Dang, I really wanted to enjoy this as much as I did 'Until Summer Comes Around' but it just didn't hit the mark as much for me. The plot was brilliant with a scary killer and the people trying to stay safe from him, however, the issue I had was that it felt like I was reading a literal mash-up of a Stephen King and Joe Hill novel. I know they're father/son but there were pieces of this that felt at home in a King novel, some in a Hill novel and, I wouldn't have minded this, I just missed the Rolfe in it all! It's a good read though, with some scenes that kept me awake, it's just wasn't as appealing to me as 'Until Summer Comes Around'. Still look forward to a new novel by Glenn though!

I was pulled right into this book. I have never read anything from this author before but now I'm on the search for more. The pacing of this story was perfect and I couldn't put it down.

*An e-copy of this book was kindly provided to me by the publisher, Flame Tree Publishing, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

And Rolfe does it again. I am never disappointed when it comes to his style of horror and August’s Eyes certainly delivered on that. The story almost reads as a reimagining of John Wayne Gacy’s horrific legacy IMO, but mix in shamanic magic and folklore and you have an extension of the depravity and madness.

August’s Eyes hits different. Yes, there are some supernatural elements to it, but the overall fear factor of the events that happen within the story is very real. Spears Corner could be anywhere in the world with ordinary people that you see every day with a history that, with a bit of digging, could be found to be real. That’s what makes it frightening. (That and the spiders. Ugh.) John Colby makes for an interesting flawed protagonist, I wasn’t too sure if I was to root for him or not. It speaks to the ability of Rolfe’s writing to have a reader really wonder what type of outcome you want for the main character. This reader, however, will not complain about the end result as I found it fitting.

Perhaps this book should come with a trigger warning as it does depict the darker side of humanity and children. The summary does not make it clear what the reader is in for, so consider yourself forewarned before diving in.

This is my first by Glenn Rolfe, I really enjoyed the book. It was written at a nice steady pace and felt more like a coming of age story to me. It also had a slight Stephen King vibe, which for me is great as I'm a huge King fan. It was creepy, atmospheric and haunting, but I did feel there could have been more of those elements in it. Overall, I really liked the characters, so cared what happened to them, and I think the outcome was satisfactory. I look forward to reading more by Glenn 🖤

John is having reoccurring nightmares about a graveyard and two mysterious young boys that hang out there. After analyzing these disturbing dreams, he discovers an unsettling truth buried within his subconscious mind.

Now time begins ticking for not only himself, but for those he cares for. As the spirits existing among the cemetery graves grow more and more restless, a sense of urgency takes precedence over all else.

Author Glenn Rolfe conceives an unspeakable story centered around a modest town possessing several dark secrets hidden in its past. Particularly the local cemetery, also known as Graveyard Land, carries buried perplexities that are chained to a monstrous evil known as The Ghoul of Wisconsin.

Kidnapping, rape and murder. This monstrosity appears in the form of a serial killer driven by compulsive addiction and perversion. His appetite for young boys is a true crime nightmare lifted straight from the twisted mind of Glenn Rolfe. Witnessing a serial murder rob young victims of their innocence can be stomach churning at times. Shrouded in a world of predators that manipulate for selfish gain only, August’s Eyes follows the footsteps of a murderer comparable to the likes of Bundy, Dahmer and Gacy.

Rolfe creates a timeline within his book that not only straddles reality and the spiritual world, but includes the past and present as well. This allows several gateways for the reader to explore and gain entrance to uncensored shadowy corners.

Music references are an enjoyable factor throughout the book that enhances the mood and timelines. It presents the atmosphere as well as descriptive scenery and scenarios. Fog shrouded grave markers, the phobias of entrapment and creepy crawlies that funnel out from the darkness… all of these bring the nightmarish ambiance that is needed to enhance the frame of mind.

As in true crime, there always seems to be a morbid fascination and curiosity of heinous acts of violence committed by perpetrators. Seeing the evil within Rolfe’s creation is guaranteed to make hairs stand on the back of your neck and ring the stranger danger alarm at full volume. He has pieced together something special for those who love a good thriller/horror book with plenty of “holy crap” moments. August’s Eyes delivers in a relentless, unforgiving manner, proving the author pens his work without kid gloves and no apologies. If you have children of your own, be prepared for a parent’s worst nightmare.

