atmospheric folk horror/cosmic horror novella, which marks the debut of Colin Hinckley as writer, and published by Tenebrous Press. A book which grips you from the start, blending elements of folklore and horror in equal parts, following the story of a family from the different POVs of each one of its members.
Eddie's family broke into a million shards after the disappearance of his infant brother Danny; each one is using its own coping mechanisms to deal with it, but Eddie is living his own nightmare. Something is knocking outside, claiming that Danny is safe, and that will get returned if Eddie opens that window; a supernatural entity that is related to his father's family is trying to destroy the family.
Guilt is getting over his dad, as this is a secret that he and his mother are keeping from the rest, separating them and letting alone his wife. If they want to survive, telling the truth about this entity is the first step of a battle they need to fight.
Hinckley creates a really oppressive atmosphere from the start, going from a progressive sensation of discomfort to a more general and cosmic horror; the nature of the creature threatening the family is a big part of it. The story is cleverly structured, with every chapter being narrated from a distinct viewpoint, giving us the chance to piece together the puzzle it creates; we understand how each one of the members feel.
While most of the elements used in the story are classic, the way they are mashed together is certainly innovative; it deserves a special mention how each chapter goes back a little in the timeline to continue the story from where we left it, weaving and creating additional context for us.
Hinckley's debut is a delightful novel for any horror lover, proving that you can use a classic trope and create something totally new and innovative. The Black Lord shows a promising writer behind.
June 2, 2024
“The air around the thing’s mouth vibrates, then turns black, as if the sound is darkness, leeching from deep inside its stinking gullet.”
If a book started off punching you in the kidney and then kicking you in the teeth it might be more gentle than the hits that come at the beginning of THE BLACK LORD. Devastating and terrifying, and I'm talking Freddy Kruger stretching his arms out to scratch the walls of the boiler room level of freaky scary, or even Danny Glick floating up to Mark's window level of chills.
I challenge you to read this story that is absolutely filled with dark imagery, heart stopping tense moments, and emotionally crushing scenes without letting it get under your skin. Well, actually, I take back that challenge because I want you to experience all of that like I did, after all, that is why we read horror.
The book had a very interesting delivery style. It is told from several characters perspectives and you get to see a few scenes from different points of view. It was fun.
One of the characters, and I’m not going to tell you who, is someone that you will want to pick up, hug, and put in your pocket so you can bring them home and take care of them. This character carries a lot of weight on their shoulders and really reminded me of Connor, the boy from A Monster Calls.
“A child shouldn’t have to know about this. A child shouldn’t be subjected to this horrible reality that’s one part fairy tale and two parts unspeakable tragedy.”
If a book started off punching you in the kidney and then kicking you in the teeth it might be more gentle than the hits that come at the beginning of THE BLACK LORD. Devastating and terrifying, and I'm talking Freddy Kruger stretching his arms out to scratch the walls of the boiler room level of freaky scary, or even Danny Glick floating up to Mark's window level of chills.
I challenge you to read this story that is absolutely filled with dark imagery, heart stopping tense moments, and emotionally crushing scenes without letting it get under your skin. Well, actually, I take back that challenge because I want you to experience all of that like I did, after all, that is why we read horror.
The book had a very interesting delivery style. It is told from several characters perspectives and you get to see a few scenes from different points of view. It was fun.
One of the characters, and I’m not going to tell you who, is someone that you will want to pick up, hug, and put in your pocket so you can bring them home and take care of them. This character carries a lot of weight on their shoulders and really reminded me of Connor, the boy from A Monster Calls.
“A child shouldn’t have to know about this. A child shouldn’t be subjected to this horrible reality that’s one part fairy tale and two parts unspeakable tragedy.”
September 9, 2023
The Black Lord is a grief-fueled tale of terror centered around how far a family can go after a devastating event that’s only going to get worse before it can get better.
I picked this up one afternoon and read straight through. I couldn’t set it down for a second, antsy to see how it would all play out.
