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Drone: A Weird Horror Novella
ONCE YOU HEAR IT…
Gallagher’s life on the island should be idyllic. Yet his scenic, remote farm turns a meagre profit and provides little distraction from his vices.
When a strange noise infects the island’s inhabitants, Gallagher’s rural life is infiltrated by tension and unease. His neighbours become unpredictable and dangerous, threatening the fabric of island life beyond anything Gallagher has ever known.
As the community descends into fear and violence, Gallagher finds a way to silence the sound, but is this slice of peace worth the terrible cost?
Praise for Drone
What 28 Days Later did for London, Drone does for the rural north. Rooted in working-class poverty and the deep-seated antagonisms of farming communities, it's fast-paced, brutal and scary as hell. Yet another reminder that Dan Howarth is a rising star to watch.
Dan Coxon – World Fantasy Award winning editor and author of Come Sing for the Harrowing
Dan Howarth goes from strength to strength with each new book, and this is a superb work of anxiety-inducing horror. Possibly Howarth's most tense story to date - medical anxiety, bubbling fury, and subtle socio-political commentary that will drop your jaw and keep it on the floor. Simply fantastic!
Kayleigh Dobbs - author of The End and owner of Happy Goat Horror
The subtle, subjective apocalypse of Drone is an eerily plausible nightmare that lingered in my mind and left my ears ringing.
Tim Major – British Fantasy Award-winning author of Hope Island
When a strange noise infects the island’s inhabitants, Gallagher’s rural life is infiltrated by tension and unease. His neighbours become unpredictable and dangerous, threatening the fabric of island life beyond anything Gallagher has ever known.
As the community descends into fear and violence, Gallagher finds a way to silence the sound, but is this slice of peace worth the terrible cost?
Praise for Drone
What 28 Days Later did for London, Drone does for the rural north. Rooted in working-class poverty and the deep-seated antagonisms of farming communities, it's fast-paced, brutal and scary as hell. Yet another reminder that Dan Howarth is a rising star to watch.
Dan Coxon – World Fantasy Award winning editor and author of Come Sing for the Harrowing
Dan Howarth goes from strength to strength with each new book, and this is a superb work of anxiety-inducing horror. Possibly Howarth's most tense story to date - medical anxiety, bubbling fury, and subtle socio-political commentary that will drop your jaw and keep it on the floor. Simply fantastic!
Kayleigh Dobbs - author of The End and owner of Happy Goat Horror
The subtle, subjective apocalypse of Drone is an eerily plausible nightmare that lingered in my mind and left my ears ringing.
Tim Major – British Fantasy Award-winning author of Hope Island
- GenresHorror
106 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 24, 2026
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June 1, 2026Throughout history, people have shared stories of hearing an almost imperceptible ‘hum’ or drone. A quick Google search will bring up numerous examples, as well searching for it on Youtube or Tik Tok. I remember in late 2025 following a few Tik Tok accounts based out of Whitehorse in the Yukon who were asking about people hearing a noise and sharing folks recollection of the noise. It’s an interesting phenomenon, one that seems to have no specific reason behind it happening, while also seemingly ‘easily’ explained by others.
Over the last number of years, I’ve read a few of Dan Howarth’s releases – and seriously if you’ve not read his novel ‘Last Night of Freedom’ yet, you absolutely need to get on that, freaking phenomenal – and really enjoyed them. When he announced this one, I was at first drawn in by the gorgeous cover art, but then reading the description, I was hooked. I was hoping to get this read as soon as possible after it was released, though that wasn’t the case. When I did jump into it, I was smiling from ear to ear. Howarth has a cadence to his writing that is both comforting but also anxiety-driven. It’s as though each word has an energy to them and as you flip the page, that energy is minutely increased, only becoming apparent to the reader after it’s too late to turn back.
What I liked: The story takes place on a remote island where the inhabitants live a fairly simple life. Saying that, there’s nothing simple about it. They farm. Farming is perhaps one of the most difficult and stressful professions/lives anybody could ever choose and in this case, our main character Gallagher didn’t choose. He was born into the life, his father a farmer. And after his father passed away, Gallagher inherited the farm and all its shortcomings. Money is tight, losing a single animal can be a death blow and as the outside world moves further away from buying from those on the island, Gallagher wonders what awaits his own future.
And then one day he wakes with a noise in his head he can’t shake. He rubs his ears, tries covering them and even sees the local doctor whom he detests, but there’s nothing that seems to lower the never ending sound. It keeps him awake, makes him angry and begins to gnaw at his very psyche.
