PopHorror Let's Get Scared
It’s finally happened. I found a book that I had to take a break from in order to let my emotions settle. This panic-inducing masterpiece is In The Tall Trees by Angel Van Atta. I was already a fan of the author before reading this, but now she’s become an instant buy author for me. This book doesn’t fall easily under the standard definition of “horror,” but I can’t think of anything more horrifying than living through the events depicted in this story.
I was hooked immediately by this synopsis:
Mella lives in a tiny house in the middle of a dense forest with her mommy and her baby brother, Pete. Sometimes her daddy comes and with him often the bad man comes, as well. Mella knows that she, her mommy and little brother are a secret family living where nobody knows they are, but she can’t remember why that is or why her mommy is chained to the floor.
In The Tall Trees is a story told through the eyes of our little hero as she must brave what’s out there, lurking in the shadows, to save all that she knows and loves in the world.
This is some gorgeous cover art as well
Wow. This has never happened before. I just had to stop this audiobook halfway through because I started to have a panic attack. While I won’t say I’ve “tapped out” on this book, because I am definitely going to finish, this is the closest I have ever come to finding the limit of what I can handle.
I want to be super clear here. I have read and listened to some of the most disturbing, disgusting, despicable, and downright depraved books, and this doesn’t hold a candle to them in terms of graphic gore or explicit violence. There are no chainsaws or dripping entrails in this tale. The violence here is mostly internal. There’s some physical violence, sure, but that’s not what makes this story horrific for me. The effect this violence has on little Mella mentally, and the way she thinks, acts, and lives as a result is truly terrifying.
After the first half of In The Tall Trees gave me a panic attack, I set it aside for nearly a week. But in that time, it never left my mind. I was dying to know what would happen, but scared to end up in a panic again. When I finally returned to it, I don’t know if I was better prepared, or if the story had just taken a more positive turn. I did, however, hold my breath for virtually the entire second half. I didn’t release that breath until the second to last page.
It’s safe to say I have never felt so tense reading a book before. Even though I had to take a break from this one, I absolutely LOVED IT! It’s still only January, but I’m putting In the Tall Trees on my top reads of the year list. I think it’s going to be difficult to top this one for me.
I highly recommend checking out In The Tall Trees by Angel Van Atta. It is available now in paperback, ebook, and audiobook on Amazon. This is an excellent read, and I am so glad I finally made the time for it.
