Perfect for fans of Stephen King's Pet Sematary!
Rating: 4/5
Wishing to leave the past behind, struggling young mother Lena Hagen and her son move into a house belonging to the enigmatic, yet affable Ellis Delapore. As she settles into her new home, she begins a genuine friendship with her landlord, and they discover a fondness and mutual trust for each other.
However, as the months go on, Lena begins experiencing increasingly bizarre and fantastical happenings, and she suspects that there is something nefarious lurking beneath the foundations of the house, which Ellis will not admit is there. To uncover the truth, Lena must put her relationship with Ellis at hazard, and what she discovers is something unearthly and beyond death.
I received an ARC of After Me, The Great Flood from the author himself in exchange for an honest review! Thank you so much! You never disappoint!
I’ve only read two other short stories from Ducharme. I still need to read one more from him and then I’ll be all caught up with his novellas! But from the ones I have read, I never know what to truly expect. All I do know is these get dark! And this one did not disappoint.
This one did not disappoint.
The premise of this one reminds me a little of a retelling of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary in a way. Just without the creepy cat. We follow Lena who’s desperate to find a new home. She manages to find a house that’s adjacent to an old man, Ellis. Shortly after moving in, Lena establishes a friendship with Ellis. As time goes on, Lena starts to experience odd happenings around the house. However, Ellis denies ever experiencing anything himself. Lena decides to unearth the reason behind these bizarre events herself.
This book is a quick-paced read! Being roughly 135 pages, it had me captivated all the way through. I wanted to see these bizarre events and the reason behind them. As I mentioned, I found this to be sort of like a Pet Sematary retelling. Mostly in the way of the friendly old neighbor and the sinister vibe of the land the house sits on. But this was uniquely its own!
I found this to be sort of like a Pet Sematary retelling
I found the paranormal events to be under the skin creepy. Though I will say they were all very different from each other. It didn’t make sense how they were connected until the end, where we’re shown the whole picture and saw how they fit into each other.
I do wish this story was just slightly longer. I would have loved to read a more indepth backstory of this land and why these events were even happening in the first place and the people it targeted. And while I did enjoy the ending, I would have loved to see an epilogue with the fate of the land afterwards.
I think this would be a great read for anyone who enjoys dark paranormal reads! Especially if you enjoyed Pet Sematary and haunted house vibes! I truly enjoyed this one. Ducharme never disappoints! I can’t wait to see what he comes out with next! You’ve got a forever fan over here.