Johanna van Veen, you are a creepy weird genius and I love you! After reading My Darling Dreadful thing I knew I had to read this one. I wasn't sure how it was going to live up to her first novel, but wow, so fantastic!! Taking place in the 1870's making it even more gothic and creepy and dreadful. I loved it so much. Thank you for the opportunity to find another new favorite author!

A truly ingenuitive take on vampires with a dash of female rage. Gothic, dreary, grotesque and macabre — everything I look for in a solid vampire novel was so wonderfully present. There are scenes in this novel that still live rent free in my head ( 👁️ + 🖋️ ) if you know… you know. This novel begs the question: what is a person without their thoughts, experiences, and history? Could you love someone still if they became monstrous? Morality is turned into murky waters, and what’s right and what’s wrong begin to look so similar you cannot tell the difference. I would definitely recommend to anyone who is in love the with the dark and macabre 🖤 thanks to NetGalley for ARC access!

This gothic horror tale was nothing short of a haunting journey, immersing the reader in a world steeped in shadow and foreboding. The author’s prose pulls you into a setting so vivid and chilling that you can almost feel the cold seep into your bones, leaving you simultaneously entranced and uneasy. Every page hums with an eerie tension, and the dark atmosphere twists around you, making you dread yet crave each wicked event lurking around the corner.

At the heart of this tale lie twin sisters, bound by secrets that gradually entangle them in an inescapable darkness—one that doesn’t merely haunt them but reaches out to ensnare those around them as well. The plot twists are shocking, strange, and yet utterly fitting for a tale as unsettling as this one. After all, what is gothic horror without its peculiarities?

The author’s skill in immersing you within the sisters’ worlds is nothing short of masterful. As their lives unravel in a fog of secrets and lies, you find yourself questioning what is real and what is the product of creeping madness. The lines blur so convincingly that, like the twins themselves, you’re left teetering on the edge, unable to fully discern reality from delusion. It’s a dizzying descent that makes this tale all the more terrifying—and unforgettable.

Thank you Netgalley for this advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

Johanna van Veen's Blood on Her Tongue stands as a chilling testament to gothic horror. A novel where the line between madness and mystery blurs, Blood on Her Tongue could be one of the best novels coming in 2025.

The Netherlands, 1887. Lucy's twin sister Sarah is unwell. She refuses to eat, mumbles nonsensically, and is increasingly obsessed with a centuries-old corpse recently discovered on her husband's grand estate. The doctor has diagnosed her with temporary insanity caused by a fever of the brain. To protect her twin from a terrible fate in a lunatic asylum, Lucy must unravel the mystery surrounding her sister's condition, but it's clear her twin is hiding something. Then again, Lucy is harboring secrets of her own, too.

Then, the worst happens. Sarah's behavior takes a turn for the strange. She becomes angry… and hungry.

Lucy soon comes to suspect that something is trying to possess her beloved sister. Or is it madness? As Sarah changes before her very eyes, Lucy must reckon with the dark, monstrous truth, or risk losing her forever.

The true draw of Blood on Her Tongue lies in van Veen's beautiful crafting of an eerie atmosphere and tension. From the very first page, Johanna immerses us in a world where it feels oddly both familiar and otherworldly. The setting itself becomes a character—a sprawling estate and bog shrouded in mystery—transporting us to The Netherlands, 1887.

Van Veen's story evokes a creeping dread that grows with every page turn. While the narrative is a slow burn, the burn is like eating a decent hot wing that makes your mouth slowly feel pain, but the taste is so good that in the end the experience was well worth it.

The creepy vibe is ever present but the complex relationship between Lucy and Sarah—twins who share an unbreakable bond yet are starkly different in disposition—is central to this tale. Sarah has descended into a maddening obsession with an unearthed body, while Lucy finds herself caught in the grasp of familial duty and personal fear. What lengths will Lucy go to protect her sister from institutionalization? The novel deals with codependency and sacrifice, challenging us to reflect on their own boundaries when it comes to helping loved ones.

In Blood on Her Tongue, van Veen blurs lines between sanity and supernatural, leaving us constantly questioning whether Sarah's affliction is rooted in psychological turmoil or something far darker. The author's ability to maintain the unknown adds layers of depth to the already intricate plot line, something that has us hooked to the very last page.

Despite the eerie ambiance and gruesome imagery—including moments that might make your stomach churn—the heart of this novel is its exploration of human emotion amidst chaos. It's really about love—the kind that binds families together even when faced with unimaginable horror—and how these connections can lead us down paths we never intended. Some darker than others.

As the disturbing climax of Blood on Her Tongue comes to a head it leaves behind a mark upon those brave enough venture that far into the book; haunting us long after we've closed the book.

Blood on Her Tongue by Johanna van Veen is not just another gothic horror but rather it stands tall amongst others in the genre with innovative storytelling coupled with richly detailed settings and outstanding character development. Blood on Her Tongue is an eerie, gruesome, heartfelt gothic horror that will stand with, or even above, the best horror novels in 2025.

Atmospheric, gruesome, deliciously cloying horror. The character of the first person perspective is flawed and real. The gothic bog horror book of my dreams.