Crawl Space

by J.N. Bamforth

My obsession
My little demon
I'm a cold blooded killer, a monster without a voice.
I'll do whatever it takes to have my little demon, even if I have to drag her through hell myself.

This is a pitch black erotic horror with very dark themes throughout.

Genres: Horror, Dark Romance, Erotic Horror, Romance, Dark, Stalker, Smut

355 pages, Paperback

Published October 4, 2025

Reviews

[GCR | Book Realm]

Crawl Space was wild. It gave me Sick Fux vibes. It pulled me into something dark, twisted, and impossible to look away from.

Silas was a great unhinge character. The story was fast-paced, pulled me in quickly, and kept me there the whole time. Add in the twisty chaos and the overall darkness of it all, and this ended up being such a fun read.

I would recommend this to readers who like very dark, twisted reads with strong character pull, fast pacing, and the kind of story that feels wild from start to finish.

[kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This very much gave “Brahms the boy” vibes and I f*cking ate it up🥵

[Michael Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love testing my limits and I am grateful I have my bestie Vanessa with me to read anything as well. This is, I think, my 4th pitch black book. Totally deranged....disgusting at times due to the vile villain esque type in it. But Silas....my deranged Silas who is infatuated with Iris.....I love your touch her and die vibe. This was really good. If you enjoy a pitch black, murderer book....I found you one. With that being said..... I had my time...I must return to my mm broken boys and good boys 😁😁😁😁😁

[eve (semi hiatus)]

Safety note - no HEA

[Teneil · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️ 5/5 stars

Holy. Shit. Before anything else: read the triggers. This book is absolutely not for everyone.

I have never had a reading experience quite like this—where I wanted to gag, couldn’t stop turning the pages, and still somehow fell completely in love with the MMC and FMC. Silas and Iris destroyed me. Iris is such a strong, unforgettable heroine, and the way their story unfolded was brutal, terrifying, and yet strangely beautiful.

The third-person POV gave the book a different edge, adding to the sense of dread and detachment while still making me feel every twist and turn. And prepare yourself—you will be disgusted. This is pitch-black, gory, claustrophobic erotic horror that pushes boundaries.

The ending left me reeling. I’ll admit, my autistic brain couldn’t handle the uncertainty, and I immediately DM’d J.N. Bamforth to check if the cliffhanger would stay that way forever. (Spoiler: I needed reassurance!)

Tropes: haunted inheritance, stalker MMC, obsession/possession, forced proximity, erotic horror, morally corrupt MMC.
Triggers: gore, confinement, torture, murder, psychological manipulation, graphic horror sex.

This was something else entirely—dark, disturbing, addictive, and unforgettable. Crawl Space is not just a book; it’s an experience.

[destiny ♡ howling libraries · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars, rounded up

4 stars to the plot, 3 stars to the writing. This could've used another round of line edits, but I enjoyed the story overall quite a bit. I will say that I went into it hoping for horror romance and that's on me, as the author explicitly stated it's horror erotica, not romance. No spoilers, but I should have paid more attention to that note! The horror themes were executed really well. I feel like this almost verged on extreme horror at times with the attention to detail regarding the violence and depravity. I'd definitely read more of J.N. Bamforth's writing in the future!

✨ Content warnings for: stalking, graphic violence, sexual assault, dub-con, non-con, somnophilia, child abuse, drug abuse, torture, murder, cannibalism, child death, suicide

[Felix · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

Safety Squad:

⚠️Cheating= no

⚠️OW/OM Drama= not at all

⚠️ OW/OM scenes= none

⚠️Sharing= nope

⚠️Third act breakup= yes

⚠️Separation= yes for a month

⚠️Cliffhanger= yes…

⚠️HEA/Happy ending= not yet

⚠️Manwhore/ no manwhore= virgin and inexperienced MMC


Thoughts while reading:

When he kills for her 🫦

This is literally like Haunting Adeline but…different.
I’m so into it I could literally cry

My only question is…does he shower??…and when? Hoe often???…because he lived in the walls for YEARS…

Ngl I’d 100000% be infatuated like the FMC. That man is a broken hot mystery and I’m INTO THAT SHIT.

