Crows by Mark Towse
I’m not sure how many works by Mark Towse I have read at this point, but I will promise you this will not be the last. Crows is an occult horror novella, and it was released on December 9, 2021 by D&T Publishing. It weighs in at 100 pages. It might seem like a “featherweight,” but it definitely packs a punch. (Please pardon any and all puns I might sneak into this review.)
Crows intrigued me from the beginning. You have Patrick, a distraught father visiting the grave of his daughter Melissa, and a persistent crow that seems to be a constant fixture on each of his visits to the cemetery. They have an exchange which leaves him tearful yet filled with good memories of the past with Melissa. It’s a welcome exchange, since Patrick has been living estranged from his wife for well over a month, unable to face life without his daughter and his position of vicar at a local church. Holed up alone off the grid in a cabin his friend owns, he becomes more and more fixated on the visiting crow that seems to be communicating with him.
The story branches out from there, dropping dates in the text to distinguish when Patrick met the crow and when our journey takes on new characters (Scott, Sophie, Rich, and Vanessa) who are soon ensnared by another crow’s persistence. An invitation to a Halloween party is the catalyst for the mayhem to begin, and we are whisked on a ride filled with suspense, terror, moments of horror that make you want to squint your eyes as you’re reading, and in the end a feeling of catharsis.
I enjoyed the characters and felt the author did a great job giving them life on the page and supplying us with just enough bits and pieces of backstory to keep us interested in each of them. One of my favorite characters in the story is Rich, a writer with a case of writer’s block and a dependable, safe, and “boring” personality. I couldn’t help but wonder if Towse was interjecting some of himself into this loveable underdog. As the story unfolds, Rich’s comments will have you wondering if the book you are reading is based on events that might have actually happened. It’s a brilliant way to draw in a reader, and I loved that Towse took me to that place where the story came alive and made me stop and think about the “what ifs.”
This novella takes the reader on a journey of intrigue, empathy, curiosity, fear, suspense, shock, horror, and understanding - and in only 100 pages! I love that you start out feeling the hopelessness of a grieving father and you catapult into rooting for some characters to get what they deserve all the while cheering on a character who is put in a tricky situation and forced to transform throughout the story. There are dangers lurking around (and above) every corner, and readers will find it difficult to stop turning pages as the characters edge closer and closer to the truth.
As a word nerd, I enjoyed the puns used throughout the book by some of the characters. When I saw Towse promoting the book, he used quite a few on social media which also caught my attention. Not that I needed it. I have yet to read something by Towse I haven’t enjoyed, and his work is quickly becoming a “must have” for me. I have one of his earlier books waiting in my TBR right now. Luckily for me, and other readers out there, he seems quite capable of writing stories and getting them into our hands in a timely manner while still delivering a great story. One of my favorite words used in the story was “flock,” appropriate for describing both the congregation in the church as well as the groups of crows.
Personally, I’m a huge bird lover. As someone who enjoys feeding and photographing birds, I loved the imagery Towse created and the interactions the characters have throughout the story with the crows. He even dropped a few crumbs throughout the story about the omens associated with crows as well as their intelligence and the fascinating behavior around “crow funerals.” Inserting factual information really brought the story to life, and it made it that much more entertaining and frightening.
As a slight word of warning - there are definitely some gruesome moments. Even though they’re not overly graphic, Towse knows how to make you squirm. I loved every second of it. Any time a story makes my jaw drop open or causes me to read with a “side eye,” that halfway point where you want to know what’s happening but it’s making your insides roil, I am a happy reader. Every book of Towse’s I’ve read so far has given me that exciting visceral response. I’m ready for the next one.
It didn’t take me long to read Crows, despite a busy holiday schedule. I tucked it with me and stole moments to read it while I was out and about, anxious to get to the end and find out what was really going on with all of those crows. Towse has a way of drawing you in and making you need more and more information. The story is told from the POV of a handful of characters, each of them recounting their experiences as the story unfolds making the ending that much more satisfying as all of the loose ends are tied together.
If you enjoyed this review, I urge you to check out my reviews of two of Mark Towse’s other horror novellas, Nana and Hope Wharf.