With how fast-paced this story is, I really appreciated how each person involved just went with what was going on. There wasn’t any long drawn-out denial or questioning of every little thing. They all understood the danger and that time wasn’t on their side.
A tale that runs full petal to the medal, prepare to have your blood pressure jump up and stay up throughout this read. Each step of the way, more terrors and anxious dread are introduced.
Horror fans who love tales centered around family and terrifying things that scream in the night, this is a book for you!
Check out my full review here: https://www.ericarobynreads.com/the-b...
I picked this up one afternoon and read straight through. I couldn’t set it down for a second, antsy to see how it would all play out.
With how fast-paced this story is, I really appreciated how each person involved just went with what was going on. There wasn’t any long drawn-out denial or questioning of every little thing. They all understood the danger and that time wasn’t on their side.
A tale that runs full petal to the medal, prepare to have your blood pressure jump up and stay up throughout this read. Each step of the way, more terrors and anxious dread are introduced.
Horror fans who love tales centered around family and terrifying things that scream in the night, this is a book for you!
Check out my full review here: https://www.ericarobynreads.com/the-b...
July 23, 2023
This is a supremely creepy cosmic horror/folk horror novella that delivers the scares.
Unexplained creatures lurking outside of a child's window, mysterious and frightening things in the woods, and a family secret that puts everyone involved in danger. Not just physical danger, but the lure of another world that wants to take their souls and feed on their bodies. Truly terrifying stuff in this book!
Add to that a missing baby and you have everything you could want in a book like this. It's a novella and the pages just flew by as I was completely immersed in this story and in this world. The dread oozes off the pages like a festering sore and you probably want to not read this at night.
I highly recommend this. I received an ARC of this book with no consideration. This review is voluntary and is my own personal opinion.
Unexplained creatures lurking outside of a child's window, mysterious and frightening things in the woods, and a family secret that puts everyone involved in danger. Not just physical danger, but the lure of another world that wants to take their souls and feed on their bodies. Truly terrifying stuff in this book!
Add to that a missing baby and you have everything you could want in a book like this. It's a novella and the pages just flew by as I was completely immersed in this story and in this world. The dread oozes off the pages like a festering sore and you probably want to not read this at night.
I highly recommend this. I received an ARC of this book with no consideration. This review is voluntary and is my own personal opinion.
September 28, 2023
Fantastic, eerie novella that’s like a night spent under the covers whispering spooky stories. The author has great instincts in depicting his characters, making them feel rich, distinct, and very real—then putting them in a situation straight of out a nightmare.
Recommended for fans of King’s pageturny character-driven works and Blackwoods’ stories of the outdoorsy weird.
Recommended for fans of King’s pageturny character-driven works and Blackwoods’ stories of the outdoorsy weird.
November 1, 2024
4.5 some of the best Lovecraftian horror I’ve read, even if the characters were a bit mid
February 18, 2025
3.5
The audiobook narrator’s voice was made for this story
The audiobook narrator’s voice was made for this story
Read
January 27, 2025Dark and somber neo-fairy tale. Very readable. Quite good.
Read
September 12, 2023THE BLACK LORD is weird horror at its finest. Colin Hinckley has crafted a wonderfully imaginative, suspenseful tale of family tragedy and secrets that is instantly gripping and spooky as hell. This story is unique, memorable cosmic horror/folk horror that delivers. It's GREAT.
October 1, 2025
I also grew up next to woods that I both loved and feared, and this story felt like something pulled out of my own childhood nightmares. It’s such a unique and enthralling and demented take on a creature in the woods (which turns out to be something so much more sinister). This truly scared me and I loved every page. I also loved A Mouth Filled with the Teeth of Trees. Hinckley perfectly captures how absolutely terrifying and majestic huge trees can be.
January 1, 2026
Fantastic short horror with an awesome bonus short story! I loved it!
July 31, 2023
Special thanks to Tenebrous Press for the ARC copy they provided.
The Black Lord is a unique experience, one that grips a reader hard, right from the beginning, and will not let go. I’m a fan of childhood horrors that prove real, and The Black Lord is a take on this troupe I didn’t fully anticipate.
