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A Tomb For The Broken
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Expected 11 Jun 26170 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication June 11, 2026
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Review of advance copy received from Author
Title: A Tomb for the Broken
Author: Jerry Barksdale
Release date: 6/11/26
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
“A Tomb for the Broken”, Jerry Barksdale’s debut novel, is a literary horror story chronicling the mental/psychological disintegration of the novel’s protagonist Shawn Lee James. Shawn has a traumatic childhood driven by two people: his alcoholic father’s paranoid schizophrenia and Papaw, his grandfather, who tells “cruel, sadistic”ghost stories. As Shawn ages, the line between real memories and Papaw’s terrifying stories blurs. At the same time, Shawn becomes obsessed by two ghost-like girls he sees in the woods. With the storyline shifting between characters, the story ends with a terrifying climax.
This story was amazing. I’ve read plenty of creepy books, but this is one of the few where I’ve been truly unsettled and had the physiological sensation to go with it. It focuses on Shawn’s trauma and the literal, and metaphorical, dissolution of his identity. The horror in this book is not a monster, nor is it a slasher. Instead, it is the internal torment and hell Shawn lives with Jerry leaving Shawn, and the reader, questioning which memories are real and which are the product of a fractured mind. Throughout the book, the point of view shifts with the reader learning about other characters trauma. At first I was confused but soon learned that this was crucial to the story and development of Shawn’s character.
The book is extremely dark and bleak, savagely violent, and messes with your head. The prose is beautiful and chilling at the same time, and Jerry does a fantastic job addressing how severe mental illness can be. Andy that ending…that’s all I’ll say for now. After finishing the story, I needed to take the rest of the day off from reading. I needed a “moment”, I guess you can say. These are the feelings I want to have when I read horror; Jerry really killed it (no pun intended) with this story.
After finishing this book, I sent a message to Jerry saying how much I enjoyed it. One of the things he said to me was “it’s my first book so I wasn’t sure if I even knew how to write.” I beg to differ. This is a must read, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us with future stories. Thank you to Jerry and Broken Brain Books for the ARC opportunity!
Author: Jerry Barksdale
Release date: 6/11/26
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
“A Tomb for the Broken”, Jerry Barksdale’s debut novel, is a literary horror story chronicling the mental/psychological disintegration of the novel’s protagonist Shawn Lee James. Shawn has a traumatic childhood driven by two people: his alcoholic father’s paranoid schizophrenia and Papaw, his grandfather, who tells “cruel, sadistic”ghost stories. As Shawn ages, the line between real memories and Papaw’s terrifying stories blurs. At the same time, Shawn becomes obsessed by two ghost-like girls he sees in the woods. With the storyline shifting between characters, the story ends with a terrifying climax.
This story was amazing. I’ve read plenty of creepy books, but this is one of the few where I’ve been truly unsettled and had the physiological sensation to go with it. It focuses on Shawn’s trauma and the literal, and metaphorical, dissolution of his identity. The horror in this book is not a monster, nor is it a slasher. Instead, it is the internal torment and hell Shawn lives with Jerry leaving Shawn, and the reader, questioning which memories are real and which are the product of a fractured mind. Throughout the book, the point of view shifts with the reader learning about other characters trauma. At first I was confused but soon learned that this was crucial to the story and development of Shawn’s character.
The book is extremely dark and bleak, savagely violent, and messes with your head. The prose is beautiful and chilling at the same time, and Jerry does a fantastic job addressing how severe mental illness can be. Andy that ending…that’s all I’ll say for now. After finishing the story, I needed to take the rest of the day off from reading. I needed a “moment”, I guess you can say. These are the feelings I want to have when I read horror; Jerry really killed it (no pun intended) with this story.
After finishing this book, I sent a message to Jerry saying how much I enjoyed it. One of the things he said to me was “it’s my first book so I wasn’t sure if I even knew how to write.” I beg to differ. This is a must read, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us with future stories. Thank you to Jerry and Broken Brain Books for the ARC opportunity!
Review of advance copy received from Author
Today I read A Tomb for the Broken by author Jerry Barksdale.
Within the dark humid woods of a desperate and impoverished part of rural Kentucky Shawn is listing to scary stories told by his Pawpaw. Terrifying folklore tales of nightmare ingredients not easily forgotten. The beautifully atmospheric descriptions bring their own humidity with them along with the sounds of cicadas and mosquitoes…or is that jazz music? Shawn’s life and likely the overall culture is steeped in mental illness, addiction, alcoholism, loss and generational trauma. And it is to wonder…what parts of Pawpaw’s may be more truth…than fiction.
