4 Stars!

John Everson has taken a turn in his novels recently. His books used to be straightforward, bloody books of horror that bordered on the extreme. Lately, he has come to prove that he is more than just a shock author with novels that are more thought-provoking but no less entertaining than his earlier works. I was not completely sure which direction he was going to go in The Bloodstained Doll, but I was eager to find out.

Allyson feels alone in the world. She had a tough life in the poor part of London, but she had always had her mother. With her mother's death, however, she finds herself off to Germany to live with her uncle. She is not happy about it but has nowhere else to go. Her arrival is less than impressive. While the Berger estate is physically impressive, or maybe imposing, it seems like a cold place to her. Thing take a turn for the worse on the very first night she is there. When a storm knocks over a tree, a small casket is unearthed and nothing will ever be the same.

Allyson finds that there are a lot of secrets hidden in the old home. The are secrets long buried and meant to remain that way forever. Lies and deceit fill the air and no one is to be trusted. No one in the household, at least. She finds an ally in the local grocery delivery man and together they have to try to unravel the mystery that the family is trying to bury before it is too late. A trail of murder and broken dolls follow her everywhere she goes and Allyson knows that she may very well be the next victim.

Much like Five Deaths for Seven Songbirds, Everson takes a different approach to horror in this novel and builds a fitting homage to Italian Giallo film genre. Everson takes a subtle approach to the story building in this novel and builds the story at a slow burn. This story takes a turn from Everson's earlier, in-your-face story of horror to makes something more subtle that it is easy for the reader to slip into. He builds the intrigue as the murders begin to mount and the reader is left waiting for the inevitable explosion. The characters come to life and it is easy to relate with Allyson as her world goes from terrible to worse as the story crawls forward with only her budding relationship with Anthony as a dim light in the dark estate. Even that is tainted but the sense of doom that hangs over the two. Is Anthony going to be her savior or is he just another victim in waiting? Even worse, could he be a part of the problem?

The Bloodstained Doll is a very well-crafted and, dare I say, intelligent horror novel. Everson throws twists and turns at every corner and the reader finds himself swept up in a deluge of intrigue. There are some violent sequences, such as the explosive climax. Honestly, this novel will probably appeal as much to people who are fans of mystery and thriller stories as much as it does for those who enjoy horror. Everson provides enough detail in the story that it is not too difficult to figure out the framework of the story and be able to guess at what is coming, but there are enough subtle twists to keep it entertaining throughout. I was a fan of Everson's early works that bludgeoned the reader with violence and terror. I am just as much a fan, and maybe even more of a fan, of his more recent works that have taken a more psychological turn. Everson fans can rejoice at this novel and new fans can jump on board for a ride into the darkest corners of the human mind. Highly recommended.

I would like to thank Flame Tree Press and NetGalley for this review copy. The Bloodstained Doll is available now.

Another great read from John Everson. Wasn't what I was used to from him, but was very enjoyable. Great characters, great story/plot, great pacing. Always look forward to a new read from John Everson. #TheBloodstainedDoll #NetGalley

Giallo Horror at its Finest!

The Bloodstained Doll by John Everson is a thrilling, next-level dive into Giallo horror that will keep you on edge from start to finish. The story ignites with intensity, kicking off at a breakneck pace: a tragic accident claims a mother, a coffin is uncovered amid a raging storm, and soon, the plot takes darker, deeper turns. As secrets are violently kept hidden, bodies begin to surface. The world unfolds through the eyes of Allyson, our heroine, but Everson masterfully introduces brief (and deliciously wicked) chapters from other characters' perspectives. These moments add layers of suspense and ramp up the tension, giving the novel a strong, classic Giallo atmosphere.

This book is a bloody thrill ride! Not only is blood splashed across the pages—both literally and thematically—but as the body count rises, you’re kept guessing at every turn. The unpredictable violence adds a level of uncertainty that keeps you hooked, and this is where Everson's talent truly shines. He expertly distracts you while still pushing the mystery forward, delivering a jaw-dropping and spectacular conclusion. I was left wondering who would make it out alive until the very last moment, which only heightened the excitement.