(originally posted at mysteryandsuspense.com)

“We all make our acquaintance with the Ghoul. That’s just … inevitable.”

Spears Corner is a town with twelve graveyards and a bloody history. It’s where both the Ghoul of Wisconsin and John Colby grew up. John’s about to learn that even when you forget the past, that doesn’t mean the past forgets about you.

This is a world where dreams and reality converge, one that will make you highly suspicious of green vans.

“If only there were a way he could make his Graveyard Land last forever. He’d do anything to stay with his boys.”

I enjoyed this book, although I never felt the need to look over my shoulder. Maybe I’ve consumed so much horror that I’m somewhat immune to it now. I don’t remember the last fictional story I read that scared me (real life often freaks the hell out of me though).

I liked John, flaws and all, and loved Pat, despite him bordering on being too perfect. There’s a significant amount of disturbing content in this book but thankfully the descriptions were sparse for the part I was dreading. I enjoyed the supernatural elements and although he was absolutely detestable, I wanted to find out more about how the Ghoul created his Graveyard Land.

This is my first read by this author but I very much doubt it will be my last. I’m intrigued to see what else they have to offer.

“The dead are dead, but that don’t mean they’re gone.”

Content warnings include mention (some only briefly) of [SPOILER - addiction, alcoholism, death by suicide, emotional abuse, homophobia, kidnappings, miscarriage, murder, physical abuse, racism, sexual assault, slavery and transphobia. If you have arachnophobia, this may not be the book for you. - SPOILER]

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Flame Tree Press for the opportunity to read this book.

In this story we are following a man named John. When he was a kid he witnessed a terrible crime, so terrible in fact that his mind made him forget that this even happened. Now as an adult he has a pretty decent life when he starts having these reoccurring dreams that borderline nightmares. Soon he starts to see things from his dream in the real world and starts to feel like he may be losing his mind. While John tries to figure out what is happening he ends up remembering what happened that terrible day back when he was just a kid, back when people called him Johnny.
I loved this story and the theme involving Graveland. Truly enjoyed Rolfe's writing and the way he wrote about the regret that came over John once he remembered what happened. Sometimes you can't do much about the past but it's never too late to right the wrongs.

Glenn Rolfe has become the number one author whose books I look forward to. August's Eyes is another prime example of why I love his work. Beautifully written and you get into the character's heads and feel every ounce of emotion that they are feeling.

This book just wasn’t for me. I think it was well written but the content was hard for me get through and at times I felt myself lost when I read the parts about Graveyard Land. I think the premise was a great idea but I feel the book would have been better without the graphic detail. I do think Glenn Rolfe is a good writer, this book just wasn’t for me.

TW and possible spoiler alert: Contains GRAPHIC descriptions of children being raped by a sadistic serial killer. It was way too much for me.

Thank you Netgalley and Flame Tree Press for an advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review.

August’s Eyes

Thank you to Net Galley, Flame Tree Press and Glenn Rolfe for the opportunity to read this one.

For transparency, this is first work of Rolfe’s that I have read so I dove into this with no expectations or presumptions. After this introduction to his work, I will be reading more. This is a nice blend of real-life horror and supernatural that amps up the creepiness. There were several moments that had me looking over my shoulder. I did feel that the supernatural aspect needed more backstory so that it connected the past events more firmly to the present day timeline.

There is a lot to like in this book. The characters are well-written, both the protagonists and the antagonists. The pop culture references were fun and helped me get to know the characters. Small towns with a dark history are always a perfect setting for a little horror. And there is something appealing about having kids and/or teenagers in a book that always appeals to me. This one checked off several boxes for me so it’s no surprise that I enjoyed it as much as I did. 3.5 stars.

Glenn Rolfe is quickly becoming one of my favorite horror authors, and August's Eyes (to be released in August 2021) shows he just keeps getting better with each book.  There are some truly memorable characters in this novel, and the mix of coming-of-age, mystery/thriller, and supernatural worked well.  There were a couple of things that felt a bit off, but since this was an uncorrected advance copy I will refrain from going into depth in case these are changed in the final copy.  If you're looking for a truly creepy read with some 90's nostalgia mixed in (plus lots of spiders!!), be sure to look for this book in mid-August.    Many thanks to Flame Tree Press, Glenn Rolfe, and NetGalley for sending me an ecopy for review.

