Phrogger

by Candace Nola

What would you give for an extra life?

When one man loses everything while risking it all for an extra life, he vows to teach others the value of a second chance. Hopping from pad to pad, he pits one person against his skills to save their family. If they win, he moves along, if they fail…Game Over.

Play or Die? What do you choose?

Genres: Horror

69 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 21, 2023

About the author

I am Candace Nola, and I am a multiple award-winning author, editor, and publisher. I write poetry, horror, dark fantasy, and extreme horror content. My books include Breach, Beyond the Breach, Hank Flynn, Bishop, Earth vs The Lava Spiders, The Unicorn Killer, Unmasked, The Vet, and Desperate Wishes.

I have short stories in The Baker’s Dozen anthology, Secondhand Creeps, American Cannibal, Just A Girl, The Horror Collection: Lost Edition & The Turquoise Edition, just to name a few.

Beyond the Breach, won the “Novel of the Year” and my Debut Novel, Breach, was nominated for “Debut Novel of the Year”, for the 2021 Horror Authors Guild awards. I am also the publisher and editor of the 2022 Splatterpunk Award Winning Anthology “Uncomfortably Dark Presents: The Baker’s Dozen.”

I am the creator of Uncomfortably Dark, which focuses primarily on promoting indie horror authors and small presses with weekly book reviews, interviews, and special features. Uncomfortably Dark Horror stands behind its mission to “bring you the best in horror, one uncomfortably dark page at a time.”

Find me on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and Facebook and the website, UncomfortablyDark.com. Sign up for the Patreon for exclusive content, free stories, and more.

Reviews

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phrogging is the act of secretly living in another person's home without their knowledge or permission.

I didn't know that "phrogging" was a thing, so imagine my confusion when I got this book that is clearly referencing Frogger, the video game I loved as a kid. After finding the definition and reading this book, I have a whole new thing to be terrified of! Thanks, Candace!

Fast-paced, great characters, and a killer premise makes Phrogger a must-have! Highly recommend!

[Chloë-Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Literally took me 12 days because I put it down and didn’t find it interesting enough to pick back up again until now 🤫

[Cat Voleur · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this concept.

While I was reading, there was definitely a part of me that wished it had been a single perspective, just because it is such a short story and I would have loved to see more of Nola's excellent tension building. I thought the Frog's chapters and Bri's chapters were both so solid that either one of them could have carried the entire premise.

However.

It was really satisfying to see how everything came together in the end. The context really helped inform the actions of the characters throughout and it's impossible to argue with the results.

I also love the gamer horror combined with such a down to earth, real life fear of phrogging for the ultimate, terrifying pun. If you are a parent (or otherwise sensitive to child death/endangerment) I would proceed with caution, but in any other circumstance I would highly recommend.

[Aiden Messer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, fast-paced, and creepy as hell!

[Allison | crazypageturner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phrogging and Frogger overlap in this horrific tale about a maniac on the loose. He lives in peoples homes in secret until he takes them hostage and makes them play his favorite game. The rules are very simple. You have 3 tries to beat his high score in the video game Frogger! If you fail, you and your family die.

Phrogging is the act of living in a house, alongside the occupants, without their knowledge. Kind of like squatting except 100x worse. Talk about CREEPY AF!

This is such a fun and nostalgic take on a home intruder slasher.

The Frog is our killer and he specifically seeks out families of three. Three family members; one for each life of the Frogger game. He’s seriously tormented in the mind and has an unhealthy obsession with Frogger thanks to his own traumatic experience and grief. It sure makes for a gruesomely great and creative story!

[Paige Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was another short quick read. Not my favorite by Candace but I liked the concept! The way the chapters were headlined like a game was really cool. 🐸🐸🐸

[Christopher Besonen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Candace has done it again with a brutal and creepy tale about loss, a video game and the fight for survival. Her more recent titles have gone more descriptive in their violence and gore and I'm here for it all day. I am a little torn on the ending, not really what I expected but suitable given the context of the situation.

I did find myself a little more paranoid after reading this one, a person living in your home for the purpose of being an unaccounted for member that plays tricks is damn frightening!

