Josie is at rock bottom, living a haunted existence after returning to her isolated hometown on the edge of the Forest of Dean. When she stumbles across a decaying, ant-infested body in the woods, Josie plummets into a downward spiral, facing uncomfortable truths about the victim and her own past – all whilst battling a growing infestation of her mind . . . and her flesh.
Desperate to solve the case, Josie scratches the surface of an age-old mystery – a masked predator stalks the forest around Ellwood, a place deeply gripped by folklore. As the village prepares for its annual festival, Josie gets closer and closer to unveiling a monster, and begins to ask herself:
Are these dark crawling insects leading her to uncover the truth? Or is she their next victim? 🐜
Dark bleatings, my beautiful tribe. Well, she’s done it. Gemma. That Amor lady. She’s done it. She’s written a book I love even more than ‘Full Immersion’, and considering that I gave that book a score of like, 27 out of 5, that was a tall order. This author always writes about mental health in truly immersive, interesting, and horrifying ways, and somehow never puts a foot wrong with her representation, sensitivity, or sincerity.
ITCH! is the story of Josie, a woman who has moved back home with her dad following a hideous “domestic” incident with her now ex. Before she even has time to breathe, she stumbles across the dead body of a woman, feels increasingly plagued by creepy crawlies, and begins experiencing flashbacks of what initially appear to be relatively harmless, even wholesome, childhood moments. Throw in the hint of possible folk horror, a small town setting, and the added bonus of a rounded, realistic protagonist that is unbelievably easy to get behind, and you have the book of my dreams.
In my humble opinion, Amor’s skill when it comes to the complexity of her characters, and the precision and clever details she uses to unravel the little pieces of her plots, just goes from strength to strength with each new book. There are seemingly “unimportant” details that feel thrown in to this story, the kind of things you think are just there for a little character or relationship background, that actually turn out to be extremely vital elements to Josie’s development and story. When it comes to laying breadcrumbs that lead to expansive gingerbread mansions, she’s the best.
If you’re a horror fan that loves detailed characters, immersive storytelling, and horror that hits you in multiple subgenres, then I wholeheartedly recommend this. I think it’s Amor’s best work so far, and that’s saying something because she’s consistently great.
If you’d like to check out the book or the author, I’ve popped some links below for you:
Bleeeeat!
Happy Goat Horror 
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