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The Curse of Marystown
1750, Marystown, Virginia. Jeremiah arrives in a dying town to begin his indenture for one of the last remaining families. Forced to adhere to bizarre rules and rituals for his own survival, Jeremiah is taunted by strange secrets from the land that it seems only he can see. Is the haunting because of a local witch, or is it a timeless curse on the land itself? Will it claim the last inhabitants, or will they survive the brutal, wild woods?
72 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 21, 2025
2 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
Desiree Horton
32 books40 followersDesiree Horton is a horror writer and enthusiast. She can be found at home in the PNW with her two dogs, two kids, and one husband. Her work can be found in other horror anthologies, and on the edges of papers she will lose almost immediately. More information on her works can be found at authordesireehorton.my.canva.site or on Amazon. Instagram and tiktok: @horrortonwritesabook
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 25, 2025
Deliciously creepy and wonderfully written, the novelette of "The Curse of Marystown" delivers a character-driven exploration of a mysterious sickness affecting a small American town in the 1750s. The tale is told through a young Irish boy's eyes; he's been sold to servitude by his own mother. The boy goes to work for a farmer, and is told to never cross the barrier set by a series of white stones. Of course, the boy can't help himself and is soon drawn into the local mystery of a witch who's cursed the whole place - an affliction that generates monsters, destroys crops and animals, and even takes lives; of young boys especially! But she's also amenable to bargains - or is she? Doesn't the place have a say? Apparently it does.
Horton skillfully packs in a few sentences what lesser writers would need entire chapters to convey. With precise dialogue, incredibly fleshed-out characters, and attention to the setting, she manages to relate a detailed folk horror tale with a satisfying - though very sad - resolution. Highly recommend!
Horton skillfully packs in a few sentences what lesser writers would need entire chapters to convey. With precise dialogue, incredibly fleshed-out characters, and attention to the setting, she manages to relate a detailed folk horror tale with a satisfying - though very sad - resolution. Highly recommend!
December 24, 2025
The Curse of Marystown by Desiree Horton
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Love, love, love this short story! It’s creepy, well written and it completely sucked me in from page 1!
This story takes place in the year 1750, where we are introduced to Jeremiah. He already has not had an easy life; at age 11, he was sold into servitude.
After a long boat ride, Jeremiah arrived at a new and very small town, Marystown. Here he would be serving a man named Obidiah, to help work on his farm. Jeremiah learned quickly that things weren’t quite right on this farm or the town.
It’s an interesting backstory of how Obidiah and his family ended up in Marystown and why they have stayed there knowing that it’s not safe.
Obidiah has a few rules that he stresses to Jeremiah that he must follow. The biggest one was to never go past the stones and into the woods. He would find out soon enough the reason behind this rule!
What is going on at this place? Is the land cursed?
For a short story, it’s an extremely thorough one! It didn’t feel rushed or incomplete as some shorter stories can.
I can’t wait to read more from this author!!
**This is a must read!! Grab it now!!**
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Love, love, love this short story! It’s creepy, well written and it completely sucked me in from page 1!
This story takes place in the year 1750, where we are introduced to Jeremiah. He already has not had an easy life; at age 11, he was sold into servitude.
After a long boat ride, Jeremiah arrived at a new and very small town, Marystown. Here he would be serving a man named Obidiah, to help work on his farm. Jeremiah learned quickly that things weren’t quite right on this farm or the town.
It’s an interesting backstory of how Obidiah and his family ended up in Marystown and why they have stayed there knowing that it’s not safe.
Obidiah has a few rules that he stresses to Jeremiah that he must follow. The biggest one was to never go past the stones and into the woods. He would find out soon enough the reason behind this rule!
What is going on at this place? Is the land cursed?
For a short story, it’s an extremely thorough one! It didn’t feel rushed or incomplete as some shorter stories can.
I can’t wait to read more from this author!!
**This is a must read!! Grab it now!!**
December 29, 2025
I love historical horror. Movies like "Bone Tomahawk," "The Witch," and "The Damned" beautifully -- and often brutally -- depict time periods long past in which things like superstition were held as truth, and people turned to the supernatural to explain occurrences where logic or common knowledge failed them. Even now, in the hands of a gifted storyteller, we can find ourselves in those same dark and terrifying times, filled with the dread and uncertainty people must have felt when faced with droughts, storms, plagues, and other seemingly sinister disasters.
Author Desiree Horton taps into this wellspring in her new story "The Curse of Marystown." Set in the mid-eighteenth century, well before America's War of Independence, it follows a boy named Jeremiah who travels from his impoverished home in Ireland to Virginia, where he has been conscripted to serve as a farmhand. While selling off children to complete strangers half the world away may seem barbaric to us now, in those days it was commonplace, and Jeremiah, although sad to leave his brothers and sisters behind, accepts his fate with a stoic resignation that belies his youth.