If you like this review, I invite you to check out my others at Uncomfortablydark.com/besonenbreakdowns

[Cait Parsons · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 4th Candace Nola book and haven't been disappointed yet! Another great story

[Dez Nemec · Rating 4 out of 5]

There isn't much that freaks me out, but if you aren't familiar with the term "phrogging," look it up. I'm a total homebody, and if I found out someone was sharing my space...



Well, actually, no. That doesn't even cover it. More like:



Better.

Anyway, obviously, this story is about a creepy guy living in people's houses. But it's so much worse than that. Frog, as he calls himself, lost his entire family in a fire. He believes that he is teaching families to fight for their love ones for the ultimate prize - life.

Love the story, love the ending. Now even more completely creeped out by phrogging.

[The Yeti Reads and Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

While the act of Phrogging itself creeps me out, Candace takes it one step further and makes it absolutely terrifying.


He hides in your home, learning your everyday routine. Doing things that make you think you are losing your mind. A book slightly moved, toys arranged differently, or food missing. Patiently waiting to make his move. Will you play his game to save your family? Do you have what it takes? If you beat his high score, he moves on; if you don't, you die.


One of Candaces best stories to date. Intense, violent—did I say intense already? lol Fantastic story from a fantastic storyteller. Definitely check this one out. You won't be disappointed.





5 severed fingers out of 5

[Jason Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful fast paced story filled with nostalgia, home invasions, a sense of serial killer impending doom, and of course....a commodore 64. Blend it all together on high and out pops Phrogger by Candace Nola. Nothing held back in this novella of what it takes to win this game of life.
🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

[Joe Ortlieb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Candace does no wrong and phrogger proves it. Wasting no time Candace hits the floor running and doesn't stop till the very end. It's a creepy sick quick read. I would highly recommend reading this.

[Dale Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this. I loved the style of the book, from the cover, to the chapter headings- they really spoke to the gamer in me. And Frogger, that frustrating basic game of old- ah, the memories.

This is well written, gory, and very enjoyable. It's short too, so if you have an hour to spare, I'd definitely recommend it.

[Jordan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Phrogger has an interesting concept: A man, broken by trauma, makes his victims play a game. They win, and he walks away. They lose, and the player and their family pay with their lives.

It took me a lot longer to read this than I was anticipating since it's so short. I just couldn't get into it beyond thinking the plot itself was unique. I didn't connect with the characters to care much about them one way or another, and I kind of lost my concept for how much time was passing over the course of the story.

Parts of the writing got extremely repetitive. The killer was a very smelly individual, VERY smelly. A point which is reiterated over and over and over again. Eventually, it became more of a game to see how long it took to mention the smell again rather than genuine interest in the story itself.

Phrogger is a unique take on a serial killer story; it just didn't keep me invested like I wanted it to.

[Kayla Frederick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Phrogging is an absolutely terrifying thing. Having a stranger living in your home and you being none the wiser? Nightmarish. If that person were a deranged killer? Times it by ten.

The motives of the villian in the story were an interesting one, and I found them unique.

This was a quick read with lots of gory death scenes and plenty of chilling moments that will stick with me.

[Kalaya Stutesman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've always thought the idea of phrogging is so scary but honestly this took it to a whole other level. even if the short amount of time we were with our final family, i still felt connected to them and desperately wanted them to win. Even with the sympathy for our villain, you're still reminded he is a cold blooded killer, even if he thinks it's for the right reasons.

[David Swisher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved every second of this quick read. Coming in around 40 pages or so this is about a phrogger obsessed with Frogged due to their past trauma.

Play or Die?

It's creepy. It's deranged. It's excellent. Give this one a shot if you like any kind of horror.

[DA · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fast paced and quick read that'll ruin memories of a beloved video game from the 80s. I really enjoyed the character of Frog, when a book can make me feel empathy for the villain you know the author has done something right.

[Aaron Lebold · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very creepy concept and a lot of great descriptions. Quick read, if you haven’t read it yet, check it out.

[Shaun Filion · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick, intense read. I love the way that the author can make you feel for characters so quickly in such a short time.

[Ren · Rating 5 out of 5]

unique and fast paced home invasion story

Brianna is one of my favorite badass FMCs of the year. This is a quick, nostalgic, and visceral read. Every person’s worst nightmare!