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Porcelain Lullaby: A Horror Novel
An abandoned orphanage. A buried secret. A dark truth.
Jake and Nate Shepherd’s world shattered when they were children. After a night of horror, the boys woke to find their home the site of an unspeakable tragedy. One that fundamentally cracked the boys’ psyche and left them orphaned.
Two decades after that night, the brothers don’t talk much anymore, the weight of their childhood too heavy for either to confront or bear. But when they receive a message from their long dead mother calling them to an old, abandoned orphanage called Meadowland, they find themselves drawn there.
It's a dark place of lost voices and broken souls. Where little figures lurk in the shadows and the echoes of the past grow louder and clearer by the moment.
The deeper they dig, the more the cracks in their fragile psyche begin to grow and the more their world sinks into a nightmare. Because nothing stays buried forever. Beneath the broken walls and floors of Meadowland lie secrets too dark to keep and truths too horrible to accept.
Experience a chilling psychologic horror story filled with twists from Blaine Daigle, the bestselling author of The Broken Places and A Dark Roux.
Grab your copy today and keep the lights on as it scares you deep into the night.
Jake and Nate Shepherd’s world shattered when they were children. After a night of horror, the boys woke to find their home the site of an unspeakable tragedy. One that fundamentally cracked the boys’ psyche and left them orphaned.
Two decades after that night, the brothers don’t talk much anymore, the weight of their childhood too heavy for either to confront or bear. But when they receive a message from their long dead mother calling them to an old, abandoned orphanage called Meadowland, they find themselves drawn there.
It's a dark place of lost voices and broken souls. Where little figures lurk in the shadows and the echoes of the past grow louder and clearer by the moment.
The deeper they dig, the more the cracks in their fragile psyche begin to grow and the more their world sinks into a nightmare. Because nothing stays buried forever. Beneath the broken walls and floors of Meadowland lie secrets too dark to keep and truths too horrible to accept.
Experience a chilling psychologic horror story filled with twists from Blaine Daigle, the bestselling author of The Broken Places and A Dark Roux.
Grab your copy today and keep the lights on as it scares you deep into the night.
290 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 20, 2026
391 people are currently reading
3918 people want to read
About the author
Blaine Daigle
11 books243 followersHaving lived his entire life deep in the gut of Louisiana, Blaine Daigle grew up surrounded by ghost stories of haunted plantations and cursed woodlands. He still lives in Louisiana with his wife and two children and can't wait to pass on the nightmares to his kids..when they are old enough. During the day he teaches high school English. At night, he enjoys diving deep into the fears that shape and mold the world around him.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
Oh damn. When Blaine Daigle was kind enough to send me an ARC of his new horror book, I was excited to read it. I didn't expect it to be this haunting, traumatic, and downright terrifying though!
When they were children, two brothers witnessed the absolutely horrific deaths of their parents. Wait until you read about that because it's brutal. As adults, they're traumatized each in his own way with the younger brother believing his mother was mentally ill while the older one knows that it was something much darker and supernatural.
And now, whatever it is has found them and they have to reconcile and work together trying to defeat this unspeakable monstrosity before they and their families suffer the same fate.
The grief, the terrifying creature, and scenes that'll stick in your gut are all here. This novel is relentlessly horrific and the author went balls to the wall with unexpected encounters, a creepy as hell monster, and a narrative which sucks you in like a piece of dirt in a Hoover! I highly recommend.
I received an ARC of this book from the author. This review is voluntary and is my own personal opinion.
When they were children, two brothers witnessed the absolutely horrific deaths of their parents. Wait until you read about that because it's brutal. As adults, they're traumatized each in his own way with the younger brother believing his mother was mentally ill while the older one knows that it was something much darker and supernatural.
And now, whatever it is has found them and they have to reconcile and work together trying to defeat this unspeakable monstrosity before they and their families suffer the same fate.
The grief, the terrifying creature, and scenes that'll stick in your gut are all here. This novel is relentlessly horrific and the author went balls to the wall with unexpected encounters, a creepy as hell monster, and a narrative which sucks you in like a piece of dirt in a Hoover! I highly recommend.
I received an ARC of this book from the author. This review is voluntary and is my own personal opinion.
November 24, 2025
Like Blaine’s previous works, there’s an undeniable musicality infused in the storytelling of Porcelain Lullaby. This time, though, he’s fully embraced the minor keys and lets them pull us down into the darkness that is Meadowland, where we find ourselves buried beneath decades of repressed trauma, tormented by supernatural forces, and somehow begging for more until the very last page.
January 17, 2026
I will never look at a porcelain doll the same ever again, book peeps!! 🫣😅
Holy creepy paranormal vibes!! Blaine Daigle once again proves why he is one of my auto-read/auto-buy authors!! I inhaled this one in one sitting! I am an absolute sucker for stories set in creepy abandoned buildings and this one did not disappoint! Pick this one up!! Trust me!! 👏
Holy creepy paranormal vibes!! Blaine Daigle once again proves why he is one of my auto-read/auto-buy authors!! I inhaled this one in one sitting! I am an absolute sucker for stories set in creepy abandoned buildings and this one did not disappoint! Pick this one up!! Trust me!! 👏
January 20, 2026
Porcelain Lullaby further cements Blaine Daigle as the king of slow-burn horror. As an existing fan of his work, I can confidently say this is my favorite of his books to date. This story is a haunting, brooding, thing that hides in the walls, waiting to scare the tar out of you.
