Book Review: Black Sheep | Rachel Harrison

I don’t tend to read a lot of horror, mostly because I don’t enjoy the gore aspect as much. When I heard about the (controversial) concept of cozy horror, I was instantly intrigued. Like cozy mysteries as they relate to the broader mystery genre, cozy horror beings the complexity and vividness of horror without the heavy emphasis on gore. It’s horror that is approachable for those who want the emotions that great horror can spark without the overreliance on terror.

Rachel Harrison’s Black Sheep is a perfect example of what this new exploration of horror can bring to the table. The terror comes from the feeling of tension and anxiety throughout the book. There is light gore, but it plays more on the idea of what occurs rather than direct descriptions of anything gory. This is the sort of book that encouraged me to appreciate a genre that I can sometimes shy away from.

About the Book | Black Sheep

A cynical twentysomething must confront her unconventional family’s dark secrets in this fiery, irreverent horror novel from the author of Such Sharp Teeth and Cackle.

Nobody has a “normal” family, but Vesper Wright’s is truly…something else. Vesper left home at eighteen and never looked back—mostly because she was told that leaving the staunchly religious community she grew up in meant she couldn’t return. But then an envelope arrives on her doorstep.

Inside is an invitation to the wedding of Vesper’s beloved cousin Rosie. It’s to be hosted at the family farm. Have they made an exception to the rule? It wouldn’t be the first time Vesper’s been given special treatment. Is the invite a sweet gesture? An olive branch? A trap? Doesn’t matter. Something inside her insists she go to the wedding. Even if it means returning to the toxic environment she escaped. Even if it means reuniting with her mother, Constance, a former horror film star and forever ice queen.

When Vesper’s homecoming exhumes a terrifying secret, she’s forced to reckon with her family’s beliefs and her own crisis of faith in this deliciously sinister novel that explores the way family ties can bind us as we struggle to find our place in the world. (Synopsis from Goodreads)

Review | Black Sheep

I was absolutely hooked on this book start to finish. An impressive feat when the main character is somewhat unlikable! Part of what is gripping about the book is learning more about the religious cult that Vesper grew up in. Another part that sneaks up on the reader is the mystery of who exactly invited Vesper to return after she had been banished. This puzzle seems simple at first, but as the story gets more twisted it becomes apparent that there is much more going on than the reader or Vesper herself realized.

Vesper is a stunningly beautiful woman with a face that she inherited from her mother Constance—an icon to horror movie fans and one of the original scream queens. When the book opens, Vesper is fired from her waitressing job and we learn that she left home at eighteen, fleeing the religious cult where she was raised. Since the cult practices ex-communication, Vesper has not been allowed to return nor has she been contacted by any of the people she left behind. Until she receives an invitation to her cousin’s wedding (conveniently to the only man Vesper had ever loved).

The story follows Vesper as she returns home for the wedding. There’s a lot to unpack here, particularly around the long-term impact being raised in a cult had on Vesper as an adult. There is more going on with Vesper than being raised in the cult. The thing about Vesper that was the most interesting was that she chose to leave a cult without any exposure to other ideology. That Vesper was adored by the members of the cult is another fascinating twist. They may be upset that she left, but they seem glad to see her back (even if their hopes are up that she plans to rejoin permanently).

Vesper is often unlikable, though at the same time the reader feels sympathetic towards her. Vesper is self-absorbed, and she often does things to others that are quite hurtful. We see this pattern with her and her cousin Rosie, and we see it repeat with a coworker and friend of hers. The reader is left wondering if Vesper was always this self-serving, or if this a by-product of her upbringing. Even more, is this the characteristic in Vesper that gave her the courage and will to leave everything she knew behind? The reader may not like Vesper, but she commands a certain level of respect.

The nature of the cult itself is revealed quickly in the book, though this could be considered mild spoilers for those going in blind. The reveal of the cult absolutely tickled me. I didn’t realize that we have bias when it comes to cults, in that I think most readers assumed the same thing I did. While Vesper mentions that people have certain connotations if she reveals she was raised in a religious cult, the impact of that statement is even funnier when we learn what exactly the nature of the cult’s beliefs are. The dark side to cults is contrasted with an almost Disney-like feel. This alone added a dark humor to the book that becomes important as the story turns from comical to horrifying.

The other main storyline for Vesper is her search for her father. Through flashbacks, we get glimpses into the special relationship Vesper and her father shared. Contrasted with a mother who often seems to dislike and resent her own daughter, it’s easy to see why Vesper clung to this man who left her life far too young. While Vesper was often made to believe her father came and went for work, it becomes clear that he is the inspiration for Vesper choosing to leave the cult (and also how she knew that leaving meant a member can’t return). Her father looms over the book and her life as a beacon of hope that she could find family outside the cult. At one point Vesper remembers asking if she could go with him and that her mother wouldn’t care, and he responds that he wishes he could bring her but that her mother would care very much.

The book gets darker and more twisted, and the back-half delivers a few moments that I would describe as terrifying psychologically, while not being overly gory. It has enough gore to nod to the broader horror genre, but this book is firmly in the cozy horror end of the spectrum. That doesn’t take away from the adrenaline rush I felt at times reading it. However, there were moments of peaceful intrigue built in to allow the story to flow and keep the reader engaged without feeling the need to take a break.

Absolutely gripping, unique, and compulsive! The epilogue delivers the perfect ending.

Audiobook Review | Black Sheep

The audiobook version absolutely delivered. Narrated by Jeremy Carlisle Parker, the story comes to life with her expert cadence and delivery. Parker nailed the confident apathy that defines Vesper as a character. Vesper has a certain level of self-absorption and attitude that comes from a mix of extreme beauty, self-esteem, and if-I-survived-a-cult-I-can-survive-anything.

Further, the book relies on Vesper’s skeptical view of the world and tendency to manipulate others to bring the comedy and bravado to a situation as strange as she finds herself. While most people who escaped a cult would be fragile, Vesper is anything but. In fact, Vesper has a certain sense of fearlessness that allows her to not only return to the cult where she was raised but do-so knowing her attendance will disturb the members more than they will disturb her.

The element of comedy was expertly delivered through the narration. There is a fine line where a narrator could lean too much towards comedy and accidentally undermine the horror of the story. Parker had just the right amount that allowed the reader to think about the absurdity of the cult, while also feeling fearful and on edge as the events unfold.

Thank you to Penguin Random House for my copy. Opinions are my own.

About the Author | Rachel Harrison

Rachel Harrison is the National Bestselling author of CACKLE, SUCH SHARP TEETH, and THE RETURN, which was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a First Novel. Her short fiction has appeared in Guernica, Electric Literature’s Recommended Reading, as an Audible Original, and in her debut story collection BAD DOLLS. She lives in Western New York with her husband and their cat/overlord.

Her latest novel BLACK SHEEP is out September 19th 2023.