04/17/2026 Guest Reviews by Kerry E.B Black: CARL by A.C. Hessenauer & THE EASTER MAIDENS by Monique Snyman
- Candace Nola
- 3 hours ago
- 2 min read
Today, we have some guest reviews from local Pittsburgh author, Kerry E.B. Black! Check out her thoughts on some Easter Horror below and be sure to grab both books to give them a read!
CARL
by A.C. Hessenauer
Billed as an Easter horror, A.C. Hessenauer’s novella, Carl, focuses on a fourteen-year-old girl named Tess. Tess discovers a once-loved stuffed rabbit she’d named Carl among the Easter decor. She takes the tattered toy to her room and places him in a place of honor while she tries to ignore her parents’ fights. She shares some hurt feelings with the toy and describes problems at school. Before she knows it, strange things begin to happen. People who hurt Tess are hurt.
This YA story, released in April 2025, is told in under 100 pages.
The Easter Maidens
by Monique Snyman
A young woman with her whole life ahead of her takes a strange turn and finds herself in a dismal, gray purgatory in Monique Snyman’s folk horror/cosmic novel, The Easter Maidens published in time for Easter, 2026 through Crystal Lake Publishing.
The confusing monotony of her journey allows her to meet two other travelers, and they find a surprisingly vibrant and lively town called Eostre where they’re warmly welcomed. At a feast, things take a turn, and they flee, but not before they make some nasty discoveries.
With its ‘Midsommer’ feel and ambiguity, this will leave readers with a different perspective on egg hunts, feasts, and perhaps even the afterlife.
More about Kerry E.B. Black
Kerry E.B. Black writes from an over-stuffed little house situated along a fog-enshrouded river in the land where Romero's Dead roamed. Her children think she's dull, and their dogs agree, but the family cats, Poe and Hemingway, feel differently. The felines find a kinship with their nocturnal buddy and encourage Kerry to write.
More on Kerry E.B. Black
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