The Jersey Devil. The Headless Horseman. The old witch who lives in the middle of nowhere. The strange old man near the golf course who never leaves his house.
Folklore lives everywhere.
David Barnett has done it again with Scratch Moss, another masterfully told folklore tale. Like Withered Hill and Scuttler’s Cove before it, Scratch Moss is a town bound to a single story and a single industry. Coal. The town survives because of it. And no one ever really leaves.
Joe returns to Scratch Moss after his father’s death, decades after being sent away to live with his aunt when his father was imprisoned. Now in his fifties, he plans to tie up loose ends and leave for good. But then his first love re-enters his life, and Joe is pulled back into the dark heart of Scratch Moss and into secrets that ensure he may never leave at all.
I love the worlds David Barnett creates. His settings are so vivid you can practically smell the damp air of the town and the mines beneath it. The story moves effortlessly from the present day, back through generations, all the way to the town’s dark beginnings—before snapping back to now, revealing just how deep and enduring the evil truly is.
And as always, Barnett leaves me wanting more. With a tantalizing tease of what’s next in his folklore universe, I’m officially on tenterhooks waiting for the next installment.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book. And thank you to David Barnett for continuing to absolutely kick ass.