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Going to the Six
Not yet published
Expected 16 Jun 26"Compulsively readable... Do yourself a open up this book and let the story in." -- Viggy Parr Hampton, bestselling author of The Rotting Room
On Lake Superior, some wrecks never rest.
When acclaimed documentary filmmaker Owen Wheeler leads a four–person crew aboard a Michigan DNR research vessel to investigate the wreck of the Keuka—a floating speakeasy long lost beneath the cold, black waters of Lake Superior—he believes he’s chasing history. What they bring back instead is something far stranger.
Told through fragmented footage, blog journals, news clippings, and Owen’s own testimony from inside a psychiatric facility, this haunting novel unfolds across two the ill-fated expedition, and the haunted present. Just as the record fractures, so too does Owen’s grip on what truly happened aboard the vessel.
Locals whisper of an old superstition—six signs that come before a person loses their mind. Did the crew uncover a secret buried with the Keuka? Or are Owen’s memories a labyrinth of guilt, grief, and madness?
A story of truth versus memory, the collapse of time, and the thin seam between reality and delusion, Going to the Six drags the reader down into the depths—where silence presses in, light cannot reach, and dread waits patiently in the dark.
On Lake Superior, some wrecks never rest.
When acclaimed documentary filmmaker Owen Wheeler leads a four–person crew aboard a Michigan DNR research vessel to investigate the wreck of the Keuka—a floating speakeasy long lost beneath the cold, black waters of Lake Superior—he believes he’s chasing history. What they bring back instead is something far stranger.
Told through fragmented footage, blog journals, news clippings, and Owen’s own testimony from inside a psychiatric facility, this haunting novel unfolds across two the ill-fated expedition, and the haunted present. Just as the record fractures, so too does Owen’s grip on what truly happened aboard the vessel.
Locals whisper of an old superstition—six signs that come before a person loses their mind. Did the crew uncover a secret buried with the Keuka? Or are Owen’s memories a labyrinth of guilt, grief, and madness?
A story of truth versus memory, the collapse of time, and the thin seam between reality and delusion, Going to the Six drags the reader down into the depths—where silence presses in, light cannot reach, and dread waits patiently in the dark.
304 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication June 16, 2026
About the author
A.C. Hessenauer
11 books30 followersA.C. Hessenauer describes herself as a writer of horror, chaos, and madness. A.C. has published five novels and one novella, including Dread House, Jumpers, and MANIMAL. A.C.’s next novel, Going to the Six, is set to be released in June of 2026 by Cemetery Dance, and has been selected for the Cemetery Dance Trade Paperback Book Club, alongside titles by Jack Ketchum, Bentley Little, and Brian Hodge.
When she’s not participating in macabre ceremonies dedicated to the eldritch horrors out in the woods, A.C. enjoys spending time with her family: her husband, two sons, and border collie named Maximus. She loves a good horror movie, and of course, getting swallowed whole by a good book.
When she’s not participating in macabre ceremonies dedicated to the eldritch horrors out in the woods, A.C. enjoys spending time with her family: her husband, two sons, and border collie named Maximus. She loves a good horror movie, and of course, getting swallowed whole by a good book.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
Water Horror? I let the lake in and I’m so happy I did!
This is my first Hessenauer book and what a great way to start. I love a good ocean/lake/water horror and this one was that, in spades. And it’s a hybrid epistolary structure with film footage, transcripts, interviews, and video diary entries, which is one of my favourite story structures.
We have a documentary film crew exploring a near 100-year-old mysterious ship wreck 🛳️ at the bottom of Lake Superior (an actual shipwreck relocated from Lake Charlevoix for the purposes of this story, which actually adds to the remoteness and jeopardy to good effect), along with a possible red algae bloom, maybe ghosts, superstitions, hallucinations, murder, and definitely people losing their minds.
Hessenauer sets up the story by immediately diving (pardon the pun 😉) into video transcripts of a doctor-patient interview with an apparent survivor of an incident that occurred out on Lake Superior (which, as a 70s 🇨🇦 kid is extra spooky – thanks Gordon Lightfoot.) It gives us just enough to get a good sense of something horrific – through the patient’s actions and reluctance to talk – but just enough to know that at least someone has survived this horror, at least in a fashion. The mystery is immediately apparent by the second chapter when we learn that a doc crew has gone to investigate a sunken ship mystery, and that ghostly mood builds perfectly to the end.
There’s a lot of factors playing into the horror and the atmosphere is made genuinely ominous through the use of the description of diving footage 🤿. There’s also the added bonus of a red algae bloom which, in this tale, is reminiscent of mycelium horror, another horror sub-genre I love.
This is a great take on that, and by having it water-based adds the extra element of ‘shipwreck ghost story’ to it, along with the eerie depths of the lake, which the author conveys perfectly – the murkiness of the water’s depths, the isolation on the water, the strange way water messes with sound and vision… and the main characters are interesting and complex to boot, so there’s a vested interest in their fates.
