In Excess of Dark by Red Lagoe
Grief is a monster.
A world-wrecking monster that ravages the body and mind and spirit.
In Excess of Dark by Red Lagoe is a thrilling grief horror novella. Its second edition was published on September 13, 2024 by Sobelo Books, and it weighs in at 147 pages.
I won this book in a silent auction at the St. Louis Scares That Care AuthorCon event. Not only is it an enthralling and exciting story that will keep you on your toes, you’ll find gorgeous artwork throughout.
This story, complete with trigger warnings, takes readers on a deep dive into guilt and depression.
The dark.
Through the main character Karina, Lagoe demonstrates how reality and grief can bog a person down, sucking the fun out of life and causing relationships to dwindle. Love, loss, and death are central in this story, hitting readers hard with serious situations that would devastate even the strongest person.
Lagoe is able to pull off a fine balance of strong emotions and grief along with instances rife with gore and violence. Mix in the coincidence that every terrible thought Karina thinks and obsessed on has a habit of coming true, and this book transforms into a thrilling paranormal tale that will keep you guessing.
Something I found interesting, aside from the main storyline, was the discussion about parenting—especially the things parents do that they don’t realize is wrong or harmful until it’s too late. Lagoe also explored how parents get treated growing up and how it translates to the way they treat their own children. And the darkness parents and children could share.
The message hits home as you watch how Karina reacts to terrible things that happen to her, translating some of the horrors as a personal punishment, as well as how she responds to the people in her life. Readers are helpless to watch as the dark builds up in Karina—until she’s in excess. At that point, it’s a no-holds-barred situation as she reacts to everything she’s experiencing, creating outcomes to ease her pain. Lagoe knows how to ramp up the stakes and the excitement, despite the heavy material.
This book was so good! I read it in one sitting, because I just couldn’t put it down. I never knew what was going to happen, and it was fantastic! The ending was great, and I enjoyed getting the chance to follow Karina down a path of despair and self-realization. I recommend this book—especially if you’ve experienced the dark.
Get more Red Lagoe in your TBR!
Who is Red Lagoe?
Red Lagoe grew up on 80’s and 90’s horror and carried her fear of slashers, sewer creatures, Hitchcockian birds, and psychos into adulthood where she now purges her horror-ridden mind onto the page. She is the author of the upcoming novel Bloodstains by Gaslight (Brigids Gate Press 2025), In Excess of Dark (Sobelo Books), and three horror collections including Impulses of a Necrotic Heart. Red has stories published in various anthologies and magazines, and she enjoyed her role as curator and editor of Nightmare Sky: Stories of Astronomical Horror. Red also worked as a staff writer for Crystal Lake Publishing’s Still Water Bay series. In addition to writing, Red loves creating art using traditional fine art mediums like paint, ink, and charcoal. She is also the owner of Death Knell Press.
***taken from Red Lagoe’s website
Get to know Sobelo Books
Sobelo Books is an independent publisher founded by authors and veterans L.C. Marino and L.P. Hernandez. Founded on principles of integrity, professionalism, and quality, we provide a reliable and transparent publishing partner for authors of dark, speculative fiction.
The name Sobelo is inspired by the phrase "As above, so below; as below, so above." which is believed to have been first published in a cryptic Hermetic text, Emerald Tablet. Essentially, there is a correspondence and balance in the spiritual and material planes of our Universe. Above and below. Heaven and Hell. Light and darkness. Good and evil.
This Universe is not simply around us. This Universe is in us.
***taken from the Sobelo Books website
