The Dead and the Dark

by Courtney Gould

[Quirky Cat]

I was lucky enough to receive an arc of Courtney Gould's debut novel, The Dead and the Dark, and I've got to tell you: this book is everything. It has a little bit of something for everyone, as it blend fantasy, horror, mystery, and thriller elements together. Plus, the novel (and characters) itself is very LGBT+ friendly.

Logan Ortiz-Woodley is used to her fathers chasing ghosts and following local horror stories. As such, she's seen a lot of weird things. But never something like this. There is something truly messed up in Snakebite, Oregon – and the townspeople are blaming her family.

Ashley Barton is one of those townspeople, as her boyfriend was the first person to go missing. Now, having met Logan and her family, she can't help but feel a tearing of her allegiance – and she doesn't know what to do with that.

“After thirteen years, the Dark has finally come home.”

Apparently this month has been very good to me! I had the opportunity to read to amazing (read: 5 star) dark thriller LGBT+ novels that I instantly fell in love with. The first was A Lesson in Vengeance, and now The Dead and the Dark.

The Dead and the Dark is a spine-tingling read, one that I picked up with the intention of only reading a chapter or two before bed. I ended up reading the whole book, and staying up way later than intended. And I can't even pretend to regret that decision! The Dead and the Dark was brilliant.

With a title like The Dead and the Dark, you're going to expect some dark stuff to go down, right? Well, let me tell you – prepare for even more than that. It was a tense and thrilling ride from start to finish.

Honestly, I envy all of the readers out there that still have the opportunity to read The Dead and the Dark for the first time. You're in for a treat. Logan and Ashley's characters play off each other so wonderfully, and make such a sharp contrast. Both to the plot, and the town itself.

“Ashley realized the same look on Logan's face that she'd seen in the mirror for months. They were adrift in the dark, senselessly paddling for shore.”

Everything about this book worked to pull me in. I loved the characters (though admittedly a few of them I simply loved to hate, which is also fun), the plot, the intrigue – all of it! I was desperate to finally see what this 'dark' was, and how Logan's family played into all of it.

The addition of having Logan's fathers be famous ghost hunters was a nice touch, if you ask me. It kind of forced some assumptions to the foreground, and left more room for Gould to play around with.

I'm officially adding Courtney Gould to my list of authors to follow, and I cannot wait to see what she comes up with next!

Thanks to Wednesday Books and #NetGalley for making this book available for review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Read more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks