David Sodergren | Musings of the Monster Librarian

Book Review: Maggie’s Grave: A Horror Novel by David Sodergren

Maggie’s Grave: A Horror Novel by David Sodergren

Paperbacks and Pugs, 2020

ISBN: 9798680192276

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition ( Amazon.com )

Things not to do when visiting Scotland: Don’t visit a dead witch’s mountaintop grave; don’t light the grave’s cross on fire; and DON’T have sex on the grave with one of the local teenagers. Why? Because when Maggie the witch wakes up she is going to be extremely pissed off and want revenge on the tiny town below, since they cut her baby out of her and killed it and her a few hundred years prior. Author David Sodergren is quickly carving out a niche as one of the better writers in the horror genre.

The plot is actually a bit more elaborate than that, but there is no sense spoiling the fun for the reader. There’s just enough time spent developing the setting and characters to get you interested in them, and then it’s off to the races. In this case, the main characters are the four (and only) teen-agers in the dying town of Auchenmullan, with a whopping total population of forty-seven. Almost no one is ever born there, and people only move away, not to the town. The teens have nothing to do but work an occasional menial job, have sex, get drunk, and hang out at the local bowling alley. Heck, their theme song, to the Joan Jett melody, is “I love…t’get drunk n’ bowl!” A dumb, wandering, American tourist provides some diversion, and on the trip to Maggie’s grave, all hell breaks loose.

As he did in his first two books, Sodergren keeps his foot on the gas throughout the book; there’s no slowdown. He fills in the backstory of Maggie throughout the book, and the other members of the town are involved in the plot. Thankfully, the mystery isn’t revealed in one long, drawn-out monologue at the end, but in pieces where appropriate, so the novel’s pacing doesn’t slow down. Maggie is responsible for almost all of the bloodletting in the book, and she makes enough of a mess to keep gorehound readers happy: she has a habit of inventing new ways to mangle people when they are unclothed and in compromising positions. She also isn’t constrained by the boundaries of the town, which allows the story to move outside of Auchenmullan at times for some variety. There’s dark humor throughout, and, once again, the author comes up with a perfect twist for the ending that the reader won’t see coming. The story also does a good job throughout playing on the classic Vulcan axiom: do the needs of the many truly outweigh the needs of the few…or the one?

It’s now a string of three winning horror novels in a row for the author. Horror fans won’t be disappointed by this one. Recommended.

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson.

Book Review: Night Shoot by David Sodergren

Night Shoot, by David Sodergren

Paperbacks and Pugs, 2019

ISBN: 9781718170278

Available: paperback, Kindle ( Amazon.com )

For readers who want excitement, action, blood and organs splashed around the pages (where appropriate, of course), and some occasional humor to keep the story from total darkness, Sodergren is a must read: both this book, and his outstanding debut, 2018’s The Forgotten Island.

The story centers around a group of mediocre film students who gather in an old, Gothic-style mansion on the cliffs of Scotland to make a horror film. The mansion belongs to the director’s uncle, who always leaves and locks it at 8PM, not returning till morning. Filming is a disaster, so the foolish students, forced to leave at the 8PM deadline, break back in to attempt to complete the filming in a lengthy overnight shoot.

Of course, there is a reason they were not supposed to be in the house, and they soon find out why, in a suitably bloody fashion.

Although the basic plot (last person standing) is common enough, it still works when the author knows how to write in an exciting, fast-paced fashion, and that’s something Sodergren does extremely well. His writing style is what’s been referred to as “tight but loose”, with well-written prose, and doesn’t take itself too seriously. There is always room for pop culture asides and dark humor in the writing, but it doesn’t detract from the story, or turn it into a comedy. Think early Stephen King, and you get the idea. In this case, the humor is in how the author portrays the film crew. They regard themselves as true artists, but he portrays them as buffoons. Considering that a lot of people do regard Hollywood and actors in general as foolish, that’s a narrative a lot of people will relate to and enjoy. The dialogue works perfectly: just what is needed for the story, with no wasted time on lengthy pontifications.

Of course, this IS a horror novel, and it throws in plenty of creative, gore-drenched events, but it never goes over the top. The blood and guts is just part of the story, not the overall focus of the story. This isn’t quite hardcore splat, although it’s getting into the neighborhood. One selling point of his books is the endings: very satisfying, but NOT what you expect. Final note: bonus points to the author for using Coldplay as the butt of one of the jokes in the book. No band deserves it more. Recommended. (the book, not Coldplay!)