When brothers Nate and Jake were children, they were orphaned when their mother committed a tragic and horrific murder/suicide. Now as adults, they both wear their traumas on their sleeves, consumed by the lingering question of what drove their mother to do such a thing. The brothers have a personal, genuine connection that leaps off the page and makes them feel real. Jake is rooted in a cycle of rage, worried that the mental illness that drove their mother has infected him and his family. Meanwhile, Nate is convinced that the real culprit lies in the realm of the supernatural. Ghosts of their mother’s past haunt their lives, drawing a clear line to Meadowland, an orphanage from their mother’s past.
This book curled its fingers around me in the early pages, and continued to tighten its grasp all the way through the truly terrifying climax. While all of Blaine's books are scary, the hauntings in Porcelain Lullaby are truly nightmare inducing terrors. And while the ghosts themselves are quite scary, it’s the very personal connections they have with the main characters that really sell these specters as something to keep you up at night.
When brothers Nate and Jake were children, they were orphaned when their mother committed a tragic and horrific murder/suicide. Now as adults, they both wear their traumas on their sleeves, consumed by the lingering question of what drove their mother to do such a thing. The brothers have a personal, genuine connection that leaps off the page and makes them feel real. Jake is rooted in a cycle of rage, worried that the mental illness that drove their mother has infected him and his family. Meanwhile, Nate is convinced that the real culprit lies in the realm of the supernatural. Ghosts of their mother’s past haunt their lives, drawing a clear line to Meadowland, an orphanage from their mother’s past.
This book curled its fingers around me in the early pages, and continued to tighten its grasp all the way through the truly terrifying climax. While all of Blaine's books are scary, the hauntings in Porcelain Lullaby are truly nightmare inducing terrors. And while the ghosts themselves are quite scary, it’s the very personal connections they have with the main characters that really sell these specters as something to keep you up at night.
February 7, 2026
This is sooo freaking good and creepy I think I have a new favourite.
February 24, 2026
"Porcelain Lullaby" by Blaine Daigle
Review: 4.5/5 (rounded up) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Wow, this book is a hidden GEM. I won in a Goodreads Giveaway and wanted to take a step into the horror genre.
Generally I expect cheap thrills, some haunts, and a half polished story.
Instead this novel provided a beautiful plot, amazing buildup, and the creepy vibe I didn't know I needed.
I live in western PA which definitely helped with immersion BUT the writing was so descriptive yet flowed masterfully. I was able to play the entire book out as a movie in my head and only put it down to eat, sleep, and work.
Dolls can seem cliche as a horror catch but I promise that these dolls are unlike any other. Every piece of the story had purpose and ties together in the end. I recommend this book to anyone looking for horror or even just an emotional story between two brothers.
Review: 4.5/5 (rounded up) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Wow, this book is a hidden GEM. I won in a Goodreads Giveaway and wanted to take a step into the horror genre.
Generally I expect cheap thrills, some haunts, and a half polished story.
Instead this novel provided a beautiful plot, amazing buildup, and the creepy vibe I didn't know I needed.
I live in western PA which definitely helped with immersion BUT the writing was so descriptive yet flowed masterfully. I was able to play the entire book out as a movie in my head and only put it down to eat, sleep, and work.
Dolls can seem cliche as a horror catch but I promise that these dolls are unlike any other. Every piece of the story had purpose and ties together in the end. I recommend this book to anyone looking for horror or even just an emotional story between two brothers.
February 23, 2026
Another solid effort from Daigle about two brothers forced to visit an old orphanage connected to their deceased mom in order to learn the truth about her death and the ghosts that have haunted them since childhood. Daigle has a very descriptive writing style which works well with the stories he creates. My only complaint is that I think he needs to add a bit more action to his narrative to balance out the two. Otherwise, he manages to create the right amount of creepiness and mystery to keep you engaged throughout, and the ending is appropriately emotional and bittersweet. Strong characterizations are a plus as well. He's three for three so far. Looking forward to his next one. 3.5 stars bumped to 4 for the quality of writing and strong ending.
January 21, 2026
Another fantastic, creepy and flawlessly written horror novel from one of my favorite authors, Blaine Daigle!! Porcelain Lullaby is fraught with emotions of a troubled and terrifying past that two brothers struggle to come to terms with, haunting them well into their adulthood. We have a creepy abandoned orphanage with a dark past swept under the rug, a room of DOLLS (yeah you heard me right), and a spirit seeking vengeance. If I had read this at night I would have been turning lights on because some of those scenes were downright terrifying! Absolutely loved it!!
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December 22, 2025Read this one to offer a blurb!
