Castle of Flesh

by Aiden E. Messer

How cruel do you have to be to use a human being as a lamp or centerpiece?

Douglas is about to overthrow the cruel tyrant with the help of his boyfriend and the rebel army he raised. But just as the goal seems to be at hand, a brutal betrayal destroys his hopes and leaves the rebellion in shambles. Douglas is captured and given to the tyrant’s sadistic daughter to be used and humiliated as a warning to any others who might consider rebellion. Trapped without any allies in this castle filled with decorations created out of living human beings contorted in nightmarish positions, where torture is nothing but a dinnertime amusement, Douglas is subjected to torture and degradation that pushes his limits. But is the Princess just further tormenting his mind, or does she really have her own agenda? And what would it really mean for him if she does? Can he even endure long enough to find out?

This is a queer splatterpunk story. It contains graphic violence and gore, as well as transgender and bisexual characters, both good and bad.

90 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 20, 2025

About the author

Aiden E. Messer does not exist. Are they an illusion, a ghost, a mere thought? No one knows. If we are to believe one of the children they seem to work with, if they were a teacher, they would be as tall as a human. They are not a teacher. According to various sources, they have studied psychology, and have always had a penchant for horror and the macabre. They like to combine these subjects in their books.

Reviews

[Mickey Mullin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a voluntary ARC for free in exchange for an honest review.

⭐️ 2.5 rounded up to 3 for goodreads, this review is NOT spoiler free

The concept was interesting but I think this novella needed to be a little longer to build tension & development, & another beta reader.

There was one moment early on that a beta should have caught where only pages apart the same analogy was used. On my e-reader, it was only 4 pages. Chp 2 “Maybe he was in hell, and this was his punishment for failing everyone.” & Chp 3 “Or maybe he was dead already, he’d been killed with the reat of the rebels, and he was burning in hell.” That might have been caught if another beta was present in the editing process, & the back of the boon only credits one beta, so it would have benefited from another eye.

When it comes to length, i just never got attached to anyone. The MMC siblings being involved had little emotional weight. They were introduced, we were reminded he had siblings, & then one died & I didnt care. The gore couldve benefited from lingering, staying with the descriptions of mutilated bodies, but u felt like we were simply told what they looked like & then moved on quickly aside for select moments. The last chapter was what I expected when it came to gore descriptions, but the MMC is so submissive 90% of the book towards Jerry that final bout of anger didnt feel deserved & needed to be built up more.

It felt like a working draft ultimately, not a bad concept but needed at least another draft before publishing in my opinion to really flesh out the characters & plot. I felt rushed through the plot & wish we lingered & grew more attached to characters besides the FMC.