In 2019 my health started going down hill and I didn't take into consideration what that would mean for my book reviewing. Sadly, I've been trying to play catch up for years and it's been affecting my ability to keep up with present day tasks. So I greatly apologize for this but I am going to clear out all these older review books and focus on present day. I will come back and update this review if I end up reading the book, which is very possible as a lot of these books are still ones I would like to read, I just don't think the pressure looming over me is helpful. Thank you for giving me a chance to early read these books and I am so sorry I wasn't able to provide what was needed.

**3.5 stars**

This was a good, quick, creepy read. Being a novella there wasn’t a lot of character development but what there was, was good. I’d like to know more about Goat. At the end there’s a mention of more novellas coming but I couldn’t find any on Goodreads, I’d read more from this author.

Goodreads has this listed under the wrong Keith Thomas.

**Thanks to the author and publisher for the e-arc I received via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. I received this in 2022 but just now read it.**

I really hated The Dunnie by Keith Thomas. Sorry guys! It was not for me, personally. I am still thankful that I got to read this! I probably will not read anything from this author again.

Thank you to Netgalley for the early coy of The Dunny. This novella was a fun read! It grabbed my attention very quickly and I sped through it in two sittings. The only part that lulled a little bit was towards the end. I loved the description of the creature, very creepy! I will definitely be reading more from this author.

I was very eager to enjoy this book, but I've realized that horror through the eyes of children is just not for me. I wish I could have enjoyed it more as there were some genuinely scary moments.

2.5 Stars

Unfortunately I was really disappointed with this book.

My biggest issue was the writing style. There were a lot of info dumps from the very beginning to the end of the book, the author would insert random information into sentences and they information was never brought up or useful after that.

I struggled to understand why Beth, would move far away from her abusive father and then have a child and bring him around her father so much that the son felt more comfortable in that house than most other places. Another thing was that Asher had a complete 180 in terms of personality, especially in regards to his behaviour towards his mother, and it was very sudden and I felt there was no substantial build up to it.

The horror element was the redeeming quality as I feel it was done quite well and definitely involved a creepy atmosphere.

The ending also felt very rushed and didn't do a good job wrapping up the story in my opinion

When I saw that the author of this novella was the director of one of the best episodes of Guillermo de Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, Pickman’s Model, I knew it was a must read. And while The Dunnie didn’t include an appearance from @benbarnes, it was still quite enjoyable, despite being decidedly less hot.

I went in not knowing what to expect, since being a good director doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll a good novelist — luckily Thomas is a multifaceted talent.

Novellas are inherently hard to review without spoiling anything since they’re so compact and dense. They’re my favorite form to consume horror and I strongly believe that going in blind to a good novella is one of the most magical feelings, second only to the first week of the launch of a FromSoftware game.

The Dunnie is fun, creepy, and thoughtfully constructed, even if it is a bit predictable.

I’m looking forward to the future interconnected stories that Thomas is planning!

4/5 ⭐️

Creepy cover , eerie and scary , and will have you staying up at night , perfect to read doing a storm or when your up by self like I was, plus it's the perfect October reading .

The cover got me! I was way too excited when I started to read it. Very scary and scary. I will reread around Halloween. Thank you for giving me a chance to read. Can’t wait to read more books from this author in the near future.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read a copy of this book.

I enjoyed this book more than I was expecting to. There were parts that had me wanting to read with the light on and wondering what else would happen. I found the pacing to be perfect as there was just enough going on to keep you wanting to read more.

If you are a fan of creepy creatures lurking about...pick up this book.

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book!

Although I loved it and it is very short, I have given it 3 stars because I expected a little more, the book is not bad at all but I thought it would scare me a little more with the story and with the description of the monster The Dunnie , BUT maybe another person if the monster scares him!

The story is about Asher who is going to visit his grandfather with his mother, but when he gets home he begins to feel and see strange things in addition to the strange behavior of his grandfather, until finally one day he meets The Dunnie and his grandfather begins to explain some things to him.

I highly recommend this book for those people who seek to be scared not only by the monster, but also by things from the past that today can have serious consequences.

I was seeing that there are other books by the author like a kind of series? If so, I would be very interested in reading them.

"Dunnie" by Keith Thomas offers an intricate blend of familial dynamics, mental health exploration, and chilling supernatural elements. While some of the plot transitions are less smooth than could be desired, Thomas expertly crafts an atmosphere of escalating tension as the horrifying secret in Asher's grandfather's home begins to unravel. The book's exploration of the transformational power of memory, coupled with its nuanced character development, makes for a compelling, if occasionally uneven, read.

A spooky little folk horror novella that features a young lad trying to save his grandpa and family from the Dunnie, a supernatural creature created by the vomit of all of the anger and nastiness of Pa in his earlier years. There's a strange cunning man appropriately named Goat, a ritual known as the Chundering that produces our wee little Dunnie, and lots and lots of arcane symbols drawn everywhere and on everything. I thought this was a fun book, with sufficient spookiness and one gory scene to whet my appetite. I also appreciated that "to chunder" is a slang term for "to vomit" in Australian English, and a dunnie is also the loo. So, there's that lovely bit of toilet humor for the eternal juvenile within me.

