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Into Bones like Oil
People come to The Angelsea, a rooming house near the beach, for many reasons. Some come to get some sleep, because here, you sleep like the dead. Dora arrives seeking solitude and escape from reality. Instead, she finds a place haunted by the drowned and desperate, who speak through the sleeping inhabitants. She fears sleep herself, terrified that the ghosts of her daughters will tell her “it’s all your fault we’re dead.” At the same time, she’d give anything to hear them one more time.
100 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 12, 2019
13 people are currently reading
1039 people want to read
About the author
Kaaron Warren
153 books195 followersI wanted to be a writer from a very young age, and wrote my first proper short story at 14. I also wrote a novel that year, called “Skin Deep”‘, which I really need to type up.
I started sending stories out when I was about 23, and sold my first one, “White Bed”", in 1993. Since then I’ve sold about 150 short stories, seven short story collections and six novels.
I’m an avid and broad reader but I also like reality TV so don’t always expect intelligent conversation from me.
I started sending stories out when I was about 23, and sold my first one, “White Bed”", in 1993. Since then I’ve sold about 150 short stories, seven short story collections and six novels.
I’m an avid and broad reader but I also like reality TV so don’t always expect intelligent conversation from me.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 97 reviews
October 21, 2019
My review of INTO BONES LIKE OIL can be found at High Fever Books.
Into Bones Like Oil is a tough nut to crack. Kaaron Warren’s latest features some neat concepts that I dug as individual ideas, but which failed to add up to a compelling narrative for me. I suppose I should have braced myself for this book a bit more given that the synopsis sells this story as mundane, even if it tries to cast that as a feature rather than a bug. As it turns out, mundane is actually a pretty good word here. Although I’m sure the publisher intended “mundane” to emphasize the sense of ordinariness about Warren’s work, its alternate meaning proves perhaps even more apt. Into Bones Like Oil is a dull read, completely bereft of any zip or pizzazz, with nary a trace of excitement to be had.
In its opening pages, I found myself applauding Warren’s melancholic tone, which I found immediately striking. This is a slow, gray day kind of read, the sort of book that’s accompanied perfectly by rain and hot tea, and the mood is amplified by the air of sleepless grief these characters carry around among their personal baggage. And if you’re looking for a book that’s pure mood, I’m certain you could do worse than this. If you’re looking for something more than moodiness, though, you’ll likely find yourself disappointed, as I was.
After the death of her children, Dora escapes to a beach-side rooming house that caters to the sleepless. At the Angelsea, the guests become mediums for the ghosts of shipwrecks, mostly for the amusement of the home’s owner, Roy.
That’s it in terms of plot, really. Dora witnesses the ghosts communicate through the various residents, and while there are hauntings a plenty, there’s nothing particularly interesting or horrifying about any of them. You certainly don’t get any Poltergeist-like scares, and there’s definitely not any creepy, deeply troubling possessions or exorcisms ala Jonathan Janz’s Exorcist Road. The sleepless may be drawn to the Angelsea for the promise of rest, but even readers will be struggling to stay awake through this one.
The ghosts are dull, the Angelsea inhabitants are dull, and Into Bones Like Oil is dull. The atmosphere, though is great, even if the story is lackluster, one-note, and repetitive. Even at 90 pages, this book feels overly long given its frustrating lack of…well, anything, really. What’s even more disappointing is that this was my first experience with Warren’s work after seeing plenty of praise for her authorial skills from a number of corners, including editor Ellen Datlow and author Tim Waggoner. I really wanted to like this book, and knowing that it made a number of 2019’s most anticipated horror stories (include our own Logan Noble’s list) had me anticipating something far more exotic, exciting, and frightening than what is actually on display here. I liked Warren’s writing well enough to remain curious about her other works, but if there’s to be a next time I’ll have to pick a story that isn’t so damn mundane.
[Note: I received an advance reading copy of this title from the publisher, Meerkat Press.]
Into Bones Like Oil is a tough nut to crack. Kaaron Warren’s latest features some neat concepts that I dug as individual ideas, but which failed to add up to a compelling narrative for me. I suppose I should have braced myself for this book a bit more given that the synopsis sells this story as mundane, even if it tries to cast that as a feature rather than a bug. As it turns out, mundane is actually a pretty good word here. Although I’m sure the publisher intended “mundane” to emphasize the sense of ordinariness about Warren’s work, its alternate meaning proves perhaps even more apt. Into Bones Like Oil is a dull read, completely bereft of any zip or pizzazz, with nary a trace of excitement to be had.
In its opening pages, I found myself applauding Warren’s melancholic tone, which I found immediately striking. This is a slow, gray day kind of read, the sort of book that’s accompanied perfectly by rain and hot tea, and the mood is amplified by the air of sleepless grief these characters carry around among their personal baggage. And if you’re looking for a book that’s pure mood, I’m certain you could do worse than this. If you’re looking for something more than moodiness, though, you’ll likely find yourself disappointed, as I was.
After the death of her children, Dora escapes to a beach-side rooming house that caters to the sleepless. At the Angelsea, the guests become mediums for the ghosts of shipwrecks, mostly for the amusement of the home’s owner, Roy.
