Isn’t that cover just great? Not only does it match the story, but it sure draws you in, reminding long-time horror readers of the old ’70s and ’80s mass-market paperback horror craze. I wasn’t sure what to expect with David Sodergren’s novel The Haar except the excerpt mentions “folk horror.” I’m picturing hippies on an island dancing around while sacrificing a “good Christian man” to make their crops grow — that’s typically folk horror.
Instead, Sodergren sets his novel on a cold, fog-filled Scottish community. I was hesitant; how many authors choose Scotland because it’s so “foreign” and Americans love the accent? Sodergren is, in fact, Scottish. In the fishing village of Witchaven (see, you’re thinking of The Wicker Man, too, right??) we meet Muriel McAuley, who was born in Witchaven and plans to die there. She’s almost ninety, after all. The problem is a very Donald Trump-like character wants to buy up all the homes in the area to make a golf course. Well, the big difference is our fictitious Mr. Grant is a billionaire (Trump only wishes).
Grant is ruthless, first sending in a nice lady to convince Muriel to sign the papers, exchanging Muriel’s only home for way more than it’s worth. But Muriel’s husband, Billy, was a fisherman and disappeared twelve years ago. He’s assumed dead, but Muriel never said goodbye the morning he set out on his ship and didn’t return. She lives with regret and her home, and she’s not giving up either, no matter the price.
I found The Haar because I was looking for a creature feature theme for my Horror Book Club. Sodergren doesn’t toss us right to the creature. Instead, humans are the villains, as they often are. Grant’s son physically assaults Muriel, and I was so angry, I paused to wonder if the author overdid it with his pathos. I’d like to think people aren’t so terrible, but I’m often wrong about that. As Muriel drags herself home, she stumbles upon a pile of jelly-like goo with an eye. It telepathically sends the message “help,” and Muriel won’t refuse.
Like many horror novels, the creature doesn’t eat food; it wants blood. How many “needs blood to survive” novels am I going to read in one year?? But Sodergren doesn’t disappoint. This creature will happily protect Muriel by taking care of the various greedy wasters paid by Grant to try and scare or kill her, freeing up her land for that new golf course. The author’s descriptions of the creature feeding are graphic and wonderful, and I just enjoyed myself because I have what the internet likes to call a “justice boner.” Also, as the creature learns what Muriel wants in her last years, it becomes her fantasies, giving readers an interesting horror/romance combo. There’s something sentimental and sweet yet gruesome and bloody about The Haar.
The Haar whips along rapidly, never leaving a dull moment, even when it’s quite and Muriel reflects on her youth with Billy. The creature fills a space in her heart, but should it? And is Muriel supposed to care what the creature really is? Sodergren doesn’t just horrify you, he gets you asking yourself, “What would you do?”
Grab the Lapels 
I have a copy of this so very glad to hear that you enjoyed it!
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Yes, everyone in book club enjoyed it, even when it got rather gnarly.
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This book was a quick read that started out rather sad, veered into the weird, then made a pivot into the wild. There were several lines in the last act that were just perfect. If you have been looking for a story that is like Cocoon with a dash of Cthulhu, this book has what you need.
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I don’t know what Cocoon is. Is that a movie or a book? Also, we talked about how this might be sentimental horror.
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Ooh, a revenge pet! What every old lady needs!
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Now that you mention it, I did get a vibe like that pair of books that starts the title with, An Elderly Lady…
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I saw the cover and cringed and thought oh yuck, and then you said, isn’t that a great cover? And I laughed, uh nope. But I’m glad you seem to have enjoyed the whole reading experience from cover to story.
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Haha, I feel you. I get a very pukey vibe anytime I see these romance covers that look like cute cartoons. Especially the ones that, if you actually read them, have a lot of graphic sex! I know that the cartoon cover is going to fade away and something else will take its place. For a while, it was just covers with women with their heads not in the photo. Before that, it was all Fabio.
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You make me laugh sometimes Melanie. No that cover did not draw me in, and no, Witchaven didn’t make me think of The Wicker Man. I don’t think I’ve ever thought of The Wicker Man in my life – mainly because I have no idea what you are referring too. A film, a book, both?
However, THIS I do relate to “I’d like to think people aren’t so terrible, but I’m often wrong about that.”
I was going to ask whether your book club liked it, but I see that you have said in the comments they did. Well done you for choosing a book they liked.
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If you are nostalgic for those horror paperback covers from the 80s, this book matches perfectly. The style is coming back because it sells.
The Wicker Man is a famous British folk horror movie about a police officer who travels to an isolated island community to look for a missing girl. He’s deeply Catholic and gets the surprise of his life when he learns the islanders are pagans. He argues with them about God, and they try to convince him their ways are better. Much like Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery,” they believe in human sacrifice for the sake of saving everything they knew in their community. Guess who gets sacrificed. The movie is from 1973 and stars Christopher Lee and Edward Woodward.
The book club mostly found it fascinating because it’s not what you expect. There was a lot of tenderness and commentaria and grief and memory for those we’ve lost. Also, eat the rich (literally).
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JUSTICE BONER LOLLLLLL reading this made my day. also, I adore this cover. This is what I miss about old horror. Just fantastic. I think I’d love to read this book
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It’s pretty inexpensive on Amazon as an ebook, it’s a speedy read, and it’s really engaging. You get some of that fun gross stuff, and you also get real sentimental, heartfelt stuff. I do love this kind of cover, and I’m glad that it’s coming back. I am seeing it more and more.
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Oooh, yeah, I do like that old-timey style cover art. I’ve recently noticed more independent horror movies utilizing this kind of retro art style more too while scrolling through free movies at my parents’ house. It’s really cool to see it making a comeback. 🙂
Haha and I love the bit about your “justice boner”. 😛 This book sounds like a wild ride. I just went and added it to my TBR mountain.
When you were talking about folk horror it got me wondering if you’ve seen a documentary called “Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror”? I recently watched and really enjoyed it. I don’t think I’d been aware just how many films in that genre there were and how long some of them have been around. It definitely made me add a lot more films to my list of horror movies to watch at some point. 🙂
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There’s a new(ish) book called Blob: A Love Story by Maggie Su that I own but haven’t read yet. It’s about a sentient blob (I think) that changes into a man? Like I said, I haven’t yet read it but this reminded me of that.
Also, this sentence was quite funny:
“How many “needs blood to survive” novels am I going to read in one year?? ” Do you have a Goodreads shelf for “needs blood to survive”?
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I’ve got Blob on my TBR! I think someone reviewed it and convinced me I should check it out.
LOL, Laila, I do not have a Goodreads shelf for that, but I could! And then funny thing is that NONE of the books I’m thinking of have vampires in them!
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Oh, no, I do not like that cover. I do not like weird eyeballs or eyes where they don’t belong. I do like the juxtaposition of horror/romance but I can tell this isn’t for me!
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I’m not even sure I would call it romance so much as sentimentality. When the main character finds this helpless creature on the beach and takes care of it, it starts to mimic her husband in a way that heals a wound for her because he went missing 12 years prior out on his ship, and she never got any closure because she had no clue what happened to him. This creature also protects her from people who are hurting her and trying to steal her home.
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