The unexpected plays out first in the structure of the book. The Black Lord only boasts a handful of chapters, but each is from a different point of view. Every character has their moment narrating the story, and this alternating structure paints a twisting picture of the book readers would not otherwise be privy to.
The book rightly starts from the perspective of Eddie, the youngest of the Sutners. Eddie highlights the base, innate fear of the monster coming out of the shadows and into the light of our everyday world. It’s appropriately horrifying, and drags the reader, unresisting, into the narrative.
From Eddie’s point of view, The Black Lord moves on to the perspectives of his parents, grandmother, and the monster itself. Each stop on this trail of exploration is a new splinter of the story the reader gets to examine and interact with, and these fragments are by turns terrifying, hopeful, and sad. Colin Hinckley weaves the language of this book so skillfully, in one short passage, the monster becomes someone the reader can identify with and pity.
And that is only part of this interesting tale.
There is also The Black Lord, the entity that is equal parts inscrutable and alien. Despite being the namesake of the book, The Black Lord is not the monster. The reader can even argue that The Black Lord is neither for nor against the monster and the chaos that spawned it. The Black Lord simply IS. It exists and oversees, and it too has its time narrating the story.
This is something I particularly like with The Black Lord. Non-human narrators are a favorite of mine, and seeing the shift from the human, to the monster, to the unknown and unknowable being, made my day as I read this book.
The Black Lord does something else very well. It ends abruptly on a note that leaves the reader grasping for more, reaching for deeper understandings they won’t receive. It is exactly the right feeling for this book.
Childhood horrors often don’t have explanations, and they leave us only with the fading knowledge that the events happened. Perhaps we tuck those memories away and only pull them out and shake them off like old, unused tablecloths, as we think, “This happened, but I don’t understand it. I don’t know how or why, and I don’t want to think about it.”
If a person comes in contact with something not of our reality, it isn’t likely they get all the answers. The Black Lord leaves the reader with precisely the emotion a person in the Sutners’ position would feel. An abrupt drop back into reality, knowing they’ve lost something and they’ll never get it back, and they’ll never be able to explain to anyone else how or why it happened.
There isn’t even the full assurance they are safe.
For the moment, the monster is gone, but the chaos behind it is not thwarted. Temporary reprieve seems to be the only thing won.
And that too, is exactly how it should be. In reality, there is no surety. The Black Lord effortlessly gives the reader that realistic sensation, and I couldn’t be happier about it. The Black Lord is a quick and wonderful read that will give you the right amount of chills.
The Black Lord is a unique experience, one that grips a reader hard, right from the beginning, and will not let go. I’m a fan of childhood horrors that prove real, and The Black Lord is a take on this troupe I didn’t fully anticipate.
The unexpected plays out first in the structure of the book. The Black Lord only boasts a handful of chapters, but each is from a different point of view. Every character has their moment narrating the story, and this alternating structure paints a twisting picture of the book readers would not otherwise be privy to.
The book rightly starts from the perspective of Eddie, the youngest of the Sutners. Eddie highlights the base, innate fear of the monster coming out of the shadows and into the light of our everyday world. It’s appropriately horrifying, and drags the reader, unresisting, into the narrative.
From Eddie’s point of view, The Black Lord moves on to the perspectives of his parents, grandmother, and the monster itself. Each stop on this trail of exploration is a new splinter of the story the reader gets to examine and interact with, and these fragments are by turns terrifying, hopeful, and sad. Colin Hinckley weaves the language of this book so skillfully, in one short passage, the monster becomes someone the reader can identify with and pity.
And that is only part of this interesting tale.
There is also The Black Lord, the entity that is equal parts inscrutable and alien. Despite being the namesake of the book, The Black Lord is not the monster. The reader can even argue that The Black Lord is neither for nor against the monster and the chaos that spawned it. The Black Lord simply IS. It exists and oversees, and it too has its time narrating the story.
