The Mill by Mark West - Review

Been meaning to post a review of this for awhile - this is the second Mark West story I've read, the first being his story in the anthology Ill At Ease. That one impressed me enough to buy The Mill, a novella from Greyhart Press.

Ostensibly this is a horror story, but it is as much about the dislocation caused by the death of a loved one as it is about the supernatural. Although the supernatural element is there - the story is genuinely creepy in places.

West convincingly writes about his character's feelings of grief and isolation - at times this was a heart-wrenching read. It is well paced, with no extra fat on the meat of the story, making its bleak atmosphere feel even more dark and unremitting. The ending really works, bringing both the realistic and supernatural elements together into a climax that is pitch-perfect, and haunting in more than one sense.