A hag who is a swamp caretaker? Mystical bonds? Hallucinogens? Count me intrigued. This was an excellent novella that kept me turning the pages from start to finish in one setting. I enjoyed the humor that was woven into the story as well. It had an excellent creepy vibe without overwhelming my sensitive imagination. I shall forever view swamps a little different now. Great writing and interesting characters. For those looking for a quick suspenseful read, I’d highly recommend this one.

This is a short piece of fiction that packs a punch. It has an ominous atmosphere and conveys a lot of background information to complete the tale, but for me, I did not feel that sense of completion, although I should have.
We have our lead protagonist trying to save a swamp from invasive species when she encounters an odd woman. What happens next is basically the entire story. We have a total of three or four characters featuring in the book as a whole which is a rare occurrence. I cannot really say anything more except that the writing is smooth, and it did not feel like a complicated scenario, although there are magical realism feels to the main plotline. Also, it can be read by people of any age, given the simplicity of the delivery. I felt like it could even be categorized as mildly horror-based, although no one else has labelled it as such on Goodreads.
I received this book as an ARC thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, but the review is entirely based on my own reading experience.

This novella is a quick read that combines B-movie horror with a more serious ecological message.

Bernice is battling invasive non-native species’ in the middle of Cleary Swamp when she stumbles across a mysterious old woman. The woman claims to BE the swamp, but Bernice’s research into the area’s history suggest that she may be a local woman who has been missing for years. The problem is that, not only could both options be true, but the swamp is looking for its next protector and Bernice fits the bill nicely. Can she resist the supernatural pull of the swamp?

The obvious theme here, which doesn’t just underpin the story but pretty much overwhelms it, is the balance between humans and nature, and the danger of invasive non-native species (or colonisers) taking over natural species and destroying the native environment. It did occur to me that this message was a little undermined by the necessity for a human caretaker/avatar! Surely the swamp should be able to protect itself with natural defences rather than needing a token human ‘saviour’?

That aside, this was a fun, short, creepy read. The characterisations of Bernice and her friend Kevin are engaging and the setting is immersive and atmospheric. I actually felt there was enough in this idea to fill a full novel, and would have liked more development about the history of the swamp, its supernatural elements, and Bernice’s eventual involvement in its story.

I could definitely see this making a really good horror film!



'Armed with her trusty steel hedge clippers, Bernice sallied forth to do battle with the invasive species threatening to overtake Cleary Swamp. The biodiversity of the swamp would not get shot to hell on her watch. No, sir. As long as she had any say, this wetland would be a haven for swamp rose mallow and shumard oak.
Too bad she didn’t have a say in the welfare of Cleary Swamp for much longer; she was soon to get her master’s degree and move on to a different university for her PhD. After that, the invasives would be free to commence their bloody (chlorophyll-y) march across the wetland, their roots feeding off the dead bodies of the poor natives lacking the evolutionary defences to compete. Brutal. Sad. Perhaps inevitable.'

– Laura Morrison, Come Back to the Swamp


Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog

I really enjoyed this novella. I wasn't sure if I would when I noticed how short the story is. But I really liked the battle for the swamp between Bernice and the hag of the swamp or the swamps caretaker, if you will. It was a quick fun read.

this was a really enjoyable read, I liked the characters especially Rebecca. The mystery was fun and I really enjoyed going on this journey.

When an arrogant bur dedicated student goes into a Michigan swamp to cut out as much invasive flora & fauna species as possible she is accosted as being an invasive species herself by a crazed old woman who claims to be the swamp itself. Thus starts the back & forth push of student versus what she considers to be an insane old homeless woman. Short but fun read with unexpected aspects.

This is a quirky little story about an Ecology student who meets a strange old woman in a swamp outside of Detroit.  One day while she is trying to eradicate invasive plants from a patch of swamp land Bernice is suddenly accosted by the screaming, dishevelled old woman who tells Bernice that she is hurting her by cutting away the plants, and she claims to be 'the Swamp' itself.  Bernice is chased off by the old woman but returns the next day, refusing to be intimidated, believing the woman to be an elderly homeless person gone crazy after years living rough in the swamp.  But maybe there is more to the old woman than it seems.
A very silly story but also quite sweet, and a little sad too.

Despite the idea was interesting and I was sure I would love this book, I foung the style repetitive and charmless. I couldn't connect with any character athough I read half the book. There were so many unnecesary details that I was taken out of the reading over and over again, and the old lady had the potential to become a really unsetting character, but she became a parody of herself instead.

The only complaint one should have about this novella is why wasn't this longer or written for tv. I'd really love to see this story come to life on screen.

This was a short, likeable enough read. However, I never became invested in the subject matter. The plot was slightly repetitive.

I was given an ARC. I am leaving my honest review.

