Set during the Victorian era, Lucy receives a rambling message from her twin sister Sarah that she’s roiling in agony over something within her that she cannot escape. Concerned Lucy travels with her companion to understand the state of her condition, to hopefully heal her and keep her from the dreaded sanitarium.

Upon arrival the doctor (Arthur) and her sister’s husband Micheal reveal she hasn’t been eating and is deathly ill. As a scholarly woman Sarah has revealing messages in the margins of her work, stating that something deeply unsettling is at play. Lucy has to discover what the roots of this ailment is in hopes of Sarah’s full recovery.

Dripping with gothic prose, and horrific revelations, this novel explores the lengths a woman will go to discover hidden truths and the pains to which she will go to protect her beloved sister. In a world where women’s oppression corners every aspect of their spirit, these women will rail against the cards they’ve been dealt.

I love Johanna van Veen’s ability to write such brutal yet delicate stories. She’s a genius and one of the best living gothic writers to date. I can’t wait to read more of her work!

WOW, this book was a crazy one. I think the first half of book was stronger than the second half. When Sarah came back from
the dead, I felt as thought it got a little less atmospheric than previously. The first half’s descriptions were creeping me out and that doesn’t happen easily, but the later half felt more forceful in the wording choice. If the gothic feels stayed stronger until the end, I think O would’ve rated higher!

Giiirl this book was so good. I did not put it down until I literally was falling over asleep. Thank you Netgalley.

3.5 🌟

What an interesting read! This was hands down one of the top 5 most disgusting things I ever read!
Lucy's character annoyed me immensely. I understand the loyalty to her sister but it goes against nature to keep choosing someone with that behavior, it's like she had no morals..everything depends on Sarah and her survival.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this arc!

Blood on Her Tongue is a gothic novel with real teeth. Lucy arrives at her brother in law's country estate to nurse her twin, Sarah, who has been taken suddenly and violently ill following the discovery of a preserved body in the peat bog.

I've seen a growing fascination with bog bodies online but nothing that has brought them as vividly and creatively to life as Johanna van Veen has managed here. To say too much would be to rob the reader of experiencing the novel's twists and turns for themselves but I appreciated the originality and the way the protagonist framed them within the scientific knowledge she'd realistically have access to in that time period.

The novel deals with themes of parasitism: both literal and metaphorical, with the codependent relationship between the twins front and centre. The warning that the book dealt with sensitive themes did not disappoint: BoHT was deliciously gothic, gory, dark and dysfunctional.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read the ARC in return for an honest review.

Thank you Poisoned Pen Press and Johanna Van Veen for the ARC 😭 🖤

How far would you go for your sibling? Lucy and Sarah are twins who have been all the other has for a good chunk of their lives, and when Sarah becomes ill with a mysterious illness Lucy drops everything to go and help her. But when things take crazy turn, life will never be the same

The story was really enjoyable, it was like the author took inspiration from when Dracula was feeding on Lucy and turned it on its head with feminine rage mixed in. Though I found the story a little dry in some spots, the ending truly made up for it. Though they used the word “Rut” or “Rutting” a lot and that was … not for me haha. But the rest was highly enjoyable so many twist and turns.

So Gothic and haunting. This book had such good horror elements that completely took my by surprise. One moment I am reading through squinted eyes as I am devouring the gruesome horror and the next I am gasping in shock. This book was about messsy,tangled relationships between sisters and those in their life and those are always my favorite type of Gothic books.

thanks to Poisoned Pen Press and NetGalley for the ARC!

another knock out of the park for Van Veen! or maybe another body out of the bog? another woman out of the madhouse? (i could go all day.) my wishlist after reading My Darling Dreadful Thing included a novel set in an earlier time period so I was really looking forward to Blood on Her Tongue, and it did not disappoint!

for the first third of the story, this felt like a familiar and well-loved vampire tale. I was already absorbed at this point, but the hard turn at the one-third mark fully gripped me.

the best gothic tales have as much heart as horror, and the heart of this gory treat of a novel is intertwined so thoroughly with the horror that it's impossible to say where one ends and the other begins. Van Veen has a style that is sooo perfect for the visceral and evocative scenes throughout. I found myself smiling during some of the more gruesome bits because they were just such a masterclass in drawing out the horror of a moment without crossing the line into the absurd or overwrought. every time sarah or lucy had a Moment, a voice in my head went yesss transgression >:)

anyway, I'm going to see nosferatu later today and I fear my bar for vampire(?) media for the next while has been raised, so we shall see if it manages to meets the thrill of Blood on Her Tongue!

