Book Review: Beneath Ash and Bone

Note: I meant to post this review last winter when I initially read the book, but overlooked doing so due to being otherwise occupied with moving at the time. This one's a good read for any time of year, but if you want to get the most out of it, I recommend saving it for a dark winter's night like I did.

D. Alexander Ward's Beneath Ash and Bone is incredible. I'd heard good things about it, but didn't imagine how much I would end up loving it.

Set shortly before the American Civil War, Beneath Ash and Bone centers on Virginia sheriff Sam Lock, when he's called up to the palatial estate of Evermore to organize a search for a missing child. The boy is soon found, dead and bloody, beneath the snow. As he prepares to ride out the snow storm at Evermore, Lock endeavors to determine who wanted the boy dead. There are dark secrets to be uncovered in this mansion in the mountains, and the twists and turns the story takes as the mystery is gradually revealed are at turns disturbing and outright shocking.

Ward's novel got under my skin in the best possible way. I couldn't put it down until I was through. Ward is an incredible writer, who needs to be immediately discovered and read by every horror fan. I will gladly read anything this man writes and cannot recommend Beneath Ash and Bone enough. It's perfect for cold winter nights when you need a chilling read to match the weather.