I really enjoyed the use of a painting and using that as a horror element. It was realistic and worked with the genre, I was invested in what was happening to the characters and the world they lived in. It was a strong story and I was engaged with the way Sean Eads & Joshua Viola wrote this.

I loved the concept but the actual story kind of lost me. The writing was good but the plot overall was not very engaging and I felt lost.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #BloodBoundBooks for sending this book for review consideration through NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This is a story about vampires. But not the traditional way mythical vampires suck blood; it sucks the life out of the living like a painter drains color from a canvas.

Cole Sharpe has been having nightmares ever since his dad died tragically in a fire that consumed the Gone By Morning exhibit. Then, he meets Mikey, a jovial neo-telepath who can interpret dreams and uses his talent to help Cole understand what his dreams mean. But as his nightmares become hallucinations, so does the mystery behind certain art paintings. These paintings, housed in the most visited art galleries in New Florence, have become vessels of hypnotic influence. As Cole investigates two people in a trance-like stupor from being fixated on the reworked paintings, he is soon led to an alternate plane called Midnight Village, where the Master of the Night conducts his final masterpiece.

“Stolen Pallor” combines horror fiction and the underbelly of sacred art, crafting a dark narrative that depicts human ambition and exploitation in the guise of artistic expression. The lush and provocative prose adds depth to the story, immersing readers in the dichotomy of illusion and reality, madness and sanity, teacher and student, and good and evil.

Understanding the very fiber of this story on the first pass is already a feat. I had to re-read certain parts to understand what was happening. It took more than just the plot’s context to understand every symbolism and metaphor and how it relates to either art or religion or how it resonates with me as a potter of my own craft.

A novella has little room to expand its horizon, yet “Stolen Pallor” holds enough gothic and sinister atmosphere and sensual intrigue for readers to devour its pages until the end. There are a hundred different ways to interpret its text. The themes explored run the gamut of sacred art, religion, faith, idolatry, and fanaticism. Only long after I’d finished the novella had I considered other themes that came to mind: mortality, ambition, and hubris. If a novel, much less a novella, could make me come up with more than a couple of social ills and human folly to talk about, then I must have been more absorbed in its pages than I could care to admit.

I would have wanted its ending done differently, considering its buildup. I assume the lengthy descriptive writing already took up much of the space. And I preferred it to have toned down explicit scenes that I find unnecessary. Despite its misgivings, it’s a short story worthy of introspection, going beyond its juxtaposition of artistic genius and madness.

DNF’’d. The concept and summary of the book was very intriguing, hence the request. However, the storyline becoming overly complicated without any background. I was absolutely lost once Dimwitter became fixed on the painting and there was a portal? I was unable to follow moving forward.

Stolen Pallor

By Sean Eads & Joshua Viola

Complete ARC Copy Review

A private eye dealing with his own trauma attempts to foil an anonymous artist from completing his final macabre masterpiece.

I have to be honest, when I started this novella I was not very entranced. In fact, I actually restarted it because I had zoned out and not really registered anything I had read the first time. But I liked the premise so I started over and did my best to focus better. And I'm glad I did.

Stolen Pallor didn't grab my attention right away but it didn't take long before I was enjoying the story. The idea of Midnight Village reminded me a lot of Simon R. Green's Nightside and I wish this novella was a full novel if only to explore more of this creepy place.

The main character, Cole, was likable enough however I got a little sick of every other thing his boyfriend Mikey said being a come on. But still it wasn't annoying enough to ruin the story. The attention to detail was exquisite and once the story got moving it didn't slow down. If I had to pick one thing that did take me out of the story however, it would be the name of the villain. To me it seemed "cartoony" and a bad play on the name Banksy. In a story about horror and death, the silly name kicked me out of a horror mood every time it was mentioned. Other than that I enjoyed the novella, it is a quick but solid read.

3 out of 5 stars.

A quick and engaging read, Stolen Pallor was a strange and terrifying glimpse into the dark side of the art world.

I’ve never read anything before that had art and artists as the primary driver for horror, it was a unique take! I felt this novella was eloquently written, it was fast paced and smooth in its storytelling.

I did miss a little bit of connection to the characters, I think this novella could have benefitted from another 40-50 pages of storytelling to flush out the relationships between characters and build more of a reader connection to them.

That being said, I really enjoyed the imagery and depth of the world, as a visual reader it’s always a great treat to read a well flushed out environment in a book. It makes you feel like you are part of the world too! (Although I think I’ll pass, if I was to be invited).

I grabbed this little read on NetGalley, and my review is 100% voluntary.

This was such a weird reading experience for me. Technically, there was a lot to like here—there’s a great art-based concept and strong writing. It was imaginative and original.
On the other hand, it completely failed to engage emotionally or intellectually. The story got too trippy for its own good, losing the plot amid the rambly narrative.
Try as I might, it just didn’t hold my interest, and I was glad to see the end of it and grateful for the relatively brief page count. A lot of potential mostly wasted. Thanks Netgalley.

Rating: 3.5 stars!

Stolen Pallor is a beautifully poetic art piece. The book is almost SO eloquently written that it made it harder to read for someone with a more basic vocabulary. I felt myself stopping every couple sentences to look words up to fully understand the environment being described. The relationships (artist / teacher / boyfriend / father) in the book were interesting to follow, but due to the length of the book, I never felt like I was able to get invested in any of them. Overall, the book is a work of art, but not necessarily for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Blood Bound Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a beautifully written book. When Cole is hired to investigate why some people are becoming entranced by certain paintings he never thought it would lead him to what was really behind the death of his father. Fast paced and so full of detail that you can see in your minds eye the bright and colorful descriptions of New Florence and the dark shadow world of Midnight Village. Excellent book!

Unfortunately for me, this was a case of the summary being more compelling than the actual story. The concept and setting is interesting, yet nothing is really explained well and there's little character development or world building due to how short the book is. I didn't find the investigation interesting or the relationship engaging. By the end, I didn't feel like the story was satisfying since it barely had a chance to start. Given more space to develop the plot, I think this book would've been a fun read.