Then, when he finds his sheep in a mass of violence and throwing themselves against barbwire in an apparent attempt to take their own lives, he knows this is more than just a noise in his head.
Howarth does a wonderful job of making this novella feel gritty and unrelenting. The pacing of it is akin to how Gallagher must’ve felt as the days go by and the drone in his head doesn’t stop. At first, the chapters feel lush and pleasant. And then they begin to morph, the words becoming more caustic, more abrasive and the sections within the chapters harsher and dirtier. We see Gallagher become angrier, we see him interact with a neighbour whom he’s not spoken to in almost a decade and we see a follow up visit to the doctor, and all three aspects point him towards a single way, a single action to make the noise diminish and potentially even go away.
The novella also heavily deals with the realities we all face every day with prices going up, pay going down and how those not in the top 1% of the wealth have to find different ways to make ends meet, all while knowing we’re just one bad bounce away from total ruin. Gallagher runs these thoughts through his mind over and over, both to contemplate just how bad things have become, but also in an attempt to silence the sound. The drone won’t be silenced by thought.
The ending is a brutal look at where things go when left unchecked and Howarth has a cinematic penchant for delivering harsh moments through the lens of masterful prose.
What I didn’t like: There were two aspects that stuck out to me, but both are pretty much reader preference. The first was that not a lot of time is put into the likely cause of the drone or where it came from. Sure, Gallagher talks to others to see if they hear it, but there’s really no rumour’s or so-and-so said this etc. It’s just quietly accepted that the sound exists and Gallagher devotes his time to figuring out how to end it. Even when he goes to the doctor, she says she’ll contact colleagues and then we learn they don’t have any ideas.
The second thing was the POV shift at the end. I can’t go into it for spoiler territory, but I found it very jarring when it happened. It’ll either work for you or not.
Why you should buy this: Howarth manages to give us a novels worth of emotions in a novella page count and does it with blistering glee. ‘Drone’ teases the reader with the potential of a larger unknown at work, but focuses on a singular man. It’s essentially a master work in macro ideas with micro execution. It’s relatable on a number of levels; between the apocalyptic shifts that occur within the small town – first we see lines to shops lower and then we see first responder stations board up and nobody answers the phones, and then we see the shift in the people themselves. Howarth blends the familiar with the foreign, and it’s a unique look into what would happen to ourselves and to our neighbours should something like this ever occur.
A novella that is the true definition of a page-turner, ‘Drone’ is both eerily unsettling and absolutely captivating.
Over the last number of years, I’ve read a few of Dan Howarth’s releases – and seriously if you’ve not read his novel ‘Last Night of Freedom’ yet, you absolutely need to get on that, freaking phenomenal – and really enjoyed them. When he announced this one, I was at first drawn in by the gorgeous cover art, but then reading the description, I was hooked. I was hoping to get this read as soon as possible after it was released, though that wasn’t the case. When I did jump into it, I was smiling from ear to ear. Howarth has a cadence to his writing that is both comforting but also anxiety-driven. It’s as though each word has an energy to them and as you flip the page, that energy is minutely increased, only becoming apparent to the reader after it’s too late to turn back.
What I liked: The story takes place on a remote island where the inhabitants live a fairly simple life. Saying that, there’s nothing simple about it. They farm. Farming is perhaps one of the most difficult and stressful professions/lives anybody could ever choose and in this case, our main character Gallagher didn’t choose. He was born into the life, his father a farmer. And after his father passed away, Gallagher inherited the farm and all its shortcomings. Money is tight, losing a single animal can be a death blow and as the outside world moves further away from buying from those on the island, Gallagher wonders what awaits his own future.
And then one day he wakes with a noise in his head he can’t shake. He rubs his ears, tries covering them and even sees the local doctor whom he detests, but there’s nothing that seems to lower the never ending sound. It keeps him awake, makes him angry and begins to gnaw at his very psyche.
Then, when he finds his sheep in a mass of violence and throwing themselves against barbwire in an apparent attempt to take their own lives, he knows this is more than just a noise in his head.
Howarth does a wonderful job of making this novella feel gritty and unrelenting. The pacing of it is akin to how Gallagher must’ve felt as the days go by and the drone in his head doesn’t stop. At first, the chapters feel lush and pleasant. And then they begin to morph, the words becoming more caustic, more abrasive and the sections within the chapters harsher and dirtier. We see Gallagher become angrier, we see him interact with a neighbour whom he’s not spoken to in almost a decade and we see a follow up visit to the doctor, and all three aspects point him towards a single way, a single action to make the noise diminish and potentially even go away.
