Sometimes a book is a horror story. And sometimes it is a sad ghost story. The Haunting of Velkwood is the latter.

Beyond the sad ghosts is a story about trauma, escaping your past, and the cruel apathy of suburbia.

This was a very easy to read. I was a bit offput by the exposition dump in the very beginning, but the story had many more mysteries to unfold.

Overall quite cinematic. It would make a killer movie. Blye Manor meets Wanda Vision.

The Haunting of Velkwood
By: Gwendolyn Kiste
Pub date- March 5, 2024
A haunting suburban ghost story of a town inexplicably frozen in time. A tragic coming of age story that forces the 3 people who lost everything and vowed to never return to confront the past if they want a future. I LOVED this book. It was creepy and atmospheric. It broke my heart multiple times as well a thoroughly creeped me out!

A beautifully, chilling story about three women returning to their nightmare of a neighborhood. A neighborhood that is often talked about, and not for good reasons. Returning to the dead end neighborhood causes problems amongst the neighbors and the women as they face their pasts.

This was a beautifully written book, a perfect blend of suspense, paranormal and horror made it one of the most original ghost stories I've read, I loved the refreshing take of the haunted house trope, whats better than one haunted house? A block full of em, weaved throughout the haunting prose is an underlying theme of facing the past you might not necessarily want too in order to move forward, I thought the whole premise of the story worked perfectly for this, the descriptions really encapsulated the whole melancholy mood and sense of sorrow the story had, the book felt draped in sepia tones, a completely absorbing emotional tale that kept me engaged throughout, Kistes writing is almost lyrical, it dances across the page and you can't help but get swept along, highly recommend to fans of suburban gothics who are looking for something a bit different, Thankyou to the wonderful sagapress for the eARC

A whole neighborhood disappears overnight with only three college-age residents who escaped. For decades the mystery of what happened to the Velkwood Vicinity has haunted not only its town but also the nation. When a group of researchers work with one of the survivors, Talitha Velkwood, to find out what happened and what's continuing to happen behind the mysterious veil around the Velkwood Vicinity. No one is allowed to enter the neighborhood except the three who escaped.

The Haunting of Velkwood is an interesting exploration of the ghosts that haunt us both in the past and present. It also looks at how to handle one's past when it won't seem to let you go. The Haunting of Velkwood is a horror novel with minimal scares, but the ghost stories still made me question the bumps in the night.

Thank you to Saga Press & Netgalley for a copy in exchange for review consideration.

Enjoyable and overall an exciting and unique read!! I can't say I've read anything quite like it. It was an intriguing mix of the paranormal, suspense, and a touch of horror; it just worked really, really well.

but I had a few issues: 1) some unanswered questions about the plot itself, or just some things I wish were either expanded upon or explained more, and 2) more background on Enid, her storyline was more superficial than I would have liked.

I'm curious to see if this is a book that sits with me and remains at the forefront of my mind--I could see this possibly be bumped up an extra star. Idk if that makes sense??

Twenty years ago, Talitha Velkwood and her friends Brett and Grace escaped the one-block street where they grew up, leaving behind a neighborhood that would become a scientific oddity and legend as a forcefield suddenly rose up, surrounding a street full of ghosts. Now, a group of researchers has tracked Talitha down because they hope to persuade her to go back. When she reluctantly agrees, Talitha finds that things aren't exactly as she thought she left them, and the past is coming to haunt her.
The book had an abrupt beginning, as it sort of drops you right into the story without a lot of detail about what's really going on. However, before too long the background begins unveiling at a steady pace, revealing the truth behind the mystery at a satisfying clip. The more the story goes on, the more engaging it becomes right up to climactic finale. This is a ghost story quite unlike any you've read before.

I LOVED the complexity of the characters. Kiste created relatable characters, some with interesting dynamics between them. Velkwood Street was eerie and the perfect setting for a spooky story and the imagery was top notch. However, I was left with many questions at the end, so I was a bit disappointed about that.

