Breaking The Habit: Yolanda Sfetsos
Reviewed By Steve Stred
- Print Length: 58 pages
- Publisher: Demain Publishing; 1 edition (26 July 2019)
To be honest upfront – I only bought this release to support Yolanda. She’s been someone I’ve interacted with a bunch on Twitter and she’s always been super nice and supportive. I love, love, love supporting those who are super nice, so when this was announced I snagged it. I never read the synopsis but I knew I was in for a treat with the Short Sharp Shocks! Series.
For those who may also grab this and not read the synopsis – the story doesn’t disappoint. And if it wasn’t for one single odd character resolution (Cisco’s) at the end, this would have been a five star read easy.
I read this in one sitting and the story just flows. We are plopped into the arrival of Cisco and Isla as they arrive at a cabin in the woods (DUN DUN DUNNNNNNN!!!) for their honeymoon. Isla has been sound asleep, expecting to wake up when they arrive at the airport on their way to the Bahamas.
Yolanda quickly gives us mouthfuls of hints as to what will come and even knowing exactly what Isla’s background is without being outright told, I was still on edge waiting to see just what happened.
For me, personally, this felt like an episode of the NBC show Grimm, which was really amazing. It was just missing Nick, Monroe, Hank and Wu scattered throughout.
As the action ramped up, the dream-like descriptions were great and when we come out on the other side the carnage that Sfetsos delivered was a ton of fun.
As I stated earlier – the only thing that really detracted for me was the resolution with the character Cisco. I really can’t say much about it as it’s a complete spoiler otherwise, but if this would have been left alone then I’d have rated this 5 stars!
Short Sharp Shocks! Keeps delivering the goods and Yolanda’s contribution continues the trend of this series being a must-read for horror fans everywhere!
Breaking The Habit
All Isla wanted to do was enjoy her honeymoon. She was looking forward to relaxing on the beach and enjoying cocktails with the love of her life. Instead, she ends up in the middle of the woods in a cozy cabin, where the past she’s worked so hard to bury can find her. Turning what should be the best night of her life, into a bloody fight to stay alive.
You can buy Breaking The Habit from Amazon UK & Amazon US
Steve Stred
Steve Stred is an up-and-coming Dark, Bleak Horror author.
Steve is the author of the novel Invisible, the novellas Wagon Buddy, Yuri and Jane: the 816 Chronicles and two collections of short stories; Frostbitten: 12 Hymns of Misery and Left Hand Path: 13 More Tales of Black Magick, the dark poetry collection Dim the Sun and his most recent release was the coming-of-age, urban legend tale The Girl Who Hid in the Trees.
On June 1st, 2019 his second full-length novel, The Stranger will be welcomed to the world.
Steve is also a voracious reader, reviewing everything he reads and submitting the majority of his reviews to be featured on Kendall Reviews.
Steve Stred is based in Edmonton, AB, Canada and lives with his wife, his son and their dog OJ.
You can follow Steve on Twitter @stevestred
You can visit Steve’s Official website here
The Stranger
Ahhh… nothing like the annual summer family camping trip, right?
Malcolm, his wife Sam and their two kids have been staying at the same cabin, at the same campground for years now. Heck, Malcolm’s been coming to the campground since he was a kid.
Miles and miles of groomed trails, hiking, kayaking on the pristine lake. What’s not to like?
But this year… well this year’s different. You see, roof repairs have caused them to have to change their plans. Now they’re staying at the cabin at the end of season, in fact they’re the last campers before it closes for the winter.
While happy to be spending time with the family, Malcolm feels a shift.
The caretaker next door makes it known he hates him.
The trees… move and dance, as though calling him, beckoning him.
Then on a seemingly normal kayaking trip, the family makes a discovery.
YOU TAKE FROM ME
I TAKE FROM YOU
Something’s out there, just on the other side of the fence. Malcolm’s positive it’s just the caretaker trying to scare him, teach the family a lesson.
But what if it’s not…
What if there is something out there?
The Stranger is the second novel from Steve Stred and 9th release overall. The Stranger is another offering following in the footsteps of similar books Invisible, YURI and The Girl Who Hid in the Trees. As Steve describes his works; “dark, bleak horror.”
With this release, Steve has decided to look deeper into what makes humans tick. He confronts two key elements of mankind; bigotry and our environmental footprint.
Featuring stunning cover art by Chadwick St. John (www.inkshadows.com), The Stranger will be a story that will leave you feeling uneasy and have you looking at the trees differently.
Maybe it’s not the wind making the branches sway…
Maybe…
It’s…
The Stranger.
You can buy The Stranger from Amazon UK & Amazon US
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