The novella also heavily deals with the realities we all face every day with prices going up, pay going down and how those not in the top 1% of the wealth have to find different ways to make ends meet, all while knowing we’re just one bad bounce away from total ruin. Gallagher runs these thoughts through his mind over and over, both to contemplate just how bad things have become, but also in an attempt to silence the sound. The drone won’t be silenced by thought.
The ending is a brutal look at where things go when left unchecked and Howarth has a cinematic penchant for delivering harsh moments through the lens of masterful prose.
What I didn’t like: There were two aspects that stuck out to me, but both are pretty much reader preference. The first was that not a lot of time is put into the likely cause of the drone or where it came from. Sure, Gallagher talks to others to see if they hear it, but there’s really no rumour’s or so-and-so said this etc. It’s just quietly accepted that the sound exists and Gallagher devotes his time to figuring out how to end it. Even when he goes to the doctor, she says she’ll contact colleagues and then we learn they don’t have any ideas.
The second thing was the POV shift at the end. I can’t go into it for spoiler territory, but I found it very jarring when it happened. It’ll either work for you or not.
Why you should buy this: Howarth manages to give us a novels worth of emotions in a novella page count and does it with blistering glee. ‘Drone’ teases the reader with the potential of a larger unknown at work, but focuses on a singular man. It’s essentially a master work in macro ideas with micro execution. It’s relatable on a number of levels; between the apocalyptic shifts that occur within the small town – first we see lines to shops lower and then we see first responder stations board up and nobody answers the phones, and then we see the shift in the people themselves. Howarth blends the familiar with the foreign, and it’s a unique look into what would happen to ourselves and to our neighbours should something like this ever occur.
A novella that is the true definition of a page-turner, ‘Drone’ is both eerily unsettling and absolutely captivating.
May 2, 2026
Just fantastic. Kind of made my ears itchy as I was reading it though...
April 24, 2026
Howarth really does get better with each book. Drone is a fantastic novelette which rattles along like a runaway tractor down a country lane. It's difficult to convey a repetitive situation without it becoming a repetitive experience for the reader but Howarth manages the issue expertly with a structure reminiscent of a Richard Matheson short story. There's also Clive Barker and Adam Nevill flavours here as Drone twists into a nasty, folkloric, weird tale that makes good use of societal themes. Drone is a quick read that is well worth your time. As always I look forward to what this author comes up with next!
August 29, 2026
Very much enjoyed this creepy novella. Told with an assured voice, we follow Gallagher as he navigates his isolated, rural life. When a strange noise causes the people in the locality to act strangely and, eventually, drives them to violence, he can either act to pull his community together or succumb to the noise. A tense, slow-burn of a story and steeped in dread, this is a snapshot of crumbling communities and the erosion of ways of life. Well worth your time.
May 27, 2026
Another solid piece of unsettling fiction from Dan Howarth. The character work was fantastic, particularly the scenes between the antagonistic neighbouring farmers, but a touch more detail about the effect of the noise on the villagers would have been appreciated. Such a strong premise probably warranted a novel length to fully flesh it out.
May 2, 2026
It's quite annoying how good Dan Howarth's books consistently are, I am jealous. Great idea for a novella. I think of it every time I get that "eeeeeeeeeeee" sound in my ears.
September 12, 2026
I wanted to know more about the hum.
That was my lasting thought after finishing Drone, and I think it kept me from fully appreciating the atmosphere and rural horror to its full extent. It’s difficult because I know from online accounts of the hum, and where it has cropped up in other media that it’s not necessarily got a black and white answer, or a resolution, but it felt like aside from Gallagher following the hum and trying to alleviate it, and the doctor offering to reach out to connections on the mainline, there wasn’t a concerted effort to get to the bottom of the issue. Even as the costs were becoming more evident, with fewer people around, places boarded up, and the impact it had on the livestock; and in a community that was clearly so focused on farming, that last one made it a bit harder to understand the lack of drive to really look for an answer.
However, what Howarth absolutely captures is the bleak, isolation of a truly rural community, in the grips of not only the horror hidden within the hum, but the facing the harsh, reality of economic change, the limitations and strengths of island life. It felt like a landscape bleached of colour and life, with just the last few stubborn stalwarts carving out their existence. Especially when there was a simmering undercurrent of old grudges, dislike and competition between those same people. So, in some ways it is easy to understand why there was no consensus on trying to solve the mystery of the hum.