A great read which I really enjoyed. Immersed in each character as I came to understand the parts they played my heart broke for John Colby and what he’d hidden from himself since he was 12 years old. Well written and an author I’ll look out for in future.

Do you have a traumatic experience from your childhood that you can’t forget but pray you could? Perhaps a time when you wished you’d acted differently? Who doesn’t right? August’s Eyes is not your typical coming-of-age story in that it goes much deeper than that. The small Maine town of Spears Corner has been tormented by horrible memories of kidnappings and legends of curses cast by the native people whose land was stolen by the town’s founder. Going in, this book feels very much like a true crime story and in many ways that’s just what it is. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Rolfe novel without a bit of the supernatural sprinkled on top. Or better yet, a cherry on top of a delicious ice cream sundae. The path we take to get to where the story takes us feels earned. When mistakes are made, there are consequences.

I loved everything about this book. The characters, the relationships, the flawed protagonist, the deplorable antagonist, the plot, and especially the town of Spears Corner. From the opening chapter, the heavy sense of dread never lets up. Rolfe is well on his way to taking the crown of the King of Horror for Maine. His ability to make a town and its people feel real is evident from early on in his career and has only improved in his latest works. The conclusion of this novel gave me chills and made me emotional. The way it all comes together was brilliant and left me feeling satisfied. I actually read this in two days which is the quickest I’ve ever read a full-length novel, that’s how good it is. If you are unfamiliar with Rolfe’s work or you are a Constant Rolfer, you’re going to want to pick up August’s Eyes! I was lucky enough to get an ARC through NetGalley but I’ll definitely be adding this one to my growing collection of his books. I highly recommend it!

Glenn Role has once again provided his readers with a fantastic read.
Graveyardland id not a place you want to visit. Filled with the shaded of boys who were the victims of a serial killer, you can get drawn in. He also shows us once again that the worst monsters are human.
A great book that hooks you from the beginning and keeps you there till the end.

It's the first book I read by Glenn Rolfe and WOW, it's excellent.
It's high on adrenaline, entertaining, a true horror that kept me hooked and spooked till the last page.
Excellent character development and world building, good storytelling and tightly knitted plot.
Strongly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Well this was wonderfully creepy.

August’s Eyes is a mix of slow burn eeriness and heartbreaking brutality – it digs in deep.

The subject matter is uncomfortable, but the story is well told. As I got to know our characters, I began to love them…and worry for them.

Also, I’m now seriously creeped out by green vans.

If you’re more of a wham bam adrenaline rush reader, you may find that this starts out a little slowly for you, but it’s worth sticking to it. It’s got a great payoff!

Thoroughly enjoyed this read!

*ARC via Net Galley

"August's Eyes" was a captivating story that creates a thin veil between the spirit and the living worlds. Our main character, John has a traumatic past that he doesn’t quite remember but when his nightmares start to leak into his everyday life, he must uncover what demons are hiding in his shadows. I was thoroughly entertained throughout this story. There wasn’t any part of the “August’s Eyes” that I found to be lacking. The character development was great, but I do wish there was more background information on said characters.What I did find issue with is that “August’s Eyes” is a mixed bag of everything horror wise. You have creeps, ghosts, old magic, and an oblivious protagonist.But it was one of those situations where you couldn’t really do the story without including all those things unfortunately it still made it feel messy. Glenn Rolfe is a wonderful author and with his callbacks throughout his stories, his characters being extremely relatable and flawed I always look forward to more of his work in the future.

There is a ghoul stalking the town of Spears Corner, kidnapping and brutally murdering children. John Colby, our protagonist, sees one of these abductions as a child, but runs away and never reports it.

As a grown up, he has forgotten this incident entirely, but is plagued by nightmares - visions of disfigured children asking him to choose his grave.

John's life begins to spiral out of control, and he has to figure out how to decipher his dreams with the help of his partner Sarah, and their young teenage friend Pat.


This was my first Glenn Rolfe novel, and it definitely won't be my last. August's Eyes is a great achievement. I found it very readable; I was totally invested in the characters. The main characters are believable, and react as humans would to such incredible circumstances.

The elements of horror are genuinely scary, and Rolfe paces the novel very well.

I would point out that there are descriptions (although they are not explicit) of child abduction and murder, so if that's not for you, I would possibly avoid this.

