“Low Blasphemy” by Judith Sonnet
State: Missouri
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Looking for small town horror with a cult? Look no further. In “Low Blasphemy”, the reader is transported to Kissing-Brooke, Missouri, where evil lurks in the woods. There is something eerily creepy about the woods, where the supernatural lurks.
This story opens with a hair raising proloque that introduces Reece Brampton and her parents. After the murder-suicide of her parents, Reece goes to live with her aunt Holly and cousin Paisley. Officers Tobin and Chilton are called to investigate sounds in the woods. Oh man! They discover a crude statue and a group of followers worshipping it. This is no ordinary statue. Sonnet uses vivid imagery to describe its height, girth and crude features. Something is not right about this statue of Christ. These are just a few of the characters in this layered story. Shortly after finding it, an entity known as “The Chosen One” wreaks havoc on Kissing-Brooke.
One of the things that stands out in Judith Sonnet’s stories are her characters. In an extreme horror novel, most characters are disposable. She creates chracters with depth and I always end up caring for them. Sonnet takes time to flesh out each character of this extreme horror novel, with a few that stood out: The creepy cult members. the officers and the group of friends. The demonic zomies! Oh how I loved the descriptions of their bodies, mutations ad wounds. Truly terifying creatures.
Sonnet makes several nods towards the Argento movie "Suspira". If you have not seen it, the movie is an Italian masterpiece. The movie is the first in a trilogy and is very influential in the horror genre. Both the movie and Sonhnet’s book are filled with body horror. There is no shortage of gore from the zombies wounds to each kill. It is a visceral experience.
Sonnet does not shy away from gore and macabre. Chracters are slaugtered, shot with wooden arrows and lose body parts. The reader is left with heart break as thebuilds up to an intense conclusion. The reader is left wondering if everyhting will be ok for these chracters.
"Low Blasphemy", a cult story with demonic zombies, is filled with enough gore to statisfy any horror reader.
Other horror books set in Missouri:
“Beast of Burden”, by Judith Sonnet
“Gone Girl”, by Gillian Flynn
“Clown in the Cornfield”, by Adam Cesare
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