The Devouring Light by Kat Ellis

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✦ BLURB ✦

When Haden Romero and her rival, Deacon Rex - alongside their bands, including Haden's ex, Cairo - are stranded on their way to a rock festival, she thinks missing the gig is the worst thing that could happen.

She's wrong.

Marooned in treacherous swamplands with no way out, the group stumbles upon an eerie, decaying house. It seems like a safe haven, a place to wait out the storm.

The house, however, isn't just abandoned - it's been waiting for them.

Bodies begin to pile up. The walls start to close in. Twisted secrets come to light. And unless Haden and the others can survive long enough to escape, the house will claim them - forever.

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A classic horror tale of isolation, body horror, and a house that isn’t just abandoned — it’s alive.

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PRE-READING THOUGHTS

I was drawn to Haden’s story by the promise of a high-tension horror with a confined setting, twisted secrets, and interpersonal dynamics that ratchet up the fear. A haunted house that moves and consumes? Count me in.

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POST-READING

As I thought…
The house is a character in itself — claustrophobic, shifting, and menacing. The tension between band members adds another layer of dread, and Haden’s perspective keeps the stakes personal as well as horrifying.

It surprised me by…
The body horror elements. People behaving unnaturally, the creeping terror of the house claiming its victims, and the way suspense is built so meticulously that you feel the walls closing in right along with them. It’s old-school horror done extremely well.

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🎵 MUSIC PAIRING

• 🎵 Featured Song: “Bury Me in Smoke” – Chelsea Wolfe

• 🎶 Vibe Album: Hiss Spun – Chelsea Wolfe

• 🎧 Artist Recommendation: Zola Jesus — for eerie, enveloping soundscapes that echo isolation and dread

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🌈 VIBE CHECK

• Colour Palette: Decayed wood, muddy green, shadow black

• Soundtrack: Creaking floors, dripping water, whispering winds

• Season: Late autumn/winter, when the mist lingers

• Mood: Claustrophobic, tense, spine-tingling

• Scent: Damp earth, mold, faint decay

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🃏 TAROT PULL

The Tower (Storyteller’s Tarot) — Pandora’s box opens, skulls and insects spill, chaos erupts. This card mirrors the house itself: destruction, unpredictability, and the sudden collapse of safety. Perfect for Haden and the band’s desperate struggle to survive.

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FOR FANS OF

• Book: House of Hollow – Krystal Sutherland (haunted house + eerie secrets)

• TV/Movie: The Haunting of Hill House – isolation, body horror, tension among those trapped together

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THE DEVOURING LIGHT publishes on the 7th October, 2025. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.