That’s it in terms of plot, really. Dora witnesses the ghosts communicate through the various residents, and while there are hauntings a plenty, there’s nothing particularly interesting or horrifying about any of them. You certainly don’t get any Poltergeist-like scares, and there’s definitely not any creepy, deeply troubling possessions or exorcisms ala Jonathan Janz’s Exorcist Road. The sleepless may be drawn to the Angelsea for the promise of rest, but even readers will be struggling to stay awake through this one.
The ghosts are dull, the Angelsea inhabitants are dull, and Into Bones Like Oil is dull. The atmosphere, though is great, even if the story is lackluster, one-note, and repetitive. Even at 90 pages, this book feels overly long given its frustrating lack of…well, anything, really. What’s even more disappointing is that this was my first experience with Warren’s work after seeing plenty of praise for her authorial skills from a number of corners, including editor Ellen Datlow and author Tim Waggoner. I really wanted to like this book, and knowing that it made a number of 2019’s most anticipated horror stories (include our own Logan Noble’s list) had me anticipating something far more exotic, exciting, and frightening than what is actually on display here. I liked Warren’s writing well enough to remain curious about her other works, but if there’s to be a next time I’ll have to pick a story that isn’t so damn mundane.
[Note: I received an advance reading copy of this title from the publisher, Meerkat Press.]
May 29, 2020
INTO BONES LIKE OIL is moody, atmospheric, and full of emotion. In the short span of 81 pages, the characters shine through just as much as the creepy and overt ghostly themes which spread their cold caress across the page.
Set in a haunted rooming house near the beach, the occupants, past and present, share a deep connection with the ghosts of a shipwreck. No only can the rooming house inhabitants see their ghostly neighbors but, when asleep, they can become the vessel to which these ghosts communicate with the living. Pretty creepy stuff.
Ghosts aside, it the character's unique and depressing backstories which capture the emotion and provide depth to the story. Sure the apparitions and voices of the dead are highlights, but I like my horror with some humanity - and this has it.
More about this book on my blog: https://justaguywholikes2read.blogspo...
Set in a haunted rooming house near the beach, the occupants, past and present, share a deep connection with the ghosts of a shipwreck. No only can the rooming house inhabitants see their ghostly neighbors but, when asleep, they can become the vessel to which these ghosts communicate with the living. Pretty creepy stuff.
Ghosts aside, it the character's unique and depressing backstories which capture the emotion and provide depth to the story. Sure the apparitions and voices of the dead are highlights, but I like my horror with some humanity - and this has it.
More about this book on my blog: https://justaguywholikes2read.blogspo...
May 14, 2025
Una novela de fantasmas, naufragios y la búsqueda de redención.
Si eres amante de las historias de fantasmas, éste libro es para ti.
Una historia llena de personajes sombríos que se aferran a la esperanza de algo mejor, mientras prestan su cuerpo a espíritus que desean contar su historia.
Si eres amante de las historias de fantasmas, éste libro es para ti.
Una historia llena de personajes sombríos que se aferran a la esperanza de algo mejor, mientras prestan su cuerpo a espíritus que desean contar su historia.
August 1, 2019
"Into Bones Like Oil" is a horror novella that, in my eyes, embodies perfectly Kaaron Warren's universe. Starting as a classic situation - a woman seeks shelter in a strange house -, it very quickly becomes a gripping and idiosyncratic story of horror and redemption through the discovery of the pain of others. What I love about Kaaron Warren's writing, is that the uncanny is actually the normality, and what we call "normality" is actually the real horror. Her characters are all wrecks, broken down in life and in the afterlife, and yet they shine with a dark and moving humanity that makes the reader reflect upon the given notions of "evil", "friendship", "support", and many more. If I should ever teach a class on contemporary horror, "Into Bones Like Oil" would definitely be on my list, to show the students how genre is made to be broken and re-invented. And Kaaron Warren is one of the best in her field when it comes to that.
December 15, 2022
Title: 5/5 stars
Writing style: 4/5 stars
Actual story as a whole: 2/5 stars
Writing style: 4/5 stars
Actual story as a whole: 2/5 stars
August 16, 2020
I like that there is an intelligible plot, a likable protagonist, and an interesting premise. A woman has died but finds herself in some kind of purgatory, I believe, in order to come to terms with what happened to her two children. The frustrating aspect of the story is that it never really resolves the issues it raises, and we don't know what ultimately happened to the protagonist. All this is just hinted at.
The parameters under which the protagonist operates were never quite made clear, which is typical for most Weird literature, and which I can handle being left fluid. I enjoyed the supporting characters, the setting of a shipwreck on the coast, and the subplots. However, more has to be nailed down, especially by the end, than Warren cared to clarify. Thus my three-star rating for a story I wanted to like more.
The parameters under which the protagonist operates were never quite made clear, which is typical for most Weird literature, and which I can handle being left fluid. I enjoyed the supporting characters, the setting of a shipwreck on the coast, and the subplots. However, more has to be nailed down, especially by the end, than Warren cared to clarify. Thus my three-star rating for a story I wanted to like more.
July 10, 2019
A strange and compelling novella that plays with the reader's expectations, bending the narrative and its themes until its thought-provoking final page.
