“It was terrifying to know nightmares didn’t wait for the sun to fade - or for sleep to come.”

Jimmy and Kelly knew fear and uncertainty from a young age. Their parents fought regularly and violently, drank excessively and abused drugs. Living in poverty and neglected, Jimmy did whatever he could to protect his younger sister. When their father dies by suicide, their mother becomes increasingly abusive.

“In the Lansford home, normal was not an option, and Jimmy faced two choices: Let life eat him and Kelly alive, or shoulder more of the burden than any child should.”

Although he remains haunted by his childhood, Jimmy’s adult life is outwardly normal. He has a nice home, is employed and has a loving wife and children. Jimmy does everything he can to ensure his children never experience anything approximating what he and his sister did when they were children.

“Things change, and not always for the better.”

Jimmy’s daughter is now the same age his sister was when their father died and Jimmy’s carefully constructed world is coming undone. He begins to experience things he can’t explain as painful memories resurface.

As this book was marketed as horror I expected to encounter lots of things that go bump in the night. Although there are supernatural elements to this story that I won’t explain because that would take us into spoiler territory, the main horror I experienced was as a result of more natural (if you can call them that) occurrences.

Child abuse is its own horror and when you consider the legacy of childhood trauma, its impacts on the person who has experienced it and by association everyone who loves them, that’s true horror right there.

PTSD and survivor’s guilt are explored in this book. Because the impacts of these are so pervasive it became difficult to distinguish whether specific events in this book were supernatural in origin or a symptom of one or both of these. This could irritate me in different circumstances but here it made me feel like I was getting a glimpse of what Jimmy was experiencing. I did wonder whether some of Jimmy’s experiences were dissociative in nature; another explanation was provided but I could make the case for both possibilities.

Given some of the content of this book I expected to feel sad and hopeless overall but there was some light pushing back the shadows. Jimmy’s bond with his sister and his repeated attempts to protect her from the harshness of their lives was heartwarming. Detective Mike Carlisle, the only responsible adult in the Lansford kids’ lives, was someone I looked forward to spending time with. He modelled unconditional love and was a positive role model, particularly for Jimmy, whose life could have been vastly different without his influence.

I was left with a couple of unanswered questions. I still don’t understand why Jimmy’s daughter bit his neck. I know his sister did that to their father but I would have thought, if this was Kelly’s influence, she would have chosen a shared memory that was less violent to get her message across. Also, if Kelly had the ability to leave a handprint then couldn’t she find a way to let her brother know it was her? Cliché or not, it doesn’t seem far fetched to me that she could have written a message on a foggy bathroom mirror or something similar.

Pop culture and this book: There were plenty of references to TV series, including ‘Friends’ and ‘Stranger Things’, and music, in particular Cyndi Lauper’s ‘Time After Time’. (I love that song!) However, there were so many references to Stephen King’s stories that I made a list. Keep in mind that I am by no means an expert on the King-dom so I expect some references flew straight over my head. Having said that, here’s what I found:

* Jimmy stays in hotel room 237
* The dairy farm the family lived on for a while is owned by the Torrance family and it’s located on Torrance Road
* The ice cream shop is called Derry’s
* There’s mention of “the neighborhood Cujo”
* Jimmy’s daughter watches ‘IT’.

If you read this book and find references to anything Stephen King related that I’ve missed, please feel free to let me know.

Content warnings include child abuse, death by suicide, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse, mention of torture of animals and self harm.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Black Rose Writing for the opportunity to read this book. I’m rounding up from 3.5 stars.

Really terrific book. It was sad and creepy all at once. Children living in poverty, with abuse and cruelty. Mental illness? Addiction? Possession? Which is it?

This definitely is not a horror story but one of hope, love and believing. With a tear in my eye I am grateful to have been able to read this story. So much emotion in a short novel. Bravo!

What an incredible, enormously gratifying, horror novel. Stomach-churning and heartwrenching, indeed, but the true unconditional love between two siblings, the police officer who valued them, and the young man's family-in-the-future, is enough to restore my lost faith in human nature. I think I shall rank this novel alongside Garth Stein's A SUDDEN LIGHT--top praise indeed!