Gallagher wasn’t a particularly likeable character, but Howarth does do a fantastic job of showing how he has become this isolated man, fighting against the economy, the lows of farming, and the hum. You have to appreciate his stubbornness in the face of so many challenges, and I did feel for him when his very livelihood became a victim of the hum. He sits in that cusp of being a man with little both everything to lose, and nothing to lose, and yet with everything to try and fight for.
The last part of the novella is a brutal look at what happens when everyone is ultimately out for themselves, and where control, and reason, has slipped away, drowned out by the hum. There were twists that I absolutely didn’t expect, and it very much felt there was no escaping the inevitable at this point. What I didn’t love about the ending was the POV change which was a little jarring after Gallagher had been so present and dominant. It also felt a little more like a pause, than an ending, because there was an eye to an uncertain future – because we don’t fully know what has happened elsewhere on the island, and again I felt that lack of answers.
In terms of atmosphere, and that creeping, hollowness of remote, rural horror Drone absolutely nails it; and Gallagher in his own way is a quietly compelling character. The harshness and struggle of his livelihood, a mundane but compelling horror against the more visceral horror of the drone and its fallout. Howarth also manages to weave that sound into existence through his writing, making it uncomfortably easy to imagine especially as the story rose towards a crescendo. Drone was a compelling read, even if it didn’t fully satisfy me.
That was my lasting thought after finishing Drone, and I think it kept me from fully appreciating the atmosphere and rural horror to its full extent. It’s difficult because I know from online accounts of the hum, and where it has cropped up in other media that it’s not necessarily got a black and white answer, or a resolution, but it felt like aside from Gallagher following the hum and trying to alleviate it, and the doctor offering to reach out to connections on the mainline, there wasn’t a concerted effort to get to the bottom of the issue. Even as the costs were becoming more evident, with fewer people around, places boarded up, and the impact it had on the livestock; and in a community that was clearly so focused on farming, that last one made it a bit harder to understand the lack of drive to really look for an answer.
However, what Howarth absolutely captures is the bleak, isolation of a truly rural community, in the grips of not only the horror hidden within the hum, but the facing the harsh, reality of economic change, the limitations and strengths of island life. It felt like a landscape bleached of colour and life, with just the last few stubborn stalwarts carving out their existence. Especially when there was a simmering undercurrent of old grudges, dislike and competition between those same people. So, in some ways it is easy to understand why there was no consensus on trying to solve the mystery of the hum.
Gallagher wasn’t a particularly likeable character, but Howarth does do a fantastic job of showing how he has become this isolated man, fighting against the economy, the lows of farming, and the hum. You have to appreciate his stubbornness in the face of so many challenges, and I did feel for him when his very livelihood became a victim of the hum. He sits in that cusp of being a man with little both everything to lose, and nothing to lose, and yet with everything to try and fight for.
The last part of the novella is a brutal look at what happens when everyone is ultimately out for themselves, and where control, and reason, has slipped away, drowned out by the hum. There were twists that I absolutely didn’t expect, and it very much felt there was no escaping the inevitable at this point. What I didn’t love about the ending was the POV change which was a little jarring after Gallagher had been so present and dominant. It also felt a little more like a pause, than an ending, because there was an eye to an uncertain future – because we don’t fully know what has happened elsewhere on the island, and again I felt that lack of answers.
In terms of atmosphere, and that creeping, hollowness of remote, rural horror Drone absolutely nails it; and Gallagher in his own way is a quietly compelling character. The harshness and struggle of his livelihood, a mundane but compelling horror against the more visceral horror of the drone and its fallout. Howarth also manages to weave that sound into existence through his writing, making it uncomfortably easy to imagine especially as the story rose towards a crescendo. Drone was a compelling read, even if it didn’t fully satisfy me.
June 11, 2026
An interesting premise, and handled well by an accomplished horror author. On the face of it "a sound driving people mad" seems like a story that has been done many times before, but that brief description does Howarth's novella a disservice. What I really loved about the story was Howarth's depiction of the sound, and the effect it has on the islanders. It isn't a case of flicking a switch and turning the locals into vicious, brain-dead monsters. There's a nuance to the effect, one which Howarth effectively portrays through protagonist Gallagher. He's a lonely farmer toiling on the land left by his father and butting heads with his neighbour. Watching as he struggles against the downward descent brought on by the eponymous drone, I really enjoyed the subtle way Howarth described the steps, always showing Gallagher's humanity and refusing to paint him as another horror story stereotype of madness.