This fucking man. Can he stop being so fucking perfect??? I’m getting pissed off because he’s not MINE.
He pierced his own dick and made a Jacob’s ladder because he saw her toy that had it and wanted to bring her more pleasure. Fuck off. Stop being perfect. You’re making my heart ache
STOP. OH MY GOD HE’S EVEN MORE PERFECT. He has been practicing speaking even though it’s painful for him just because he wants her to have his voice too.

And the fact that he’s not only a virgin, but also inexperienced…I love him so much

[Kenia Coronado · Rating 4 out of 5]

theres so much to unpack here.

What a wild ride?! He was insane but i didn’t expect her to have a stalker and him being probably scarier than the mmc lol. This is not a dark romance, its horror but it did have dark romance vibes all craziness aside. The ending took me by surprise so we will see how this develops on book 2.

[Akki✮⋆˙ · Rating 0.25 out of 5]

...........

[Jules · Rating 2.5 out of 5]

This book has been popping up on my feed so I decided to yank it out of my TBR and finally dig in. Hmmm...not working for me. Gave it til 33% before I called it quits.

I prefer fast paced books that really grab hold in the first chapter and never lets go. Welp, this did not do that. There's lots of TW and some pretty explicit torture scenes but that stuff doesn't bother me.

Flashbacks paint a pretty tragic past for the MMC who never recovered mentally from it and was then further abused before he escaped. FMC fantasizes about the MMC despite never meeting him but read some of the gruesome things he did - uh huh.

Things that didn't make sense:
- He lives in her basement and walls but she never finds him lurking. Maybe go down to the basement and pry open the locked door that wouldn't open since you moved in?
- He jizzes and has blood on his clothes - when does he shower and how does she not smell him?
- When/how the hell did love enter the equation for him when he only jacked off to her sleeping form a few times?
- How does the shop lady in town know the FMC's name if her grandmother and FMC herself never had a relationship growing up? It was a cheesy scene, btw.

Another note - what is up with the grammar and improper use of or lack of proper punctuation? 💆🏻‍♀️ Some words were misused. For example, "I'm derailing" should've been "I'm digressing" in that context.

In short, I tried but don't think I'll be coming back to this one. Idk, I'm in a slump so I'm moody.

Safety - non virgin FMC (last time for her was years ago), MMC is a virgin in that he's never had consensual sex although SA'ed, no on page sex with OP.

[ashlee · Rating 5 out of 5]

✨BOOK REVIEW✨

Title: Crawl Space
Author: J.N. Bamforth
Genre: Erotic Horror
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Main Characters: Iris + Silas, The Watcher
Book Type: Duet | Book 1

I absolutely fell in love with Silas. He’s broken, damaged and has grew up with the worst possible childhood trauma anyone could ever fathom. When Iris was searching his case online, I found myself swiping out of my kindle app to go to google and look myself only to realize…this is a work of fiction 😭

The horror element comes in when The Watcher makes his appearance. He’s vile, disgusting, and you don’t even want to know what he does to his mother’s decapitated head 🤢

Now, you could skip the last chapter and end this book as a stand-alone with a HEA, or you can push through and read the last chapter, be absolutely devastated and full of regret that you did. 🥲

Overall, I absolutely loved this book and I’m looking forward to book two!

[Sassy Sedusa · Rating 4 out of 5]

please please please check trigger warnings before proceeding with this book.
and as the author mentioned… do not eat anything while reading. 😅🤢🤮

[Mel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ya know what, this one's on me. i listened to the instagram book girlies, didn't read any reviews, and didn't check my trigger warnings and just popped straight in.

My bad Girl.

I am not the target audience. This review is completely unfounded. I don't even know how to review it.

I can't ever recommend this book to anyone. I wont ever be able to discuss it. It'll just have to sit in my brain for ever. Cool.

I've never read this genre... I assume it's a genre. im a horror fan, I get around true crime and romance... didn't know you could slap it all together and make this kind of a crazy soup? Salty fucked up soup...

Go off Bamforth. You do you girl.

This book was a book. There was alot of words... together with other words. Could have used an editor and a thesaurus for sure, but I've never written a book. Go you.

That was alot.

I feel ill.

Furious that I will have to read the sequal to find out how this plays out.
Not looking forward to it.

Can't look at my husbands work boots anymore.

Threw every jar in my house away.