This is something I particularly like with The Black Lord. Non-human narrators are a favorite of mine, and seeing the shift from the human, to the monster, to the unknown and unknowable being, made my day as I read this book.
The Black Lord does something else very well. It ends abruptly on a note that leaves the reader grasping for more, reaching for deeper understandings they won’t receive. It is exactly the right feeling for this book.
Childhood horrors often don’t have explanations, and they leave us only with the fading knowledge that the events happened. Perhaps we tuck those memories away and only pull them out and shake them off like old, unused tablecloths, as we think, “This happened, but I don’t understand it. I don’t know how or why, and I don’t want to think about it.”
If a person comes in contact with something not of our reality, it isn’t likely they get all the answers. The Black Lord leaves the reader with precisely the emotion a person in the Sutners’ position would feel. An abrupt drop back into reality, knowing they’ve lost something and they’ll never get it back, and they’ll never be able to explain to anyone else how or why it happened.
There isn’t even the full assurance they are safe.
For the moment, the monster is gone, but the chaos behind it is not thwarted. Temporary reprieve seems to be the only thing won.
And that too, is exactly how it should be. In reality, there is no surety. The Black Lord effortlessly gives the reader that realistic sensation, and I couldn’t be happier about it. The Black Lord is a quick and wonderful read that will give you the right amount of chills.
September 18, 2023
I highly recommend this for fans of weird and cosmic horror. Reminiscent of Lair Barron, Gemma Files, and John Langan, really a smartly and carefully worded story boarding on monster and folk horror. Great supporting story at the back as well. Definitely and author to watch.
March 29, 2024
Colin Hinckley potreste conoscerlo come attore e sceneggiatore, è comparso in film quali Brains (2015), Stationary (2015) e Buy In (2018). Non tutti sanno che ha pubblicato anche una novella (o racconto lungo) di stampo weird horror alla fine del 2023.
Grazie alla ricerca sempre attenta e minuziosa di Cristiano Saccoccia, curatore dell'edizione italiana per Independent Legions, possiamo anche noi godere di questo racconto. Ne varrà la pena? (spoiler: sì).
Ci troviamo nel Vermont, uno stato all'estremo nord-est degli USA, confinante con il Canada e ricco di fitte foreste. Qui, ai margini del bosco, vive Eddie (9 anni) con la sua famiglia. Sappiamo poco della loro vita precedente, ma sappiamo che ormai il nucleo familiare è allo sfascio dopo la scomparsa del fratellino neonato, Danny. Il padre si sta dando all'alcool, e la madre ciondola per casa senza uno scopo. Eddie è sempre stato molto legato al fratellino, essendosi sempre erto a prode difensore del fragile e piccolo Danny e anche lui sta passando un brutto periodo.
Lasciato solo ad elaborare la perdita, una notte, Eddie vede una cosa spaventosa. Alla finestra di camera sua, che guarda alla foresta, compare un essere orribile. Estremamente alto, con la faccia che sembra un orribile grugno quasi canino, la pelle gibbosa con ciuffi di peli. E gli parla. Il mostro impossibile chiede a Eddie di aprire la finestra, di farlo entrare e poi di seguirlo nella foresta perché è stato lui a rapire Danny e lo tiene nascosto nel bosco. Eddie sente le parole e un'improvvisa necessità di eseguire l'ordine si fa strada in lui, ma resiste all'impulso e il mostro scompare. La vita di Eddie era già un inferno, ma ora il ragazzino si trova a vivere in un vero e proprio incubo. Che fare?
Da questo incipit la storia si sviluppa in maniera abbastanza classica, a metà strada tra un folk horror e un weird cosmico, esplorando legami familiari messi a dura prova da un evento catastrofico e traumi generazionali. La scrittura terra terra di Hinckley contiene molte immagini inquietanti e paurose, creando atmosfere oppressive soprattutto nella prima parte, ed è ricca di suspense chiudendo spesso i capitoli con cliffhanger.