I did not finish this book. I wrapped it up at 51%. I felt strongly about reviewing it though as I felt it was so very well written. And I read far enough in that I became invested in the characters. The children. Shawn. Evelyn and Victoria. What could have happened to them for it to have gone this way? I wanted to know more. The reasons I stopped reading it are probably the reasons many readers will devour it!
The fever dream starts on page one, sentence 3. And then it’s like being on a train going well over the speed limit with potentially incompetent brakes. I don’t know if I took breath through the entirety of part 1. It’s action, suspense, questioning reality, body horror, thinking for a second things might be ok…wait..no…there is more.
It is dark, descriptive, painful and talented horror writing that makes it a surprise that it is this authors first novel.
It was just a lot for me. I did a body horror trauma tap out and author Jerry fully deserves match belt.
I would recommend this book to my horror friends.
I received an advanced read copy from the author. This is my voluntary and honest review.
Within the dark humid woods of a desperate and impoverished part of rural Kentucky Shawn is listing to scary stories told by his Pawpaw. Terrifying folklore tales of nightmare ingredients not easily forgotten. The beautifully atmospheric descriptions bring their own humidity with them along with the sounds of cicadas and mosquitoes…or is that jazz music? Shawn’s life and likely the overall culture is steeped in mental illness, addiction, alcoholism, loss and generational trauma. And it is to wonder…what parts of Pawpaw’s may be more truth…than fiction.
I did not finish this book. I wrapped it up at 51%. I felt strongly about reviewing it though as I felt it was so very well written. And I read far enough in that I became invested in the characters. The children. Shawn. Evelyn and Victoria. What could have happened to them for it to have gone this way? I wanted to know more. The reasons I stopped reading it are probably the reasons many readers will devour it!
The fever dream starts on page one, sentence 3. And then it’s like being on a train going well over the speed limit with potentially incompetent brakes. I don’t know if I took breath through the entirety of part 1. It’s action, suspense, questioning reality, body horror, thinking for a second things might be ok…wait..no…there is more.
It is dark, descriptive, painful and talented horror writing that makes it a surprise that it is this authors first novel.
It was just a lot for me. I did a body horror trauma tap out and author Jerry fully deserves match belt.
I would recommend this book to my horror friends.
I received an advanced read copy from the author. This is my voluntary and honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Author
This is a literary dark and bleak novel about the effects of trauma and mental health. Yet it's told in a disturbingly gruesome way that will definitely make you want to read with the lights on.
As a boy, our protagonist was subject to his father's mental illness taking the form of voices which he would scream back at. His father was an alcoholic and would often take out his issues on his wife. Not only that but his grandfather was a mean callous man who would force him to listen to horrific stories. Tales of monstrous girls in the woods guarding an abandoned bus, of fighting through crowds of the dead and other terrifying things.
As an adult, these traumatic events will slowly begin to infect our protagonist and his own mental health as well. He visits an old bus in the woods and draws the attention of two very creepy girls who are feral and violent. But is this real or his trauma playing mind games?
I love the way the author tells this story. It is bleak and dark but has a certain haunting prose at the same time. The different events he experiences don't SEEM to be connected but we'll find out otherwise by the end and, like the rest of the story, don't expect a happy ending! It's visceral with a creep factor pushing the needle. I highly recommend it.
I received an ARC of this book from the author. This review is voluntary and is my own personal opinion.
As a boy, our protagonist was subject to his father's mental illness taking the form of voices which he would scream back at. His father was an alcoholic and would often take out his issues on his wife. Not only that but his grandfather was a mean callous man who would force him to listen to horrific stories. Tales of monstrous girls in the woods guarding an abandoned bus, of fighting through crowds of the dead and other terrifying things.
As an adult, these traumatic events will slowly begin to infect our protagonist and his own mental health as well. He visits an old bus in the woods and draws the attention of two very creepy girls who are feral and violent. But is this real or his trauma playing mind games?
I love the way the author tells this story. It is bleak and dark but has a certain haunting prose at the same time. The different events he experiences don't SEEM to be connected but we'll find out otherwise by the end and, like the rest of the story, don't expect a happy ending! It's visceral with a creep factor pushing the needle. I highly recommend it.
I received an ARC of this book from the author. This review is voluntary and is my own personal opinion.
Review of advance copy received from Author
ARC Review
Tomb For The Broken
Author: Jerry W. Barksdale
Release Date: June 11, 2026
Genre: Horror
This is a short read, so a short review, no spoilers.