Thanks. Gross. Well done.... Jesus Christ.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

~ ARC review ~
This book instantly had me, the first chapter from Silas’ POV sent this straight to my favorites list 😍

I liked Iris, but Silas stole my heart. Those two together are perfect.

The writing style is amazing. Some parts are written like the characters are talking to you, which i love. I actually loved pretty much everything about this book but do not take the warning at the start of this book lightly. Some chapters are so gruesome, it made me wanna throw up lol.

Having the POV of the watcher in a few chapters made this even more interesting, even if those chapters made me sick.

That ending though 🤯

100000% would recommend this book!

[Sabrina · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn’t finish this book after I read “could of” and “should of” in the same sentence.

[mia:) · Rating 4 out of 5]

i was in the mood for a pitch black mmc, and this author definitely delivered. silas… 😩🖤 at first, i was like, wow, this guy is… something. but then he started explaining why he did the things he did, and he really grew on me. 🥹 he was just a tortured soul who needed love. 🥹 the unimaginable things he went through that caused him to lose his voice, his confidence, his life… 💔😭 i just wanted to give him a hug!

the fmc, iris, was cool. i thought her job as a crime podcaster was really neat, and i liked getting to see that side of her. i just didn’t connect with her as much as i did with silas, and i found her character a little harder to get a feel for. maybe we’ll get to know more about her in the next book? i just wanted to know more about her story, why she is the way she is, i mean all we were told is about her grandma and her love for true crime and tattoos. 🫠

overall, this story is definitely dark, so check the trigger warnings, but i enjoyed it! it left me wanting to know more. 🥰🖤🔪

[spicy_book_nook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoughts : This was a crazy ride… Just when I thought it couldn’t get crazier than a hot, masked, serial unaliver living in her walls… a mystery stalker with some real craziness comes through… this made me queasy, and I’ve read some F’d up stuff. Captured by Lauren Biel “mayo jar” has NOTHING on this book…

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot / Storyline 👩🏻‍💻: 📑📑📑📑
First Spicy Scene: 9 %
Darkness: 🖤🖤🖤
Red Flags: 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
HEA: Cliffhanger - Duet series
POV: Multiple

⚠️⚠️⚠️spoilers - whole story***
Iris inherits her Grandmothers old house. She never knew her grandmother.
When she arrives, she is excited to start a new journey. Iris is a crime pod caster. She hears weird noises and her food is being eaten… (not creepy at all).
Silas is a serial unaliver that is on the run. He and his sister Sophia grew up in an @bu$ive house hold, physically, mentally, but worse of all, SA. Silas tried to take most of the tor+^re but Sophia swung herself from a tree with a rope she found. That’s when Silas unalived both parents. He went to an asylum but escaped later on, where he found Iris’s grandmother’s house. She knew he was there, leaving plates of food for him so he wouldn’t go hungry.
Iris researched Silas. She has a lot of empathy for him and his story.
A “handyman”, Nick, shows up to fix some things but Iris gets creeped out and sends him on his way. Silas follows him only to find out he was planning on hurting Iris. So naturally, Silas unalives Nick, painfully.
Meanwhile, “The Watcher” (or TW) has been obsessed with Iris. TW is a nasty little man that can only be described as worse than the horrible capture of Caltured by Lauren Biel (If ya know, ya know…).
Silas shows himself to Iris and she isn’t scared. They start a “thing” but he won’t take his mask off yet.
TW sends Iris a letter detailing his obsession, Silas intervenes and gets the letter before Iris. TW sends another letter and a USB. He is into snuff films and sends her some.
Iris doesn’t know what to make of it so she doesn’t say anything. Silas and Iris continue their “relationship” and he chases her through the woods. They bang and he lets her take his mask off!!!
All while TW is watching and growing more angry. Iris was supposed to be his. Now he is going to hurt her more than he planned.
Iris and Silas go back to the house (Iris sees a shadow watching 😒😒😒 and doesn’t say anything). Silas kind of disassociates and tries to unalive Iris thinking it’s his dad and wraps his hands around her neck. She passes out and he revives her only for her to send him away because she was so scared. Silas goes unwillingly but vows to get her back.
TW takes Iris and tor+^res her relentlessly and sends a video to Silas. TW taunts Silas on the video. Silas realizes who TW is and where he is. TW is James Whitaker, a guard at the asylum who tor+^red him almost every night (including SA).
Silas finds them and knocks TW out… Iris tells Silas she “needs” him now to erase the touch of TW… This was a little over the top for me, I mean, she had acid soaked nails driven through her leg and he carved his name in her stomach. NO way she would be up for that, but hey, who doesn’t love a little crazy with their fiction. After, Silas hurts TW and Iris tells him to be done with it so they can leave.
They return to her house only for the news story to break about someone finding TW. They try to leave but the police show up, pew pew Silas and take both back to the asylum.
CLIFFHAGER…

