Nothing but Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw

Released October 19th, 2021, by Tor Nightfire

I've had Khaw's critically acclaimed Hammers on Bone on my to-read list for a long time (will be fixing that very soon now). I figured I'd give myself a teaser on what she has to offer.

This is a must-read folks!

Here is a relatively simple supernatural story, but firmly grounded in its cast of live human beings. As a matter of fact, the human element of the story is so well done that the supernatural aspect is just icing on the cake. Small cast of characters that are well drawn, and one setting. I feel like this was written just for me.

There was a passage in there that won't spoil anything, but I can tell you that here is a situation where Khaw succinctly puts the reader in the exact state of mind for the following scenes to have optimal impact:

"This is the problem with horror movies: Everyone knows what's coming next but actions have momentum, every decision an equal and justified reaction. Just because you know you should, doesn't mean that you can, stop."

Not only is this passage a beautiful mood-setter, but it's also a perfect answer to that horror skeptic in our lives: "why do horror characters make such bad decisions?" 

This is a haunting tale. One of the best of recent memory, and one that I will try to remember to recommend to readers that are into dark ghost stories.

Grade: B

Review by Jason Cavallaro

jcavallaro42@gmail.com

Twitter: @pinheadspawn

I received a copy from Netgalley in exchange for review consideration.