I would recommend August's Eyes to any fans of horror. Glenn Rolfe is great!

Thanks to Glenn Rolfe, NetGalley, and Flame Tree Press for this ARC.

This book was good. The subject was hard, but was well written. Definitely cared for the characters, and the pacing was great. Will need to find more from Glenn Rolfe. #AugustsEyes #NetGalley

Sometimes you can really build something up and look forward to it so much, it can’t be anything other than a let-down. To say I had been stalking the Flame Tree Press tweets just waiting for news of Glenn Rolfe’s latest release August’s Eyes, is sadly not an exaggeration. Once I had the nod, I accessed my Net Galley account which had stood dormant since my last FTP digital request. I had banned myself from anymore ARCS as I couldn’t be trusted not to be lured in by all the shiny covers.
For Glenn though, I could make an exception. It was downloaded onto my Kindle at around 3pm and by lunch the following day, I was done. I was actually angry that I had to adult and also sleep in between. So yeah, you’ve likely worked out from that alone that it was in no way, shape or form any sort of a let-down.
Glenn is my favourite writer.
*mic drop*
Wait a second.
What, WHAT? I hear you say. You have never said that before!!!
Well …
But why, why is he my favourite? First of all, have you read any of his work? Glenn takes words and makes them come to life. His characters are people you know. Well obviously, they’re not, but he makes them feel like you already know them, and they are people that live on your street.
Take John and Sarah for example. An ordinary married couple living an ordinary life except for one major issue that seemingly rules their life – they have so far been unable to have children. Now this part of the story was hard. As a mother, it hit me with the feels and I needed to hug my kid a couple of times. But it drove the plot forward and gave depth and gravitas to the characters. When you feel low and shitty and your heart is breaking, you are susceptible to stupid choices and mistakes. And mistakes are made. Dependent on your own life experiences, you may side with one or other of them here, but they both are as Rag ‘n’ Bone Man says ‘only human after all …’.
Then there was Patrick, the teen who was friendly with John and Sarah and carried a lot of those young shoulders. He was my favourite character and I wonder how much of Glenn was in him. A fair bit I would say from what I know, hairstyle and taste in music just for starters. Patrick was who I was rooting for the entire time. Once we met Caswell, you knew it was going to go one of two ways. I won’t spoil anything; you’ll have to read it to find out which way it went and whether I was mad or not. I do get mad about characters I like. Just ask Tim Meyer …
Every tale of good versus evil needs a baddie and we have that in spades with the Caswells. Now, both of these dudes were created to be the antagonists. Because of their abhorrent acts and predilections, they were not the kind of villains you could root for as they were utterly vile. Even with the supernatural elements which of course keeps this firmly in the horror genre rather than strictly a dark thriller, there were certain aspects that reminded me of Dennis Lehane and specifically the bad guys in Gone baby Gone. Now this is likely because of the paedophile connection or maybe it is no coincidence that Glenn is my favourite indie horror writer and Lehane is my favourite non-horror writer … add in the New England elements and you can see similarities. Thankfully these disgusting waste of space excuses for humans get their comeuppance – no spoilers, no spoilers!!!
Of course, we also have the titular characters August and One Eye, the boys from John’s dreams. Their tales were tragic, and Glenn almost got me a couple of times because I freaking HATE spiders … the parts with these figures were the more traditional horror side of the narrative that long time fans of Glenn will recognise and they were written and fleshed out perfectly. There are some genuinely creepy moments where realities start to blur …
I am also a sucker for pop culture references and Easter Eggs/homages. Some people might think name-checks and stuff is cheesy, I saw a few names I recognised like Old Man Keisling from Devil’s Creek Lane and did a happy little woop! A virtual High Five. I love that and the bands, songs, movies – bring it. It makes it more subversive in my opinion. Hell, the 80s and 90s are my decades, anytime I can get nostalgic, I am in.
Overall as you can likely tell, I loved this book. It is very different from even USCA, Glenn’s previous FTP release but who says we are meant to churn out the same book just with different characters over and over. If you have read The Window and/or The Haunted Halls and are expecting gore-filled, sexually explicit and charged violence well, that isn’t what we get here. But if alongside the splatter, you loved James and Rocky and Joe because of Glenn’s character driven narrative and if you dug the supernatural and mystery element of Abram’s Bridge, you too will enjoy August’s Eyes just as much as I did.