Eyes Wide Open

by Jan Miklaszewicz

After waking a malignant force that’s hellbent on destroying them, the housemates at 13 Cromwell Lane are in a whole world of trouble. Worse still, there seems to be no way of stopping it. And as the body count rises and the deaths get ever more gruesome, the chances of survival start to look horribly slim.

Book number one in the Hartmouth Horrors series of standalone novellas, this nasty little shocker will entertain and appall you in equal measure.

Genres: Horror

125 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 20, 2025

About the author

Born and raised in Plymouth, England, Jan is a father, a husband, and a former poet. Readers enjoy his work for its directness and sense of humour, as well as its smooth, free-flowing prose.

Unsurprisingly, much of his back catalogue is poetry, with four collections, two narrative poems, two anthologies, and an instructional guide for children to his name.

More recently Jan has pivoted to fiction, starting with a collection of offbeat shorts before moving into darker territory, conceiving the Hartmouth Horrors series of standalone novellas, and it is on this twisted fare that he will be focusing for the foreseeable future.

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

A group of students in an old house in 13 Cromwell Lane. It starts with Charlie who is found in the basement. Why did he die and what is going on here? The book has many interesting horror motifs (e.g. witches, haunted house, possession) but sometimes you'll get too many details of everyday students' life (e.g. drinking, partying, some drugs). The author is slowly creeping to the top, his climax is a true feast of blood. But there also were some slower passages inside. Loved the setting in Britain but the reason for all this horrific experiences is yet to be told. Overall a sinister read with a good ending. Really recommended!

[Janelle Schiecke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a slow descent into madness, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! We are introduced to a group of college students who are living together and get to know them very well, which makes the horror all the more impactful. What I really enjoyed was their questioning of odd events and behaviors, because it felt realistic. It was also fun to witness them trying to figure out what the hell they’re dealing with, and if the dark presence targeting them one by one can indeed be stopped.

To top it all off, the kill scenes are pretty wicked. I definitely recommend, it’s a fun read with lots of humor and gore and all ramps up to an ending I felt wrapped the story up very well.

[Eamonn Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow what a ride! Silk smooth prose that descends into visceral madness! The kills are excellently done and the sense of coming dread is justifiably satisfied when the shit hits the fan, loved it!
Overall: Excellent novella that if you like horror 100% this deserves your time!

[Blake Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

What started out as a fun little paranormal horror devolved into a psychotic murderous possession novel with extreme violence and gore … and it did so in all the best ways

[Already Overbooked · Rating 4 out of 5]

Little pig little pig let me in

[James Maxwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

EYES WIDE OPEN is a breezy possession/haunting horror novella with a fun cast of characters and cozy locations that quickly feel familiar and lived-in, building up to an absolute crescendo of gore and blood in the last 20 or so pages. The writing style is quick and easy to digest with good banter, very English dialogue, and a focus on keeping things moving. A strength here is that you can easily finish the book in one sitting and be left wanting more horrors from Hartmouth.

For me, the writing style didn't 100% work due to some of what's left out. The scene transitions are a bit jarring in places, and I think it would have benefited from just a bit more scene descriptions and atmosphere in the non-horror scenes. To be clear, when things get creepy, the writing is excellent and the atmosphere impeccable with very cool, evocative descriptions -- but I found some of the dialogue scenes a bit lacking in descriptions and mood, relying mainly on dialogue and stage directions to keep things moving where we could use a bit more sensory details. Also, the dialogue was a bit hard to follow in places due to lack of "X said" "Y said" dialogue tags, but YMMV there.

Story wise, it's a straightforward but very well executed (no pun intended) affair: Students fuck with the wrong grave, and the spirit of a hanged witch from the 17th century haunt their shared home with visions and creepy/weird occurrences, eventually possessing them and causing them to murder each other. It's a good setup and works great, but personally, I would have liked if the cast was a bit smaller and better developed, since the 8 characters blur together a bit at times. I think the ending would have had the same impact gore-wise even with a slightly smaller body count. I also would've liked to see a bit more development/resolution for the central mystery - not answering every question we have, of course, but giving us a little more to chew on with the "why" this is all happening, beyond what we already assumed in the first place (the evil spirit does evil stuff because it's evil).