I received a free copy from Netgalley, here is the blurb

"As a child Jimmy Lansford and his sister Kelly suffered crushing poverty, their father’s unexplained and frightening suicide, and their mother’s constant abuse and cruelty. Having grown to be a successful adult, Jimmy must contend with the sudden re-emergence of memories from his childhood in Oklahoma and unexplainable events occurring inside his own home. Is it more than memories that haunt Jimmy? Did his parents suffer from mental illness and addiction, or were they possessed by something even worse—and has that presence arrived to take Jimmy?"

I read a lot of horror books and although there are elements that make it a horror story, it is primarily a book which sees Jimmy the main character reflecting on his disturbing childhood. If you are looking for just a horror story then this is perhaps not the book for you. Having said that, I did enjoy the story although enjoy is probably the wrong word given the subject matter. I found the book quite short, which isn't a critism, it is just an observation. I would have liked the story to carry on and without giving the story away, I wanted to see a development of Jimmy's daughter, Jessica.

Overall, a good story, which has elements of horror but is more about the heartbreaking childhood of the main character, Jimmy.

A light horror story with lots of twists and turns. I read it in one sitting.
I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley. Thank you, Netgalley!
All opinions are my own.

This book was not what I was expecting at all. I really wouldn't classify it as horror, not the spooky ghost kind. Instead it is a gripping, tragic story of a family with abusive parents, which ends up affecting the children for their entire lives. There is a twist at the end, which clears up some of the mystery, and leaves the reader with some closure, but more questions. This book will stick with me for awhile.

I loved this book. It was so good, and I can’t stop thinking about it. Such an incredible and heartbreakingly sad story. I recommend it to anyone who wants to read something different that will keep you turning pages way past bedtime.

Thank you NetGalley and Black Rose Writing for giving me this advanced readers copy.

This was by no means my typical read. I decided seeing since it’s October I might as will branch out with a horror story. And this one certainly lived up to that in a sense.

This book is about two siblings who have created a very strong bond. Their mother and father are drug attic’s and alcoholics. They are also abusive to each other and to the siblings. Jimmy, the brother, thought that things might get better after his father’s suicide. Oh how wrong he was. It seems that his mother didn’t have her husband to take anger out on she now took even more of it out on the children.

This book goes between present time and past tense. With Jimmy all grown up in a family of his own where he has an excellent job living in an amazing neighborhood. Then it goes back in time to when Jimmy and his sister were young and the things that they had to survive. However in the present tense jimmy believes that he may be possessed. What we need to find out as a reader: Is he really possessed or is his childhood coming back to haunt him.

This book is fantastic.

its heartbreaking and heart warming at the same time, giving hope to people that are stuck in their past.
I fell in love with this book because it isn’t the usual ghost story. Its a great story abut love, love and pain. Many people have had terrible pasts and not everyone can form normal relationships after but this book reminds me that even though I have one eye staring at the darkness I still have one eye to watch the sun.
Family can make all the difference.
This book is written brilliantly, I love the way he has done the chapters but most of all I love the message this books gives me. That no matter the darkness that had you if your lucky enough to find someone who loves you with all the baggage that comes with you that the world can be an amazing place.

Don’t let your past own you. Own your past. Be proud of who you are and not who you where.

I highly recommend this to everyone, its one of those stories that will stay with you even when you turn the last page.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. If you are looking for a story about the ways our lives can be haunted with the past, this is it. This is not your typical ghost story. It has a LOT of feeling and emotion. This book is about how life and our past can destroy us, if we let it. Loved this book!

The Poor and The Haunted
Written by Dustin McKissen
Review by Daniella MacDougal

Dustin McKissen is a new author for me so I wasn't sure what to expect. The book is listed in Horror, but it didn't read that way for me. The acts of human injustice described throughout the book do, however, describe the absolute horror that too many people in our world today are living through. This was a page-turner. McKissen wrote with passion and each chapter created an insatiable desire to know what happened next. I am usually fairly adept at predicting what will take place next in most everything I read. It was enjoyable to read something of this quality where I did not guess everything that would happen.