[BookshelfKisses · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my third book by J.N. Bamforth this week and it’s my favorite so far! An easy 5-star read because she is DEFINITELY one of the funniest authors I’ve ever read and I had the time of my life with this book! I genuinely laughed out loud so many times while reading this book. Silas was morally black, but he was also sooo funny and kinda sweet in his own messed up way. I absolutely loved him.😂

But as always with her books, there were also so many beautiful and emotional moments in this the story. And somehow, in between all the laughing I literally cried! Give me a mute, traumatized, scarred MMC and a woman who still sees him as the most beautiful man in the world despite everything and I’M SOLD. Bonus points because that vulnerability immediately makes my rating go up!! 🥺❤️

This book had everything I’m looking for. It was dark, disturbing, disgusting, funny, heartbreaking and beautiful and I enjoyed every single page. I genuinely cannot wait for the next book!

[MorallyDarkReadz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crawl Space @jnbauthor

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5 Stars)
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 (5/5 Spice)

“Sometimes love doesn’t save you—it consumes you.”

Crawl Space by J.N. Bamforth is everything I crave in a dark romance—twisted, obsessive, and devastatingly addictive. From the first page, it grabs you by the throat and refuses to let go.

When Iris moves into Willow Creek Manor after the death of her grandmother, she expects grief, shadows, maybe even ghosts. What she doesn’t expect is Silas—a serial killer hiding in plain sight. What begins as horror slowly unravels into obsession, intimacy, and a dark love story that defies every boundary of morality.

Silas is not just the monster in the shadows—he’s a man fractured by cruelty, haunted by voices, broken by a world that chewed him up and spit him out. And somehow, Iris doesn’t run. She sees him. She pulls him back. With her, the voices quiet—at least temporarily. And that fragile peace between them? Absolutely intoxicating.

But then the Watcher appears, and Silas shifts from predator to protector. Touch her and die becomes his mantra, and the raw devotion he has for Iris turns the story into a blood-soaked love letter.

The spice? UNREAL. It’s filthy, raw, and threaded with obsession. Every scene drips with heat, possession, and intensity. It’s the kind of spice that makes your pulse race and leaves you gasping for more.

And that ending? I’m still screaming. J.N. Bamforth knows how to craft a cliffhanger that rips your heart out and makes you desperate for more. I need the next book, I need more Silas and Iris, because their story is nowhere near done.

This book is proof that love doesn’t always heal—it devours. It’s brutal, messy, and beautiful in the darkest way possible. J.N. Bamforth is so damn talented—I will devour everything she writes.

[Lesley Camphouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first book by J.N. Bamforth and won't be my last.

So, first things first... WTH was that ending?! I have to know when book 2 comes out, or if it's already out in the wild.

For the story itself, I loved the dynamic between Iris and Silas; their chemistry was palpable. I love my smut mixed with gore, so this book was an amazing read.

[Octobur Frost · Rating 1 out of 5]

Creepy serial killer hiding in your walls? Hell yes.

Unfortunately, the writing is atrocious.

[Steph's_Creepy _Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silas is goals, right??? Right?!
The perfect blend of horror and erotic in this book. The first, and definitely not the last, by this author.
She made me GAG!

[Sarahreadsallthebooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know when something is so disgusting you gag? Well…

Crawl Space was unbelievable. It was utterly horrific in parts and still had me swooning and laughing out loud in others!

It was also very educational, I learnt lots of things, like what ‘finger skins’ are “They’re like little socks, but for your fingers instead.” Also that I have a stronger stomach than I thought!

Despite hiding from my kindle at times, I had such fun reading this.

BUT

Please do your research before reading this book, it’s a pitch black romance/erotic horror the list of trigger warnings is LONG, it won’t be for everyone but if you love serial killers, revenge, graphic horror scenes, with stalking and obsessive MMCs then this book should be on your TBR.

