Today it is time for some creepy horror vibes on the BlogTour for The Log House by Baylea Hart. It is a riveting combination of horror, apocalyptic and dystopian storytelling.
About the Author
Baylea Hart is an IT Technician by day, horror writer by night and a reader everywhere in between. In 2013 she wrote, directed and edited the short film Behind the Door, which won a Top 50 spot in the Bloody Cuts “Who’s There?” competition and as of 2015 has over 410,000 views on YouTube.
In October 2015 she won the Bristol Horror Writing Competition with her short story Jack in the Box, and her short story Eyes Open was published in the 12th issue of 9Tales Told in the Dark.
Baylea’s debut novel The Log House was published by Unbound in 2018.
Follow @bayleahart @unbounders #TheLogHouse
Visit bayleahart.com
Buy The Log House
About the book
The forest is a deadly place. Nobody knows this better than Penny. She has spent her whole life hiding in the darkness, shielding herself from the terrors that watch and wait within the trees. When Penny is abandoned and left for dead in the forest, she is forced to navigate this terrifying labyrinth in order to return home to her son and take revenge on the woman who tried to kill her. But the murderous creatures with the false smiles aren't the only monsters to lurk in the forest, and some demons may be closer than she thinks.
Review
What's interesting about this story is the way the negative aspects of human nature still shine through, despite the fact said humans are in a dire life or death situation. Instead of supporting and helping each other to survive under these extreme circumstances, they switch to survival of the fittest mode, which means sacrificing the weakest links.
The small pocket of humans we meet at the beginning of the story keep themselves locked away from the rest of the world. Everyone has to be inside by the time darkness falls and no source of light is allowed to be seen from outside the building. Outside there is danger, death and terror lurking in the shadows. Monsters waiting to tear anything living from limb to limb.
When Penny is tricked into breaking one of the paramount rules of survival in their small community she finds out just how strong and determined she is when faced with a constant battle for her life. She is consumed with paranoia, pain and fear, but you know what they say - it isn't paranoia if they really are out to get you.
Penny didn't really evoke a lot of positive feelings in me. I found her quite selfish and self-absorbed at times. Perhaps understandable given the dark and dreary dystopian setting and fight for survival she finds herself in the middle of or do her almost narcissistic personality traits go back a lot further?
The author isn't afraid to give the story the ending it deserves, very fitting for a dark fiction story. It is an interesting combination of apocalyptic, horror and dystopian fiction. What makes it even more compelling is the way Hart didn't feel the need to make the main character sympathetic. She is brash, honest and ruthless.
It's nice to see a breath of fresh air in this particular genre, and I look forward to seeing what this author does next.
Buy The Log House at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.
Publisher: Unbound Digital (24 Jan. 2018)
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