Raynham Place has been home to a number of mysterious occurrences. From its start as a battlefield through its time as a tuberculosis hospital and even in its current incarnation as an apartment complex, the grounds here have been awash in blood and instability. When two friends decide to move in to Raynham together, a wound that they share opens wide and threatens their sanity. But they're not alone. Something is off here at Raynham, something that goes beyond the local legends of ghosts and serial killers and Black Hounds, something that gets inside of everyone who ever lives here. When a sacrifice is made, the first freely given in ages, the truth behind Raynham's legends finally surfaces and the building fills to bursting with all the dreams of Hell...
"One of the creepiest settings I’ve ever experienced…DARLING is deeply unsettling, in your face horror."
–Nate Kenyon, Award-winning author of SPARROW ROCK and DIABLO: THE ORDER
"Hodson delivers with passion and intensity."
-Scott Nicholson, LIQUID FEAR and THE RED CHURCH
"Have you had the pleasure of meeting Brad C. Hodson’s work yet? His short stories in HORROR FOR GOOD and John Skipp’s WEREWOLVES anthology were amazing, and now here comes his first novel, DARLING. We should all hate him. Buy the books and read them first…then hate him."
-Lisa Morton, Bram Stoker Award winning author of CASTLE OF LOS ANGELES and THE HALLOWEEN ENCYCLOPEDIA
"You know that feeling you get as the Bigwheel clicks slowly down the hall? Something awful is waiting just around the corner and your skin crawls with dread because you’re too scared to look away. Well, Brad Hodson knows how to scare you like that. Weird and unsettling, but hauntingly perceptive, Hodson’s DARLING is a rare accomplishment, a finely-honed study in mounting tension that keeps readers turning pages despite their fear. This is how you do it, folks. Hodson knows how to deliver the scares, and he’s got a nightmare just for you."
-Joe McKinney, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of FLESH EATERS and DEAD CITY
"Intense and atmospheric, my favorite qualities in a haunted house novel. This is a pure horror novel with interesting characters and a slightly self-aware approach to the material. It accomplishes everything it wants to accomplish and then some. I was a follower of Hodson's writing before, but now I'll be a devout follower."
-Benjamin Kane Ethridge, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of BLACK & ORANGE and BOTTLED ABYSS
"DARLING was a great read. It had all the elements I enjoy in a horror novel and Hodson has succeeded where many fail in that he’s managed to actually make it creepy. Like comedy, creepy (real creepy) is harder than it looks, but DARLING raised the small hairs on my arms a few times. Brad has a knack to unnerve and I’m officially a Hodson fan. I eagerly await his next book. Excellent debut."
-Michael Louis Calvillo, acclaimed author of I WILL RISE, AS FATE WOULD HAVE IT, and LAMBS
"Bong, bong, bong.
Quasimodo, does that ring a bell?
Of course!
How about Brad Hodson, does that ring a bell?
Hmmm…maybe, not sure.
Uh-huh, well check out my enthusiastic reaction to DARLING. The straight forward, reader accessible prose, with no downfield literary juking reminds me a lot of Richard Laymon. Simple, right? Uh-uh, don’t be fooled. Accomplished always looks easy. Hodson gets his simple effects by using precise language, including always picking the exact verb not the first serviceable, which eliminates the need for lots of adjectives and adverbs. His fast-paced plotting with no fluff makes for an engaging and compelling story arc, with great closure, perfect last line. Snag a copy of DARLING on my recommendation, read it, and then:
Bong, bong, bong
Brad Hodson, does that ring a bell?
You bet your sweet ass!"
-Gene O’Neill, Bram Stoker Award winning writer and author of IN DARK CORNERS, THE BLUE HERON, and THE BURDEN OF INDIGO
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