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thomaswjoyce's review
5.0
A wonderful and compelling debut, equal parts dark fairy-tale and psychological horror. Very well crafted. Brilliant!
Another fine book from The Sinister Horror Company, this novella is author Lydian Faust's debut. And what a way to announce yourself on the indie horror scene! Described as a dark fairy-tale, it certainly has elements of that, with Luna's retelling of her visits to Grandma's house while she is held in an unorthodox psychiatric facility by the enigmatic Dr. Sizemore. However, as the story unfolds, first with Luna's past experiences and then a look at the doctor's tragic childhood, the book feels more like a dark psychological horror. Both women have faced traumatic and disturbing challenges in their past, and Faust does an excellent job of intertwining the separate stories and bringing the book to a rewarding conclusion. The characters are complex and realistic, and the language is at times poetic. This is a wonderful debut and I look forward to hearing more from Lydian Faust!
Another fine book from The Sinister Horror Company, this novella is author Lydian Faust's debut. And what a way to announce yourself on the indie horror scene! Described as a dark fairy-tale, it certainly has elements of that, with Luna's retelling of her visits to Grandma's house while she is held in an unorthodox psychiatric facility by the enigmatic Dr. Sizemore. However, as the story unfolds, first with Luna's past experiences and then a look at the doctor's tragic childhood, the book feels more like a dark psychological horror. Both women have faced traumatic and disturbing challenges in their past, and Faust does an excellent job of intertwining the separate stories and bringing the book to a rewarding conclusion. The characters are complex and realistic, and the language is at times poetic. This is a wonderful debut and I look forward to hearing more from Lydian Faust!
exorcismofemilyreed's review
4.0
"Doctor...what are you doing to me?"
Forest Underground was my first read of 2020, and it was a great pick! This was such an intriguing horror novella, and I loved the story.
I'm not going to say much about this book because the synopsis isn't super detailed, and you should get to read it without a lot of outside information. Just know that it's a very mysterious fairytale-like story, and it was such a good read. I hope to read more from Lydian Faust!
Forest Underground was my first read of 2020, and it was a great pick! This was such an intriguing horror novella, and I loved the story.
I'm not going to say much about this book because the synopsis isn't super detailed, and you should get to read it without a lot of outside information. Just know that it's a very mysterious fairytale-like story, and it was such a good read. I hope to read more from Lydian Faust!
sjgomzi's review
4.0
Unputdownable! Part dark fairytale, part psychological thriller. A lot of story and great characters and writing packed into its 100 pages. I loved it, and will be looking for more of her books in the future. Highly recommended!
whatmeworry's review
4.0
This review first appeared on scifiandscary.com, I received a copy of the book to review.
‘Forest Underground’ is the debut novella from Lydian Faust and is published by the Sinister Horror Company, a small UK based indie publisher. It’s very good indeed. In fact it’s the best indie horror I’ve read for some time.
I always worry when I see rave reviews of small press or self-published books. Instinctively, part of my brain wonders if the praise is just down to enthusiasm or hubris on the part of the reviewer. If they’re that good, why haven’t they been picked up by a big publisher? That’s a terrible thing to think, and clearly displays an ignorance of the way that modern publishing has gone. My rational mind knows that my gut reaction is wrong, but it’s there all the same. Maybe you feel the same way, or maybe it’s just me. Either way, believe me when I say that ‘Forest Underground’ is worth your time. It’s not perfect, but it is very, very good and I suspect it marks the entry of a bold new talent on the horror stage.
It’s a hard book to describe, as a simple relaying of the plot doesn’t do it justice. Having finished it I’m left with the feeling that I don’t really know what I just read. That might sound like a bad thing, but it’s anything but. I felt the same way after finishing Samanta Schweblin’s brilliant ‘Fever Dream’ or after watching movies like ‘Mother!’ or ‘Videodrome’. All these pieces of art have a timeless, dreamlike quality that taps into our psyches and needles at our deepest anxieties and fears. Faust’s book does that too, weaving a reinterpretation of Little Red Riding Hood in with a ghost story and a deeply creepy serial killer tale. Those elements might sound at odds with each other, but Faust does a great job of combining them into a coherent, if nightmarish, whole. She packs the book with fantastically dark imagery: cannibalism, self-mutilation, mass graves. The most horrifying scenes are more memorable than you might want them to be.