His new employer, Obidiah, owns a failing tobacco farm in the isolated village of Marystown. Located along an inhospitable stretch of boglands, surrounded by dense and mysterious woods, Marystown isn't quite a ghost-town yet, but is on its way. Once well-populated, over the years, its residents have died off and dwindled, leaving behind only a loose scattering of determined souls like Obidiah still trying to eke a living out of its soggy, mud-riddled landscape.
And there's a lot of mud. Horton introduces it in a literal sense within the story's opening passages, but it also serves as an analogy for Marystown itself. Dark, cold, and treacherous, the town and mud latch onto anything that tries to pass through it, clinging with a sinister tenacity, threatening to drag the hapless or unsuspecting into its thick, inescapable mire.
Jeremiah tries to make the best of his situation, but quickly realizes things in Marystown are far from normal. Obidiah's farm is encircled with white stones. Beyond this strange perimeter lies the forest, and Obidiah cautions the boy to never venture past the stones and into the trees. While he tells Jeremiah there are wild boars and other animals that could hurt him in the woods, Obidiah's creepy daughter Annabelle tells him the real danger is from a witch. At first, Jeremiah thinks the girl is only teasing, but then he catches her stealing a toy from him, then chases her into the woods to retrieve it. He sees the girl climb a strange-looking tree and place the toy near an ominous hollow--one from which a ghostly hand emerges to accept the offering.
These are the firsts of many strange and sinister occurrences that take place. The longer Jeremiah is with Obidiah and his family, the more he becomes convinced the witch of the woods that Annabelle described is very much real. And, he discovers, she may in fact be the vengeful spirit of the woman for whom the town was named, a widowed French pioneer who'd survived on her own long before Marystown had been established, and who the villagers had eventually persecuted and hanged for witchcraft.
To say more would spoil the many wonderful surprises laying in wait for readers in this dark, haunting, beautifully written tale. Horton's writing builds layer upon layer of increasing tension and dread. Like the mud Jeremiah encounters throughout the tale, the reader, too, soon finds themselves sinking deeper and deeper, unable to escape.
Jeremiah is such an earnest character, a child burdened with adult responsibilities and expectations, who is both stronger than one his tender age ought to be, yet still filled with a child's ingenuous frailty, and you can't help but care for and worry about him.
Obidiah initially seems like a coldhearted and callous man, but Horton offers us glimpses of a softer side, a tenderness we sense might be the last dying ember of the kinder, gentler man he must have been before moving to Marystown, before the hardships of that place wore him down.
His wife Sally, likewise, has moments of genuine compassion toward the family's new young charge, but Annabelle's character is a wild card, and we walk away at the end of the story knowing little more about her than we did at the onset. From the moment of her introduction, she seems to be a conniving, wicked girl, and it's never made clear whether the mechanisms of her manipulations are the result of the enigmatic witch Mary, or her own inherent nature.
All in all, "The Curse of Marystown" is a bleak, atmospheric, and darkly lush tale, with wonderfully realized characters and writing that is gripping, lyrical, and immersive. Like all great stories, it lingers long after you finish reading, and establishes Horton as an author I'll definitely read again.
Author Desiree Horton taps into this wellspring in her new story "The Curse of Marystown." Set in the mid-eighteenth century, well before America's War of Independence, it follows a boy named Jeremiah who travels from his impoverished home in Ireland to Virginia, where he has been conscripted to serve as a farmhand. While selling off children to complete strangers half the world away may seem barbaric to us now, in those days it was commonplace, and Jeremiah, although sad to leave his brothers and sisters behind, accepts his fate with a stoic resignation that belies his youth.
His new employer, Obidiah, owns a failing tobacco farm in the isolated village of Marystown. Located along an inhospitable stretch of boglands, surrounded by dense and mysterious woods, Marystown isn't quite a ghost-town yet, but is on its way. Once well-populated, over the years, its residents have died off and dwindled, leaving behind only a loose scattering of determined souls like Obidiah still trying to eke a living out of its soggy, mud-riddled landscape.
And there's a lot of mud. Horton introduces it in a literal sense within the story's opening passages, but it also serves as an analogy for Marystown itself. Dark, cold, and treacherous, the town and mud latch onto anything that tries to pass through it, clinging with a sinister tenacity, threatening to drag the hapless or unsuspecting into its thick, inescapable mire.