Dora has lost everything a mother and wife could lose. She blames herself for these tragedies, and her low self-esteem and lack of confidence has turned her into a shell of a person. We meet Dora as she checks into the Angelsea, a rooming house in a nameless watefront town with almost no belongings, money, or purpose. The Angelsea is dilapidated, meager, cramped, and populated with the lost and forgotten people that society would rather sweep under the rug: ex-convicts, the mentally unstable, and a handful of other guests who silenty agree that one never talks about the past.
The inn is also rumored to be a conduit for supernatural occurrences.
Kaaron Warren is an accomplished, award-winning author with dozens of science fiction, fantasy, and horror short stories under her belt. Her talent for deftly weaving through these genres is on full display here. Although many of these characters are given little time in the spotlight, they are crafted with enough depth and dimension to bring about a understanding of their histories and motivations. The story culminates in a hazy, dreamlike catharsis that had me re-examine how I viewed the story from the beginning.
Into Bones like Oil an unusually effective tale; hard to define, and harder to forget.
Dora has lost everything a mother and wife could lose. She blames herself for these tragedies, and her low self-esteem and lack of confidence has turned her into a shell of a person. We meet Dora as she checks into the Angelsea, a rooming house in a nameless watefront town with almost no belongings, money, or purpose. The Angelsea is dilapidated, meager, cramped, and populated with the lost and forgotten people that society would rather sweep under the rug: ex-convicts, the mentally unstable, and a handful of other guests who silenty agree that one never talks about the past.
The inn is also rumored to be a conduit for supernatural occurrences.
Kaaron Warren is an accomplished, award-winning author with dozens of science fiction, fantasy, and horror short stories under her belt. Her talent for deftly weaving through these genres is on full display here. Although many of these characters are given little time in the spotlight, they are crafted with enough depth and dimension to bring about a understanding of their histories and motivations. The story culminates in a hazy, dreamlike catharsis that had me re-examine how I viewed the story from the beginning.
Into Bones like Oil an unusually effective tale; hard to define, and harder to forget.
March 26, 2025
Mucho royo para tan poca chicha.
November 19, 2019
The protagonist, Dora, has come to The Angelsea, as the description relates, because she is in grief over what happened to her daughters. It is is a rooming house close to the beach that seems inauspicious enough. People come here because they’re meant to be able to sleep very well and sort through psychological troubles. Dora wants to get away from reality. Too bad the place she has chosen is haunted. There are stories Dora hears about former residents that give her chills. Ghosts abound. Dreams abound. And through it all, Dora moves forward bit by bit, piecing together a puzzle in stages, trying to figure out what it means to be here, and what running away from her grief means while wanting to be connected to it at the same time.
The residents go into the details of tragic life circumstances they’ve encountered, and there are doctors present who try to maintain some sense of order or structure, while many residents complain they can’t sleep. There are blurred lines between what’s real and what’s not, and the book starts to play tricks on the reader’s mind.
If psychological horror done well is your jam, absolutely pick up a copy of Into Bones Like Oil by Kaaron Warren, whose work has been hailed by legendary editor Ellen Datlow, and for good reason.
The residents go into the details of tragic life circumstances they’ve encountered, and there are doctors present who try to maintain some sense of order or structure, while many residents complain they can’t sleep. There are blurred lines between what’s real and what’s not, and the book starts to play tricks on the reader’s mind.
If psychological horror done well is your jam, absolutely pick up a copy of Into Bones Like Oil by Kaaron Warren, whose work has been hailed by legendary editor Ellen Datlow, and for good reason.
March 6, 2020
Kaaron Warren, is an Australian author that came to my attention as she has won the Shirley Jackson Award (in 2012).
From her biography About The Author, this is of interest..
Into Bones Like Oil is her most recent novella, and is compelling and splendidly ‘off-the-wall’, a really interesting take on the ghost story that plays with the reader’s expectations until it’s surprisingly powerful climax.
Dora is grieving after a tragedy for which she blames herself. In an attempt to come to terms with her depression she checks into the Angelsea, a dilapidated, dirty and cramped rooming house in a nameless watefront town. Its guests are outcasts of society with dark backstories; ex-convicts, the mentally unstable and suchlike, who want to forget the past. The Inn, rumoured to be a conduit for the dead, is also known as Shipwreck House, for the lost crew of a ship which struck the ground at the nearby beach.
Warren creates a lot in less than a hundred pages. She sets a dreamlike and bleak scene with a creeping sense of dread. She makes us sympathise with the residents, though most likely if we knew more about them we fear they would be despicable.
It’s a novella that reviews struggle to do it justice. There’s a frustration though, a rare one these days, and that it’s too short, Dora’s character feels under-explored, and it’s difficult to identify and understand her situation.
From her biography About The Author, this is of interest..
She’s taught workshops in haunted asylums, old morgues and second hand clothing shops..
Into Bones Like Oil is her most recent novella, and is compelling and splendidly ‘off-the-wall’, a really interesting take on the ghost story that plays with the reader’s expectations until it’s surprisingly powerful climax.