The storyline is well-designed and tells a story of human suffering, family relationship, kindness of strangers, and the difficult task of surviving trauma, sometimes years in the future. The characters are believable and the reader quickly identifies with one or more of them. My heartstrings were certainly touched by the emotion created by McKissen in this read.

I would recommend this book to most anyone. For those who are experiencing survivor's guilt or the after-effects of trauma, read and know that you matter and someone will be there for you; just reach out.

#ThePoorAndTheHaunted #NetGalley #allreads #AllSocial

Very good read, although the story is sad, it is a story of 2 siblings trying to survive and not be like their horrible parents., something in part., I can related to very easily. A brother who protects his sister to his best ability. I couldn't put this down, had to read to the end, as it touched my heart tremendously.

Lets start this off with the fact that this is not a horror story for me. This book is sad and heartwrenching, about a boy living in a horrible family with his sister, and surviving the best they can. Years later he has to face his childhood demons again.

I did not expect this book to make me feel the way that it did. I didn't think that 160 pages would be enough to tell a story, let alone tell it well. I was wrong. Coming from a messed up family myself, this really captured the essence and the thoughts, <spoiler>and most of all that horrible survivors guild</spoiler> of being a child/teen in that situation, and the mark it leaves on a life.

I highly recommend this one!

This was my first book by this author, It was pretty enjoyable. I would give this book a 3.5 star rating! It was a pretty Quick and easy read!

I would not really say this novel is a horror story but it will pull at your heartstrings. Jimmy and Kelly was raised in an abusive home with both parents being alcoholics and drug addicts and being very poor. When the children's father committed suicide when Kelly was just 12 yrs old their life did not get better. Jimmy and Kelly formed a great bond that got them through their every day life with a mother that did not care about them at all. Jimmy grew up and got married and when his daughter turned 12 yrs old Jimmy started to experience strange things happening to him. That just made Jimmy start to question if evil was in his father and if that evil is now with him. Jimmy started to see things and feel stuff that was not natural. Jimmy is convinced that the devil took over his parents bodies and is questioning if the devil is trying to take over his.
The Author Dustin Mckissen did a wonderful job with this debut novel. I look forward to seeing what other novels he will write in the future.

I’m of two minds with this book. I loved the idea and the plot but I didn’t always like the style of the authors writing. I expected a horror book with the novels description, and while it was scary at points, I found the writing a little confusing as we wove from past to present.
The novel starts with Jimmy and his sister, Kelly hearing their mother scream because their father committed suicide.Both parents, if you can call them that, are horrid meth and alcohol addicts, with little thought to their children. As they age the only one who cares is Carlyle, the police officer who was on the scene.
Forward to present day, Jimmy is successful and loved with a wonderful wife and two children, but he keeps thinking he is being haunted and perhaps possessed by a demon. He can’t handle what is happening to him.
Good, but not great.

I have literally just closed my kindle after finishing The Poor and The Haunted and I have a tear running from my left eye. This book filled my heart and touched me to the core, at a time that I really needed it. I expected horror, since that's where I found it listed. It's hard to say too much about what transpires without giving spoilers. I'll try.
Jimmy is a good man with a loving family. They're all good to each other. His childhood was another story. His parents were both mean, abusing, drunk and drugging bullies. His father committed suicide in a very bizarre manner. Life got even worse after his father's death when his mother's meth addiction led her to "servicing clients" in the old car parked on the lawn. Jimmy and his sister Kelly devoted themselves to each other. Their relationship makes life bearable.
Years later Jimmy has a family of his own and his daughter Jessica has just turned 12..the same age Kelly was when their father killed himself. At this point Jimmy starts having strange experiences. He's seeing and feeling someone near him. He has terrifying out of body type experiences. He's not sure if he should fear for his sanity or for his soul.
The author answers all of our questions and in such a way that my heart is full. Though I found this title under "horror", I would recommend this to those who don't typically read horror. I am so glad to have found it. I loved it!
#netgalley #ThePoorandTheHaunted