Life is always good when you start to read a book from an author unknown to you and then find yourself so engrossed with the story that everything else becomes secondary.
This is what happened when I sat down to read Mary by Nat Cassidy. In fact, I immediately put this novel on my list of the best horror novels of 2022. And I stand by that today!
This book centers around the titular character who is an odd choice for a main protagonist. Mary is a foppish, lonely, put upon middle aged woman who's in the beginning stages of menopause. She's likeable enough but wants to remain in the background of life and she feels almost invisible to others.
Something happens unexpectedly and she chooses to move in with her aunt in a desert town that used to be home.
This is where the story picks up and never slows down. Her aunt is one of my all time favorite secondary characters. At first, she seems like an old, reclusive, paranoid hag of a woman who takes pleasure in emotionally and mentally abusing Mary. But she's more than that as it will turn out and when you read about her you'll understand this love/hate relationship I found myself having with this character.
Mary also sees dead people. This trope might sound familiar but, trust me, this is different. The dead people in question are all women with bags over their head and covered in blood. There's even one that seems to be living in the bathroom of the aunt's house that only Mary can see.
These ghosts don't initially do anything... just stare at Mary and freak her out quite a bit since they're everywhere in this small desert town.
I won't say anything more to avoid spoliers but, needless to say, secrets will be revealed, other characters are introduced that are not quite who they seem to be, and Mary has choices to make. Choices that put her in the forefront of something seemingly beyond her capabilities. The ending is thrilling and explosive and I found myself missing these characters once the book was finished.
Nat Cassidy has delivered one of the scariest, freaky, and mind bending horror novels of 2022 and you should absolutely pick this one up!
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