Parlando di capitoli, ognuno è narrato dal punto di vista di un diverso membro della famiglia, incastrandosi abilmente (e un po’ anche sovrapponendosi non troppo abilmente) con il capitolo precedente ed esplorando i pensieri e sentimenti dei diversi protagonisti. Spezzando così la narrazione, starà al lettore individuare i punti chiave e unirli di capitolo in capitolo per capire il disegno generale della storia, richiedendo una lettura più attenta rispetto al racconto di puro intrattenimento.
Addentrandoci poi nell'ultima parte del libro, si perdono le atmosfere orrorifiche per entrare in pieno campo di weird cosmico di stampo vagamente lovecraftiano (o forse è meglio dire Blackwoodiano, per stessa ammissione dell’autore) ed è qui che la narrazione si fa più caotica ed è difficile capire le motivazioni dei vari personaggi o il perché sono successe alcune cose, chiudendo la novella in un rapidissimo finale.
In coda a The Black Lord c'è anche un racconto aggiuntivo, sempre ambientato ai margini delle foreste del Vermont e sempre riguardo alle conseguenze di una perdita, che ha qualche rimando con la novella principale. Ottima aggiunta.
Nota doverosa: così come l'edizione originale, anche la versione italiana contiene tre bellissime illustrazioni.
CONSIGLIATO se cerchi buone atmosfere e una lettura breve
NON CONSIGLIATO se vuoi profonde introspezioni o letture da spiaggia
COSA MI È PIACIUTO
- Atmosfera perturbante
- Elementi classici trattati intelligentemente
- Una creatura orribile in agguato fuori dalla finestra di un ragazzino
- Illustrazioni interne
COSA NON MI È PIACIUTO
- Finale caotico
- L’atmosfera orrorifica si disperde nel finale
Grazie alla ricerca sempre attenta e minuziosa di Cristiano Saccoccia, curatore dell'edizione italiana per Independent Legions, possiamo anche noi godere di questo racconto. Ne varrà la pena? (spoiler: sì).
Ci troviamo nel Vermont, uno stato all'estremo nord-est degli USA, confinante con il Canada e ricco di fitte foreste. Qui, ai margini del bosco, vive Eddie (9 anni) con la sua famiglia. Sappiamo poco della loro vita precedente, ma sappiamo che ormai il nucleo familiare è allo sfascio dopo la scomparsa del fratellino neonato, Danny. Il padre si sta dando all'alcool, e la madre ciondola per casa senza uno scopo. Eddie è sempre stato molto legato al fratellino, essendosi sempre erto a prode difensore del fragile e piccolo Danny e anche lui sta passando un brutto periodo.
«Sono suo fratello,» sussurra. «È quello che fanno i fratelli maggiori, no? Proteggono i loro fratellini, giusto?»
Lasciato solo ad elaborare la perdita, una notte, Eddie vede una cosa spaventosa. Alla finestra di camera sua, che guarda alla foresta, compare un essere orribile. Estremamente alto, con la faccia che sembra un orribile grugno quasi canino, la pelle gibbosa con ciuffi di peli. E gli parla. Il mostro impossibile chiede a Eddie di aprire la finestra, di farlo entrare e poi di seguirlo nella foresta perché è stato lui a rapire Danny e lo tiene nascosto nel bosco. Eddie sente le parole e un'improvvisa necessità di eseguire l'ordine si fa strada in lui, ma resiste all'impulso e il mostro scompare. La vita di Eddie era già un inferno, ma ora il ragazzino si trova a vivere in un vero e proprio incubo. Che fare?
Da questo incipit la storia si sviluppa in maniera abbastanza classica, a metà strada tra un folk horror e un weird cosmico, esplorando legami familiari messi a dura prova da un evento catastrofico e traumi generazionali. La scrittura terra terra di Hinckley contiene molte immagini inquietanti e paurose, creando atmosfere oppressive soprattutto nella prima parte, ed è ricca di suspense chiudendo spesso i capitoli con cliffhanger.