A light horror novel that had a unique story line but was not full of gore and blood. It was decent. Characters were written well. A good novel for a light scare

I absolutely loved this novel. Usually, reading about hauntings isn’t my thing because books with ghosts tend to be so tropey- however, Kiste’s novel is so intriguing and fresh that it takes haunting to a whole new level. A whole neighborhood disappears with the people that lived there and no one can enter it except for the three friends that used to live there and are the only survivors. I love the idea of childhood friends that return to their original home to try to understand what exactly happened twenty years ago. I love the dynamic that Talitha and Brett had, you couldn’t help but root for these childhood friends that realized years ago that maybe their feelings verged more than friendship but in the world they lived in, their love couldn’t ever be front and center. This is a character driven novel, but the lush, Gothic atmosphere will completely seduce you too. I couldn’t put this book down and read it in two days! That’s to say that I was completely mesmerized by the story and just wanted to bask in it, and I loved that it had The Virgin Suicides vibes but being told from the female perspective instead of the male gaze.

I recommend this book if you love hauntings, ghosts, Gothic feels, queer characters, and mystery soaked in suspense.

*Thank you so much to NetGalley and Saga Press for the digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

The Haunting of Velkwood is a horror-light novel that follows Talitha Velkwood who has been tasked by a research crew to return to her old neighborhood, which has been haunted for twenty years. The last time Talitha was home a catastrophic event placed her neighborhood behind a veil and turned the street into a ghost town. Only three people may enter, Talitha and her two best friends from childhood. The only problem for the researchers is that none of them want to, until Talitha sees a photo of her old house and is determined to see what still lives there. What follows is a story of family trauma, friendship, and coming to terms with who you are and the choices you have made.

I was hooked on this story from the first chapter, Kiste's writing style was conversational and descriptive in a way that was so easily consumable. I felt like I was getting a story told to me around a campfire. The reveals were well thought out and timely in a way that made the story never feel slow or stale and really kept the pace from page one.

Talitha's character arc was so satisfying and while I felt frustrated with her at times, the choices she made were in character for her. I really enjoyed her growth in terms of interpersonal relationships and seeing them really improve as she experiences revisiting her past and facing consequences.

The horror elements of this book were very light. There were not a lot of jump scares nor a lot of gore. The ghosts were used to create some tension, but these are not the haunt your dreams and threaten your life type of ghosts. It really worked within the story in this case, but if you are looking for a horror heavy book this is not it.

This premise of this book is probably one of the coolest I’ve ever heard. An entire suburban town disappearing behind an impenetrable veil, a supernatural tragedy called the Velkwood Vicinity. Everyone’s got their elaborate theories but ultimately this is something that no scientist or occult theorist can explain. Going further than a standard haunted house book, imagine an entire street of 8 houses affected by this cosmic supernatural event and all the people in it turned to ghosts. There are only three survivors, the three exceptions to the impassable veil. Talithia, one of the three, always had the option that there was no one behind the veil and everyone is dead and gone. But, after seeing what she thinks is her sister’s face through the window in a photograph of her house, agrees to go back for answers.

I had so many questions going into this. Is it a science experiment gone wrong, or is it paranormal? Are the people behind the veil ghosts or still alive? What caused the event and why were those three girls allowed to leave? At only 250 pages, this book doesn’t waste any time and jumps right to it. It’s also so compulsively readable and the mystery so enticing that you can’t put it down, not even at the beginning of the book (and books don’t usually get to the, I can’t put it down, level until you’re at the end when the action finally happens). This book is the opposite of a slow burn which is just how I like it. I don’t have the attention span for a slow burn. I had to resist skipping to the end to find out the explanation behind it all, and that’s the sign of a good book.

After so many horror and thriller novels with the same overdone tropes, this was so refreshing. We are at the point where everything has been done so it is hard to come up with a new concept, but Gwendolyn Kist managed to pull together something original. I started this at like 10 at night and was too tired to finish this all in one sitting like I wanted to, so I woke up the next morning thinking about how I couldn’t wait to finish it. You know it’s a good concept when that happens, because the mystery is just too good and you can’t wait for answers!

This book went by soooo fast and didn’t drag at all. Little bits of information get dropped pretty early on and you quickly learn that Talithia is a not so reliable narrator and knows more than she’s letting up. The best part was definitely the ending; I loved it!

Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.