Super grateful to have received this arc.

I have to say I really liked it. While there were a number of typos here and there, some instances of what I thought was lesser quality writing (in terms of character reactions mostly), it did slightly lose some of the steam in the last third or so, and it was pretty predictable to a certain extent, overall it was super fun, really engaging and easy to read.
I largely enjoyed the writing, but I especially really loved a lot of the language used in descriptions. It could be beautifully dark and disgusting, adding a lot to the atmosphere which was pretty excellently crafted in my opinion. I was actually creeped out for a majority of the book which was really exciting.
I also found it to be quite funny at times–bizarre, but in the best way possible. I feel massively drawn in by a good combination of strange, horror, comedy and I thought this hit all the bases in that regard.

I'm so happy I enjoyed this as much as I did. I was deep in the trenches of a reading slump and this easily took me out of it. It was quite an enjoyable reading experience for me.

Kudos to the author. Great job!

i loved the author’s first book so i was really excited to read this ARC.

the story was very atmospheric and tension was well build up for the first half, however, the story got slow in the midst. the inconsistent pacing makes it a little hard for me to continuously pickup the book after pausing.

the characters for this book was not very likable but i love how the author portrayed the messy sibling relationship. they were codependent but also very toxic to each other. the author portrayed the characters well with their own imperfections but there wasn’t much character development.
love the gore descriptive elements of the book as i felt disturbed and uncomfortable on the edge of my seat (best possible way)

*********This entire review contains spoilers*****************


Thank you, NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Blood on Her Tongue, was a horrifically fun, gothic read! I had to take breaks at times as the body horror and gore was not what I'm used to, but I did so reluctantly as I wanted to find out what happened. It took me a minute to get into, but then it was very fast paced. Everyone in this novel was so messy and I loved it. Twin sisters, Sarah and Lucy are so toxically, codependent that by the end of the novel one is on board with helping the other survive via cannibalism. At the same time, Sarah and Lucy's journey back to one another, albeit through very extreme circumstances, was touching.

The novel also raised interesting questions about what truly makes us who we are. After Sarah is taken over by a parasite, Lucy has an *understandably* real struggle with accepting this new version of Sarah. Is this parasite somehow still Sarah, as it possesses all of her memories, thoughts and feelings? Or, is it simply the creature that murdered Sarah and is now only manipulating Lucy to help it survive? Lucy decides that this new Sarah is real enough for her, but as the reader we are still left with this question. Personally, I like to imagine Lucy, Sarah and Katje traipsing through Europe having the time of their lives.

I recommend this novel to anyone looking for a fast paced, gothic horror novel and who doesn't mind a little mess!

Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC.

Well, I don't think any book in the gothic horror genre screams 'modern classic' more than this book does!

I had high expectations of this book, being gothic/body horror, I wasn't let down.

Set in the Netherlands in the 1880's, we read the tale of twin sisters, joined again in one sisters illness, which cannot be explained as a malady of a weak, feeble female mind.

In marches the body horror aspect (so very well written) twisted with the gothic setting of a country estate.

For fans of the genre, this is too good to miss. I'm so glad I got to read the ARC of this.

I thought this was gay and was sadly, very disappointed.

Felt a bit disjointed from the time period and the modern, straightforward writing style which lent to it being quite shy on the vibes and ambiance for me but otherwise pretty standard gothic horror that’s heavy on the cannibalism.

This was such a dark and atmospheric read, I loved everything about it. It was well paced and kept me intrigued the entire time. It was bloody and brutal and I enjoyed every single second of this gothic tale.

When I started this, I was so down for a good gothic horror. I was looking forward to creeping dread and an incredible atmosphere. And this just didn't do that. It had some good scenes, sure. Some made me shudder, some had me cringing away. But for the most part? I was bored. The relationship between Sarah and Lucy didn't feel real. I love books that explore codependency and obsession, and I think Blood on Her Tongue tried, but it didn't get the feelings right. The actions were there, but the compulsions and the thoughts weren't. That was my biggest problem with this one overall. From an idea standpoint, it was great. I loved the concepts. But, the execution left a lot to be desired.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

I read this pretty much in a single setting. It was fabulous. The atmosphere and the way in which the change in Sarah was portrayed was so clever. The detail and imagery was just sublime. The ending was not at all what I expected. A great read.