3.5 rounded up to a four.

When I requested this book from NetGalley, I didn't realize that the author was also the director of a movie I quite enjoyed, The Vigil. This novella is in the same vein as that, and while it definitely had its flaws, it was still a quick and satisfying read.

I'll admit I liked the beginning more than the end. There was a sense of creeping dread that I felt built rather well, with some nicely eerie descriptions. Once the Dunnie fully appears, however, I felt it fall apart a little- it felt less like "adult horror" and more like "children's adventure" to me, with a bit more gore than expected from the latter. I'll fully admit that this is probably due to my own personal tastes; more often than not, I'm a hard sell for a story with a child or teenage protagonist.

The author mentioned in the post-story notes that he plans on writing a collection of stories like this, and I definitely would be interested in checking that out if it comes to fruition.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

The Dunnie by Keith Thomas is a well-crafted bit of folk horror that I enjoyed reading earlier this month.

In this novella, we meet Asher, a 12-year-old boy dealing with school troubles and a family in turmoil. As Asher accompanies his mother and aunt to his grandfather's house, he is drawn to the books and curiosities that fill the old home — along with the strange noises emanating from the vents. His grandfather, battling dementia, rambles on about a creature called "The Dunnie." Seeking answers, he builds an uneasy alliance with a creepy man called Goat, uncovering a dark family secret.

Not gonna lie, I chose this one for the cover, but was happy to discover the story was surprisingly good. Recommended for fans of folk horror.

Ok, so when I go into reading an “indie” horror novel, I usually go in expecting to intensely dislike it because, honestly, that’s usually how it goes for me. I end up hating it because it’s either horribly written, makes no sense, or is just not fear-inducing whatsoever. I was pleasantly surprised by The Dunnie.

Now, I’m not going to pretend that this book was super fear-inducing, because for me it wasn’t. But I’ll be honest, I don’t scare easily when it comes to horror novels or movies. But this book was very creepy.

It took me a bit to get into it, but once I got going, I flew through the book. Granted, it’s only about 150 pages long… but still. Once I got into it, I just didn’t want to put it down. In fact, I don’t think I did except for when I absolutely had to (aka, I had to tend to certain physical and medical needs).

I loved the concept – having a creature born of the qualities that a person wants to rid themselves of, then later on them having to fight that creature off and destroy it as best they can to ensure the safety of their loved ones. It made for a very interesting story line and one that honestly, I’d read again… which is good because The Dunnie isn’t the only book Keith Thomas has written in this particular vein.

The book is extremely well written…. which I’d hope so since Keith Thomas is a screenwriter and director who wrote/directed THE VIGIL and directed the “Pickman’s Model” episode of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities (on Netflix, at least in the US).

I give this a solid 4 stars because it’s a great, short horror novel. I’ll definitely be looking into reading some of the others that follow it!

Thank you NetGalley for allowing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The first thing that interested me in reading this book has definitely got to be the cover. I mean just look at it! (Serious creepy vibes right there, along with the title in general. Just what exactly is a "Dunnie"?) This book was interesting from beginning to end, fast-paced, exciting and the definition of horror. I could also the genre fitting as psychological thriller as well based on the emotional abuse, dementia and all of the emotions the characters feel.

This book fits perfect as a novella, it wasn't too short nor too long, but got its message across clear during the length of the book. I don't think it would have benefitted being longer because it would have had useless dialogue and take away from the story overall. The characters were a bit flat, other than Asher and Pa of course, but there was much time explaining in depth what the Dunnie looks like, what it likes to eat and how it came to be.

Now this book is definitely something I could see being turned into a movie someday. It had the right amount of scare factor, buildup and creepy characters. You never know what could be lurking in the shadows (and in this case, vents) and how you may be afraid of the dark and falling asleep for the rest of your life. Shape shifters creep me out and I would never want to be in the same room as a Dunnie, no thanks!

I will definitely be reading more by Keith Thomas in the future.

Rating: 2.75 leaves out of 5
Characters: 3/5
Cover: 2.5/5
Story: 3/5
Writing: 2.75/5
Horror: 3/5
Genre: Horror/Mythology/Fantasy
Type: Ebook
Worth?: Yes

Want to thank Netgalley and publishers for giving me the chance to read this book.

When I started this book I didn't think I would really like it. The writing wasn't it and the characters weren't giving to me what I wanted but as I kept reading I found myself wanting to read more. I stayed up late last night to read and if I hadn't had a headache I would have finished it.

I didn't like Pa and I took a huge problem with the mom taking him over there so much that he knew him well. But they explained some thing on what happened after the beginning. There were times when I was a bit confused but it all smoothed out as I read more.

For horror? I am rating it a bit high because I was scared to go to bed a bit. That is a win in my book!

A growing up boy, his dementia laden grandfather and a mythical monster set in a story of folklore and magic.
It was a fab little story, a quick enough read but atmospheric and creepy in all the best places. Definitely recommend.

This was an interesting story. I really like how the author describes Dunnie. I had never heard of such a character. I like the main character of the story, the grandson. This was a good horror book.