The Cabin: Amy Cross

Reviewed By Steve Stred

• Paperback: 236 pages
• Publisher: Independently published (26 Feb. 2017)

Does Amy Cross really exist?

An interesting question to start a review with isn’t it?

Here’s the thing – I’ve yet to find a photo of her, her website comes and goes, and while she is active on her Facebook page, all of her interviews are almost identical. So is there really an Amy Cross out there pumping out book after book of horror and gore? Or is it some other author using a pen name? Or a group of authors?

I can’t answer any of those questions, but I can finally say I’ve read one of her books!

I snagged The Cabin as well as almost 50 other Amy Cross books over a period of about a year on Amazon, as her books are frequently offered for free. I got to a point where I stopped snagging her books because I wanted to read one and see how I liked it.

So I recently read The Cabin and it was good. A lot of fun and something I’m glad I’ve finally been able to read.

The Cabin is a straightforward story. We follow a college female who decides to visit her lifelong pen pal in her home country. Anna has lived a boring life and now heading to Norway to see her friend is something exciting and she’s doing her best to act differently, to not make the same old decisions she usually makes.

It doesn’t take long until Anna finds out the cabin they are staying at has a strange history and that her friends friends may not be as nice as they appear to be.

The first half of this book was a bit repetitive and I wished it had been condensed significantly to move the story along. When the book picks up and Cross starts to deliver some horrific gore, I found I was expecting the brutality and the homage to Hostel or Saw that came. Looking back on it I think the first half of the book was designed to lull the reader into enjoying the scenery and when the viciousness occurs it really makes you unsettled, so kudos for that.

As many people have said regarding Cross’ books, this would have benefited from one or two extra read throughs, as in one paragraph our main character Anna is called Emma and I had to reread the chapter to make sure I didn’t miss a character. There’s a few spots like that but otherwise I’m not a big stickler on a few missed commas or misspelled words. Heck – just look at my horrible history with my own release Left-Hand Path to see how sometimes even having an editor can muddle things up!

The Cabin was a fun story and Amy Cross has definitely delivered a gruesome story, which is great and makes me excited to read The Farm, which I have coming up shortly on my TBR. I think for those looking to check out Cross the availability of free ebooks on Amazon is a great place to start and if The Cabin is available as a freebie, definitely snag it. This book does lead into a sequel, but at this stage I don’t think I will check it out. Personally I enjoyed how the book ended and for me, I’ll leave it as is.

Star Rating (out of 5): 4*

The Cabin

“There are stories about this place. It’s said that something really bad happened here once, in the room where we’re standing right now.”

When Anna arrives in Norway to visit a long-lost friend, she expects to spend a calm, relaxing weekend at a remote cabin.

Soon, however, she learns that some of the other guests are not what they seem, and the cabin itself has a dark history.

As the weekend continues, Anna finds herself being drawn into a nightmarish situation.

A girl died many years ago in the cabin, and now someone is out to repeat the events of that horrific night.

By the time Anna learns the truth, she’s too late to keep herself from being dragged into the darkness.

Whether she escapes, and whether her soul survives, depends on her ability to survive a series of agonizing attacks.

The Cabin is a horror novel about a girl who finds herself living a nightmare.

You can buy The Cabin 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