THIS BOOK!
IT's a fever dream of a horror story.

The Haunting of Velkwood brings a very fresh look at the haunting both of building and people.

When a block of homes disappears without a trace leaving only 3 survivors - college friends. No one has ever been able to determine what happened and the 3 survivors have kept their silence until now, 20 years later.

Talitha is one of the survivors and she needs the money desperately. She makes the decision to assist
a researcher and try to enter the Velkwood "veil." What she finds, changes everything. What she brings back, endangers everyone.

Join Talitha and her friends as they make sense of past decisions and face the cursed haunted Velkwood!
Super original, super creepy with gothic and atmospheric notes that will make you think twice and always look over your shoulder! #thehauntingofvelkwood #gwendolynkiste #simonandschuster

As I delved into the pages of this extraordinary tale, I found myself ensnared in a web of memories and emotions that refused to let go. Talitha's odyssey resonated deep within me, her quest for belonging a mirror to my own existential wanderings. The author's masterful prose weaves a tapestry of longing, regret, and the inescapable grasp of family history. Each character's flaws and scars are rendered with an empathetic touch, making their struggles feel like those of a dear friend. The story whispers secrets about the indelible marks left upon us by those we love and the places we call home. It's a haunting meditation on the blurred lines between past and present, and the mercy we must grant ourselves in the face of our own ghosts. I emerged from these pages changed, my heart carrying the weight of new truths and the whispered promise that I'll return to this haunted, beautiful world again.

Tabitha Velkwood, Brett Hadley and Grace Spencer were the sole survivors when some sort of paranormal anomaly destroyed their street twenty years ago. Now a researcher has enticed Tabitha back. Will she discover what happened at Velkwood?

First, let me say that I love it when there’s something like this and the government knows all about it, it’s not some big shadowy secret where you have to suspend disbelief that a whole, I don’t know, street disappeared and no one cars. And the haunting itself. I love this too. It’s spooky and fairly true to life, I think. I thoroughly enjoyed this.

This book took some interesting turns and most of them paid off. The ending wasn't what I expected but I liked it.

This will be a hit for the queer horror fans and those who grew up trying to escape small lives in small towns.

This was an intriguing book. It started off very strong. The intrigue was high. The horror and creeping sense of dread was well done. The tone was a perfect match to how it felt like this story should be told.

The length is just right, no place really felt like it was dragging. I enjoyed the complex relationship between Talitha and Brett. This is my second novel by Kiste and I think I liked it a little more than the first (Reluctant Immortals).

Overall, I think it’s a solid 4 star read.

I’m giving it 3 stars ultimately because it took a turn in the latter half that was a personal turn off for me. I think it was handled delicately and with the weight the situation deserved, it just wasn’t something I enjoyed reading about.

Some plot spoilers:
[Brett, one of the main characters in the book, is sexually abused throughout what seems to me to be childhood and adolescent years. It happens off page and nothing explicit or graphic is portrayed, but it’s a heavily persistent part of the narrative. (hide spoiler)]

Again, I want to state that I think it was handled appropriately, and not gratuitous, it just detracted from my personal enjoyment is all.

Trigger warnings: [Pedophilia, sexual and physical abuse, heavy homophobia. (hide spoiler)]

I would continue to read from Kiste.

How have I never read this author before? I was so enthralled by this story. Not one moment was wasted.

Combining science fiction with speculative horror, we get the one block area dubbed The Velkwood Vicinity, a neighborhood of normal people going about their normal lives. A fated night, the block shrouds itself behind a mysterious and deadly veil, permitting entrance to no one. The only souls this allows in are the three girls who escaped it all of those years ago.

Talitha, Brett, and Grace got out that night, leaving their families behind, now only ghosts like the rest of the inhabitants. Now, a researcher with serious funding wants to get them back there, in Velkwood. Talitha is the one who takes the bait... er, money and goes back to the place she tried to put behind her.

Determined to see her sister one more time, Talitha enters, hopefully getting answers once and for all as to why this happened. And it was fantastic!! The entire atmosphere of this book was creepy. This touches on alternate dimensions, glimpses into a cold, hard nature of scientific research, lost time, grief, and acceptance. The whole veiled block had a vibe like Camilla Sten's The Lost Village. It was the bond between the friend group that really did it for me though. Especially the connection between Brett and Talitha. It was more than just best friends who went through something unimaginable. The relationship between them was multi-faceted and very deep-rooted.

All in all, this was great and I recommend it.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Haunting of Velkwood is a touching paranormal drama that left me wanting more! I rated this 3.5 stars and would recommend this to fans of Annihilation by VanderMeer, The Hollow Places by Kingfisher, and The Haunting of Hill House by Jackson!

Talitha has spent her life trying to run away from her past. Her childhood neighborhood, Velkwood, is the site of a paranormal event that trapped friends and family in a ghostlike state. When a friendly paranormal investigator comes into her life to try and get her to return to Velkwood, Talitha chooses to revisit the neighborhood, dragging herself and the two other women who also escaped from the neighborhood back into a world of ghosts and shadows.

My biggest issue with this novel is that it needed to be developed more. There was the groundwork for intriguing paranormal exploration and worldbuilding that wasn't fully realized. 100 more pages and some tighter editing would have turned this from a fun, vibe read to a truly exciting entry into the modern gothic genre. For a character-driven story, I wish the character development was a little more consistent across everyone. Certain characters could have benefited from more exploration.

Otherwise, the writing was generally tight, the vibe of the book was right up my alley, and I loved the slow-burn romance between two certain characters. A solid read and one that I will be recommending when it is published in March of 2024!

BOOK REPORT
Received a complimentary copy of The Haunting of Velkwood by Gwendolyn Kiste from S&S /Saga Press/NetGalley, for which I am appreciative, in exchange for a fair and honest review. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.

I wish I could give this book 2.5 stars, because it was more than OK, but I didn’t really like how predictable it was, nor how the author didn’t _quite_ pull off either science fiction or magical realism, instead sort of pulsing the two in a You Can’t Go Home Again blender, with the result being a mostly bland smoothie with a little bit of grit in it.

I do think the story would translate well into a streaming series. And, in the end I decided The Haunting of Velkwood is worth 3 stars because it makes me want to read more by Gwendolyn Kiste.

DESCRIPTION
From Bram Stoker Award–winning author Gwendolyn Kiste comes a chilling novel about three childhood friends who miraculously survive the night everyone in their suburban hometown turned into ghosts—perfect for fans of Yellowjackets.

The Velkwood Vicinity was the topic of occult theorists, tabloid one-hour documentaries, and even some pseudo-scientific investigations as the block of homes disappeared behind a near-impenetrable veil that only three survivors could enter—and only one has in the past twenty years, until now.

Talitha Velkwood has avoided anything to do with the tragedy that took her mother and eight-year-old sister, drifting from one job to another, never settling anywhere or with anyone, feeling as trapped by her past as if she was still there in the small town she so desperately wanted to escape from. When a new researcher tracks her down and offers to pay her to come back to enter the vicinity, Talitha claims she’s just doing it for the money. Of all the crackpot theories over the years, no one has discovered what happened the night Talitha, her estranged, former best friend Brett, and Grace, escaped their homes twenty years ago. Will she finally get the answers she’s been looking for all these years, or is this just another dead end?

Award-winning author Gwendolyn Kiste has created a suburban ghost story about a small town that trapped three young women who must confront the past if they’re going to have a future.
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Advance Praise
"An eerie, poignant novel about guilt, shame, regret, and how the past can haunt us. One of the most original ghost stories you will ever read." —Rachel Harrison, national bestselling author of Cackle and Black Sheep

“From now on, when people ask me to define the current buzz-phrase ‘elevated horror,’ I’m going to point to Gwendolyn Kiste. A heart-wrenching story about how impossible it feels to escape the past, laden with sorrow, and secrets, and a dash of hope. I absolutely loved it.—Christopher Golden, New York Times bestselling author of Road of Bones and All Hallows

"Heartbreaking and hopeful, as compelling as it is chilling. A perfect modern ghost story."—Angela Slatter, award-winning author of The Path of Thorns

“A compelling read that reinvents the haunted house genre.” —A. C. Wise, author of Wendy Darling