This was such a hauntingly beautiful gothic horror, I cannot get over how good the writing and the story was overall! So tragic and wild and I could not put it down, Johanna has become an absolute favorite author of mine for sure.

From my most anticipated release of 2025 to a "WTF did I just read?" – the strange case of Blood on Her Tongue

Put on your high-cut rubber boots, because this is going to be a boggy ride.

The story starts off deliciously creepy—disgusting and unsettling, just the way I love my horror novels. It’s fraught with vivid descriptions, terrifying concepts, and stomach-churning scenes. But after all the promise of eerie fun, things decompose fast, and the whole narrative begins to resemble a rushed YA novel.

We’re introduced to Lucy and Sarah, twins who share more than just their striking looks (ahem, let’s just say they both have the same taste in men), and right away, we’re forced to pick a favorite. For me, it was definitely Sarah. I absolutely LOVED devouring her chapters—the letters, her experience discovering the bog woman, her descent into madness, and everything in between. It was beautifully written and completely hooked me from the start. In contrast, Lucy’s chapters didn’t resonate with me at all—her inner monologues and irritating personality made her a bore. Still, I was willing to give her a chance.

However, the story soon lost its "proper Gothic" tone. Certain words and phrases, at least for me, didn’t fit the time period in which the novel was set. Take "the scene of the crime," for example. While detective novels made that phrase popular, it only gained widespread usage in the context of criminal investigations and legal discourse during the late 1800s and early 1900s. While it’s not entirely implausible for it to appear in 1887, it’s highly unlikely.

As much as I like sibling co-dependent and utterly strange relationships, this was just... I don't know how to put it? Unemotional. I didn't feel the love between Lucy and Sarah, I just didn't. So what was up with that ending? What was the point of the book?

(Spoooooooilers aheaaaaaaaaaaaaaad)

Hmm, let's see...
1. Men are evil, they should be destroyed even though they are sexy
2. Having a creature puppeteering the body of your sister is better than not having a sister

Or maybe, just maybe, I misunderstood it completely. Someone correct me If I'm wrong.

If the point was female empowerment and female rage, I didn't feel that. Yes, the men were despicable and they probably deserved what was coming to them, but it didn't make me feel anything, it was just meh.

Tips on how to improve the overall narrative:

- Use more time appropriate language and purple prose
- Cut down the inner monologues or don't use them at all
- Don't tell us what a character is thinking of doing and then show us them doing the same thing they were thinking of doing
- Give us more backstory and explore the complexity of the relationships between the characters
- Make the reference of the mad aunt be relevant and tie it to the story


Despite all of the nonsense I just spewed out, I can't wait to see what the author is going to write next.

This book is exactly what my brain was craving. I wanted something horror and trippy that was dark and engaging. This has gore, emotion, excellent character development, an intriguing plot, and so much more. My jaw was on the floor several times, tears left my eyes from sadness once or twice, and I couldn't put this one down. I took me about three sittings with snack breaks. This one is really good.

I highly recommend this to horror lovers. You don't want to miss out on this one. The cover matches the content pretty well too I think! I am definitely interested in reading more from this talented author.

Thank you to Net Galley and Poisoned Pen Press for early access to this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily and this is my own opinion.

Blood on Her Tongue delivers a gothic story steeped in atmosphere and dread. When Sarah discovers a body in the bog near her husband’s secluded estate, it ignites an obsession that soon manifests as a mysterious illness. Fearing the asylum’s looming shadow, her twin sister Lucy steps in, determined to protect Sarah and uncover the truth behind her condition. But the closer Lucy gets to the answers, the clearer it becomes that both sisters are keeping dangerous secrets—and time is running out.

Van Veen’s prose is both lush and eerie, crafting a novel where supernatural horror intertwines with the crushing realities of Victorian-era patriarchy. The tension builds gradually, revealing not only the vampiric undertones but also the raw, emotional bond between the sisters.