Parlando di capitoli, ognuno è narrato dal punto di vista di un diverso membro della famiglia, incastrandosi abilmente (e un po’ anche sovrapponendosi non troppo abilmente) con il capitolo precedente ed esplorando i pensieri e sentimenti dei diversi protagonisti. Spezzando così la narrazione, starà al lettore individuare i punti chiave e unirli di capitolo in capitolo per capire il disegno generale della storia, richiedendo una lettura più attenta rispetto al racconto di puro intrattenimento.
Addentrandoci poi nell'ultima parte del libro, si perdono le atmosfere orrorifiche per entrare in pieno campo di weird cosmico di stampo vagamente lovecraftiano (o forse è meglio dire Blackwoodiano, per stessa ammissione dell’autore) ed è qui che la narrazione si fa più caotica ed è difficile capire le motivazioni dei vari personaggi o il perché sono successe alcune cose, chiudendo la novella in un rapidissimo finale.
In coda a The Black Lord c'è anche un racconto aggiuntivo, sempre ambientato ai margini delle foreste del Vermont e sempre riguardo alle conseguenze di una perdita, che ha qualche rimando con la novella principale. Ottima aggiunta.
Nota doverosa: così come l'edizione originale, anche la versione italiana contiene tre bellissime illustrazioni.
CONSIGLIATO se cerchi buone atmosfere e una lettura breve
NON CONSIGLIATO se vuoi profonde introspezioni o letture da spiaggia
COSA MI È PIACIUTO
- Atmosfera perturbante
- Elementi classici trattati intelligentemente
- Una creatura orribile in agguato fuori dalla finestra di un ragazzino
- Illustrazioni interne
COSA NON MI È PIACIUTO
- Finale caotico
- L’atmosfera orrorifica si disperde nel finale
December 13, 2023
I loved this creepy and surprisingly touching little novella. It's a dark and dreary feverdream about family, and the incessant failures of men. Entwined like stark winter branches in a kind of Wiccan cautionary tale, it's pure folk-goth with echoes of Patrick Ness's 'A Monster Calls', Stephen King's 'IT', and Dathan Auerbach's 'Penpal' with a dash of Toni Morrison's 'Beloved' peppered in for creepy seasoning. Hinckley is a strong writer and a deft storyteller. I look forward to more of his writing and stories.
September 3, 2025
Romanzo breve di genere folk horror dalle idee suggestive. Molto introspettivo, molto ben ideato l'elemento orrorifico.
Non ho gradito molto la prosa, che mi è sembrata un po' piatta e poco evocativa.
Non ho gradito molto la prosa, che mi è sembrata un po' piatta e poco evocativa.
December 4, 2025
Audiobook expertly narrated with a voice born to read this excellent novella.
Cosmic and folk horror mash up, interesting exploration of family guilt and grief. Genuinely creepy, not overplayed at all and really well crafted.
Cosmic and folk horror mash up, interesting exploration of family guilt and grief. Genuinely creepy, not overplayed at all and really well crafted.
November 19, 2023
2.75 most accurate rating for The Black Lord; 2.5 for A Mouth Filled with the Teeth of Trees.
January 13, 2025
good atmosphere. didnt care for the characters
March 10, 2025
A quick dash through the eldritch woods that seperate our worlds, growing more tenebrous as this novella unfolds.
October 15, 2023
Creepy. I liked that each chapter brought a different POV and yet the story still progresses seamlessly.
January 19, 2024
With this being my first time reading what I would consider true horror, this was such a great entry point I would honestly recommend to anyone. I enjoyed every moment of terror and love I experienced in the book. Having this story be about the different generations of a family is so compelling. Hinckley’s writing is a great work of artistry. The short story following the novella will also have a special place in my heart for memories I have from a short visit to Vermont. Lucky to have it included with the book.
January 21, 2024
This writer is really scared of trees. I don't blame him, you can't trust anything with that many arms.
