Only The Stains Remain
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“Only the Stains Remain” is a harrowing book, filled with so much anger and sadness. I was expecting something closer to some of the other extreme horror books I’ve read as of recent, so it was nice to read one that actually had a good plot, and was written fairly well (my encounters with splatterpunk thus far have been pretty poorly written, which takes me out of a book almost instantly). It wasn’t as graphic as I was anticipating, but found a good balance between the violence and rage, with the feelings of loss and justice. This is a very quick read, but one that I’d highly recommend.
"In the summer of '82, I found out what it took to kill a child."
Does this line give you chills? It did me - and it's the first line of this new novella by Ross Jeffery. Do you know what else it did? It reached its hooks into me and set them. I read this story in one sitting, despite how harrowing and tragic this tale is.
Before I get into the review, I do need to express my gratitude to Cemetery Gates Media for sending me an ARC - there was not even a request for a review, but you guys know I always write reviews and I have a LOT to say about this one.
Only the Stains Remain is a novella by Ross Jeffery with an expected publish date of July 20, 2021. Content warnings include child abuse and torture - I will confirm that these matters were written extremely well, there was no glory in it and it was written with tact and in a tasteful manner.
This story, though. It will reach in and grip your soul and shake it to its core - but it will absolutely not let you go until you have reached its conclusion. There were many times I had to go back and re-read paragraphs or sections. As of the writing of this review, I've only read Juniper by Ross, but I do have Tome here to read next month and when I tell you the caliber of his writing leveled up with this novella - I mean it really climbed to new heights. It feels strange to say that a story so filled with death, abuse and tragedy is beautiful, but there is no other way to describe it. The way the author captured the depth of emotion - the acts that took place - the thought process of the main character - all were written so eloquently, so beautifully that I was mesmerized by that alone.
To summarize the plot, we are following the thoughts and memories of Jude. He walks us through his memories of the tragic loss of his mother, then the horrific abuse he and his brother Kyle suffered at the hands of his evil uncles who moved in a few months later. Kyle was the elder brother and protected Jude by taking the abuse meant for the both of them. I love the revenge element of the narrative, but I appreciate the literary genius of showing that while you may remove an abuser, what was suffered from that abuser is never erased from the person who was the victim.
I couldn't sleep last night after I finished this book. I could not stop thinking about what these two boys suffered - how it must have felt to be so alone with the vileness that were the uncles and the father who neglected to protect his children. Knowing that the abuse Jude bore - nothing will ever fix that in him, the scars will be borne eternally.
Simply put, this is literary genius.
Does this line give you chills? It did me - and it's the first line of this new novella by Ross Jeffery. Do you know what else it did? It reached its hooks into me and set them. I read this story in one sitting, despite how harrowing and tragic this tale is.
Before I get into the review, I do need to express my gratitude to Cemetery Gates Media for sending me an ARC - there was not even a request for a review, but you guys know I always write reviews and I have a LOT to say about this one.
Only the Stains Remain is a novella by Ross Jeffery with an expected publish date of July 20, 2021. Content warnings include child abuse and torture - I will confirm that these matters were written extremely well, there was no glory in it and it was written with tact and in a tasteful manner.
This story, though. It will reach in and grip your soul and shake it to its core - but it will absolutely not let you go until you have reached its conclusion. There were many times I had to go back and re-read paragraphs or sections. As of the writing of this review, I've only read Juniper by Ross, but I do have Tome here to read next month and when I tell you the caliber of his writing leveled up with this novella - I mean it really climbed to new heights. It feels strange to say that a story so filled with death, abuse and tragedy is beautiful, but there is no other way to describe it. The way the author captured the depth of emotion - the acts that took place - the thought process of the main character - all were written so eloquently, so beautifully that I was mesmerized by that alone.
To summarize the plot, we are following the thoughts and memories of Jude. He walks us through his memories of the tragic loss of his mother, then the horrific abuse he and his brother Kyle suffered at the hands of his evil uncles who moved in a few months later. Kyle was the elder brother and protected Jude by taking the abuse meant for the both of them. I love the revenge element of the narrative, but I appreciate the literary genius of showing that while you may remove an abuser, what was suffered from that abuser is never erased from the person who was the victim.
I couldn't sleep last night after I finished this book. I could not stop thinking about what these two boys suffered - how it must have felt to be so alone with the vileness that were the uncles and the father who neglected to protect his children. Knowing that the abuse Jude bore - nothing will ever fix that in him, the scars will be borne eternally.
Simply put, this is literary genius.
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