Fantastic read. Fans are in for a real treat!
Fantastic read. Fans are in for a real treat!
January 26, 2026
In Blaine Daigle's latest release, "Porcelain Lullaby," brothers Nate and Jake reunite after years of estrangement to track down the source of a mysterious message Nate receives from their long-dead mother. Orphaned as children, the boys grew up in foster care, and both bear significant psychological scars from a multitude of traumas that are revealed throughout the course of the story. Their search for answers leads to the Pennsylvania back country, and the sinister Meadowland Orphanage, where their mother had lived as a child. Although abandoned for decades, Nate and Jake soon discover there is still something very much awake and alive inside the hulking building's crumbling walls -- a terrible secret that, once revealed, could shatter both of their fragile psyches.
Daigle's strong suit as a writer lies in his ability to craft wonderfully descriptive narrative. Meadowland isn't just a setting; its decrepit hallways feel alive, and it's as much a character as the humans occupying it. Daigle's plot builds slowly, the tension simmering until reaching the inevitable boiling point of the story, and as it does, the horrors Nate and Jake encounter likewise build in intensity and malicious intent. There are some truly frightening creatures in this tale, a unique and chilling twist on the "haunted doll" trope. Without giving too much away, suffice it to say, Rose would give Annabelle a run for the money when it comes to terrifying.
We just had a big snowstorm where I live, so reading "Porcelain Lullaby" was a great way to while away some of the hours. It's dark, disturbing, and original. If you like haunted house stories where the ghosts run more than skin deep, "Porcelain Lullaby" will be your jam.
Daigle's strong suit as a writer lies in his ability to craft wonderfully descriptive narrative. Meadowland isn't just a setting; its decrepit hallways feel alive, and it's as much a character as the humans occupying it. Daigle's plot builds slowly, the tension simmering until reaching the inevitable boiling point of the story, and as it does, the horrors Nate and Jake encounter likewise build in intensity and malicious intent. There are some truly frightening creatures in this tale, a unique and chilling twist on the "haunted doll" trope. Without giving too much away, suffice it to say, Rose would give Annabelle a run for the money when it comes to terrifying.
We just had a big snowstorm where I live, so reading "Porcelain Lullaby" was a great way to while away some of the hours. It's dark, disturbing, and original. If you like haunted house stories where the ghosts run more than skin deep, "Porcelain Lullaby" will be your jam.
January 26, 2026
Atmospheric doesn’t begin to cover this book. I’m going to be haunted by a place I’ve never been for a long time, just like those brothers. Excellence.
February 23, 2026
I don’t think the ending was supposed to hit me as hard as it did
February 25, 2026
WOW! Easily one of my favorite reads this year. Very ghosty, some twists, and easy to read. The ending left me shocked and wishing there was a second book!
March 31, 2026
A horror movie played out in book form. Like The Conjuring or Annabelle - but better
February 4, 2026
4.5 Stars!
March 22, 2026
Creepy mom. Creepy orphanage. Creepy dolls. Got a little boring in the middle before the climax. Last 6ish chapters redeemed it. Not an ending I was hoping for but an ending everyone in the book needed.
February 13, 2026
Hauntingly wonderful book.
January 22, 2026
BWAF Score: 5/10
TL;DR: Porcelain Lullaby is a reliably creepy, rain-soaked haunted-orphanage ride where a music box acts like a paranormal smoke alarm and the Meadowland mythos keeps whispering, come closer. It’s got a strong sibling-through-hell heart and some hellish imagery, but it runs familiar haunted-institution circuitry and rarely pulls the truly unhinged left turn.
Blaine Daigle is a Louisiana-based horror writer who also teaches high school English, and his work tends to lean hard into atmosphere, wounds-that-never-close, and bonds that get stress-tested in bad places. Porcelain Lullaby follows novels like The Broken Places (2023), A Dark Roux (2023), A Dark and Endless Sea (2024), and Ashes of August Manor (2025).
Brothers Jake and Nate Shepherd have been dragging childhood trauma around like a rusted anchor for decades, and when their mom dies, the last breadcrumb she leaves is a phrase and a damn music box. Nate, the more reckless of the two and the one who’s built a life around chasing haunted places, connects the box to their mother’s past as a child who fled Meadowland Orphanage under the shadow of someone named “Rose.” They head toward Black Ridge, Pennsylvania and the abandoned orphanage itself, trying to figure out what followed her, what still wants them, and whether the thing behind Meadowland is a ghost, a curse, or an institution’s rot given life.
I dig what Daigle does here with “creepy infrastructure” horror, the kind where a building feels like a hungry machine that remembers every bad thing ever done inside it. Meadowland doesn’t just loom, it sits there like a predator with cracked windows for eyes, and the book keeps returning to that sensation of being watched, judged, sentenced. The music box is a great genre gadget too: a simple, visual trigger that turns dread into a mechanical problem. When it spins and the melody kicks in, you know the temperature just dropped and some shit is nearby. The 1977 material (Brittany McNamara’s investigation and the town’s fear of Meadowland) gives the mythos some ballast, and the orphanage history sells the idea that the scariest monster is a system that swallowed kids and kept chewing. There are also a few solid, nasty images, like the “kid who looks exactly like you” manifestation that hits both brothers right in the trauma gland and instantly raises the stakes from spooky to personal.
|“The air here felt charged… he couldn’t shake the feeling that every inch he traveled was watched by studious eyes hidden in the trees.”