I've focused a lot on what could be improved here (IMO), but this was a solid haunting romp with an explosive finale and a lot of fun character banter. I liked the cast of characters a lot and enjoyed spending time with them, and despite what I said about how there could've been a bit more development, I do appreciate that Miklaszewicz takes the time to let us get to know the characters before the blood starts splattering. I especially dig the setting of Hartmouth and look forward to seeing more stories in this little English town with its witchy history. The gore got a little much for me in one place (the cannibalism scene) but if you're looking for extremity -- well, EYES WIDE OPEN won't disappoint!

I'd maybe give this slightly lower than 4 stars for what I feel is potentially interesting stuff left out, but rounded it up for this review.

[Matt (Geaux Read Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

How do I feel after completing Eyes Wide Open? I feel revolted, horrified, disgusted, and a bit queasy, but that is how I think I’m supposed to feel. Jan doesn’t hold back in this novella one bit. The pacing and building dread work perfectly for a wild and scary conclusion.
I’m not personally the biggest fan of overly graphic and gory horror stories but if that is your thing then I think you will love Eyes Wide Open.

[Saffron Asteria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jan's done it again. Except this time - we have a LOT more on page violence.

Something I've loved about this author's short story collections is his ability to let the reader come up with their own version of the horror. Something from their own experience and exposure, letting their creativity run wild.

With this novella (which I believe is his first) I was really pleased to discover the detail that Jan sees in his own mind.

For a big chunk of the story we get to know this shared house, full of students – each with their own distinct personalities including their interpersonal relationships. We see how they co-exist and care for one another, which is what gives their future experiences within the story the depth that it deserves.

I don't wish to spoil the joy of discovery with too many spoilers. I just wanted to say that I devoured this in one night and enjoyed the heck out of it. Already ready for the next thing to devour from Miklaszewicz. Interested to see how dark his mind can really get.

[Tim McKay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh man, was this ever my kind of horror. The build-up was perfect and well paced, the characters were fun, the dialogue was on point and often hilarious, and the scares... savage, to say the least. Jan doesn't hold back, and this story hits like a freight train. Sublime, punchy writing just the way I like it.

I have been in dire need of a good horror fix, and Jan overdelivered by a mile. Fantastic through and through (no surprise there having read his short stories).

[Dakota J. Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eyes Wide Open by Jan Miklaszewicz is a solid, gruesome horror novella that nails the chaotic vibe of early 2000s student house life. The dialogue is excellent: sharp, authentic, and often genuinely funny. This makes the housemates feel real and relatable right from the start. That banter carries the story through the slower early sections and makes the horror hit harder when things turn dark.

The sense of dread builds effectively, with unease creeping in through small, unsettling moments that had me on edge. However, that slow burn tension stretched on just a bit too long for my taste. I would have preferred a clearer, earlier hint of the bigger supernatural threat to ramp things up sooner (unless I missed something subtle). There is also a sex scene that felt gratuitous and did not add much to the plot or characters.

Still, the payoff is worth it: the final stretch delivers inventive, gory chaos and a satisfyingly bleak climax. It is fast to read overall, entertaining, and packs a punch despite its brevity. I would call it an excellent read that left me wanting just a little more depth or quicker escalation in places, but it is definitely recommended for fans of possession slasher blends with British humor and high body counts. Looking forward to the rest of the Hartmouth Horrors series!

[Andrew Lyall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eyes Wide Open is a tale of possession in a shared student house that plays out like a slasher movie. An evil is unleashed and unease quickly descends into flat out gore. No spoilers here, but there were plenty of moments that shocked.

The prose is crisp, making EWO an easy read. I read it in one sitting and that’s probably how best to consume it. Once the roller coaster begins its descent there’s no time to pause. The story has fun with horror conventions and it’s the kind of book that asks you to cheer the kills rather than ruminate on the events.

If you’re a fan on 90 minute horror movies with practical gore effects then this is the read for you.