Bernice is an ecology grad student doing research in a swamp. She is cutting away branches on an invasive species when she hears a voice. She stops cutting and looks around. Seeing no one, she continues cutting when an old crazy looking woman appears saying stop cutting, you’re hurting me. Bernice tells her no I am not, I am just cutting these branches. The old woman tells her that she is the swamp and it hurts her when Bernice cuts the branches. Becoming scare, she decides to leave and call her superior to tell her about the experience she had in the swamp. The superior isn’t very sympathetic but finally offers another grad student (male) to go with her to the swamp. Bernice decides not to take the offer. When she goes back to the swamp, she is told by the old woman, that if she comes back again, she will be sorry. Why? What will the old woman do? Will Bernice go back?

This creepy story is well written. I wondered at first what the old lady was going to do. My favorite part was Bernice as she made decisions about what to do and followed through with it. The ending surprised me but I thought it was perfect. This is not a story to be missed!

Come Back to the Swamp by Laura Morrison is one of those novella that you can just imagine on the screen. The story is simple. Bernice, a graduate student is in the swamp trying to help clear out non-native plants when she runs into an old woman who claims she is the swamp. Using superhuman strength and speed, she drives Bernice out of the swamp. This starts a chain of events that really does feel like an episode of the new Creepshow or Twilight Zone TV series.. There are so many classic elements of suspense and horror that there is no denying the skills that Morrison possesses to make this story strong and keep the reader’s interest. There are many ways that this story could have been told in a way that makes it impossible to get into, but in this case, the writing and the pace feel just right. The way that this feels slow and deliberate throughout builds the tension and the ending is satisfying. Overall the entire story is entertaining, and I loved the way that it progressed. There is not much else to say about this novella. I enjoyed the time I spent reading it, and I will be excited if I learned that it is being adapted into a movie or TV show. I will definitely be recommending this to my horror reading friends.

I received this as an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Come back to the Swamp was a novella about a graduate student, Bernice, researching invasive species at Clearly Swamp. A fateful encounter with an old lady who tells her she is the hand of the swamp gives Bernice the opportunity to become the caretaker of the swamp itself. I found the magical realism angle of becoming one with the swamp and saving it interesting. Considering that Bernice was researching invasive species and the old lady had the power but not the motivation to get rid of them made me curious about what had called the old lady to the swamp. The repetitive sentence structures and certain unnecessary details were a little distracting from the plot. Bernice and Kevin's character could have been more fleshed out.

Overall, the novella was engaging and fast-paced. It made me think about the calling of nature and different ways in which care for nature can be manifested.

Many thanks to the publisher for providing me a complimentary review copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Quirky, fun novella about a girl who is chosen to be the next person to be a part of the swamp and how the feeling of madness affects her.

A short unnerving story about swamp magic and a legacy passed down through chance.

I liked the idea of the swamp magic and how it was passed from one person to the other, but I found the story to be a little lacking in detail, I needed a bit more substance. I wanted to know more about the previous swamp witch, I wanted to feel more for the main characters and I wanted more history about the swamp.

Fans of short, easy to read, suspense books will probably enjoy this.

I first read Laura Morrison in the anthology A Midnight Clear. Her story there was fun and funny.

There is some of that humor here, the main character, Bernice, being a young researcher full of irony. Even in the hardest parts of these novella it's hard to keep a straight face.

But the main plot of this story is quite terrifying and upsetting; it all in all makes for a good horror story that works very well.

Come Back to the Swamp was a very quick read, closer to a short story than a novella. Despite this, Bernice and Kevin were sympathetic characters, and their development helped drive the story forward. The swamp setting was unique, and one I enjoyed, though the magical link and powers of its caretaker was left somewhat underexplained. Likewise, the story’s antagonist was not given as much motivation or backstory as I would have liked; and the lack of twists or depth in Come Back to the Swamp’s plot did make the story less exciting than it could have been.
That’s not to say that there wasn’t tension. I enjoyed seeing Bernice and Kevin interact, and I liked the dilemma Bernice faced later in the novel as she came to terms with everything that had changed over the course of the story. I wasn’t overly fond of the conclusion of this story, but it was satisfying. I wish that more world building had happened to provide more motivation for Bernice and Rebecca alike, but given the short length of this story it was well constructed and fun. The ridiculous nature of some of the situations faced, the swamp setting and the surprisingly heart-warming moments in this story all reminded me of Molly Harper’s Mystic Bayou series, and I think anyone who enjoyed that series will enjoy this one.

"Come Back to the Swamp" is a great short novel featuring elements of mystery integrated into the botanical diversity of a swamp.

Come back to the Swamp by Laura Morrison, a fun quick read that helps highlight the dangers of invasive species in swamps.

REVIEW: COME BACK TO THE SWAMP by Laura Morrison

A darling, hopeful, and inspiring story, COME BACK TO THE SWAMP is a story of Cleary Swamp near Detroit, and the amazing adventures of a graduate student in Ecology. Bernice is determined on a Ph.D. track in environmental sciences, and part of her work is to try to eradicate invasive, non-native species. But in the swamp Bernice encounters a wild woman who insists she stop, because she is the swamp. Only a short time passes before the woman announces that Bernice is the swamp' s choice to replace her. Give up everything she's planned? Bernice thinks not, but this wild woman and the swamp definitely possess other, implacable, ideas.

I totally enjoyed this story. Suspension of disbelief was facile and nearly immediate (although not so for Bernice!)