Author | Critic
Stephanie of That’s What She Read includes Darkest Hours in her list of horror book recommendations on Kindle Unlimited (also included: books by Claire C. Holland, Christa Carmen, CV Hunt and many others).
Hey Little Thrifter reviews Darkest Hours in her June reading wrap-up. Also included: reviews of books by Adam Neville, Caitlín R. Kiernan, Jack Ketchum and others.
Niall and I first met as undergrads at Mount Royal University. From what I remember, we first connected through our mutual love of film, either through a course or a club of some kind. It wasn’t long before I learned that Niall was also a fiction writer, and we started exchanging excerpts from our works-in-progress. Niall’s rare, formidable talent was immediately evident to me—I saw in all his work a unique sense of humour and a mastery of pacing, plot and voice. After reading his phenomenal debut novel Only Pretty Damned (available now through NeWest Press), I reached out asking if he’d like to do a Q&A. He kindly agreed, and the dialogue below is the result of our email exchanges.
Read the full interview on Kendall Reviews.
“Every now and then, […] you find a horror author who can disarm and unsettle you while telling these incredibly meaningful, important stories, and those are the ones that tend to stick with me. Mike Thorn? He’s one of those authors.”
“I truly enjoyed reading this book. It is evident through his writing that Thorn has a true love for the horror genre. Each of the stories were distinct and well thought out. He can write subtle horror and then switch to something weird and morbid. He masterfully uses imagery to make his fictional work all that more realistic and disturbing. But he also leaves a lot up to the reader’s own imagination, which doesn’t always work, but in this case it was beautifully executed.”
Josiah Morgan and I have been online acquaintances for several years, bonding initially over our mutual passion for film. I recently read his debut poetry collection Inside the Castle and was stunned by its formal sophistication, thematic complexity and breadth of reference. I sent him a message asking if he would like to publish a chat with me about writing, genre and influences, and he kindly agreed.
Our conversation is now available to read on Kendall Reviews.
“Darkest Hours is brutal. I mean that in the best way possible. The stories here range from cosmic horror to real horror and everything in between. I, myself, am a massive fan of heavy music and it was great seeing stories interjected with death and black metal imagery and references.”
“Overall, I can’t fault this collection of versatile, dark, gory, graphic, psychological stories.”
“His stories are bizarre in the best way and bring personal flaws and disaster to the forefront. Most of these protagonists are not the greatest of folks but somehow you’re still rooting for them as their lives completely fall apart. Thorn knows how to grab you within the first few sentences and then throw up all over you in the best way. Some of his best stories in this collection are everyday situations that are twisted and given a dash of demon, a dash of murderous ghosts, and some drug abuse. And at the end you’re sweating from the tension.”
Horror Bound just posted a new review of Darkest Hours and an interview with me. Read now!
Mike Thorn 