Benighted

by E.L. Giles

For the past fifteen years, a fog has crept across the earth, blanketing every living thing in shadow. Anyone entering the dark curtain is never heard from again.

Magnus Aune knows this better than anyone. His family lives on the last sun-touched expanse, a simple cliff dwelling overlooking the ocean, and each day, Magnus watches the fog creep closer.

For once, he knows the meaning of true isolation.

Overcome by despair, willing to risk his own mortality, Magnus leads his family beyond the shadow.

But is he leading them to their salvation? Or will each member of the family finally be judged?

Genres: Horror

184 pages, Paperback

First published August 15, 2023

About the author

Eric Labrie Giles is a Canadian author of horror and science fiction. Since 2018, Eric has published over fifty short stories, drabbles, novellas, and novels. His latest horror novel, Benighted, was released in 2023 and is the first part of a series. Eric is currently working on the second book.

Eric is a member of the Horror Writers Association


www.elgilesauthor.com www.facebook.com/elgilesauthor
Instagram: e.l.giles_author

Reviews

[Stitching Ghost · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first half of this book was fantastic, I wasn't as keen on the second half where the cosmic side of things became more apparent and things got a little jumbled. Still a pretty enjoyable and quick read.

3.5 rounded up.

[Kate Victoria RescueandReading · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The worst cruelty that can be inflicted on a human being is isolation.”
— Sukarno

If you enjoy cosmic horror in the line of “The King in Yellow” mythos, you’ll definitely enjoy this tale.

The last vestige of humanity, a corner of an island, stands before the wall of shadow. The shadow has slowly eaten up the earth, and has reached the edge of the island where 3 adults and a child remain.

Will they enter the shadow realm and survive, or be destroyed? What entity stirs within the darkness? Are these last humans worthy of being allowed to live within its depths?

This was a fast paced read, somewhat confusing at times (but I often find this with cosmic tales), but just go with the flow and keep your mind open!

[Terry and dog · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started this book wondering what on earth could be causing the "shadow" to be taking over the earth. It is one of those horror situations that I find extremely appealing and can't resist. Well, let me tell you, it's grim. A family group goes into the darkness when they have little choice left. and for a little while I didn't know what was going on, and it was wearing me down, and then it got cosmic. Still a little confusing because I don't know this subgenre very well, but it treated me gently and won me over. Still grim, but really gripping. It's a book that I'm glad I read. I also loved the cover art, so there is that too.

[Ben Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

The skilled character development, dread and mystery pulled me through the first half of this book. Then it went full-tilt cosmic madness and that’s was just so damn satisfying! Can’t wait for book two.

[Sarah Malenfant · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first half with its mysterious, foreboding, and unsettling atmosphere. To me, the last half felt like a completely different book and I found myself having a tough time staying connected with it. I haven’t read a lot of cosmic horror so maybe I just wasn’t in the right headspace for it - I did go into this one blind. All in all - an interesting read with an abrupt ending.
2.5 rounded up
ETA after thinking about it more - if you are a cosmic horror fan, you’ll definitely want to check this one out!

[Beatrix Starling · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just finished this book and admittedly feeling somewhat bewildered.
E.L. Giles tapped into one of my favourite tropes, visiting other worlds/dimensions. But he did it on acid while drinking 6 cups of coffee a day and smoking weed non stop. Can't confirm if it's true, but you will not convince me otherwise.
This is a bleak bleak book, rooted in grief and loss. I actually quite hate that, but then the author opened up this new world, and bleak got bleaker fast. I was torn about it throughout as the story got complex and nothing made much sense, but the delivery was absolutely superb. The imagining of such a story and world is just insane. It sucked me in like pungent mud and I didn't come up for air till the last page. It was so overwhelmingly unearthly, i felt misplaced in my own head, and damn if it didn't make me feel all wrong.
I think it's masterpiece. I don't know if i liked how it made me feel, but this is one hell of a book if you want to feel...wrong.

[Dark And Thorny · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book as much as I anticipated I would. It had a great premise, but it got really weird and I didn’t find the ending or the lead up to it satisfying at all. I just found it confusing and nothing was really answered. I also really struggled with consistent use of unnecessarily scholarly sounding words. Whenever I see this, it feels like they’ve used a thesaurus to change common place words into ones that make them appear “smarter”. This was really hard to read and distracting. I actually started highlighting said phrases and there were a huge number of them. Some of these phrases were also repeatedly used (Stygian, apertures, hirsute, beatific) which is also something I do not enjoy. Overall, great premise. Poor writing and ending

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm going to be honest. I finished this book last night, I've mulled it over, and I still don't know how I feel about it. I was vaguely confused the whole time, as you're thrust headlong into the story with very little backstory. Then you get some backstory, then the book ends so abruptly it made my head spin. The writing is very, very good (almost leaning to purple prose at times) and the cosmic dystopian premise sounded intriguing, but it ultimately missed the mark for me. 2.75 stars

[Debra Castaneda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Be prepared to feel small and powerless in this horrific tale of four people trying to survive a shadow that shrouds the earth.

Don’t expect any explanation for the fog—it’s beyond our understanding, and that’s what makes it so unsettling. The prose was beautifully descriptive and harkens back to the writing of Daphne du Marier’s The Birds, J.G. Ballard and Nevil Shute. 4.5 rounded up.

[Jen Ramsden · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into this blind, and really enjoyed the first part of the story- it had a creepy and unsettling vibe which really set the tone of the book. The last part went a little weird for me, but it was a different idea that I've not read before, which was interesting. It gave me lovecraftian vibes, though I couldn't say why!

[Victoria Brackett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spooky Sci-Fi;

Not exactly horror, but a very deep dive into cosmic thriller. The first half remained spooky, while the second half delved into immense psychological theology. Very enjoyable read, but the buildup in the beginning promised some thrills that the end did not fulfill.

[Alexandra Nisneru · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good and original story, loved the premise of it and the writing style, it has some poetry in it. I am beyond excited to hear it's only the first of a series and I cannot to read for the next ones.

[The Bibliovile · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was so beautifully written! The words flowed like poetry, bringing vivid scenes of a desolate land shrouded in darkness, and a coldness in the air you can feel. Each word felt carefully chosen and at just the right pace, allowing the dread and despair to build with each page.

[Christopher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly dark and dripping with dread; as bleak as the bottom of a freshly dug grave. Cormac McCarthy fever-dreaming of a cosmic horror hellscape. Absolutely loved it!