I always enjoy a modern spin on an old story. So I loved how Phantom Circuit takes on the Bloody Mary legend using computers as a medium. This happens within a stream of consciousness narrative that deals with the questions of what happens when a loved one with a social media presence dies.

The main characters internal dialogue reads as a beautiful meditation on the nature of issues and grief. There are not a lot of stories that deal with the nature of losing someone who still has an internet footprint so it is refreshing that this book ventures into this direction.

The story maintains a good balance between being reflective and using supernatural horror to entertain. I would definitely recommend it to fans of horror and dark fantasy!

Thank you Netgalley for my advanced reader's copy.

I am also posting my review on Goodreads.

<b>3.5 Stars</b>
I love horror that incorporates technology so I was very excited for this novel. I really enjoyed how the story took the idea of the Bloody Mary urban myth into a modern world. Likewise, I enjoy stories that incorporate grief, so that aspect also really appealed to me.

In terms of execution, I liked but did not love this one. Despite the intimate perspective we got of a woman mourning her sister, I just failed to become emotionally attached to the narrative which made it hard to be invested in the overall story.

Depsite my reservations, I would recommend this one to readers look for a unique modern take on the tale of Bloody Mary.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

Thank you NetGalley for letting me read this arc!

I loved the story - a modern day Bloody Mary tgat can see everything through any reflective surface, not just a mirror. I did how ever not finish this book but not by account of the story.

I read half the book before I realised that I was reading it because I HAD to and not because I wanted to so I didn't finish it. It just happens to be written in a way that I do not enjoy. Like I said its a good story, I just happen to not like the way the author writes. But if you have any interest in the Bloody Mary legend you should totally give this a read!

This book had a great concept and some beautifully built characters/relationships, but ultimately it let me down.

Erica is processing the death of her sister Dianne when she receives a message from someone who has hacked her account, sending her messages using Dianne's name. Except it isn't a hacker, but a young woman named Macy who lived over a century ago. Macy has been trapped in the realm belonging to Bloody Mary on the other side of the mirror, and needs Erica's help to escape.

This story had so much potential, but I think it was a little ambitious. Much of the dialogue is in the form of online correspondence, and contains so much exposition that it feels like the characters are telling you a story directly instead of having any sort of natural interaction, written or not. The world building needed for the concept is certainly intensive, but so much of it felt forced into Macy's initial pleas to Erica that it took me out of the book, never to find myself fully immersed in the narrative again.

There were some definite positives that would like to mention, though. The relationship between Erica and Dianne was done well, with a lot of Erica's grief and internal conflict about her sister's death (and life) feeling very convincing and natural. The story itself was imaginative and interesting, based on one of those ideas that could be a real jaw-dropper if the author had written it a few years later.

I think if the exposition had been toned down in the initial chapters, the book would have really grabbed me rather than kicked me out of the narrative. The concepts here lend themselves to so much mystery, but needed to be teased out a little more to keep them compelling.

Despite my complaints about The Phantom Circuit, I would still like to see more from this author thanks to the great concept and characters.

As someone who has gone through similar situations with my sister, being the best of friends then having falling outs and not speaking for months at a time, this book was so relatable as well as so insanely heartbreaking to read. The story is so original and I do not know the last time I enjoyed reading a book this much.

The story captured me from the first paragraph! Can seem to be confusing at times - then quickly comes together in a jaw dropping, breath-taking way!

DNF @ 20%

I really wanted to love this - I thought the premise sounded really interesting but I struggled from the beginning with the writing style, and then the plot was weird and confusing and I literally just couldn't keep reading it.

The Phantom Circuit is a psychological horror tale that left me terrified to use my electronic devices during and after devouring this book. The author has a unique and intriguing ability to pull the reader into the story, much like his character, Bloody Mary’s ability to pull her victims into her horrifying realm beyond the grave. I’ll be following this author, for sure!

Thank you Netgalley and Author Austin Farmer for this ARC.

I so wanted to like this book, however, the writing was all over the place and I was too confused to follow along with what was going on.

This was honestly really really great. The concepts within the book were super interesting and of course this is now an author I’ll definitely keep an eye out for!