An excellent, creepy story! I’m definitely checking out more of this author’s work.
My thanks to the author for the complimentary copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily; all opinions are my own.
This is my first Hessenauer book and what a great way to start. I love a good ocean/lake/water horror and this one was that, in spades. And it’s a hybrid epistolary structure with film footage, transcripts, interviews, and video diary entries, which is one of my favourite story structures.
We have a documentary film crew exploring a near 100-year-old mysterious ship wreck 🛳️ at the bottom of Lake Superior (an actual shipwreck relocated from Lake Charlevoix for the purposes of this story, which actually adds to the remoteness and jeopardy to good effect), along with a possible red algae bloom, maybe ghosts, superstitions, hallucinations, murder, and definitely people losing their minds.
Hessenauer sets up the story by immediately diving (pardon the pun 😉) into video transcripts of a doctor-patient interview with an apparent survivor of an incident that occurred out on Lake Superior (which, as a 70s 🇨🇦 kid is extra spooky – thanks Gordon Lightfoot.) It gives us just enough to get a good sense of something horrific – through the patient’s actions and reluctance to talk – but just enough to know that at least someone has survived this horror, at least in a fashion. The mystery is immediately apparent by the second chapter when we learn that a doc crew has gone to investigate a sunken ship mystery, and that ghostly mood builds perfectly to the end.
There’s a lot of factors playing into the horror and the atmosphere is made genuinely ominous through the use of the description of diving footage 🤿. There’s also the added bonus of a red algae bloom which, in this tale, is reminiscent of mycelium horror, another horror sub-genre I love.
This is a great take on that, and by having it water-based adds the extra element of ‘shipwreck ghost story’ to it, along with the eerie depths of the lake, which the author conveys perfectly – the murkiness of the water’s depths, the isolation on the water, the strange way water messes with sound and vision… and the main characters are interesting and complex to boot, so there’s a vested interest in their fates.
An excellent, creepy story! I’m definitely checking out more of this author’s work.
My thanks to the author for the complimentary copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily; all opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Author
💀I am SO grateful that @a.c.hessenauer entrusted me with an e-arc of her upcoming book, Going to the Six. My life has been forever changed!!🖤
First off, I’m a sucker for a therapist/client transcript & this immediately starts off exactly that way! ✔️
Add a creepy deep diving wreckage documentary with an off season island full of disturbing events, count me in!✔️✔️
Then throw in the mystery of something seriously sinister you know will be revealed {yes please. Tell me more!}✔️✔️✔️
🌊A newly discovered wreckage deep at the bottom of Lake Superior holds long lost dark secrets. There’s something in the water that’s been buried for decades, but it’s back.
👁️I literally devoured this book in one sitting, as fast as my eyeballs could go! Honestly I wasn’t even planning on reading it minutes after receiving. I just opened it & my eyes started going! I could not physically pry them away!! I kept saying ‘ok, after this chapter.’ But I was gone, fully into the story, checked out of life & anything going on around me. Who needs to make dinner anyway? 😂
Fast paced, heart pounding, eerily haunting, it’s like watching your favorite movie! So so good!!
I cannot recommend this book enough!! It’s ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️♾️ from me!!! LOVED!
I can’t wait for her next book!! 📖
First off, I’m a sucker for a therapist/client transcript & this immediately starts off exactly that way! ✔️
Add a creepy deep diving wreckage documentary with an off season island full of disturbing events, count me in!✔️✔️
Then throw in the mystery of something seriously sinister you know will be revealed {yes please. Tell me more!}✔️✔️✔️
🌊A newly discovered wreckage deep at the bottom of Lake Superior holds long lost dark secrets. There’s something in the water that’s been buried for decades, but it’s back.
👁️I literally devoured this book in one sitting, as fast as my eyeballs could go! Honestly I wasn’t even planning on reading it minutes after receiving. I just opened it & my eyes started going! I could not physically pry them away!! I kept saying ‘ok, after this chapter.’ But I was gone, fully into the story, checked out of life & anything going on around me. Who needs to make dinner anyway? 😂
Fast paced, heart pounding, eerily haunting, it’s like watching your favorite movie! So so good!!
I cannot recommend this book enough!! It’s ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️♾️ from me!!! LOVED!
I can’t wait for her next book!! 📖
Review of advance copy received from Author
Wow, what a wild read. I demolished it in one sitting. I had goosebumps one minute, I was sweating the next. I LOVED the fast pace, epic atmosphere, and the character development was *chefs kiss*. Being from Michigan, I was enveloped by the setting. I literally felt like I was aboard the DNR vessel exploring the waters of Lake Superior. Loved the “found footage” aspect– so fun to read this style. And the author’s distinctive voice is easy to read and so catchy!!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews