This was a quick and entertaining read that I finished in a few hours.
A well written story that kept me hooked from the very beginning.
The characters draw you in and keeps you flipping the pages.
The characters were all realistic and very well developed.
I really enjoyed the writing style. I found myself hooked, turning the pages.

Loved it. Creepy, interesting back story, and a quick at the beach read. Looking forward to more by this author.

Southern Gothic is one of my very favorite horror subgenres and I'm from Ft. Myers so the setting definitely ticked some boxes for me. I'm also so glad that pink horror is gaining popularity. I read a lot of dark and heavy topics, and really appreciate when there's some hope. The relationship of the main character (Veronica) to her female family members was well done and added an element of mystery and survival instinct to the story. I'd also really like to visit Veronica's house because her decorating skills and antique/retro aesthetic sound top notch. I was pleasantly surprised at the folk horror present in this story, but felt like I was missing a bit of information about the gifts of the Old Mothers and their relationship to Veronica's beloved grandmother, who literally Wills her granddaughter the family trauma. I would have enjoyed seeing a bit more exploration of that betrayal. When the book eventually reaches its action-climax, it does not disappoint. There's gore, there's suspense, and there's a credenza. This one matched the summer reading mood I was in - it's quick, compelling, and makes you want to go to the beach to browse an antiques market. I'll happily reach for more of Dalrymple's books. Thank you to NetGalley and Quill & Crow Publishing House for the chance to review an eARC!

Wendy Dalrymple’s Credenza is a fast-paced, plot-driven horror novel that wastes no time drawing the reader in. The story centers around a cursed piece of furniture, passed down from mother to daughter through generations. The chilling pacing keeps the tension high throughout.

While the plot held my attention, I struggled to connect with the characters. As someone who tends to prefer character-driven narratives, I found myself wanting more emotional depth and development. That said, fans of atmospheric, plot-forward horror stories will likely find this an engaging and unsettling read.

This novel has all the makings of a great horror film!

I received a free arc from NetGally. I am voluntarily leaving a review.

I am not going to lie.

I was on a kick of sentient object romance books. I scrolled on Netgalley. I saw this title and cover. Now I know that I found it in horror and therefore it wasn't exactly the same as what I'd been reading, but boy did I click that request button fast based solely on the fact the book appeared to be about a piece of furniture.

And it sure was.

Cursed furniture that had a mean streak from the time our main character was a childhood. And a very very mysterious past/present/and future.

On top of that we have a single mom, family trauma, and an entire cast of characters that make you side eye everyone. Except the daughter, she was fun at all times.

The story is pretty standard as far as this type of horror lite goes, and I would absolutely add it to any pink horror lists. It was a shorter very... dare I say cozy read. I enjoyed it so much honestly that I forgot to take proper notes and will be rereading it to properly review it on my Instagram.

But for now thank you Netgalley, Quill & Crow, and Wendy Dalrymple for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I can't wait to read it again.

Yes, yes, this is about a cursed family heirloom. I’m still waiting on someone to do a possessed tea set tale.

I enjoyed the story, but Dalrymple isn’t reinventing the wheel here with the genre she’s chosen.
It’s definitely horror you can jump into and out of, if that makes sense. An enjoyable tale that you really don’t have to think too hard about. I wasn’t overly invested in the characters, but the plot kept me engaged.

I like that the author is doing “pink horror” stories, and recommend checking out her other books as well! Each of her stories has amazing covers that add flair to readers’ bookshelves as well.

Lastly I will be working hard at incorporating the word “credenza” in my day to day vocabulary because it’s tragically under-utilized.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Quill & Crow Publishing House for a copy.

Thank you to Net Galley and Quill & Crow Publishing House for this title.

This story is a quick read, clocking in at 199 pages. You could knock this out in an afternoon 📖. Credenza is creepy as hell, and you get a good bit of information from the prologue that briefly explains the tree that this cursed credenza hails from.

Our protagonist (single mom), Veronica, is trying to keep her online antique business thriving while raising her daughter, Star. Star’s father is only beginning to step back into the picture as he’s clean, sober, and ready to be a part of her life.

I like this character. She runs her own business, owns a home, and while things are not perfect, she’s making it work. I admire her hustle. Veronica is also grieving her recently deceased grandmother, Maddie, who raised her. Towards the end, Maddie had dementia, but Veronica still took the time to visit her with Star and make memories. She struggles without her. Veronica’s mother, Karen, is out of the picture and has been since she was two years old.

There is a reason Veronica’s mother, Karen, has stayed away, but after her mother’s death, she reaches out to Veronica about the credenza, pleading with her to get rid of it. As a child, she heard voices from the cabinet, but no one believed her. It only got worse after Star was born.

It was interesting to learn (not just the origins of the wood to make the credenza) but the reason behind why it was created, what it was used for, and the group of women who were tasked with protecting it.

This cabinet (throughout the years) would bring on mysterious beheadings, poisonings, and other deaths 💀. The best is saved for the last 15 pages of the story, and I usually would be mad at waiting so long, but the short story builds the tension, and some things are better left to the very end.

Great quick Summer horror read!

Credenza by Wendy Dalrymple is a dark, cursed object, horror novel that masterfully blends unsettling horror, familial relationships, and inherited generational trauma.

Veronica (Ronnie) is a single mother used to doing everything on her own. When her Grandma Maddie passes away, Ronnie only has her memories, a small box of items, and a credenza to remember her by. Hauling Grandma's credenza home is easy enough, but Ronnie doesn't realize exactly what she has let in to her house. Soon bizarre things start to happen. Ronnie and her daughter start hearing voices seemingly coming from the credenza, and a stranger is persistent in his quest to buy the mysterious object. What exactly is this credenza hiding and what has Ronnie allowed in her home?

For a shorter story, Credenza packs quite a punch. What I thought at first to be a straight up cursed heirloom novel quickly turned into something deeper and more meaningful. The way that Dalrymple explored the trauma that can be passed down and how difficult family relationships can be was perfect and it added a needed emotional depth to the narrative. The pacing was neither too rushed or too slow, rather a blend of tense buildup and then a twist or gore scene to shake things up a bit. Overall a great pink horror, cursed object horror story with emotional depth and ominous vibes!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Wendy Dalrymple, and Quill & Crow Publishing House for this ARC!! Publication date is June 13th 2025.

One of my favorite sub-genres of horror is cursed or possessed items. When I saw the premise for this book, I had to read it. From the very first pages to the satisfying end; this book hit all the spots for me. A piece of furniture built from cursed wood, a family with the mission of guarding cursed wood and what happens when the cursed item is let loose in the modern world. It would be bad enough to lose someone that was important in your life but hen to receive an heirloom that had a questionable history….way too much to handle. Veronica tried her best to dal with what hand she was dealt; both in family and life. So when she received the family heirloom of course she would be skeptical of there being something evil about the credenza. Even the name ‘credenza’ gives off some serious creepy vibes. When things begin to spiral out of control, I do not think Veronica was ready for what she was about to discover. The more she tried to find out about the credenza and the book she found within the more things began to unravel. Luckily she had her mom persistently trying to save her. I guess almost dying is enough for someone to finally connect the dots. Whew what a read this was! Makes one think about ‘vintage’ or ‘antique’ shopping.

Veronica is a single mother who owns a business dealing in vintage clothing and home items. When her dear grandmother passes on to the other side, she leaves her beloved credenza to Veronica. With new people and old loved ones suddenly coming into her life, the question is raised: Is the credenza just a valuable family heirloom or a cursed object out to ruin her family?

This story takes place in Florida near the Gulf Coast, where I spent my childhood. It is always fun to read stories set in areas you have a connection to. Credenza has been a fun horror story that mixes modern and gothic with just enough gore.

Before reading Credenza, I had never heard the term Pink Horror. Count me intrigued. I'll be searching out this sub-genre to see what other gems I can find.

This was my first read by this author but certainly won’t be my last. The gothic vibes are immaculate, and this cover is perfect for gals like me that love some #pinkhorror! Although this is largely a cursed object horror, the short novella offers so much more in terms of touching family moments, the dark side of family legacies and heirlooms, and the struggles of single motherhood. The author perfectly blends humor and horror in this one to create a lasting piece of gothic fiction that I will be thinking about. I will certainly be thinking of this the next time I need to buy a new piece of furniture - who would have thought that a credenza could offer so many frights?

A no nonsens straight forward haunted house story. It gives you a eery feeling, this one. It is an easy read about family connection and how far people will go to protect their family. A fast-paced horror story with some characters which are well described.
A good horror story with a utterly beautiful pink cover.
I had a great time reading this one!
Thank you Netgalley for my gifted copy.

I’m writing this as I’m sitting next to my antique armoire that survived a house fire giving it major eye after this one.

I loved this! This is about family and what we pass down. I really don’t want to spoil too much about this because I feel it’s best gone in as blind as possible but I will warn that cannibalism plays a factor and is depicted rather graphically.

I grabbed this off of Netgalley to read on a whim, and no regrets.

Am I a sucker for a pink cover?
Yeah I am but it was in the horror section, so that’s my story.

I love a story where someone dies ( lord was that morbid lol ) and they will someone something, sometimes its a house and sometimes its a uh supernatural credenza possibly from hell.

Veronica has this covered, she has everything covered, kind of have too when you always have to do everything on your own, so hauling this piece of furniture home, not a big deal, and after always having to work for everything, I know the feeling of finally getting something nice for free, and all you need to do is get it home.

When things get weird, and a creepy guy shows up wanting the credenza, you start to wonder, what secrets was granny hiding ?
This isn’t what you think, but it is what you think, I really did think I knew exactly what I was getting into with this book, but I was so wonderfully surprised to get much more.

This wont be my last book by Wendy, this was beautiful and horrifying and some how wholesome, with twists that kept me on my toes, wondering, what really is going on with this family and this credenza, is it just a simple cursed object or are there more factors at play, making things, complicated and crazy in a way no one really expected?

Check it out.

3.5 rounded down.

Single mother, Veronica, was very close with her Grandmother, who passes away. All that she has left are her memories, a box with a few of her items, and Grandma's credenza. After bringing it into her home, bizarre things begin to happen. Are those voices she hears coming from Granny's credenza? Who is this stranger offering her large sums of money to purchase it off of her?

This reads like a straightforward haunted/possessed item with a touch more care given to our main character's personality and backstory. There is quite a bit surrounding Veronica's mother and their lack of relationship...but instead of exploring that further, I felt like it was all just a quick fix in the end. After a decent amount of buildup, I felt that the end was a bit rushed and didn't 100% make sense. Overall, it was a decent read, but could be improved.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this novel for my honest review

I was pulled into this story by the exceptional writing. But the intriguing plot made me unable to put it down. This is essentially a haunted/possessed object story, however, it delves so much up deeper into things that make this story unique. It was spooky and it had heart.

I think that this is a well written spooky story. I did struggle with the mother connection in is at I have poor relationship with my own mother but I felt that this was still a good story.

At a basic level this is a cursed object (credenza) story, but the use of old magic, religious ceremonies, and family trauma to drive the story was really well done here. I wanted more about the Old Mothers, The Divinity and the Dead Wood. It felt like a lot of that part of the story was *told* to the reader near the end of the book rather than being *shown* throughout the book. It was told with various points of view and timelines, so parts were shown during those segments from the past. It feels like there are more stories to tell about the Old Mothers, The Divinity and the Dead Wood.

The family trauma, grief, and mother/daughter relationships were beautifully done. I was so invested in the story of this family and these women through multiple generations. The majority of the story felt like more of a mysterious vibe rather than horror. But near the end the horror certainly ramped up and things got a bit gory.

I read this so fast. It's a relatively short, easy read, and I really enjoyed it and didn't want to put it down. I look forward to reading more by Wendy Dalrymple. Thank you to NetGalley and Quill & Crow Publishing House for an advanced e-copy of this book. All thoughts expressed herein are my own.

To be honest, CREDENZA by Wendy Dalrymple is exactly what I want in a horror book. 

For one, the characters are realistic and relatable. Ronnie, the main character, isn't perfect—she's dealing with complications in her career, her family, and in her personal relationships. Her daughter Star is spending more time with her father, who only reappeared in their lives recently, and Ronnie's mother, who she hasn't seen in years, is acting crazier than ever.

Likewise, as most of the horror stories I enjoy, the spooky stuff isn't really the point. I enjoyed following Ronnie as she balanced the difficulties of her everyday life with the weirdness of her grandmother's credenza. Sure, the ancient piece of furniture is creepy—she gets a gross splinter from it, and has started seeing things in her house—but it feels more like a mystery to solve than a problem.

For these reasons, Dalrymple's book is a fun spooky story that wasn't trying too hard to be literary and, yet, told its tale in a compelling way. More than creepy, CREDENZA is simply a fun, spooky read.

Until you get to the last 10% of the book.

That's the moment CREDENZA truly lives up to its horror label. Those last few chapters are pretty fucked up—in the creepiest, goriest way possible. Here, not only does the shit truly hit the fan, and not only does the mystery come together in an unpredictable way, but the themes are revealed in a compelling way.

Because CREDENZA is not really a book about haunted furniture. It's really a book about what it takes to protect family, about the curses that can haunt generations, about believing the people around us, and about second (and third, and fourth) chances.

Again, CREDENZA features a lot of what I love in any horror book—relateable characters, horror as a complication rather than the point. But the themes and its build-up to truly creepy, disturbing details made this one of the most fun horror novel I've read this year.

A Mesmerizing, Macabre Gem!

“Credenza” by Wendy Dalrymple is an absolute treat for horror fans who appreciate a touch of whimsy mixed with the sinister. From the very first page, Dalrymple draws you in with her trademark voice—a blend of wit, charm, and an undercurrent of creeping dread that’s impossible to shake.

The story centers on Veronica, who inherits her grandmother’s antique credenza—a seemingly harmless piece of furniture that quickly reveals a dark side. Dalrymple masterfully transforms the ordinary into the uncanny, weaving a tapestry of family secrets, unsettling inheritances, and a piece of furniture that feels disturbingly alive.

What really makes this book shine is Dalrymple’s gift for character. Veronica is instantly relatable, her skepticism giving way to curiosity and then to sheer terror in a way that feels heartbreakingly human. The supporting cast adds layers of humor and horror, grounding the story while letting its twisted heart unfurl.

The writing is sharp, fresh, and evocative. Dalrymple captures both the nostalgia of a grandmother’s house and the menace of something lurking within its walls. Her pacing is spot-on, building tension with each turn of the page until you can’t look away—and you absolutely can’t put it down.

If you love horror that’s both elegant and unsettling—where the line between the mundane and the macabre is deliciously blurred—then “Credenza” is a must-read. Wendy Dalrymple has crafted a haunting, unforgettable tale that lingers like a chill in the bones. Five stars, and then some.