Don't miss The Bloodstained Doll from Flame Tree Press and John Everson—an outstanding read any time of the year, but especially perfect for Halloween!

When John Everson released Five Deaths For Seven Songbirds, I wrote in my review that it is a pitch perfect tribute to the Giallo genre. His follow up, The Bloodstained Doll, is another example of Italian Giallo films, a different twist on the genre but still under the umbrella of Giallo. While Five Deaths for Seven Songbirds takes place with a girl navigating her way through a music institute as a stranger and people getting killed around her, The Bloodstained Doll starts with Allyson’s mother dying suddenly and her moving from London to Germany to live on an estate with her uncle Otto. The house is fill with dusty rooms, empty wings, and suspicious people, and while Allyson tries to settle in, she is quickly confronted with the fact that she is inadvertently threatening all of the shady dealings of her uncle, her cousin, and everyone else in and out of the mansion. When everyone starts to die around her, with a bloody, broken porcelain doll left on the corpse, Allyson not only feels like the killer is someone inside of the mansion but that she could very possibly be the next victim. Of course she is right.

With more of a gothic setting and tone, The Bloodstained Doll is a much different representation of the Giallo genre than Five Deaths for Seven Songbirds. It is also more of a straightforward telling, not as many red herrings and not really as much of the wildness that is in the previous novel. With more of a subdued tone, Everson has a chance to spend a little more time building the plot, giving the characters some very demented personal flaws and hobbies, and in the end, this does not read as much of a mystery to solve but as a murder novel with trashy rich people doing trashy rich people things. 

I have watched the top Giallo films, and expect for a few, I do not care for them very much. I would much rather read more Giallo novels by John Everson than dive deeper into the film selection. Many of the films have scenes that do not make much sense, that go off in directions that are quickly forgotten, and the real mystery by the end is what even happened. I do not find these same problems in Everson's novels. His books are much more palatable than many of the movies, and if I am to recommend an introduction to Italian Giallo, I would add The Bloodstained Doll and Five Deaths For Seven Songbirds as great additions to the genre.

I received this as an ARC from Flame Tree Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Though it ventures away from his normal supernatural horror themes, John Everson’s 15th novel doesn’t disappoint! Like his previous novel, it’s inspired by Italian Giallo films from the 1960s-1970s. It’s filled with mysterious, creepy characters and has multiple who-dun-it plots going on.

The main plot of this one focuses on grief-stricken Allyson who has just lost her mother. She quickly moves in with her estranged uncle in Germany. And within no time, strange things start happening. A child’s empty casket is unearthed on the property after a strong storm. People close to her uncle start dying. Weird dolls are found in the attic. What does it all mean?

I loved the quick pacing of this one along with a great cast characters. There was some weirdos, but also multiple that I cared about and was rooting for.

I also enjoyed how it felt like multiple genres were going on. Along with Giallo inspiration, it almost like a political mystery going on, as Uncle Otto is a political figure. But I’m glad it didn’t get too political. And there just enough horror in there as well.

I’ll read anything Everson puts out, as I enjoy everything he writes. Solid read!

"The latest homage to the Italian Giallo film genre by award winning John Everson, with nods to the sensational movies of Dario Argento, Lucio Fulci, Sergio Martino, Luciano Ercoli, Mario Bava and more.

When Allyson's mom dies unexpectedly, she thinks her world has hit rock bottom. But that's before she goes to live with her estranged Uncle Otto in Germany. When a child's empty casket is unearthed in the backyard during a violent storm, suddenly people close to her uncle start turning up dead. Is there a connection? As the noose tightens and murders draw closer to Berger Mansion, Allyson and her new boyfriend Andrew discover a dark truth hidden in the attic. Soon their lives are at stake if they don't discover why each broken body is decorated with a Bloodstained Doll.

A modern Giallo, building on Everson's previous homage to the stylish Italian mystery thrillers, Five Deaths for Seven Songbirds."

I adore the Kill Bill vibes of the cover.

The thing about Giallo is that most of the genre is terrible and forgettable. And so it is with this book. The author approaches each sentence like he's bluffing his way through knowledge of the English language.