August 2, 2024
An excellent folk horror story about family, legacy, and courage to fight the shadows. I found this book incredibly easy and fun to read. One of my favorite attributes though, was structural: the narrative switches POV each chapter, moving from character to character. In lesser hands, this could be annoying, but Hinckley works with a sort of interlocking chain structure, where the events in the latter half of one chapter will be revisited in the next but from a different point of view. It's deftly done and quite effective. Overall, a lovely little horror novella, character driven, and powerfully rich.
August 4, 2024
Great flow of suspense, dread, and then release. The descriptions are rich and disturbing, but also elevating. Lots of fun metaphor for generational trauma, land debts, and grief. Read it in under 24 hours!
August 30, 2023
This book reminded me of Prodigal by Melanie Tem but with a decidedly folk lore slant. The ideas presented (familial dread, a missing child, a haunted woods) were presented in refreshing ways but the characters themselves didn’t seem to have much personality and at times contradicted the characters previous motives or established traits. The writing itself was repetitive at times, and didn’t push the envelope into transgressive Fiction as much as other TenPress works that I’ve read. If you are really into folk horror and familial dead give it a shot! The monsters and mystical goings on were engrossing enough to carry me through this short book.
September 10, 2023
I could not put this book down. I truly felt the urgency of trying to find Danny, as if I were apart of the family myself.
The Black Lord reinforces the two most important rules of the woods.
One, always close your curtains at night.
And two, if you hear something, no you didn’t.
The bonus Jonas: A Mouth Filled With The Teeth of Trees, is absolute nightmare fuel, about leaving one unsustainable environment for unfamiliar and unwelcoming territory.
As I’m sitting here, I think my couch is only pretending to be furniture. One sec-
The Black Lord reinforces the two most important rules of the woods.
One, always close your curtains at night.
And two, if you hear something, no you didn’t.
The bonus Jonas: A Mouth Filled With The Teeth of Trees, is absolute nightmare fuel, about leaving one unsustainable environment for unfamiliar and unwelcoming territory.
As I’m sitting here, I think my couch is only pretending to be furniture. One sec-
October 1, 2023
A deeply disquieting and terrifying cosmic horror novella.
Eddie’s brother was taken one night from his crib, and a monster is knocking at his window.
““Hello, Eddie,” the tall thing whispers. Its voice is gravel and snapping twigs. It’s panting and he watches as a thin strand of saliva drips from the corner of its mouth…”
Gaaaaahhhh!
I was completely freaked out by this first chapter. A perfectly-paced, tight and terrible, monster story about family secrets, trauma and dark forces hiding in the forest right outside your door.
100 pages of dark perfection.
Eddie’s brother was taken one night from his crib, and a monster is knocking at his window.
““Hello, Eddie,” the tall thing whispers. Its voice is gravel and snapping twigs. It’s panting and he watches as a thin strand of saliva drips from the corner of its mouth…”
Gaaaaahhhh!
I was completely freaked out by this first chapter. A perfectly-paced, tight and terrible, monster story about family secrets, trauma and dark forces hiding in the forest right outside your door.
100 pages of dark perfection.
October 31, 2023
I'm not a horror person, and I had to put this book down at least three separate times before finishing because it genuinely repulsed and horrified me. But I picked it back up every time, because the prose was absolutely stunning, the narrative had me by the throat, and the characters all deserved the grace of their stories finishing. Congratulations, Colin, on this feat of wonder!
October 10, 2023
Man, you could just show me this cover and I’d tell you this was a book for me haha! And then you could add the first line of the synopsis – ‘There’s something knocking on the window.’ – and I’d tell you the author would have to do a REALLY poor job with this story for me not to love it! And guess what – Colin nailed the story here, so no worries on that part.
What I liked: If you’ve been reading anything from the mighty Tenebrous Press, you’ll know you’re in for a good time. The fiction they publish tends to walk that line of either ‘mass marketable’ or ‘very weird.’ Easy comparison – ‘Lure’ from Tim McGregor. Strange, sure. But pretty straight forward story (or as straight forward as a mermaid’s vengeance on a small town can be). On the other hand (pun intended) – ‘One Hand to Hold, One Hand to Carve’ by M. Shaw. This one is WEIRD. And phenomenal. And follows a body waking up on the autopsy table, split in two, and deciding to live life again together, while still being surgically and anatomically apart. What all of that is to say – I had no idea which way Hinckley was going to go, and I think that works to heighten the tension in this story, which starts from page one.