Central character Luna is deliberately weird and enigmatic, but Faust gives her problems that are recognisable and easy to relate to. Despite the mystery that surrounds Luna, and the fact that I never felt like I truly knew her, I did find myself caring about her. The book centers on a series of Luna’s therapy sessions with her doctor, Alisha Sizemore. As Luna tells the doctor about her past it becomes hard to tell what is reality and what is illusion. There is a Russian doll element that works brilliantly, with the story going in a different direction two thirds of the way through and then again towards the end, before wrapping up in a very satisfying conclusion.
Thematically there is a lot going on here for such a short book. The troubles of female adolescence are explored through both Luna and Alisha’s memories. At times it feels reminiscent of Angela Carter’s retellings of European folk tales. Like Carter, Faust gets to the bloody heart of Little Red Riding Hood. Her take is very different, but equally effective.
Bullying and parental neglect are compellingly and sensitively covered too, without ever overwhelming the story. And throughout it all looms a mistrust of authority and institutions (hospitals and schools in this case), that feels very current.
In the end the much of the book feels like a fresh new fairy tale. Unsettling, bloody, timeless and haunting. I enjoyed every blood-soaked, horrific page.
‘Forest Underground’ is the debut novella from Lydian Faust and is published by the Sinister Horror Company, a small UK based indie publisher. It’s very good indeed. In fact it’s the best indie horror I’ve read for some time.
I always worry when I see rave reviews of small press or self-published books. Instinctively, part of my brain wonders if the praise is just down to enthusiasm or hubris on the part of the reviewer. If they’re that good, why haven’t they been picked up by a big publisher? That’s a terrible thing to think, and clearly displays an ignorance of the way that modern publishing has gone. My rational mind knows that my gut reaction is wrong, but it’s there all the same. Maybe you feel the same way, or maybe it’s just me. Either way, believe me when I say that ‘Forest Underground’ is worth your time. It’s not perfect, but it is very, very good and I suspect it marks the entry of a bold new talent on the horror stage.
It’s a hard book to describe, as a simple relaying of the plot doesn’t do it justice. Having finished it I’m left with the feeling that I don’t really know what I just read. That might sound like a bad thing, but it’s anything but. I felt the same way after finishing Samanta Schweblin’s brilliant ‘Fever Dream’ or after watching movies like ‘Mother!’ or ‘Videodrome’. All these pieces of art have a timeless, dreamlike quality that taps into our psyches and needles at our deepest anxieties and fears. Faust’s book does that too, weaving a reinterpretation of Little Red Riding Hood in with a ghost story and a deeply creepy serial killer tale. Those elements might sound at odds with each other, but Faust does a great job of combining them into a coherent, if nightmarish, whole. She packs the book with fantastically dark imagery: cannibalism, self-mutilation, mass graves. The most horrifying scenes are more memorable than you might want them to be.
Central character Luna is deliberately weird and enigmatic, but Faust gives her problems that are recognisable and easy to relate to. Despite the mystery that surrounds Luna, and the fact that I never felt like I truly knew her, I did find myself caring about her. The book centers on a series of Luna’s therapy sessions with her doctor, Alisha Sizemore. As Luna tells the doctor about her past it becomes hard to tell what is reality and what is illusion. There is a Russian doll element that works brilliantly, with the story going in a different direction two thirds of the way through and then again towards the end, before wrapping up in a very satisfying conclusion.
Thematically there is a lot going on here for such a short book. The troubles of female adolescence are explored through both Luna and Alisha’s memories. At times it feels reminiscent of Angela Carter’s retellings of European folk tales. Like Carter, Faust gets to the bloody heart of Little Red Riding Hood. Her take is very different, but equally effective.
Bullying and parental neglect are compellingly and sensitively covered too, without ever overwhelming the story. And throughout it all looms a mistrust of authority and institutions (hospitals and schools in this case), that feels very current.
In the end the much of the book feels like a fresh new fairy tale. Unsettling, bloody, timeless and haunting. I enjoyed every blood-soaked, horrific page.
stranger_sights's review
4.0
See my full review at: https://mediadrome.wordpress.com/2020/02/05/forest-underground-by-lydian-foust/
This was a truly enjoyable story. Lydian Faust shows a considerable talent for writing a short, to-the-point tale that will probably scare the crap out of you. She has a knack for tension building that left me throroughly impressed.
This was a truly enjoyable story. Lydian Faust shows a considerable talent for writing a short, to-the-point tale that will probably scare the crap out of you. She has a knack for tension building that left me throroughly impressed.
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