Jeremiah tries to make the best of his situation, but quickly realizes things in Marystown are far from normal. Obidiah's farm is encircled with white stones. Beyond this strange perimeter lies the forest, and Obidiah cautions the boy to never venture past the stones and into the trees. While he tells Jeremiah there are wild boars and other animals that could hurt him in the woods, Obidiah's creepy daughter Annabelle tells him the real danger is from a witch. At first, Jeremiah thinks the girl is only teasing, but then he catches her stealing a toy from him, then chases her into the woods to retrieve it. He sees the girl climb a strange-looking tree and place the toy near an ominous hollow--one from which a ghostly hand emerges to accept the offering.
These are the firsts of many strange and sinister occurrences that take place. The longer Jeremiah is with Obidiah and his family, the more he becomes convinced the witch of the woods that Annabelle described is very much real. And, he discovers, she may in fact be the vengeful spirit of the woman for whom the town was named, a widowed French pioneer who'd survived on her own long before Marystown had been established, and who the villagers had eventually persecuted and hanged for witchcraft.
To say more would spoil the many wonderful surprises laying in wait for readers in this dark, haunting, beautifully written tale. Horton's writing builds layer upon layer of increasing tension and dread. Like the mud Jeremiah encounters throughout the tale, the reader, too, soon finds themselves sinking deeper and deeper, unable to escape.
Jeremiah is such an earnest character, a child burdened with adult responsibilities and expectations, who is both stronger than one his tender age ought to be, yet still filled with a child's ingenuous frailty, and you can't help but care for and worry about him.
Obidiah initially seems like a coldhearted and callous man, but Horton offers us glimpses of a softer side, a tenderness we sense might be the last dying ember of the kinder, gentler man he must have been before moving to Marystown, before the hardships of that place wore him down.
His wife Sally, likewise, has moments of genuine compassion toward the family's new young charge, but Annabelle's character is a wild card, and we walk away at the end of the story knowing little more about her than we did at the onset. From the moment of her introduction, she seems to be a conniving, wicked girl, and it's never made clear whether the mechanisms of her manipulations are the result of the enigmatic witch Mary, or her own inherent nature.
All in all, "The Curse of Marystown" is a bleak, atmospheric, and darkly lush tale, with wonderfully realized characters and writing that is gripping, lyrical, and immersive. Like all great stories, it lingers long after you finish reading, and establishes Horton as an author I'll definitely read again.
February 5, 2026
I'm a sucker for history, so I knew I would love this one. It's set in 1750 as a young kid is transported to colonial America after being sold off. The young boy is told to never pass a certain barrier because of a 'curse'. However, we know curiosity killed the cat and the boy can't help himself.
There is a folk tale of a witch who cursed these lands. It's a curse that kills people, crops, and livestock. Desiree really steps up with her descriptions that are creepy as heck as they paint a grim picture of a small 'haunted' American town. I wish I could say the ending is bright, but it really isn't. I won't spoil the ending, but I will say for a short novella, it didn't feel rushed at all.
It's another winner from Desiree Horton!
There is a folk tale of a witch who cursed these lands. It's a curse that kills people, crops, and livestock. Desiree really steps up with her descriptions that are creepy as heck as they paint a grim picture of a small 'haunted' American town. I wish I could say the ending is bright, but it really isn't. I won't spoil the ending, but I will say for a short novella, it didn't feel rushed at all.
It's another winner from Desiree Horton!
December 23, 2025
Desiree is an author to watch. Her ability to create relatable characters and set a scene is impressive. This story is no exception. Fast paced, atmospheric, and intriguing. If you are looking for a quick historical horror, check it out!
December 26, 2025
So, you might be thinking "Only 72 pages? can a story grab you AND freak me out?"
Umm, the answer is YES. This is the third book I've read by this author and is the third story I've loved.
There's no time wasted on getting right the creepy stuff without compromising character development. The ending is haunting, heartbreaking but worded so beautifully.
Folk Horror that will grab you by the shirt collar and not let you close your eyes. it'll only make things worse.
Umm, the answer is YES. This is the third book I've read by this author and is the third story I've loved.
There's no time wasted on getting right the creepy stuff without compromising character development. The ending is haunting, heartbreaking but worded so beautifully.
Folk Horror that will grab you by the shirt collar and not let you close your eyes. it'll only make things worse.
December 26, 2025
Chilling, gritty, sludgy…and that’s not just the mud covering Marystown! This short, creepy, folk horror saturates the mind and refuses to subside even after the last page. Well-written, atmospheric, and intriguing.
January 2, 2026
This short folk horror story packs a punch! The story felt like something very real that could have happened in the 1700s. This book was creepy, gritty, and left me checking the shadows out of the corner of my eyes. Selfishly, I wanted more! Such a great read!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews