4 stars

This is a great collection of novellas. Scott Thomas is quickly becoming a favorite of mine. It’s so easy to become immersed in his writing. If you haven’t read him yet this is a perfect way to test the waters, as there’s a little something here for everyone.

Midwestern Gothic is a tornado of horrors. The collection of four novellas use a mixture of the folk horror and the supernatural to horrify readers. I wouldn't recommend eating while reading these stories. Out of the four novellas, my favorite had to be 'The Door in the Field' where we follow Ray whose life changes after one mistake at work. The story is a gore fest and really makes you wonder if Ray is actually telling the truth. The other three stories follow a different array of characters who find themselves in terrible situations. They are filled with a gross amount of detail (in a good way).

Midwestern Gothic by Scott Thomas is a collection of four horror novellas all set in Kansas, centered around Blantonville, a place you should be familiar with if you’ve read any of Thomas’s other novels. Each story is more unsettling than the last; the author has a foreboding way of writing that makes the feeling of imposing doom something to be choked on. These stories don’t focus on haunted objects, buildings, or people. These stories focus on the land; it’s the land that is haunted: “...for you can own a structure but you cannot truly own the land upon which it sits.” Thomas very successfully gives life to the land, which makes these stories all the more sinister. Here is a breakdown of the stories included in this collection:

The Door in the Field: Follows Ray, a construction worker who, after a terrible accident, has trouble controlling his temper, which leads to devastating consequences. (Favorite quote: “If I’m seeing it, is it seeing me?”)

Wear Your Secret Like A Stone: Follows Tara, an employee of BuyBig (which reminded me of Costco), who is determined to find the woman who complained about the book Tara chose for the store's Halloween display. What she discovers isn’t at all what she bargained for. (Favorite quote: “Nobody is exactly what people think they are. We all wear masks for one reason or another.”)

The Boy in the Woods: Follows 10-year-old Eddie and what should have been his last night at Summer Camp. What unfolds is a night full of unspeakable terror. Something's wrong with the camp counselors. (Favorite quote: “He had once heard that the weight of a soul was a few grams, but the unbelievable heaviness left by its absence was immeasurable.”)

One Half of a Child’s Face: Follows Sienna, recently divorced, who spies on her ex-husband and daughter in the apartment building down the hill. When a mysterious entity visits and threatens to take her child, Sienna will stop at nothing to make sure her daughter is safe. (Favorite quote: “Remember what you lost. But never forget what you still have.”)

Thank you to the author, Scott Thomas, Netgalley, and Inkshares for allowing me to read this ARC early. All opinions are my own. Midwestern Gothic publishes on April 30th.

Midwestern Gothic is an ambitious follow-up in the spirit of Scott Thomas' brilliant 2017 novel, Kill Creek. The collection of four novellas revolves around connections to the four fictional authors from that book and explores different subgenres of horror similar to its predecessor. A lot of talent went into these stories, but the book was like a finely crafted arrow fired by an expert marksman that completely missed the target for me. Some seemed like they would have been good short stories or, if developed even further, good novels, but only one of the four felt like it was the right length. The underlying premise for the book is profound and more than worthy of the original story, but the execution didn't work for me. There was one consistently satisfying part of the book, which was the full-color cover art included for each novella. They're all dread-inducing and beautiful. A lofty project that might be the perfect pairing with Kill Creek for some readers, but was just okay for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Inkshares for the ARC.

Scott Thomas’s Midwestern Gothic is a very solid novella collection. The thread binding the stories together is that each of them references one of the horror authors featured in Kill Creek. Thomas managed to strike the perfect balance between nodding back to that earlier story and not including any details that would confuse new readers.

The Boy in the Woods was the standout of the collection for me—Eddie is a great main character, it was delightfully gory, and the ending packed such a punch. Wear Your Secret Like a Stone comes in second place—I loved the growing feeling of dread, it was very satisfying seeing how all of the different elements came together at the end, and again I adored the main character.

Thomas certainly proves that the Midwest is a suitable setting for the gothic!

This collection is very comprehensive and very Ethel Cain. Its masterfully penned and gorgeous both inside and out

This is a book containing four novellas all set in Kansas. If you've read Kill Creek by this author, you'll find some pleasant surprises within these terrifying stories.

And they are terrifying. Each one focuses on various characters but all of them take you in directions you can't imagine from the beginning. Like a fight at a construction site, a kid at a summer camp, or a woman who's trying to get some editing work done. Seemingly innocent things that happen every day. Until the author puts them into horrific circumstances they are not prepared for.

From murder to madness. Inexplicable monstrosities to guilt. Humanity meets its superior in these delightfully twisted tales and you'll be left breathless.

I loved these four novellas. And there are characters from his novel, Kill Creek, that make appearances in each of them. There are also references to certain businesses from previous stories so these all have a feeling of being connected or part of the same universe.

The stories are twisty, mind bending, and creepy as hell. You definitely want to read for yourself and I highly recommend it.

I absolutely loved reading this collection of stories, these are great for a quick thrill and were very creepy overall.

I think this ARC might haunt me at night a little.

I'm not usually one to get particularly spooked or squeamish about horror writing, but my first delve into Scott Thomas just proved I definitely can be spooked and made squeamish. Midwestern Gothic in its four short stories explores the Bible Belt in all its god-fearing, hardworking glory. The Gothic elements are expertly driven by the underlying horror plots of each short story, and Thomas' prose enhances the eerie atmosphere fantastically. Thomas' narrative style is easy to pick up and results in real page-turners such as The Boy In The Woods.

I do think I'd enjoy these stories more if I had been exposed to Thomas' writing before diving into this one. I noticed a lot of references to Kill Creek that I didn't understand as Midwestern Gothic is the first book I've read from Thomas' collection. I think reading this book and possibly Violet as well would've allowed for me to settle into the world of Midwestern Gothic easier and not be distracted trying to understand references to events that take place in Thomas' other books. Despite this, the references are limited and ultimately don't detract much from the reading experience, but I would be interested in revisiting Midwestern Gothic after reading Kill Creek and Violet. Altogether I look forward to reading more of Scott Thomas' works in the future!

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me. I was so excited for this book because I love Kill Creek, but this one just really didn’t work for me. The novellas felt very overly detailed, and I felt like I was reading paragraphs of uninteresting details to get to the important parts. I did not find the horror elements very scary, and I found the stories themselves convoluted. This has a lot of great reviews, but it was just not the book for me.

Close your eyes. Picture open plains, wheat stalks swaying gently in the wind. Picture the quaint Main Street of a one-stoplight town. Picture endless summers on sunny, tranquil lakes. With three provocative novellas, Kill Creek author and Kansas native Scott Thomas takes a hatchet to the idyllic tropes of the American heartland. In The Door in the Field , Thomas follows a quarrelsome construction worker named Rayland Allen whose bad day becomes a far worse night when drinks at an off-the-books establishment deep in the woods set Ray down an unforeseeably bloody path. In The Boy in the Woods , Thomas follows young Eddie Reicher, who lingers a day too long at summer camp as unholy terror creeps in. Something evil has infected the counselors. And Eddie will have to do everything he can―even kill―if he hopes to survive the night. In One Half of a Child’s Face , Thomas follows the recently divorced Sienna Franklin. Spying on her son and ex-husband, she notices an odd painting hanging on the wall of an adjacent apartment. Over the course of the next few days, Sienna will watch with growing horror as the children in the apartment building begin to gather before the painting as if called to it. With this collection, Thomas digs his hands into the soil of the American heartland and establishes himself as the master of Midwestern Gothic.

I requested this based on the amazing reviews and high scores I had been seeing. While going into this I had a very high expectation, I was still impressed with this book. It was my first experience with this author, but after having such a good time with Midwestern Gothic, it will not be my last!

I adored Scott Thomas's KILL CREEK, absolutely adored its window on "We're not in Kansas anymore!" through unexpected twists of Horror set in a mild-seeming Midwest rural locale. Now that I've raced through the four horrifying novellas comprising MIDWESTERN GOTHIC, I'm eager to read KILL CREEK again. MIDWESTERN GOTHIC, in its own inimitable fashion, offers tribute to the Horror authors at the heart of KILL CREEK, extending, as it were, their reach. You needn't have read KILL CREEK to be terrified by MIDWESTERN GOTHIC [but then, WHY haven't you read it?].

"Midwestern Gothic" delves into the eerie depths of small-town secrets and folklore, weaving four chilling tales. Scott Thomas masterfully creates an atmosphere of palpable dread and unease throughout this impressive collection. Beneath the guise of supernatural horror lies a deeper meditation on the ways in which we grapple with our own personal demons. Thomas proves himself to be a master of the genre, and fans of Midwestern gothic horror will find much to love in these haunting tales.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Inkshares for the opportunity to read and review " Midwestern Gothic” before its publication date.

Scott Thomas is the author of Kill Creek, a favorite horror novel of mine. Midwestern Gothic is a collection of 4 gothic novellas from his collection of writings.

The Door in the Field, focuses upon a construction worker who can't control his anger and The Boy in the Woods touches on the evil at a summer camp. In One Half of a Child’s Face, a woman sees a mysterious painting while spying on her family and in Wear Your Secret Like a Stone, a store worker makes a haunting discovery while picking books for a Halloween display.
All four are unique and creepy and perfect for your next long story night! #Scottthomas #midwesterngothic.#inkshares