Dora is grieving after a tragedy for which she blames herself. In an attempt to come to terms with her depression she checks into the Angelsea, a dilapidated, dirty and cramped rooming house in a nameless watefront town. Its guests are outcasts of society with dark backstories; ex-convicts, the mentally unstable and suchlike, who want to forget the past. The Inn, rumoured to be a conduit for the dead, is also known as Shipwreck House, for the lost crew of a ship which struck the ground at the nearby beach.
Warren creates a lot in less than a hundred pages. She sets a dreamlike and bleak scene with a creeping sense of dread. She makes us sympathise with the residents, though most likely if we knew more about them we fear they would be despicable.
It’s a novella that reviews struggle to do it justice. There’s a frustration though, a rare one these days, and that it’s too short, Dora’s character feels under-explored, and it’s difficult to identify and understand her situation.
![Profile Image for julia ☆ [owls reads].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1636739475i%2F5520447._UX200_CR0%2C0%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
September 3, 2019
Into Bones Like Oil is a creepy little novella with a very unique and intriguing premise and great writing.
The plot is engaging and very well executed, as it slowly builds up tension until the very final sentence, and present quite a few eerie scenes. The setting is an interesting choice and it serves as the perfect backdrop for hauntings and ghosts. The characters are also just as strange and creepy as the plot and they make up for a fascinating cast of people to read about.
The way Warren uses the narrative to slowly paint a picture of what happened just not to Dora, but to the shipwreck, is a bit confusing at first. There's not a lot to go on at the beginning to understand what's going on and, even after that's been made clear, Dora's own history is a bit muddy. Still a pretty entertaining and compelling read! And the ending is a great conclusion to the story.
*
ARC provided via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
The plot is engaging and very well executed, as it slowly builds up tension until the very final sentence, and present quite a few eerie scenes. The setting is an interesting choice and it serves as the perfect backdrop for hauntings and ghosts. The characters are also just as strange and creepy as the plot and they make up for a fascinating cast of people to read about.
The way Warren uses the narrative to slowly paint a picture of what happened just not to Dora, but to the shipwreck, is a bit confusing at first. There's not a lot to go on at the beginning to understand what's going on and, even after that's been made clear, Dora's own history is a bit muddy. Still a pretty entertaining and compelling read! And the ending is a great conclusion to the story.
*
ARC provided via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
January 4, 2020
Interesting and fast to read, definitely the perfect read if you’re travelling, which is my case. I think I’d like to read more books from this author.
“We don’t think about that. There’s only now, who’s there now. Otherwise we’re all living in the shadow of others.”
“We don’t think about that. There’s only now, who’s there now. Otherwise we’re all living in the shadow of others.”
February 26, 2025
I'm not sure whether it was the story or the narrator but this didn't work for me. I'm not even sure what it's about? Maybe I zoned out without even realising 🙈
November 11, 2019
Into Bones Like Oil is a gothic novella about Dora who goes to the Angelsea to get some rest after her daughters are murdered. The Angelsea sit on the coastline above a haunted shipwreck. Roy is the creepy proprietor of The Angelsea who is constantly searching for treasure and looting the shipwreck. When Dora learns that Roy speaks to ghosts while the residents of the Angelsea sleep, she is conflicted by Roy's intentions and the possibility that she might be able to speak to her daughters.
Into Bones Like Oil is haunting, dark, and surprisingly relatable. What would you do if your daughters were murdered? How would you process your grief and pain?
Thank you to Meerkat Press for providing me a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Into Bones Like Oil is haunting, dark, and surprisingly relatable. What would you do if your daughters were murdered? How would you process your grief and pain?
Thank you to Meerkat Press for providing me a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
August 15, 2025
15/08/2025
2025 reads book 39
I am honestly not sure if the meaning of this just flew over my head, but the story just left me confused. The way the author manages to write melancholy, sadness and feeling lost after traumatic loss worked well in the beginning but I feel like it could have been more fleshed out. It became repetitive, which is a feat in such a short story. The ghosts in the story don't end up being all that scary. I thought they would be explained more but when the story finished I still didn't know all that much about them. Maybe I was expecting too much and got let down by my own high expectations.
2025 reads book 39
I am honestly not sure if the meaning of this just flew over my head, but the story just left me confused. The way the author manages to write melancholy, sadness and feeling lost after traumatic loss worked well in the beginning but I feel like it could have been more fleshed out. It became repetitive, which is a feat in such a short story. The ghosts in the story don't end up being all that scary. I thought they would be explained more but when the story finished I still didn't know all that much about them. Maybe I was expecting too much and got let down by my own high expectations.
June 3, 2021
I read this novella in two sittings, and, like all Kaaron’s stories, I found myself thinking about it afterwards. It is this lingering resonance that captivates me most about Kaaron’s distinctive style. The skill to quietly get under one’s skin…for me, more so in the consequence of reading than the time of reading. Her characters are complex and multi-flawed, caged by their grim realities, vulnerable, and often seemingly without hope. Into Bones Like Oil taps into its characters’ varying miseries and regrets with unsettling circumstances in a bleak coastal rooming house setting, where the living visitors are as tortured as the dead. A delightfully unsettling ‘quiet’ read.
August 14, 2019
A strange little ghost story, that slowly unveils a bereaved main character. Dory leaves her home and checks into a haunted boarding house filled with a strange and damaged cast of characters who share goals of trying to reach peace. Compelling and thought provoking
March 23, 2025
La reseña completa en https://inthenevernever.blogspot.com/...