5/5⭐️
5/5🌶️

I cannot wait for whatever comes next!

[Emilee - The Booked Baddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC REVIEW
𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 10/4/25

𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

🖤Mute Masked MMC
🪓 Serial K!ller
🖤Mental Health Rep
🔪 Gothic Vibes
🖤Elder Emo FMC
🎙️True Crime Junkie
🖤Pitch Black Horror Erotica
⚠️ CHECK TRIGGERS!!!

📝🙌🏻 HUGE thank you to @jnbauthor for trusting me as an ARC reader again… you are 2 for 2 with me! Crawl Space was another 5 star read and also my first official pitch black erotic horror 🫣 and holy shit did she deliver. This book gave me all the shocks, spice, romance, twists, and those positively nauseating moments. Iris and Silas’ love story was incredibly insane but also so romantic… what does that say about me!? 😂 Once again, she made me feel personally connected to the characters…I was rooting for them the whole way!

The story was engaging and at times I was questioning myself for reading it but I couldn’t stop! It kept my attention the entire time and found myself picking up my Kindle at some of the worst times…like cooking dinner. But damn girl, you had to go and drop that cottage cheese image in my head…thank god I already hate cottage cheese! And now there’s a handful of things I’ll never look at the same again…jars included. 😩🤣

Also can we PLEASE talk about that ending because what the actual hell!? I literally almost threw my Kindle across the room!!! Please tell me there’s a second book! I need more of Iris and Silas!

🌟 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐋 - HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!! For all my horror erotica girlies…just make sure to check the trigger warnings because this one is definitely not for the weak!

[Audi Walbridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Woah.

First and foremost I know we always say check your trigger warnings but please read these ones.

This may be one of the darkest romances I've read. I don't have any triggers or tropes I can't read but even I had moments of cringing or trying to read really fast through it. However that said I could not put it down.

Iris and Silas's love story is concerning, unorthodox, slightly psychotic, but still romantic.

Silas did not have a great upbringing and my heart broke for him. Iris has a stalker, and no not just Silas.

I definitely looked at cottage cheese a little different for awhile 😂

The ending though.... maam!!!! I know she's not doing us like that.

If you like pitch black, erotic horror, mixed with romance, give this one a go!

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

What the f**k have I just read and how the hell did I make it to the end. 🤣. I mean I was generous with the 3 stars but I’d say it’s a 2 and a half.

ANYONE WHO GIVES THIS A 5 ⭐️ NEEDS HELP! 🫣 I’m not joking!

If you’re intrigued and you think I’m over reacting then give it a go but don’t say I haven’t warned you..read the trigger warnings!
I think if the story just stuck with Iris and Silas then it would have made it better.. ‘The Watcher’ isn’t needed to that extent 🤢

[Marta Conteh · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had me on a tremendous roller coaster of sensations and emotions! I loved the story of Silas and Iris.

🖤I'm going to shout my love for Silas from the rooftops.🖤

J.N. Bamforth has mastered conveying everything in this story. Honestly, few authors have been able to make me feel so many things with their writing style, and she's MY FAVORITE!

[unMelo Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow

There were some moments in this book where I was like "what the heck was that". Mostly "the watcher" moments. Silas however, that man is broken and needs someone to love him. Also love how the FMC doesn't fit the beauty "standard". Overall the writting is good and the story line will get you hooked.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC review -
Now please read the warnings! This really is a pitch black romance and will definitely make your stomach whirl - with my job it’s takes a lot for me to feel sick … this book however. Nah 😂 don’t read this on your lunch breaks if you are a bit squeamish or if you love cottage cheese 🫠!

It’s certainly taken me into the deep deep black end of erotic horror and with a bang! But it’s been the perfect book to introduce me to these style of novels and perfect for the upcoming spooky season 🦇🩸🔪
This is honestly once again such well written and I love a book that finishes on a “what the hell has happened moment”.
Such a great use of characters which really makes you rethink your morals 😂 Silas and Iris are such a match made in heaven and the Watcher just makes me feel sick thinking about him 🤮🧀

Will definitely be recommending this to friends and very grateful for the opportunity to have an ARC read of this one

[Merry Jayned]

DNF at chapter two