LITERATURE
October Book Club With Halloween on the horizon, Charlotte Griffiths opens the creaking door to hit horror fiction Darker Days THOMAS OLDE HEUVELT
Everything always goes well for the residents of Bird Street, a quiet cul-de-sac in the Pacific Northwest. Promotions, academic grants, child prodigies: you name it, these lucky families get it. Life is sweet. But every year, at the start of November, their bill for all this good luck comes due and the Darker Days are upon them. It requires a huge sacrifice to settle the debt and the sooner the payment can be made, the better – because the longer the Darker Days go on, the worse it gets, as the families’ good luck unravels and the more desperate they all become to return to their usual state. Thomas Olde Heuvelt is a master at ratcheting up the horror and suspense. You’ll find yourself re-reading sections after an odd word or turn of phrase catches your eye in an otherwise- normal-seeming passage (all of which is expertly translated from the author’s original Dutch) – and like the occupants of Bird Street, you might have to cover your own mirrors in case you spot something sinister lurking in the shadows. One for fans of Stephen King and suburban horror, this brilliant novel forces the residents and readers alike to confront just how far they’d go for their own family’s happiness… but can you ever be truly happy if someone else has to suffer for your good fortune? Heuvelt is a master at ratcheting up the horror and suspense
The Lamb LUCY ROSE
Margot and Mama are content with their lot. Margot takes the bus to school, her Mama keeps house, entertains lovers and watches out for incoming strays: all beautifully depicted by Rose’s lyrical writing, as well as horrifyingly domestic and almost recognisable. That is, until the enigmatic Eden turns up, reveals she shares their appetites, and this queer, feminist, body-shock, coming-of-age debut really gets going. Rose’s particular gift for mouth- watering food descriptions makes reading this an extremely unsettling and challenging experience. Completely compelling in a nightmarish way, this is a dark fairytale that’ll have you reading with one hand over your mouth – and might also make you temporarily vegetarian.
Occasionally a book resets the bar for use of a descriptive term. After reading The Lamb , writer Lucy Rose’s debut novel, it’s the word visceral: I won’t be throwing that around so easily from now on! This contemporary folk horror is indeed the most visceral, bodily, raw piece of writing I’ve encountered. You’ll know if it’s for you from the eyebrow-raising opening sentence, which I encourage you to seek out and read for yourself. Margot and her Mama live in a pebble- dashed cottage in the woods, hidden from society – which is probably for the best, because they have a very particular diet. Sometimes a lost traveller wanders too near to their cottage, but the ‘strays’, as the small family refer to their infrequent visitors, don’t make that same mistake again.
30 OCTOBER 2026 CAMBSEDITION.CO.UK
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