[L.E. Bendon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was drawn to this because of the author's witty contributions to Twitter, so I was eager to see what he puts into the comparatively longer form of a novella. Because it's a horror he doesn't let his sense of humour undermine the tension but there's certainly some of it there. It's centred around a group of university students sharing a house somewhere in England, around the period where I did my own degree, so I got plenty of personal satisfaction from the setting and the characters interactions. I hesitate to say too much about what kind of horror story this is, as I don't want to spoil anything. I'll just say it's a mix of very familiar tropes and story beats, from well-known horror films from the last few decades, but presented in a way such that you don't ever know exactly what's coming, as the story messes around with the expected rules just enough, without ever truly breaking them. The choice to tell everything in present tense was unexpected, but I found it worked really well, giving it a very casual colloquial tone, evocative of being told the story by a campfire.

[Catherine Arthur · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this novella and this is my honest review.

That the title is apt becomes apparent as the story progresses. I shall perhaps never sleep again.
Creepy and increasingly disturbing, this novella follows a group of university students living together in what becomes a house of horror. Relationships which seem like they are progressing oh so sweetly, end up as something else entirely. I can’t say it’s an ‘enjoyable’ read, because I’m not sure horror should be so. But it certainly did what horror is meant to do. And for some inexplicable reason, I wanted it to be longer.

[Richelle Kimball · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love horror this is for you! What a fun read! Weak stomachs beware!

[Corky Farmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frightening.
There are elements to Jan's story that one could physically feel while reading.
I knew what I was getting into when I selected Eyes Wide Open, but I expected hype, and it wasn't.
The book is a fast read, and it does not bog down. The characters feel right for the plot, and Jan gives you just enough to relate to them. Then, he drops your jaw long enough that you'll need a glass of water and a breath mint.
Trust the reviews!

[Eva Chatterji · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do not be afraid of things that go "bump" in the night. Be terrified.
This book has it all and more, all neatly wrapped up on a knife's edge, a ledge, a hedge.
A brilliantly crafted story told in true horror style.
Keep the lights on when you go to bed, my friends.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always love a good horror. A good mix of slasher and paranormal.

[Brent Matley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Graphic horror isn't usually my type of thing but the premise of Eyes Wide Open intrigued me. Jan writes believable and flowing dialogue in which I breezed through the 96 pages. Be warned however - this gets extremely graphic.

Eyes Wide Open focuses on a group of students living together in a small English university town during the early 2000's. I got into the groove of this as I understand the small university town quite well having studied in Lancaster in the UK. Jan really captures that grimy, decaying student house feel. Getting back to the plot - what starts as an innocent night on the lash descends into something sinister quite rapidly. Going into any more detail would be spoiling it.

What I liked about Eyes Wide Open was just how engaging it was - which is a credit to Jan. I was hooked from the very first page. The prose is sharp, snappy and realistic. You can get an insight into the relations of the students and their history - i.e. who fancies who, the typical student hormones. It was also easy to follow and keep up - Jan didn't go for any overly complex supernatural arc, he keeps it simple, which works in the books favour.

The reason why I deducted a star from this novella was the pacing. Now, normally I do not deduct based on the length of a story, however, in the latter third, the kills just rachet all the way up to eleven! My personal preference would have been for more suspense to build up, more supernatural goings on. Alas, like I said, that's a small personal caveat and it's not really a fault.

All in all, if you go into this as a horror fan or just know the type of content you are expecting - you are in for a treat of a horror story.

[Steve Stark · Rating 5 out of 5]

This nasty little shocker obliterated my reading slump. Once I picked it up, I could not put it down until I hit the bloody end.
Chilling, gruesome and at times quite funny too (with the cheeky banter and some very dark humour)
Miklaszewicz has crafted a lean, mean scarefest that even managed to give this seasoned reader the creeps.
Terrifically twisted stuff. Easily one of my fave reads of the year.