Daigle’s writing is straightforward and cinematic, built to keep you moving room to room, hallway to hallway, with the camera-light of a flashlight beam. When it works, it’s clean and propulsive, and he knows how to frame a set-piece (the gate, the approach, the oppressive quiet, the sudden “nope” moment) so the dread builds in layers. Where it wobbles is in how closely it cleaves to familiar haunted-institution beats. You can feel the circuitry: ominous local lore, suppressed reports, the “we shouldn’t be here but we are” escalation, then the mythology that wants to explain itself just enough to keep the plot marching. The emotional material, especially the brothers’ fault-lines, is the stronger engine, but the horror machine sometimes feels like it’s running preprogrammed routes instead of surprising you with a truly off-road, “what the fuck did I just read” detour.
The big thematic thread is inherited damage, not just genetics or family history, but the way a place can plant a seed in a person and wait decades for it to bloom ugly. Nate puts it plainly: “Influences bring out what is already there.” The other is sibling devotion as a kind of imperfect salvation, love that doesn’t fix you, but keeps you from falling through the floor when the house starts talking.
|“They didn’t feel like working with him anymore. So, they put him where they wouldn’t see him.”
In his own author’s note, Daigle frames Porcelain Lullaby as a culmination, explicitly calling it the stop that “all roads” in his first five books led toward, and you can feel that “wrap-up” impulse in how it ties craft themes and sibling-bond obsessions together around Meadowland. That makes it a solid entry for readers who like his emotional through-lines, even if it’s not the one that detonates the subgenre.
Solid creepy-orphanage atmosphere and a legit brothers-in-hell core, but it plays the haunted-institution hits a little too faithfully, so it lands as “not bad, not notable,” with a few sharp moments poking through the fog.
Read if you want haunted-building dread with strong “place as predator” vibes; you like trauma horror anchored by a stubborn sibling bond.
Skip if you’re burned out on orphanage myths and haunted-institution scaffolding; you hate “answers” and prefer the weird to stay messy and unexplained.
TL;DR: Porcelain Lullaby is a reliably creepy, rain-soaked haunted-orphanage ride where a music box acts like a paranormal smoke alarm and the Meadowland mythos keeps whispering, come closer. It’s got a strong sibling-through-hell heart and some hellish imagery, but it runs familiar haunted-institution circuitry and rarely pulls the truly unhinged left turn.
Blaine Daigle is a Louisiana-based horror writer who also teaches high school English, and his work tends to lean hard into atmosphere, wounds-that-never-close, and bonds that get stress-tested in bad places. Porcelain Lullaby follows novels like The Broken Places (2023), A Dark Roux (2023), A Dark and Endless Sea (2024), and Ashes of August Manor (2025).
Brothers Jake and Nate Shepherd have been dragging childhood trauma around like a rusted anchor for decades, and when their mom dies, the last breadcrumb she leaves is a phrase and a damn music box. Nate, the more reckless of the two and the one who’s built a life around chasing haunted places, connects the box to their mother’s past as a child who fled Meadowland Orphanage under the shadow of someone named “Rose.” They head toward Black Ridge, Pennsylvania and the abandoned orphanage itself, trying to figure out what followed her, what still wants them, and whether the thing behind Meadowland is a ghost, a curse, or an institution’s rot given life.
I dig what Daigle does here with “creepy infrastructure” horror, the kind where a building feels like a hungry machine that remembers every bad thing ever done inside it. Meadowland doesn’t just loom, it sits there like a predator with cracked windows for eyes, and the book keeps returning to that sensation of being watched, judged, sentenced. The music box is a great genre gadget too: a simple, visual trigger that turns dread into a mechanical problem. When it spins and the melody kicks in, you know the temperature just dropped and some shit is nearby. The 1977 material (Brittany McNamara’s investigation and the town’s fear of Meadowland) gives the mythos some ballast, and the orphanage history sells the idea that the scariest monster is a system that swallowed kids and kept chewing. There are also a few solid, nasty images, like the “kid who looks exactly like you” manifestation that hits both brothers right in the trauma gland and instantly raises the stakes from spooky to personal.
|“The air here felt charged… he couldn’t shake the feeling that every inch he traveled was watched by studious eyes hidden in the trees.”
Daigle’s writing is straightforward and cinematic, built to keep you moving room to room, hallway to hallway, with the camera-light of a flashlight beam. When it works, it’s clean and propulsive, and he knows how to frame a set-piece (the gate, the approach, the oppressive quiet, the sudden “nope” moment) so the dread builds in layers. Where it wobbles is in how closely it cleaves to familiar haunted-institution beats. You can feel the circuitry: ominous local lore, suppressed reports, the “we shouldn’t be here but we are” escalation, then the mythology that wants to explain itself just enough to keep the plot marching. The emotional material, especially the brothers’ fault-lines, is the stronger engine, but the horror machine sometimes feels like it’s running preprogrammed routes instead of surprising you with a truly off-road, “what the fuck did I just read” detour.
