Sundial
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
There’s so much I want to say about Sundial, but I don’t want to spoil anything! Since the joy of horror is in the discovery, I’ll keep everything high level. It’s definitely safe to say I’m deeply in love with Catriona Ward’s writing. I was solidly hooked and physically uncomfortable from the very first page. (I highly recommend listening to a horror audiobook when you have to deep clean your house. The nervous energy never stops flowing.)
Ward alternates between the viewpoints of a mother and her pre-teen daughter. The mother is locked in a terrible marriage and is convinced that not only has her husband turned her eldest daughter against her, but that something is very wrong with the girl. The daughter, in turn, doesn’t understand why her mother likes her younger sister so much more, and is beginning to believe her mother may actually wish her harm.
The solution? A mother-daughter roadtrip to an abandoned house in the middle of the desert, obviously. With just enough supernatural elements pulled in to keep the reader guessing about what is or is not possible, Ward did a masterful job balancing an intricately detailed plot with pacing that felt like a slow-building avalanche.
It’s a horror story, so what you see is never quite what you get. I don’t know which I enjoyed more, the combination of unreliable narrators with seeing the same event from multiple angles, or the noted absence of the genre’s “usual” violent misogyny. Sundial wasn’t quite as mind-bending as The Last House on Needless Street (you can find my review here) but I still missed most of the twists. I’m going to have to go back and reread it just to appreciate the foreshadowing.
Two semi-trigger warnings I will mention - most of the horror/discomfort in this book is centered around twisted family dynamics, which may hit too close to home for everyone to enjoy. There are also violent scenes that include dogs. I was able to read this despite being unable to get past the dog deaths in I Am Legend or John Wick, so if it's something you’re sensitive to you’re probably fine.
Dog-related stresses or no, if you’re a fan of the genre this is a must read, and if you’re generally wary of the genre Catriona Ward is a good entry point to test the waters. She’s one of the only authors I’ll read in the genre, but I will always pick up her books when I see them.
I paired this with a ready-made cocktail that I impulse bought because the branding and packaging were on point. It was advertised as an aperitif for people who want to like whiskey, and a drink with vaguely confusing advertising seemed like a fun pairing for a horror book where I was never sure what was going to happen next. Unfortunately I hated the drink as much as I loved the book. (My partner enjoyed it, so it didn’t go to waste.) But since I can’t say anything nice about it due entirely to personal preference, the actual brand name shall remain unnamed.