My only complaint? It's a minor one, but I would have liked more back story about the islanders. There's a hint of a history between Gallagher and another character later on that I felt could have been explored more earlier in the story. The same goes for the neighbour, Aldridge. There's a great deal of animosity between the two farmers that, although explained, I felt could have been added to in a little more depth. But, really, I'm just nitpicking. It's a fantastic read. As is everything I've read by this wonderful author.
My only complaint? It's a minor one, but I would have liked more back story about the islanders. There's a hint of a history between Gallagher and another character later on that I felt could have been explored more earlier in the story. The same goes for the neighbour, Aldridge. There's a great deal of animosity between the two farmers that, although explained, I felt could have been added to in a little more depth. But, really, I'm just nitpicking. It's a fantastic read. As is everything I've read by this wonderful author.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 27, 2026
Another nicely crafted slice of bleak from one of my favourite authors currently plying their trade. A remote rural setting always works for me and this is a good 'un - the perfect setting for a bit of folk horror so it was refreshing to see that this wasn't actually the trope employed here, with the horrors being more psychological in nature. (Pun intended).
A real sense of paranoia pervades the whole book and the reader is drawn into the protagonist's confusion as to what exactly is going on.
There's social comment there too but it's subtle and open to interpretation but the notion of a malign force exploiting disenfranchised people isn't that far from reality.
A couple of errors that should have been spotted at editing took me out of the story for a moment but otherwise this is another fine piece of writing from Mr Howarth.
A real sense of paranoia pervades the whole book and the reader is drawn into the protagonist's confusion as to what exactly is going on.
There's social comment there too but it's subtle and open to interpretation but the notion of a malign force exploiting disenfranchised people isn't that far from reality.
A couple of errors that should have been spotted at editing took me out of the story for a moment but otherwise this is another fine piece of writing from Mr Howarth.
June 13, 2026
Dan Howarth has managed to pack a fascinating premise into a fast-paced story that left me wanting - and hoping - for more.
Drone tells the tale of a struggling farmer living on a small island that becomes plagued by a relentless yet silent drone. Each afflicted person hears the sound in their head, much like the ringing of tinnitus. As the days wear on, the noise drives the islanders mad as society begins to collapse.
I really enjoyed the open ended nature of the story. It feels like an intriguing glimpse into a much larger story waiting to be told. While reading, I couldn't help but wonder how the premise might unfold on a broader scale. Yet, as it stands, this novella works perfectly as a snapshot of a small community and the people who call it home.
A fast paced read packed with excellent prose!
Drone tells the tale of a struggling farmer living on a small island that becomes plagued by a relentless yet silent drone. Each afflicted person hears the sound in their head, much like the ringing of tinnitus. As the days wear on, the noise drives the islanders mad as society begins to collapse.
I really enjoyed the open ended nature of the story. It feels like an intriguing glimpse into a much larger story waiting to be told. While reading, I couldn't help but wonder how the premise might unfold on a broader scale. Yet, as it stands, this novella works perfectly as a snapshot of a small community and the people who call it home.
A fast paced read packed with excellent prose!
April 27, 2026
Follow one man's descent into madness, as something is affecting the community, causing people to act out, and he searches for answers.
Another well written story by Dan. Bit disappointed no answer was given as to the cause of the situation, unless there was a "read between the lines" answer that went over my head. Quite possibly. The mystery to it all kept me turning the pages though, and it was an enjoyable read none the less.
Another well written story by Dan. Bit disappointed no answer was given as to the cause of the situation, unless there was a "read between the lines" answer that went over my head. Quite possibly. The mystery to it all kept me turning the pages though, and it was an enjoyable read none the less.
May 3, 2026
Howarth takes his first (long form) step into the world of supernatural or, at the very least, uncanny horror. Where his other works have generally been about the most loathesome of humanity as the source of their horrors, here, the vile people are victim to it.
The way the story plays out, over a very short space of time, creates an urgency for the reader. Some of the scenes here creat genuine discomfort. And the ending is a wonderfully fitting one for such a tale. Great stuff.
The way the story plays out, over a very short space of time, creates an urgency for the reader. Some of the scenes here creat genuine discomfort. And the ending is a wonderfully fitting one for such a tale. Great stuff.
April 26, 2026
Weird ,scary and very unpredictable. I loved it.
July 18, 2026
Rounded up for Goodreads
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