The big thematic thread is inherited damage, not just genetics or family history, but the way a place can plant a seed in a person and wait decades for it to bloom ugly. Nate puts it plainly: “Influences bring out what is already there.” The other is sibling devotion as a kind of imperfect salvation, love that doesn’t fix you, but keeps you from falling through the floor when the house starts talking.
|“They didn’t feel like working with him anymore. So, they put him where they wouldn’t see him.”
In his own author’s note, Daigle frames Porcelain Lullaby as a culmination, explicitly calling it the stop that “all roads” in his first five books led toward, and you can feel that “wrap-up” impulse in how it ties craft themes and sibling-bond obsessions together around Meadowland. That makes it a solid entry for readers who like his emotional through-lines, even if it’s not the one that detonates the subgenre.
Solid creepy-orphanage atmosphere and a legit brothers-in-hell core, but it plays the haunted-institution hits a little too faithfully, so it lands as “not bad, not notable,” with a few sharp moments poking through the fog.
Read if you want haunted-building dread with strong “place as predator” vibes; you like trauma horror anchored by a stubborn sibling bond.
Skip if you’re burned out on orphanage myths and haunted-institution scaffolding; you hate “answers” and prefer the weird to stay messy and unexplained.
Review of advance copy received from Author
If you’ve still not picked up one of Daigle’s novels then now is *really* the time. Daigle is one of those authors I can rely on for a dope story, excellently crafted settings and characters and dark vibes. And Porcelain Lullaby hits the mark, yet again. I’ve mentioned this in a few other reviews but the setting versatility Daigle shows really stands out. Even an author like Stephen King doesn’t always excel at setting. King likes to employ the neutral/bland midwestern town in his later novels and it shows no heart. But every book I’ve read by Daigle it’s like he’s dropped a small piece of himself inside and the authenticity truly shines.
Porcelain Lullaby falls into the grief horror category. After the violent death of their parents when the Shepherd brothers were adolescents, they end up foster care which comes with its own challenges. They’ve since drifted from each other in large part to a rift over their perceptions regarding the family tragedy that left them orphaned. When a familiar malevolence begins to appear in their lives the brothers come together to find answers about the source of all the sorrow they experience. And things get heavy, fast.
The prose is up to Daigle’s usual high standards and it’s a read you can blast through. The writing is vivid and accessible and the cast of characters is small allowing plenty of dimension. I also *loved* the Upside Down-esque elements utilized to show the varying planes of corporeality. The diner scene was very well done. The last half set in Meadlowland definitely hit that creepy mark. I’d recommend Porcelain Lullaby to anyone looking for a creepy read.
Porcelain Lullaby falls into the grief horror category. After the violent death of their parents when the Shepherd brothers were adolescents, they end up foster care which comes with its own challenges. They’ve since drifted from each other in large part to a rift over their perceptions regarding the family tragedy that left them orphaned. When a familiar malevolence begins to appear in their lives the brothers come together to find answers about the source of all the sorrow they experience. And things get heavy, fast.
The prose is up to Daigle’s usual high standards and it’s a read you can blast through. The writing is vivid and accessible and the cast of characters is small allowing plenty of dimension. I also *loved* the Upside Down-esque elements utilized to show the varying planes of corporeality. The diner scene was very well done. The last half set in Meadlowland definitely hit that creepy mark. I’d recommend Porcelain Lullaby to anyone looking for a creepy read.
January 20, 2026
*****
The pain is real. The heartbreak is real. The trauma is real. You feel every bit of each as you are reading this story. This story grabs you right at the beginning and you immediately feel attached to the little girl, which is a good thing because even though she isn’t necessarily the main character in this story, she is a crucial player. Your heart breaks for every character in this story, even Rose. She reminds me of a conversation I had recently. Funny enough it was about Stranger Things. I was talking about how Vecna really wasn’t a bad guy. He was just another victim of the Mind Flayer. Rose is exactly the same. Her pain and trauma led her to be vulnerable and she was used as a tool. I’m glad that Jake could see that in the end. It speaks a lot for his character. He may have made mistakes in the past but they all molded him into a better person. I hate the ending for Nate but at the same time I love it. It seems fitting for him because nobody else would be able to protect those children better than him. In all, this story is a breathtaking masterpiece that will bring you to tears.
Also, there is something to be said for trauma shaping who you are, rather you intend for it to or not. On a different level for sure but I lost my 11 year old son to a horrifying genetic disease and had to sit back and literally watch him die. That trauma has completely changed who I am and there isn’t a thing I can do about it. Like many of the characters in this story, I feel fragile. I have always explained that I am the equivalent of a windshield that has been shattered and is just barely hanging together. One little push and it will collapse into pieces.