«Esta pensión está llena de historias de naufragios. La mayoría de nosotros somos putos náufragos».
¿Qué harías para poder dormir de nuevo? ¿Si estuvieses tan desesperada por escapar de tu realidad que te alojarías en una destartalada pensión plagada de fantasmas? ¿Qué haces cuando enfrentarte a tu pasado es peor que la idea de que un difunto posea tu cuerpo y te use para contar su historia usando tu voz mientras duermes? Hoy quiero recomendarles Como aceite en sus huesos, de la autora australiana Kaaron Warren. La nueva novela corta de la colección Deméter que acaba de publicar La biblioteca de Carfax con la excelente traducción de Mª Pilar San Román. Una novela de fantasmas, naufragios y la búsqueda de redención.
«Esta pensión está llena de historias de naufragios. La mayoría de nosotros somos putos náufragos».
¿Qué harías para poder dormir de nuevo? ¿Si estuvieses tan desesperada por escapar de tu realidad que te alojarías en una destartalada pensión plagada de fantasmas? ¿Qué haces cuando enfrentarte a tu pasado es peor que la idea de que un difunto posea tu cuerpo y te use para contar su historia usando tu voz mientras duermes? Hoy quiero recomendarles Como aceite en sus huesos, de la autora australiana Kaaron Warren. La nueva novela corta de la colección Deméter que acaba de publicar La biblioteca de Carfax con la excelente traducción de Mª Pilar San Román. Una novela de fantasmas, naufragios y la búsqueda de redención.
April 7, 2020
In dieser Kurzgeschichte begleiten wir die Protagonistin Dora, die in einem Schlafhotel untergekommen ist. Nach einem traumatischen Erlebnis kann sie einfach nicht mehr vernünftig schlafen und da kommt ihr dieses Hotel sehr gelegen.
Sie hat alles verloren und sich in eine Hülle verwandelt. Ihre Lebenslust ist fast gänzlich verschwunden und aus diesem Grund sucht sie das "The Angelsea" auf.
Man merkt aber relativ schnell, dass in diesem Hotel nicht alles mit rechten Dingen zugeht. Es sieht von innen wie außen ziemlich heruntergekommen aus und der Ort ist auch eher gruselig. Das Haus befindet sich nämlich an einer abgelegenen Küste und an diesem Strand ist vor langer Zeit ein altes Schiff verunglückt. Man bekommt bei den Beschreibungen immer wieder Gänsehaut und ich habe mich gefühlt als ob ich wie Dora auch diesen grusligen Ort erkunde.
Es gibt viele Gerüchte um diesen Ort und natürlich haben diese etwas mit Geistern zu tun. Auch das Schlafhotel wird im laufe der Zeit immer mysteriöser, bis Dora endlich die Wahrheit erfährt.
Durch verschiedene Gäste und den paar Angestellten kommt sie dem Geheimnis immer mehr auf die Spur und versucht dabei noch ihr eigene Trauma zu verarbeiten.
Neben Dora gibt es wie gesagt noch ein paar andere Gäste, die alle ihre eigenen Macken haben. Alle haben unter einem Problem zu leiden und dieses hat sie in dieses Hotel geführt. Von den Charakteren bekommen wir aber meist nicht so viel zu sehen, sie sind eher flach dargestellt. Jedoch ist es ja eine Kurzgeschichte und ich habe daher auch nicht so viel tiefe erwartet.
Am meisten hat mir im Buch die Atmosphäre gefallen. Es fühlt sich an, als wären wir in einem Film. Die mysteriöse Stimmung wird durch Geister, dem Ort des Geschehens und die fast gruseligen Charaktere erzeugt.
Der Schreibstil von Kaaron Warren ist erst etwas gewöhnungsbedürftig gewesen, was vielleicht aber auch daran liegen kann, dass Englisch nicht meine Muttersprache ist und es manchmal Worte gab, die im Akzent geschrieben worden.
Fazit
Für Horror und Grusel Fans ist dieses kleine Buch definitiv etwas. Besonders durch die Atmosphäre und den vielen offenen Fragen konnte mich das Buch überzeugen. Von mir gibt es 4 Sterne.
Bleibt Gesund!
euere Vici
Sie hat alles verloren und sich in eine Hülle verwandelt. Ihre Lebenslust ist fast gänzlich verschwunden und aus diesem Grund sucht sie das "The Angelsea" auf.
Man merkt aber relativ schnell, dass in diesem Hotel nicht alles mit rechten Dingen zugeht. Es sieht von innen wie außen ziemlich heruntergekommen aus und der Ort ist auch eher gruselig. Das Haus befindet sich nämlich an einer abgelegenen Küste und an diesem Strand ist vor langer Zeit ein altes Schiff verunglückt. Man bekommt bei den Beschreibungen immer wieder Gänsehaut und ich habe mich gefühlt als ob ich wie Dora auch diesen grusligen Ort erkunde.
Es gibt viele Gerüchte um diesen Ort und natürlich haben diese etwas mit Geistern zu tun. Auch das Schlafhotel wird im laufe der Zeit immer mysteriöser, bis Dora endlich die Wahrheit erfährt.