I wish this novel did more for me, but it fell quite flat. Is it a trashy murder mystery that proudly wears its giallo film influence on its sleeve? Yes, one hundred percent. It contains everything you would expect from a stereotypical giallo film: an outsider coming to a strange place, over-the-top murders, sexual violence and exploitation, and a plot that is both convoluted but also kind of paper thin. If you just want to bask in the glow of a vintage giallo murder mystery then I am sure this novel will be fun for you. The plotting moves forward at a decent pace, the kills come pretty regularly, and it has more than its share of black leather gloves.

I didn’t go into this expecting deep character study or contemplative thematic exploration; I wanted a bloody good time. But it fell flat for me because everything was just too expected. From more or less the first murder onward there was no doubt in my mind about who was doing the killing and why, and the other twists and turns were also the most obvious things possible. I kept reading expecting these to be all red herrings, that at the last minute I would be proven wrong, but unfortunately that wasn't the case. Even then I am able to accept a well-worn formula, but in that case I want there to be some believability, something to hold on to, and that was totally absent here (especially considering this takes place in the present day). Our protagonist is a 17-year-old girl who had been in her last year of high school, living with her mother in London, and upon her mother’s freak death she moves in with extended family in Germany, the story taking place in June, so right after the term would have ended. But why is everyone saying now she needs to get a job and make a life for herself? What about college, or any sort of schooling? Literally over and over again she makes absolutely insane decisions that contradict what she herself recognizes as good sense. We don’t spend much time following the characters, and everyone in this melodrama has their own secrets, which are fine, that keeps things unsettled, so their decision-making at least feels plausible. But nothing about this girl’s existence her feels plausible, including the fact that everyone speaks perfectly clear American English the whole time. Early on she mentions she knows conversational German, so I assumed they all had to be speaking German, and it was just “dubbed” for the reader, but then there is one scene where a character doesn’t speak English, and she needs the information translated for her. But everyone else, from all of her family and the house staff to various administrative assistants to waitresses to random people on the street, it is just boggling. That could almost be used to excuse what felt like often clunky dialogue, except it was coming from our native English-speaker as well. And the whole thing with the dolls, which gives the novel its title? Really convoluted and non-sensical, which the killer basically admits. And then, in addition to all that, the way that the sexual violence and sexploitation elements come in feels very ham-fisted and lecherous, and not in a good, pulpy kind of way but in a lazy writing kind of way. I could go on, there are all these little things that would be fine, any given one of them, but when they just keep piling up it was monumentally distracting.

It felt like the story was more concerned with paying homage to giallo films first, and then having a good story second. That is what my experience of it was, at least, leaving it feeling uninspired and derivative, kind of a copy of a copy. I like trashy and pulpy fiction a lot, but I want there to be at least some pretense of inspiration in it, something interesting, especially in contemporary fiction, and I didn’t feel that here. The writing was well-paced, and the mystery was bloody and twisty, even if predictable. It definitely feels like the novelization of a 70’s giallo film, with all that comes from that, good and bad. That might be exactly what you’re looking for, in which case then you will definitely have fun here. If, like me, you are hoping for a contemporary murder mystery that pays homage to giallo in content and style but prioritizes substance over set-dressing then you will be a little disappointed.

(Rounded down from 2.5)

I want to thank the author, the publisher Flame Tree Press, and NetGalley, who provided a complimentary eARC for review. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Hugely enjoyable and rather trashy giallo influenced novel. In homage to the Italian classics of the 70s we have violence, sex, a vulnerable young female going to a new area and falling into danger and a somewhat overblown plot (not a criticism in this context). Given the fact that practically everyone - whether from London or Germany - speaks American English you can even imagine it’s been dubbed (although one setting explicitly refers to someone speaking German which threw my dubbing theory out a little)!

Anyway, this is a really good fun novel - recommended

Review Copy

John Everson is back with another mystery based in Europe. Like his previous novel Seven Songbirds, The Bloodstained Doll is unlike all his previous work that was horror based.

Bloodstained Doll tells the story of 17 year old Allyson who moves to Germany from England after the death of her mother. She finds herself living with family in a castle near Munich.

All is not what it seems of course. And the deaths begin...

It was a good book that murder mystery fans should enjoy. Check it out!