We follow young Eddie, struggling to understand how his infant brother, Danny, has disappeared, seemingly snapped up from his cradle in the middle of the night from his room. His parents are crumbling, both as individuals and as a couple, but things get worse when there’s a light tapping on his window one night and the thing he calls ‘The Tall Man’ begs him to open the window and come out to visit.
Hinckley nails the shadowy anxiety that folklore revels in, a way of making the reader feel unsettled, even when the lights in the room are on. As the story progresses, we get to learn the truth about The Tall Man, and when Eddie’s mom, Laura, has her own experience, the door between the two world’s is thrown open and all bets are off.
The last quarter of the book races along like a roller coaster ride coming off the tracks. Family runs into the woods trying to find the missing, the shadows lurk closer and The Tall Man wants to eat. It all scrambles haphazardly until Hinckley reels us back in and we finally meet The Black Lord.
What I didn’t like: The length of this novella makes it so that we get a surface level of back story and not much in the way of description of the world over there. Hamill’s ‘A Cosmology of Monsters’ did a wonderful job of giving the reader a lot with a little about the ‘over there,’ but this one doesn’t go very far into it, so if you’re wanting more of that aspect, be warned.
Why you should buy this: Well, fans of Tenebrous Press will most likely already have this, as any books coming from them will be an auto-buy! Otherwise, if you’re a fan of odd things in the woods at night and strange events that connect the generational dots, look no further. This one was jarring, unsettling and ultimately a terrifying romp through the trees at night!
What I liked: If you’ve been reading anything from the mighty Tenebrous Press, you’ll know you’re in for a good time. The fiction they publish tends to walk that line of either ‘mass marketable’ or ‘very weird.’ Easy comparison – ‘Lure’ from Tim McGregor. Strange, sure. But pretty straight forward story (or as straight forward as a mermaid’s vengeance on a small town can be). On the other hand (pun intended) – ‘One Hand to Hold, One Hand to Carve’ by M. Shaw. This one is WEIRD. And phenomenal. And follows a body waking up on the autopsy table, split in two, and deciding to live life again together, while still being surgically and anatomically apart. What all of that is to say – I had no idea which way Hinckley was going to go, and I think that works to heighten the tension in this story, which starts from page one.
We follow young Eddie, struggling to understand how his infant brother, Danny, has disappeared, seemingly snapped up from his cradle in the middle of the night from his room. His parents are crumbling, both as individuals and as a couple, but things get worse when there’s a light tapping on his window one night and the thing he calls ‘The Tall Man’ begs him to open the window and come out to visit.
Hinckley nails the shadowy anxiety that folklore revels in, a way of making the reader feel unsettled, even when the lights in the room are on. As the story progresses, we get to learn the truth about The Tall Man, and when Eddie’s mom, Laura, has her own experience, the door between the two world’s is thrown open and all bets are off.
The last quarter of the book races along like a roller coaster ride coming off the tracks. Family runs into the woods trying to find the missing, the shadows lurk closer and The Tall Man wants to eat. It all scrambles haphazardly until Hinckley reels us back in and we finally meet The Black Lord.
What I didn’t like: The length of this novella makes it so that we get a surface level of back story and not much in the way of description of the world over there. Hamill’s ‘A Cosmology of Monsters’ did a wonderful job of giving the reader a lot with a little about the ‘over there,’ but this one doesn’t go very far into it, so if you’re wanting more of that aspect, be warned.
Why you should buy this: Well, fans of Tenebrous Press will most likely already have this, as any books coming from them will be an auto-buy! Otherwise, if you’re a fan of odd things in the woods at night and strange events that connect the generational dots, look no further. This one was jarring, unsettling and ultimately a terrifying romp through the trees at night!
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