The pain is real. The heartbreak is real. The trauma is real. You feel every bit of each as you are reading this story. This story grabs you right at the beginning and you immediately feel attached to the little girl, which is a good thing because even though she isn’t necessarily the main character in this story, she is a crucial player. Your heart breaks for every character in this story, even Rose. She reminds me of a conversation I had recently. Funny enough it was about Stranger Things. I was talking about how Vecna really wasn’t a bad guy. He was just another victim of the Mind Flayer. Rose is exactly the same. Her pain and trauma led her to be vulnerable and she was used as a tool. I’m glad that Jake could see that in the end. It speaks a lot for his character. He may have made mistakes in the past but they all molded him into a better person. I hate the ending for Nate but at the same time I love it. It seems fitting for him because nobody else would be able to protect those children better than him. In all, this story is a breathtaking masterpiece that will bring you to tears.
Also, there is something to be said for trauma shaping who you are, rather you intend for it to or not. On a different level for sure but I lost my 11 year old son to a horrifying genetic disease and had to sit back and literally watch him die. That trauma has completely changed who I am and there isn’t a thing I can do about it. Like many of the characters in this story, I feel fragile. I have always explained that I am the equivalent of a windshield that has been shattered and is just barely hanging together. One little push and it will collapse into pieces.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I very rarely use the word "scary" in my reviews, because, honestly, after so many books it's not easy for me to actually get scared anymore. This is sad, but certainly not all that bad, since lots of horror books have creeped me out, disturbed me, chilled me, weirded me out, or even wrecked me psychologically instead. "Porcelain Lullaby" also had those effects on me - but, most importantly, it also SCARED me. And after so long, the experience was truly unsettling!
I would simply recommend the book on these grounds, but it's worth mentioning the excellent writing, the tremendously skillful characterization, the sense of place, the palpable malevolence oozing from the pages, and, of course, the absolutely satisfying ending. But many, many books have lately achieved equal 'literary' greatness (plenty published, in fact, by Wicked House itself), so I really should press the point that "Porcelain Lullaby" is one hell of a scary book, and leave it at that!
If you enjoy intricate ghost stories, heartbreaking family dynamics, and heavily haunted places - and you dig the idea of supernatural evil arising out of twisted human nature, human pain and darkness, living on despair, grief, regret, and childhood trauma, the novel will knock your socks off! And it'll give you reasons to avoid going searching for them in the dark!
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January 10, 2026When one hears Meadowland, it seems idyllic at first. Meadowland of Porcelain Lullaby is not. This is an intensely uncomfortable book involving severe family trauma that would be hard for anyone to get through. I admit, I sobbed openly during several pages, as well as cringed in fear during several more. Mr Daigle has this unique voice Ive never read from anyone other author that transports you directly into the worlds he creates. They are stunning, terrifying, awe-inspiring and downright intense. I wasn't able to stop turning pages because I was so invested in Nick and Jake's characters. I finished this book while lying in a hospital, with a clinic next door called Meadowland so it made this book even that much more terrifying. Reading voraciously while in serious condition in a hospital is testament to Mr Daigle's talent as an author. If you only read one book this year, be sure it is Porcelain Lullaby. You will not regret your trip to Meadowland and beyond. Also... do not turn the lever on the ballerina jewelry box, ever. Well done, Blaine. As always, I will be here impatiently awaiting your next book. Hopefully no longer in a hospital, of course. Thank you for the opportunity to read this gorgeous horror novel. It will remain with me for years to come.
I reviewed an arc of this book provided via the author, free of charge.
I reviewed an arc of this book provided via the author, free of charge.
January 21, 2026
I am a fan of all of Daigle's previous books, but this most recent I think is his best. It's what he does best - atmospheric gothic horror - in this case, infused with grief and childhood trauma.
What I love so much about this story is that it's as much about the relationship between two brothers navigating the horrific loss of their parents, and the broken road it sets them on, as it is about the terror behind it all they will face as adults. And this trauma they have experienced muddles the nature of that terror. Is it real? Is it mental illness? Is it supernatural?
The story is in two distinct parts. After a terrifying prologue, Part I drops the pacing down a few notches to make room for some A+ creepy ass world building, to let a meaningful relationship grow between the brothers we're going to follow into the dark, and to establish the questions about the nature of what is happening here - is it real? Is it in their heads? Don't worry - there are still plenty of instances of creeping dread and tingling spine action.
Part II is where we find the answers. Dripping with menace, dread, anxiety, grief, terror, trauma, and guilt, the brothers dive headlong into the dark to find out exactly what's at the bottom of their lifelong brokenness.
I'm totally not going to tell you what they find. But I will tell you it's worth the read to find out.
What I love so much about this story is that it's as much about the relationship between two brothers navigating the horrific loss of their parents, and the broken road it sets them on, as it is about the terror behind it all they will face as adults. And this trauma they have experienced muddles the nature of that terror. Is it real? Is it mental illness? Is it supernatural?