Durch verschiedene Gäste und den paar Angestellten kommt sie dem Geheimnis immer mehr auf die Spur und versucht dabei noch ihr eigene Trauma zu verarbeiten.
Neben Dora gibt es wie gesagt noch ein paar andere Gäste, die alle ihre eigenen Macken haben. Alle haben unter einem Problem zu leiden und dieses hat sie in dieses Hotel geführt. Von den Charakteren bekommen wir aber meist nicht so viel zu sehen, sie sind eher flach dargestellt. Jedoch ist es ja eine Kurzgeschichte und ich habe daher auch nicht so viel tiefe erwartet.
Am meisten hat mir im Buch die Atmosphäre gefallen. Es fühlt sich an, als wären wir in einem Film. Die mysteriöse Stimmung wird durch Geister, dem Ort des Geschehens und die fast gruseligen Charaktere erzeugt.
Der Schreibstil von Kaaron Warren ist erst etwas gewöhnungsbedürftig gewesen, was vielleicht aber auch daran liegen kann, dass Englisch nicht meine Muttersprache ist und es manchmal Worte gab, die im Akzent geschrieben worden.
Fazit
Für Horror und Grusel Fans ist dieses kleine Buch definitiv etwas. Besonders durch die Atmosphäre und den vielen offenen Fragen konnte mich das Buch überzeugen. Von mir gibt es 4 Sterne.
Bleibt Gesund!
euere Vici
May 21, 2020
I read this novella in two sittings, purely because I was unable to put it down. I would categorize this as weird fiction, alongside horror fiction. I think it’s going to be a Marmite book – you’ll either love it, or hate it. I loved it.
So what are its strengths? First and foremost, I loved the surreal feeling it provided. The opening feels as if it belongs in the ‘real world,’ yet it doesn’t take long to realize that things are not what they seem. The dream-like quality throughout is cleverly done, but it is deeper than that, almost trance-like. For those of you who have suffered real grief, or deep anxiety, I think you’ll understand what I mean when I say it’s like that state you’re in when you’re struggling to come to terms with the devastating news you’ve received. And the physical as well as emotional feelings which accompany such trauma, that feeling of only having one foot in the real world - the alienation and the wishing to be someone else - well, that too. The exhaustion, the angst, the feelings of guilt if you happen to find something amusing, they’re all there.
A lot of the reviews praise the ending, but for me this was my least favorite part. I wanted more, but at the same time accept that this is hardly ever the case with regards to weird fiction. As I read, I anticipated this, and so was almost fearful of reaching the end.
I rate this novella 4.5. It will certainly stay with me for some time to come.
So what are its strengths? First and foremost, I loved the surreal feeling it provided. The opening feels as if it belongs in the ‘real world,’ yet it doesn’t take long to realize that things are not what they seem. The dream-like quality throughout is cleverly done, but it is deeper than that, almost trance-like. For those of you who have suffered real grief, or deep anxiety, I think you’ll understand what I mean when I say it’s like that state you’re in when you’re struggling to come to terms with the devastating news you’ve received. And the physical as well as emotional feelings which accompany such trauma, that feeling of only having one foot in the real world - the alienation and the wishing to be someone else - well, that too. The exhaustion, the angst, the feelings of guilt if you happen to find something amusing, they’re all there.
A lot of the reviews praise the ending, but for me this was my least favorite part. I wanted more, but at the same time accept that this is hardly ever the case with regards to weird fiction. As I read, I anticipated this, and so was almost fearful of reaching the end.
I rate this novella 4.5. It will certainly stay with me for some time to come.
April 10, 2025
3.5/5
For a story that has been squeezed into less than 90 pages , this one does a phenomenal job of setting up the eerie atmosphere, delivers the somber tone and makes you feel for a woman exhausted by life.
The author calls upon the collective fear we have for the past catching up to us, and yet most of us still wander into it longing to relive moments.
Now here is the catch, this book is one of those that would be a bit depending on the reader's mood , and if picked on the wrong day it would have the possibility to be an utter miss. The melancholic tone jumps up from the pages immediately but it can get a tad difficult to read if one is not in the mood or prepared for it.
Overall, the idea of the sleep house and the unknown horrors of the dreamland is a fascinating take as we navigate through a mother's dilemma about her daughters long gone and her need to take refuge from life itself
For a story that has been squeezed into less than 90 pages , this one does a phenomenal job of setting up the eerie atmosphere, delivers the somber tone and makes you feel for a woman exhausted by life.
The author calls upon the collective fear we have for the past catching up to us, and yet most of us still wander into it longing to relive moments.
Now here is the catch, this book is one of those that would be a bit depending on the reader's mood , and if picked on the wrong day it would have the possibility to be an utter miss. The melancholic tone jumps up from the pages immediately but it can get a tad difficult to read if one is not in the mood or prepared for it.
Overall, the idea of the sleep house and the unknown horrors of the dreamland is a fascinating take as we navigate through a mother's dilemma about her daughters long gone and her need to take refuge from life itself
November 8, 2019
Dora in a new room, Tuesday by the coast, onwards through days and a need for sleep after bad things surpassed. Once a mother now some space needed to clear within, unsettled and unfinished business, loss and ghosts to meddle with in this hauntingly tender tale incorporating grief and finding solace. There will be no high fear factor ghosts of terror but the melancholy slow kind and the channeling that can work too in a tale.
