Oh wow, is it too early to declare "Scratch Moss" by David Barnett as my book of the year... so far! I absolutely LOVE Folk Horror as a genre, In fact I seem to be basing holidays around creepy Welsh mountains and Irish fairy rings... I digress. What I thought was brilliant about the book was the time line. Often in books, the narration jumps about and can be difficult to follow but this goes back in 40 year steps and then forward again so you fully understand what is going on. Anyway, off to order "Scuttler's Cove" that I appear to have missed!

I’ve really loved this folk horror universe that David Barnett has developed and this book, Scratch Moss, is the third in the series and I was so looking forward to reading this and thankfully Canelo and David sent me an early copy to review. Let’s get this out the way straight away, I wasn’t disappointed! There is one clear message in this universe. Appease the old gods, it’s for your own good! Scratch Moss sees us visiting an old mining village that was devastated by Thatcher in the 80s, but there is far more to the village than that, a dark secret waiting to be unearthed. (Got to say the taxi scene was so familiar, when I went back to my old area in Edinburgh it was always by bus as no taxi drivers would go there in the 80s) Initially set in 2025 we travel back in periods of 40 years to uncover the source of Red Clogs and the sacrifice, then we move forward through time again in 40 year periods tying all the loose ends up, driving the story onward faster and faster to the conclusion. I loved this mechanism as it felt as though we were digging deeper and investigating the secret with the people but also going down and coming back up to the light is a very important theme in the story. This is another slow burn, but at no point is it dragging, creeping tale. Full of dread and dawning realisations of just what is going on in the world. But that slow burn becomes almost frantic as the time turns and brings us back to the present. Oh, and the magpies… This is yet another fantastic book from David to growing his world of dark gods, spirits, and thin spots. Fluidly written with a flare for understated horror that gradually creeps up on you until the full extent of it is unearthed and you want to go mad along with the characters. This is going to be a hard one to beat for best read of the year.

Scratch Moss by David Barnett is an atmospheric and unsettling folk horror book that blends community history with something ancient and terrifying beneath the ground. Told across five timelines, from 1865 to 2025, the story follows the rise and decline of the mining town of Scratch Moss. When Joe returns for his father’s funeral, memories of the town’s dark past resurface, along with rumours of something far older lurking deep within the abandoned coal mine. The shifting timelines slowly reveal the town’s secrets, the bargains made for prosperity, and the rituals required to keep a monstrous presence at bay. The folk horror elements are chilling, and the mining setting adds a strong sense of dread. A haunting and original story about a community shaped and haunted by what lies beneath it. Read more at The Secret Book Review.