The story is in two distinct parts. After a terrifying prologue, Part I drops the pacing down a few notches to make room for some A+ creepy ass world building, to let a meaningful relationship grow between the brothers we're going to follow into the dark, and to establish the questions about the nature of what is happening here - is it real? Is it in their heads? Don't worry - there are still plenty of instances of creeping dread and tingling spine action.
Part II is where we find the answers. Dripping with menace, dread, anxiety, grief, terror, trauma, and guilt, the brothers dive headlong into the dark to find out exactly what's at the bottom of their lifelong brokenness.
I'm totally not going to tell you what they find. But I will tell you it's worth the read to find out.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Jake and Nate Shepherd are orphans. After enduring unimaginable trauma, the brothers are sent into foster care. Years later, as adults, they’re no longer in contact—but that distance won’t last. To confront the buried demons of their past, they’ll soon need each other more than ever.
Wowza. I genuinely had to sleep with one eye open after finishing this one. Daigle has an incredible way with words—his vivid, immersive prose made me feel like I was right there in Meadowland alongside Jake and Nate. And that’s exactly what you want from a horror novel. The ability to so clearly visualize each scene had me checking over my shoulder and listening for sounds that definitely weren’t there.
The story unfolds as a masterfully executed slow burn. Each chapter is beautifully and poetically written, steeped in creeping dread. The short chapters are deceptive—“just one more” quickly turns into several more, until suddenly it’s far too late and the silence of the night feels dangerous.
A chilling must-read for fans of paranormal horror. Expect heavy themes of childhood trauma, orphanages, and deeply unsettling dolls that will linger long after the final page.
Huge thanks to Blaine Daigle and the publisher for the ARC and the opportunity to share my honest opinion.
Wowza. I genuinely had to sleep with one eye open after finishing this one. Daigle has an incredible way with words—his vivid, immersive prose made me feel like I was right there in Meadowland alongside Jake and Nate. And that’s exactly what you want from a horror novel. The ability to so clearly visualize each scene had me checking over my shoulder and listening for sounds that definitely weren’t there.
The story unfolds as a masterfully executed slow burn. Each chapter is beautifully and poetically written, steeped in creeping dread. The short chapters are deceptive—“just one more” quickly turns into several more, until suddenly it’s far too late and the silence of the night feels dangerous.
A chilling must-read for fans of paranormal horror. Expect heavy themes of childhood trauma, orphanages, and deeply unsettling dolls that will linger long after the final page.
Huge thanks to Blaine Daigle and the publisher for the ARC and the opportunity to share my honest opinion.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Thank you Blaine Daigle for sending me an ARC of your new horror novel. I think this is your most horrifying novel yet!
The violent deaths of their parents left Nate and Jake broken. Nate has chosen to embrace the trauma and find out the truth of what really happened when they were children while Jake has chosen to move on the best he can and block out his past. When Nate receives a phone call from his dead mother, the brothers realize they must finally confront what has been haunting them before it is too late and destroys their lives. Their mother told them to save her from Meadowland, an abandoned orphanage that is full of secrets, misery and lost souls.
As usual, Daigle does an amazing job crafting the setting for this novel. Meadowland is truly terrifying with a darkness that seeps through the pages. I felt a heaviness in my stomach the entire read and I am not sure I will get over how heartbreaking the orphanage is. The story draws in supernatural elements including another world which I think worked perfectly. There is so much grief, abandonment, pain and pure sadness but at the end of the books I also felt hope. I loved this story and cannot recommend it enough!
The violent deaths of their parents left Nate and Jake broken. Nate has chosen to embrace the trauma and find out the truth of what really happened when they were children while Jake has chosen to move on the best he can and block out his past. When Nate receives a phone call from his dead mother, the brothers realize they must finally confront what has been haunting them before it is too late and destroys their lives. Their mother told them to save her from Meadowland, an abandoned orphanage that is full of secrets, misery and lost souls.
As usual, Daigle does an amazing job crafting the setting for this novel. Meadowland is truly terrifying with a darkness that seeps through the pages. I felt a heaviness in my stomach the entire read and I am not sure I will get over how heartbreaking the orphanage is. The story draws in supernatural elements including another world which I think worked perfectly. There is so much grief, abandonment, pain and pure sadness but at the end of the books I also felt hope. I loved this story and cannot recommend it enough!
January 19, 2026
PORCELAIN LULLABY does not disappoint. The creepy scenes bring ALL of the creep factor, but the emotional scenes will absolutely WRECK you! The emotional scenes are some of the best writing in the book. They grip you and don’t let go. I personally was not ready for how hard these scenes hit me. The settings and atmosphere are masterfully crafted, so vivid that you will see them while reading the words on the page. The atmosphere is a great balance of quiet and loud, with the quiet moments very reminiscent of the quiet atmosphere of ASHES OF AUGUST MANOR. Nate and Jake are very relatable characters, and their sibling bond, even though filled with cracks that need fixing, keeps you tethered in. Neither are perfect, and both of them echo the struggles that many of us feel, with or without a traumatic past: the need to rebuild a bond with a sibling but not sure how to start, the frustrations of a job that we sometimes bring home to family, the guilt of taking those frustrations out on those we love when we don’t mean to. For so many reasons that can’t truly be put into words, this is one book that needs to be picked up and devoured.