[AnnieIsReading · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nasty fun time 👍

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clear your afternoon, because Jan Miklaszewicz's debut novella, Eyes Wide Open, is one that you will want to read without interruption. As an avid consumer of the horror genre, I was intrigued to obtain a pre-release copy. I had not read any of Miklaszewicz's previous work and love going into a tale with no preconceived knowledge. I also knew nothing of the plot other than its genre, and that includes not allowing myself to read the back cover! The story is tightly written throughout, with dialogue that flows naturally and easily—something rare to see in a first work, from my experience. I have so much to say, but as someone who likes to go in "fresh," I am hesitant to go into too much detail here. I will say this: each character's true depth is revealed in moments of vulnerability—terror, regret, and resignation—that we all hope not to experience. I found this particularly striking as we live in a world increasingly focused on only showing the surface of who we are to those surrounding us.
Be forewarned if you are squeamish- there are several moments that had me reading with my jaw on the floor! These scenes are well done and certainly not over-the-top, but paint a picture that hits home with the true evil the characters are confronting.
I am looking forward to more from Miklaszewicz and encourage all horror enthusiasts to treat yourself to Eyes Wide Open. Maybe just not right before bed.

[Carla · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Giveaway win) loved this book start to finish! Every gory detail it had me from the beginning. Recommend it!

[Beatrice · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Review of 'Eyes Wide Open': Fusion Yakitori When You Craved a Robust Red

Jan Miklaszewicz's Eyes Wide Open is the literary equivalent of being served an exquisite plate of fusion yakitori when you have mentally, and spiritually, prepared yourself for a deep, bold glass of robust red Chardonnay.

There is no denying the skill on display. Each narrative skewer is expertly crafted - a perfect bite of character, a flash of seared backstory, a garnish of poignant detail. The technique is impeccable, the presentation flawless. You consume it with admiration for the chef's undeniable talent and the innovative combinations.

Yet, when the final morsel is gone, a fundamental craving remains unfulfilled. The experience, for all its cleverness and precision, lacks the lingering warmth, the complex finish, the satisfying weight of a full-bodied wine. The novella teases the palate with profound themes but doesn't allow them to breathe and develop on the tongue. It is a tasting menu of a great novel - brilliant, memorable, but leaving you wondering what the full, sprawling feast would have been like. I want more.

The disappointment, then, is not in the quality, but in the genre. Miklaszewicz has not failed to deliver a good meal; he has simply delivered a different one than the title and setting of the table led you to expect. Eyes Wide Open is a masterclass in minimalism that, ironically, makes you ache for maximalism while at the same time knowing you will never use the word 'nice' ever again.

Well done for my first dive into the Indie scene. I'm hooked.

[C.S. Hughes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jan Miklaszewicz’ Eyes Wide Open feels a little like a screenplay that someone quickly turned into a novel; a cross between The Young Ones, Midsomer Murders and Evil Dead. It gives a sort of lightweight, frivolous immediacy to the action, all very tongue in cheek. Or possibly out of cheek and on the filthy linoleum, as if a Carry On film got high on pcp and went on a spree with mother’s best carving knives. Ooh I say. It’s good fun, with a bunch of gormless English university types – not the types who study, the types who drink beer and smoke weed – in succession get possessed by some ill defined malevolence and commit an assortment of atrocities on themselves or their housemates.
It lacks some of the moral imperative to mayhem we are familiar with from the genre. There’s no sense of the moral being be spared and the amoral being punished. It does fulfil the very familiar tropes we expect in this kind of horror. The dialogue is kind of hokey English twattery, doing some heavy lifting in the exposition department. The third person present tense is not for everyone, though it certainly keeps the pages turning. It could do with a little more existential gravitas, a little more mythic depth and consistency – though the idea of the unknown possibly Satanic witchcrafty entity worrying our victims is intriguing, it never quite satisfies. Shit happens. Bad shit happens. If the whys and wherefores don’t matter to you, this is a cute, fast, eyepopping read.

[H.M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having recently read The Devil in Mia by Jan Miklaszewicz, the only logical course of action was to go backwards and read the first in the ever-expanding Hartmouth Horrors novella series, Eyes Wide Open. To that end, and at the risk of repeating myself, Jan does it again, or before, depending on how you look at it.