This is the authors debut novel and he’s come out of the gates swinging. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, it ended with an audible “oh my…what?”. For a horror novel it was atmospheric, gory with some gag worthy moments (it takes a lot for me to be grossed out) It made me feel physically dirty. The character development was great up to the very end. It’s certainly heavy on mental health and how it can affect a person’s life and a family’s history. Just when you thought the characters couldn’t get any worse, give it a minute. If you enjoy body horror, the grotesque, anthropophagy and psychosis…buckle up, this one if definitely for you!
I received an ARC for free via Broken Brain Books, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Tomb For The Broken
Author: Jerry W. Barksdale
Release Date: June 11, 2026
Genre: Horror
This is a short read, so a short review, no spoilers.
This is the authors debut novel and he’s come out of the gates swinging. Just when I thought I had it all figured out, it ended with an audible “oh my…what?”. For a horror novel it was atmospheric, gory with some gag worthy moments (it takes a lot for me to be grossed out) It made me feel physically dirty. The character development was great up to the very end. It’s certainly heavy on mental health and how it can affect a person’s life and a family’s history. Just when you thought the characters couldn’t get any worse, give it a minute. If you enjoy body horror, the grotesque, anthropophagy and psychosis…buckle up, this one if definitely for you!
I received an ARC for free via Broken Brain Books, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
“She was a festering profanity.”
In A Tomb for The Broken, Barksdale has penned a descent into madness that compels the reader to discern reality from nightmare.
Shawn’s tale is told through multiple sources. Each narrative reads darker and more destructive, offering meaty bits of trauma that build into the overall story. While it adds layers of richness, the shifting narrative lens occasionally felt disorienting to me and I had to backtrack for clarity. Despite that flaw for me, I was more than compensated with carnage that was rendered with vivid beauty. The author gifts us with his ability to make horror feel poetic. His prose is like a funeral hymn saturated with blood; brutal yet strangely beautiful.
Barksdale’s debut fuses mental health struggles, visceral body horror, cannibalism and a supernatural haunting in an unsettling and raw experience. I am excited for future works.
In A Tomb for The Broken, Barksdale has penned a descent into madness that compels the reader to discern reality from nightmare.
Shawn’s tale is told through multiple sources. Each narrative reads darker and more destructive, offering meaty bits of trauma that build into the overall story. While it adds layers of richness, the shifting narrative lens occasionally felt disorienting to me and I had to backtrack for clarity. Despite that flaw for me, I was more than compensated with carnage that was rendered with vivid beauty. The author gifts us with his ability to make horror feel poetic. His prose is like a funeral hymn saturated with blood; brutal yet strangely beautiful.
Barksdale’s debut fuses mental health struggles, visceral body horror, cannibalism and a supernatural haunting in an unsettling and raw experience. I am excited for future works.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I don’t think there are right words to describe how well written this book is.
It's very heavy on the generational trauma and mental illness. The character depth and the detailed descriptions of places within the story made you feel one with the dread, pain, trauma, gore, fear and it clawed at your mind to make you understand and piece it all together.
The story will make you question everything you think you know about it chapter after chapter. You won't have time to take a breath before it throws it all into turmoil once more.
Unease will crawl under your skin and you may end up a little uncomfortable around jazz music.
It's very heavy on the generational trauma and mental illness. The character depth and the detailed descriptions of places within the story made you feel one with the dread, pain, trauma, gore, fear and it clawed at your mind to make you understand and piece it all together.
The story will make you question everything you think you know about it chapter after chapter. You won't have time to take a breath before it throws it all into turmoil once more.
Unease will crawl under your skin and you may end up a little uncomfortable around jazz music.
Review of advance copy received from Author
First I’d like to thank the author and Broken Brain Books for letting me have this ARC for the book. Where to begin this book took a completely different direction than I thought it was going to. At first I thought it was separate sections that had different stories boy was I wrong! Some parts of this book gave me the chills with some of the descriptions. It’s told from multiple perspectives of different characters. For a debut author he knocked this one out of the park. I will be recommending this to all my horror book friends and book groups!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
This book is pure dread mixed with hauntingly beautiful prose and grotesquely visceral scenes. It is nothing short of a well written fever dream. Or should I say, fever nightmare. From the beginning, you get a glimpse of multiple characters’ spiraling descent into madness. It’s brutal. It’s relentless. And it’s terrifying. This is Jerry’s debut novel and hopefully not his last. I am very interested to see what else he comes up with.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews