This Wretched Valley

By: Jenny Kiefer

Narrated by: Megan Tusing

Indie Next Recommendation

Take only pictures. Leave only bones.

This trip is going to be Dylan’s big break. Her geologist friend Clay has discovered an untouched cliff face in the Kentucky wilderness, and she is going to be the first person to climb it. Together with Clay, his research assistant Sylvia, and Dylan’s boyfriend Luke, Dylan is going to document her achievement on Instagram and finally cement her place as the next rising star in rock climbing.

Seven months later, three bodies are discovered in the trees just off the highway. All are in various states of decay: one a stark, white skeleton; the second emptied of its organs; and the third a mutilated corpse with the tongue, eyes, ears, and fingers removed.

But Dylan is still missing—and no trace of her, dead or alive, has been discovered.

Were the climbers murdered? Did they succumb to cannibalism? Or are their impossible bodies the work of an even more sinister force?

This dread-inducing debut builds to a bloodcurdling climax, and will leave you shocked by the final twist.

©2024 Jenny Kiefer (P)2024 Blackstone Publishing

The Shining (movie) in the woods

The opening scene immediately grabs you and, despite being after the story, makes you want to know more. The main story is well-written slow-burn tale that ascends to terror, physical and psychological, and gore.
Definitely influenced by movies like the Shining.

Reflux Obsession

The author is *really* obsessed with GI reflux. You could play a drinking game with this audiobook. Take a drink every time a character’s stomach is upset by coffee, or they taste bile, or they have acid reflux, or they have a metallic taste from reflux. It ultimately becomes distracting because instead of focusing on the plot, you start wondering about the author’s ability to be more creative about describing human reaction to stress/horror.

More of a thriller.

If you enjoy stories about doomed excursions, wilderness thrillers, malicious spirits and A24 vibes, this may well be your book. There is a rising feeling of hopelessness, the deeper in to the novel you get, with the reader aware well before the characters that nothing good is waiting for them in the woods. Will I read it again? Possibly, as a lazy comfort read. Would I recommend it to seasoned horror fans? Probably not; it's fairly tame. I might, however, recommend it as a starter novel for people who want to get into horror but aren't sure what their spooky tolerance level is.

The good: if you like monster movie casts (a walking buffet for the plot to dispatch in a series of gory and graphic ends?) Check. You get four characters with enough surface-level development to be invested in whether they live or die. If isolation as a horror element interests you? Check. The backdrop to this story is, itself, creepy and not a place I'd be in a hurry to spend a night in, and the further the novel goes, the more claustrophobic the environment becomes.

The not-so good: I've seen this title compared to 'The Ruins' and while I agree that I'd likely keep them on the same shelf, I was disappointed to find it somewhat toothless in its horror element. I picked it up hoping for spine tingling, page-turning chills and thrills, and the story just didn't get me there. There are definitely creepy moments, but not the 'dread inducing horror' I'd heard advertised about it. I also found the nature of the 'monster / entity' to be inconsistent and unclear. By the end I had more questions than answers, but because the novel failed to really engage me, I didn't really care that I didn't get those answers. I felt like the story was setting something up and the conclusion felt weak underdeveloped. I didn't get the sense that the author was confident about what they wanted it to all mean.

Great but nauseating descriptions

The way this author describes score is unmatched. Definitely don’t listen while you eat. I wish this story just gave us a little bit more to think about. I loved all the pieces, but the way they were put together made me want more.

I enjoyed it

There’s not a lot of fat in this. Straight to the point horror. Good performance and good pacing

could have been a good book

this book missed a good chance. to be good story. the idea of haunted r crossed land has been told for years but. this story missed the mark

Favorite kind of horror

I’m a sucker for idiots getting lost in the woods. Great flow to the story.

Haunted forest!

This story is wild! It started off slow but once the group of 4 got to the forest, the story takes off at a faster pace. Told from many POVs and in alternating timelines, each character’s experience was creepy and terrifying. There were some gory scenes straight out of a zombie movie but it was fantastic! Megan Tusing did an incredible job narrating with all the different characters, her voices for each were distinguishable. Kudos to her!

Speechless

I'm not sure what exactly I just read, but I loved it. it's a title that, in my opinion, is better to walk into blind.

Just know the dog lives.

Fun spooky camping story

I enjoyed this, the characters were interesting, and it was very reminiscent of Blair Witch (which I loved since I was a kid)