Disingenuous Solace Volume 1 by Ronaldo Katwaroo is a collection of horrific short stories set in Serendipity Forest where nothing is quite as it seems and darkness lurks in the shadows.
I’m going to call it right now, Ronaldo Katwaroo is a name you’re going to want to keep an eye on!
Let’s dive in!
My Thoughts on Disingenuous Solace Volume 1 by Ronaldo Katwaroo
Ronaldo Katwaroo has such a cool collection here. Not only does each story stand well on it’s own, but each tale also has a tie into the next tale that allows them to flow together wonderfully! For example, in one story, there’s a sign for a diner, and the next story is set in an apartment above that diner.
This collection also has a lot of horrific characters and beings from shapeshifters and ghosts to witches and murderers, and many things in-between. There’s also a very dark being lurking in shadows of each tale that makes himself known every now and then, but hasn’t yet come out in full force.
The way this author creates atmosphere and slowly dials up the tension and terror is so perfectly done. There were many twists and turns throughout that I didn’t anticipate in the slightest, and endings that made me shout, “WHAT?!”
Needless to say, I was sucked right into this collection and absolutely loved each tale.
Here are my thoughts on each story:
Suffer-Kate –
After being abducted, this woman is left behind, locked in a box of thick glass. With the approaching storm, the box is filling with water, and she thinks this is the end. It someone isn’t quite finished with her yet.
Okay, right off the bat, my claustrophobia kicked in here. The description of the box she was in was terrifying! And that ending…
Blood Book –
Determined to avenge his girlfriend, this boy will do whatever it takes. Unfortunately for him, his time spent in disbelief had already done its damage.
I was so nervous each step of the way of this one! My goodness the body horror here made me squirm. The bit about the worm… I just shuddered typing that out! Yuck!
Suspicious Motion –
Running from her husband, this woman receives help from a sheriff and arrives at an abandoned house with quite the history. She plans to stay here for a bit until things clam back down. But she’s run from one monster to the next.
I loved the set up of the house here! I was so nervous to see where things were going to go. This one was filled with lovely twists and turns!
Dinner Time –
When a sheriff and a deputy show up to this woman’s home, they’re convinced that she murdered two missing men and are determined to find proof. They tear her home apart, but can’t find anything. Succumbing to her amazing cooking, they eat special pies before they leave.
My goodness. This one has some major Sweeney Todd vibes! I loved this one! The little bits of foreshadowing here was lovely.
Inside the House –
While at work, this young man gets the apparently usual paranoid texts from his girlfriend. After she goes dark after 45 minutes, he thinks something is wrong. Rushing to her house, he goes to see if she is safe. But there’s someone else in the house.
This was so unsettling! The opening scene at the pizza place was tense, but it only got much more tense from there on out!
Silent Knife –
When a girl walks into a library, our narrator fills us in on her life. What seems like typical jealousy takes a very sharp turn into obsessive, and things really go sideways.
When this story took a turn, my stress immediately spiked. Being inside this characters head was wild!
Snow at the Gemini Hotel –
Struggling with internal demons while on a getaway at a hotel, this woman awakens to a much different scene than when she had slept.
My Favorite Passages from Disingenuous Solace Volume 1
Plastic bags rustled in the wind, crashing into a ghost-town, crumbling under the weight of unrest as they raged on like miniature thunderstorms in an otherwise silent street.
The lake, a breeding ground for fog, a tapestry of wild weeds and black-stone shores, walking distance from the school, was off limits after that one girl drowned a few years ago. They reopened it last year, three years affer the drowning, just in time for the police to unearth skeletal remains beneath the lakebed and close it off from the pubic yet again; for good this time.
Do yourself a favour, stop for a second, bok around you, lest you fall victim to the same fate she will. You have every right to be afraid of that odd shadow in the comer, of that mysterious thump you may have heard. It’s all intentional, it’s all part of the plan. Us prowlers always have a plan.
This vacation was supposed to be something special, a retreat from her life problems. But instead, her demons came along for the ride, they made her lash out at her family, made her do something she didn’t want to.
My Final Thoughts on Disingenuous Solace Volume 1
Ronaldo and I met on Twitter, and I am so grateful that our paths crossed! This is such an awesome and haunting collection of stories that ramped up as each story passed. I cannot wait to see what comes next!
Snag a copy using my Amazon Affiliate link or inquire at your local indie:
Thanks for reading!
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