Cauchemar

By Alexandra Grigorescu

An eerie and romantic Southern gothic drama

Gripping, fast-paced, gorgeously written, and with unforgettable characters, Cauchemar tells the story of 20-year-old Hannah, who finds herself living alone on the edge of a Louisianan swamp after her adopted mother and protector dies. Hannah falls in love with Callum, an easy-going boat captain and part-time musician, but after her mysterious birth mother, outcast as a witch and rumoured to commune with the dead, comes back into Hannah’s life, she must confront what she’s been hiding from — the deadly spirits that haunt the swamp, the dark secrets of her past, and the nascent gift she possesses.

Like the nightmares that plague Hannah, Cauchemar lingers and haunts.

• Language: English
• Publisher: ECW Press
• Release date: Mar 1, 2015
• ISBN: 9781770907195

Reviews for Cauchemar

[tobinelliott · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I wasn't sure what I was getting into with this one. I picked it up on the wildly passionate encouragement of another customer while at a booth at last year's Word on the Street Toronto event. Yes, my TBR pile is big enough that it's taken damn near a year to get to it.

Anyway, I wasn't sure. Was this a horror novel? A romance? It started out more like a coming of age/romance, but when it turned dark, it was dark. It's another in what I tend to refer as "quiet horror" as there's no blood and guts, and the focus is squarely on the humans, not the monster.

The only quibble I have was with the pacing toward the beginning, when Hannah met Callum. It accelerated very quickly over a few months, where I would have liked to see that relationship develop a bit more, especially considering what happens later in the relationship. But aside from that, the descriptions are good, the characters are good and the actual writing is always great and frequently gorgeous.

It's a quiet, Southern gothic story, and it's worth the read.