EWO is another great twisted tale from the second worst place to live after Midsomer and Jan has a wonderful signature style to his novellas that will no doubt become more refined and honed with each new visit to this ‘lovely little place’.

As with TDiM, the narrative is tight and clean, and the pacing is fluent, with earned ramping towards the end, and the character interactions and dialogue are strong throughout, typical to his craft. I generally have no preference tense, but the present does read particularly well in these novellas, and I do feel the choice was far more effective in keeping me hooked in.

Again, EWO is another fantastic, and well-developed story, grounded with realistic prose, that blends self-awareness, humour and grim and gory horror in all the beautifully, brutally bloody ways you could want. What else is there to know? I enjoyed it immensely, and I cannot wait to see what other incredible horrors Jan has for the residents of Hartmouth. Another cracking read.

[Huw · Rating 5 out of 5]

In EYES WIDE OPEN by Jan Miklaszewicz, there’s something lurking in the confines of a student house in Hartmouth. The students who live there are doing all the things that students traditionally do once they’ve been let off the leash, such as drinking, staying up late, sleeping in late, more drinking and generally getting up to no good, but this house they are occupying develops a dark personality, one that’s waiting to take advantage of them.

One of the fun things about this gruesome horror tale is that, just after the characters have been introduced, and just before things start to turn really horrific, there is a fun moment of self awareness much like the sort of thing you’d experience in a Scream movie.

Then, when events skew towards the really nasty, there’s a lot of fun to be had. Miklaszewicz balances the dread, the gross-out moments, and the comedy really well, and although this is a fairly short book (under 100 pages) it packs quite a punch.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly 2.5-3 stars. All the British talk throws me off. Essentially college students move into an old house that is unlucky number 13. They end up having dreams and impulsions that they act on and one by one they die. This happens after they supposedly disturbed one of the haunted graves after wandering into the cemetery drunk one night. As is of many old houses, the basement is gross and damp and musty. That is where they find their first friend dead. Another one of them actually gets taken over by this demon and bangs and kills her housemate upstairs. Another one they get taken over by the demon and rip their friends eyelids off and eats the eyeballs. The demon takes over the last friend alive‘s body after pushing two more housemates off a terrace and impaling them in the fence. He goes down to the basement where he gets lit alive by the last girl alive and only one person escapes 13 Cromwell drive.

[Uilleam Whitedale · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, right off the bat, I tend to DNF present dramatic tense, as it grates upon my mind unless it's well done. So, obviously, this was, as I kept on reading. This book has everything one would expect from an '80s slasher movie. The banter between the characters feels unforced and the descriptions are on point throughout with slick prose. However, as the gore progresses, the characters thoughts and dialogue almost take on an air of jadedness, as if the deaths and the continued threat, though serious, are more of an imposition than something to escape. But, somehow, the author makes it work. There's an irony in the characters' continued levelheadedness, under unspeakable circumstances and with death essentially an inevitability, that feels real and adds a unique flavor. It's very Gen X.

[David Parkinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eyes Wide Open is a thoroughly nasty little novella. It mucks about with a whole bunch of horror clichés and does so with a nudge and a wink and some genuinely brutal flair. We spend time with a relatable group of students sharing a rundown house in an English seaside town. Then we get to watch it all fall apart for them, often with a brilliantly banal, melancholic tone, before a big old dollop of final act mayhem.
It’s an easy, rhythmic read, elevated by a sprinkling of some skilfully inventive lines. I sat in bed on a wintry Sunday morning, sipping coffee, pulling disgusted faces, laughing, then pulling more disgusted faces. I had myself a thoroughly good time.
If you’re a horror fan, like I am, I highly recommend Eyes Wide Open. Loved it from start to finish.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lean and mean little book that punches far above its weight with sentences that crackle with a malignant energy. Think an X-rated rewrite of Evil Dead with Roald Dahl at the helm. Plenty of caustic humour and spiteful violence to keep a reader entertained, the real star here is the authors clear love of language. Find here and there sentences to savour and enjoy, turns of foul mouthed phrase that practically fly off the page. The dialogue is down pat, and the pacing breakneck. Possible read of the year for me