“You know it’s more than a rooming house. You wouldn’t have come, otherwise. You need help to sleep. Everyone does who comes to me. You will sleep well here at The Angelsea. No doubt about that at all. It’s my little contribution.”
“Haven’t you noticed? This place is full of shipwreck stories. Most of us are f****n wrecks.” “Luke calls it Shitwreck House!”
Review also @ More2read
“You know it’s more than a rooming house. You wouldn’t have come, otherwise. You need help to sleep. Everyone does who comes to me. You will sleep well here at The Angelsea. No doubt about that at all. It’s my little contribution.”
“Haven’t you noticed? This place is full of shipwreck stories. Most of us are f****n wrecks.” “Luke calls it Shitwreck House!”
Review also @ More2read
November 22, 2020
An intriguing and absorbing tale. Haunting (in more than one sense) and evocative, it's a shorter read but certainly a memorable one.
August 11, 2020
*I was given a copy of this book by the publisher in exchange for my fair and honest review.*
Into Bones like Oil by Kaaron Warren is a compelling and interesting read that is one part grief and one part fear. A profound tale, reminiscent of Chad Lutzke, on sorrow and loss, with ghosts mixed in.
Into Bones like Oil follows insomniac Dora, mourning the death of her two young daughters, goes to Angelsea, a beach side rooming house, to escape her troubled life- but Angelsea is anything but a peaceful respite. The ghosts of those drowned in the shipwreck visit each night to speak their last words through the mouths of the inn's sleeping inhabitants. When the Angelsea owners pressure Dora to become a vessel for a ghost, she worries that she will encounter the spirits of her daughters and that they will confirm her worst fears by blaming her for their deaths because she failed to protect them.
This quick but unsettling read is put together with lyrical prose and a beautiful, almost haunting lyrical style. The characterization is great. The characters are real and complex. Dora is written with flaws, which makes her all the more relatable and readers will sympathize with her struggle to find redemption and forgiveness. The plot is a slow burn with a fast and even pace.
Into Bones like Oil by Kaaron Warren is a bit creepy, but there is more emphasis on the flawed people looking for redemption in their own way than an actual ghost story. But the ghost parts are still a bit eerie.
Into Bones like Oil by Kaaron Warren is a compelling and interesting read that is one part grief and one part fear. A profound tale, reminiscent of Chad Lutzke, on sorrow and loss, with ghosts mixed in.
Into Bones like Oil follows insomniac Dora, mourning the death of her two young daughters, goes to Angelsea, a beach side rooming house, to escape her troubled life- but Angelsea is anything but a peaceful respite. The ghosts of those drowned in the shipwreck visit each night to speak their last words through the mouths of the inn's sleeping inhabitants. When the Angelsea owners pressure Dora to become a vessel for a ghost, she worries that she will encounter the spirits of her daughters and that they will confirm her worst fears by blaming her for their deaths because she failed to protect them.
This quick but unsettling read is put together with lyrical prose and a beautiful, almost haunting lyrical style. The characterization is great. The characters are real and complex. Dora is written with flaws, which makes her all the more relatable and readers will sympathize with her struggle to find redemption and forgiveness. The plot is a slow burn with a fast and even pace.
Into Bones like Oil by Kaaron Warren is a bit creepy, but there is more emphasis on the flawed people looking for redemption in their own way than an actual ghost story. But the ghost parts are still a bit eerie.
January 2, 2020
Okay, Kaaron Warren has written this little novella called Into Bones Like Oil. I wasn’t sure exactly how it would be as this is my first read from this author, but the premise was intriguing. HOLY CROW! What a read! It’s creepy, it gets right under your skin and stays with you long after you set the book down.
The plot instantly hooked me. The slow build tension is perfect for this type of story. I could feel the dread and eeriness as each scene presented itself. The setting is super intriguing and the characters are odd which adds to the horror element of this story.
Kaaron Warren slowly paints a picture of what she wants you to see, and it takes a while to understand exactly what is happening. I absolutely loved that about this novella. If you enjoy dark, creepy reads, Into Bones Like Oil is one you shouldn’t miss!
The way Warren uses the narrative to slowly paint a picture of what happened just not to Dora, but to the shipwreck, is a bit confusing at first. There’s not a lot to go on at the beginning to understand what’s going on and, even after that’s been made clear, Dora’s own history is a bit muddy. Still a pretty entertaining and compelling read! And the ending is a great conclusion to the story.
*Complimentary copy received from Meerkat Press. All opinions are my own.*
The plot instantly hooked me. The slow build tension is perfect for this type of story. I could feel the dread and eeriness as each scene presented itself. The setting is super intriguing and the characters are odd which adds to the horror element of this story.
Kaaron Warren slowly paints a picture of what she wants you to see, and it takes a while to understand exactly what is happening. I absolutely loved that about this novella. If you enjoy dark, creepy reads, Into Bones Like Oil is one you shouldn’t miss!
