If you’ve been craving a dose of horror, Our Winter Monster by Dennis Mahoney is the perfect blend of scares. What blend of scares, you may ask? Well, let’s talk about it. A creature feature at heart, this story does not skimp on the scares or the blood. But there is so much more to this book than what lies at the surface.
Holly and Brian are a couple headed to Pinebuck, NY, a small village popular during the snowy months. They hope to salvage their relationship in the aftermath of an event they call “The Bad Date”. The pair is still reeling a year later and hope this getaway will help them hash out what is unspoken between them. As they drive toward their destination, they are trying to outrun a blizzard that is hot on their heels. Brian spots something out his window amid the flurries, something he cannot make out clearly, moving ever closer despite the car’s acceleration. Holly winds up losing control of the car and we fade to black.
Holly and Brian come to and realize they are no longer together. They wind up in a frustrating game of phone tag due to spotty cell service in the storm. They each agree, in voicemails and texts, to convene at a giant welded metal Christmas tree, covered in thousands of lights, that is the towns calling card. Each must forge their own way, alone.
Meanwhile, we meet the town sheriff, Kendra Book who is still battling with her own personal fallout. Fresh off a painful breakup with her girlfriend, she is also under scrutiny of the townspeople and public for an event that happened 7 weeks earlier. A couple disappeared without a trace and Kendra must grapple with her guilt in the aftermath. We also meet Cookie, the owner of the town’s diner, Tanner, the snowplow driver and unofficial village handyman, and Vance Rickman, the creator of the Christmas tree monstrosity.
At just under 300 pages, this book has various POVs yet does not get confusing or bogged down. Our Winter Monster is full of action. We have plenty of gruesome scenes and gnarly kills. There are also sections sprinkled throughout that flashback to the days leading up to “The Bad Date” which give us a glimpse into the dynamic Holly & Brain had prior to that tragic day. What happened to them and why are they on the brink of being torn apart? Can our own shortcomings or mistakes be redeemed or is everything simply doomed?
Our Winter Monster is carefully crafted, and the pacing is measured. It examines not just external, supernatural horror, but also horrors within us. Horrors that happen to us. Horrors we inflict. This story is so multifaceted and layered, it caused me to sit and reflect on it for an afternoon. It is fast paced and heart pounding horror, absolutely, but also has heart. It is relatable on so many levels and takes a stark, unflinching look at relationships and the events that haunt us. As the story shifts and evolves, we are left wondering, what is this monster? Or, what makes a monster?
Dennis gives us a book that is a poignant and atmospheric view of grief, and the complexities of human emotions against the backdrop of a swirling blizzard. The story combines this looming, threatening creature while also giving us enough to make us feel empathy for our characters. Struggling with grief does not always mean its due to a death. It can be grief for our hopes, grief for what we once had, who we once were, or losing someone you love by parting ways. Grieving comes in so many forms and is such a universal emotion, which I think is the part Dennis excelled at.
Dennis’ prose is evocative, and the emotional depth here cannot be ignored. This story gives us glimpses of monsters, and I promise, we surely find them. It may not be wrapped in a nice bow at the end, but what in life is not messy? The strides we need to take to overcome the horrors and win. To do what we deem necessary to save what we love or have the strength to let it go. If anything, this book displays that aspect with stark clarity.
Thank you so much to Hell’s Hundred Books and Soho Press for sending a finished copy. Our Winter Monster publishes January 28, 2025, and is definitely something to check out.
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