A review by fv_angela
Near the Bone by Christina Henry

3.0

Near the Bone is a quiet, slow-to-build horror story featuring monsters both human and fantastical. The main protagonist, Mattie, is a young woman living with her "husband" in the middle of nowhere. She's lived in terror of the repercussions of disobeying him for as long as she can remember, so she keeps her head down and follows her routines. Until they discover a monster on their mountain and three cryptozoologists show up to investigate.

I won't even go into content warnings, there are too many to name. But keep in mind, this is a horror novel, and expect blood, violence, and to be taken out of your comfort zone. As the story progresses readers do start to understand how Mattie came to be in the situation she is in, and how awful the man she lives with is. He is just as much of a monster as the predator in the woods they are all afraid of, maybe even more so.

The story ended as I expected it to, but I kind of wish there was just a short epilogue. I would have liked to see Mattie aka Samantha reunited with her sister. But I did enjoy this suspenseful, frightening tale and look forward to more from this author.