The way Warren uses the narrative to slowly paint a picture of what happened just not to Dora, but to the shipwreck, is a bit confusing at first. There’s not a lot to go on at the beginning to understand what’s going on and, even after that’s been made clear, Dora’s own history is a bit muddy. Still a pretty entertaining and compelling read! And the ending is a great conclusion to the story.
*Complimentary copy received from Meerkat Press. All opinions are my own.*
June 13, 2019
Accomplished story, unsettling.
January 1, 2020
As soon as you start reading Into Bones Like Oil, you're in it, right alongside Dora as she navigates a seaside boarding house for the first time. And just like you, Dora is both curious and guarded, unsure about what to expect from The Angelsea—a shadowy, rickety, shoddily rebuilt home near a tragic coastline, a place that smells of brine and feels like it *could* be haunted ... or maybe you (and Dora) are just being paranoid.
Kaaron brings The Angelsea to life on the page much like one of its main characters: like she's pulling a soul from the ether. And she does it with deceptive ease: everything feels gentle and comfortable—normal, even—until it doesn't. By then you're hooked into a world that feels like it's just one step removed from our own (not quite magical realism, but something close to it ... something a little darker, a little grittier, a little more unnerving).
There's sadness here, especially in Dora's past—a knot of remorse that she's trying to run away from. Something unbearable that she's struggling to be at peace with. The same is true for the other residents of The Angelsea, who all have their own secret shames, and who all feel both strikingly real and curiously odd at the same time (much like everything in The Angelsea).
Partially, it's a story about misfits coming together and finding solace in each other's company, with the knowledge that at least they, too, aren't alone. It's also a story about shipwrecked spirits, sleep-induced hauntings, and ghostly murmurs from the past.
For me, though, it's mostly a story about Dora's search for healing in a life that has left her feeling (understandably) broken—if such healing can ever be found. It's beautiful, and sad, and at times quite hopeful. A dark literary blend of so many great things.
Mood: Rainy days, shadowy hallways, fog-wrapped lighthouses, eerie voices heard through weather-warped wood.
Kaaron brings The Angelsea to life on the page much like one of its main characters: like she's pulling a soul from the ether. And she does it with deceptive ease: everything feels gentle and comfortable—normal, even—until it doesn't. By then you're hooked into a world that feels like it's just one step removed from our own (not quite magical realism, but something close to it ... something a little darker, a little grittier, a little more unnerving).
There's sadness here, especially in Dora's past—a knot of remorse that she's trying to run away from. Something unbearable that she's struggling to be at peace with. The same is true for the other residents of The Angelsea, who all have their own secret shames, and who all feel both strikingly real and curiously odd at the same time (much like everything in The Angelsea).
Partially, it's a story about misfits coming together and finding solace in each other's company, with the knowledge that at least they, too, aren't alone. It's also a story about shipwrecked spirits, sleep-induced hauntings, and ghostly murmurs from the past.
For me, though, it's mostly a story about Dora's search for healing in a life that has left her feeling (understandably) broken—if such healing can ever be found. It's beautiful, and sad, and at times quite hopeful. A dark literary blend of so many great things.
Mood: Rainy days, shadowy hallways, fog-wrapped lighthouses, eerie voices heard through weather-warped wood.
July 29, 2020
Just a small taste of an extremely talented and renowned author. The entire tale is heavy with dread and death, but its characters are very much alive. It’s tragic and creepy, so incredibly written that I didn’t want to be in that headspace but was compelled to finish. I will be reading more of her stuff in the near future.
March 8, 2020
This is SO far out of my usual reading box - it has been *decades* since the last time I read a "horror" novel! But something about the review I read pulled me into this award winning, Aussie horror and suspernatural writer.
Nice homage to RL Stevenson (who I have begun to reread, also after decades).
The characters are contemporary, 3 dimensional, and appear real.
The ending seemed a bit sudden, but then it was a novella.
I enjoyed this read enough to purchase a couple of her collections as ebooks. Her physical books can be pricey at times here in the US (smaller presses, Australian publishers). But her ebooks on kindle in America are priced well. Looking forward to reading a few more of her novella length works.
Nice homage to RL Stevenson (who I have begun to reread, also after decades).
The characters are contemporary, 3 dimensional, and appear real.
The ending seemed a bit sudden, but then it was a novella.
I enjoyed this read enough to purchase a couple of her collections as ebooks. Her physical books can be pricey at times here in the US (smaller presses, Australian publishers). But her ebooks on kindle in America are priced well. Looking forward to reading a few more of her novella length works.
September 19, 2019
If you're one of those people who can never remember your dreams, then reading Kaaron Warren, or at least this particular novella, should give you a good idea of what dreaming is like. There is both a storyline and a distinct protagonist, but these don't ever feel as if they dominate the odd string of interactions and events.
If I had to pick a genre, this tastes a lot more of weird than of horror, despite all the ghosts, wrecked ships, and occasional gross detail described. This is all dream logic, enormously readable (if: you're able to just... not expect awake logic.)
If I had to pick a genre, this tastes a lot more of weird than of horror, despite all the ghosts, wrecked ships, and occasional gross detail described. This is all dream logic, enormously readable (if: you're able to just... not expect awake logic.)
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