March 28, 2026
Blaine Daigle never fails to impress me with his compelling stories. His artistry immerses you in characters’ lives, plunging you into their agony with chilling journeys into the supernatural. Jake and Nate, burdened by unimaginable childhood trauma and estranged for years, confront unsettling truths about their parents' gruesome deaths, truths that aren’t what they seemed. A mysterious and unsettling phone call pulls them back together, prompting a quest to uncover the secrets of their past, their parents' tragic end, and the sinister entity that has haunted them for years.
Nate, a dedicated ghost hunter, conducts extensive research and interviews from his mother’s childhood, leading them to an abandoned orphanage called Meadowland.
Blaine’s stories evoke a vivid atmospheric presence, blending believable creepiness with masterful prose. His writing takes you on a journey from start to finish, creating an riveting experience.
He has become one of my favorite authors, reliably delivering captivating, and creepy tales. More than just horror, his stories explore a spectrum of human emotion, lifelong tragedies and hidden secrets that are buried deep within the psyche.
Nate, a dedicated ghost hunter, conducts extensive research and interviews from his mother’s childhood, leading them to an abandoned orphanage called Meadowland.
Blaine’s stories evoke a vivid atmospheric presence, blending believable creepiness with masterful prose. His writing takes you on a journey from start to finish, creating an riveting experience.
He has become one of my favorite authors, reliably delivering captivating, and creepy tales. More than just horror, his stories explore a spectrum of human emotion, lifelong tragedies and hidden secrets that are buried deep within the psyche.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Well, another 5 star Blaine Daigle read… shocking no one.
I am constantly blown away at Daigle’s range as an author, giving us a different sub-genre of horror with each release. These are horror books with humanity at the centre and scaring us by making us think what makes us all tick.
Porcelain Lullaby explores a shared childhood trauma of two brothers and an entity that has been following them ever since. I loved the absolute creepiness of this - there’s nothing better than a haunted abandoned orphanage. Creep factor x1000000000000.
I stayed up late finishing this book (mistake? perhaps, hello nightmares!) and thought it was expertly executed. Blaine’s prose is so well thought out and evocative. He’s a fantastic storyteller that can scare the hell out of you and break your heart in the same sentence.
Loved this!!!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Available January 20, 2025
Thank you to Blaine Daigle for a free advance review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I am constantly blown away at Daigle’s range as an author, giving us a different sub-genre of horror with each release. These are horror books with humanity at the centre and scaring us by making us think what makes us all tick.
Porcelain Lullaby explores a shared childhood trauma of two brothers and an entity that has been following them ever since. I loved the absolute creepiness of this - there’s nothing better than a haunted abandoned orphanage. Creep factor x1000000000000.
I stayed up late finishing this book (mistake? perhaps, hello nightmares!) and thought it was expertly executed. Blaine’s prose is so well thought out and evocative. He’s a fantastic storyteller that can scare the hell out of you and break your heart in the same sentence.
Loved this!!!
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Available January 20, 2025
Thank you to Blaine Daigle for a free advance review copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
February 27, 2026
No surprise to anyone that this was 5 easy shining stars for me. The type of 5 stars that makes me re-evaluate previous books I’ve rated 5 stars. This book totally freaked me out, but it also made my heart ache… and that takes talent to write. I don’t consider myself a literary fiction fan, but this is the kind of literature I adore. The type of writing that has me reading sentences over and over again because of how beautiful or haunting they are. Often times when I start a book like this, I’m nervous that it’s going to go a different route or not wrap up the way I hope, but I have a lot of trust in Blaine, and he proves me right every time.
And what a powerful, meaningful author’s note. Blaine- I wish I had discovered you even earlier than I did and could’ve read your journey in order. But I’m lucky enough to have two more of your current books to enjoy and I am so so excited to be along for the ride that is your stories to come!
And what a powerful, meaningful author’s note. Blaine- I wish I had discovered you even earlier than I did and could’ve read your journey in order. But I’m lucky enough to have two more of your current books to enjoy and I am so so excited to be along for the ride that is your stories to come!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
This is Daigle at his very best, exploring family connections, sibling trauma bonds, and regret through the horror lens. Nate and Jake have grown apart in adulthood, different opinions and recollections around the deaths of their parents a wedge between them. When the strange circumstances surrounding their past catches up with them in the present, the brothers come together to uncover the secrets of a haunted orphanage, missing children, and the reason their mother murdered their father.
This is a chilling and truly unnerving book filled with standout horror scenes and vividly portrayed characters. You won’t just read about Nate and Jake, you’ll travel along with them. And where you’re going, you may never leave…
This is a chilling and truly unnerving book filled with standout horror scenes and vividly portrayed characters. You won’t just read about Nate and Jake, you’ll travel along with them. And where you’re going, you may never leave…
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