Returning home after many years away should bring comfort. For James, it brings nightmares. When he travels back to his childhood farm in the English countryside, old wounds and buried memories rise to the surface. The familiar hills of Gloucestershire are no longer safe. Livestock are being slaughtered in the night, strange lights flicker over May Hill, and something ancient is stirring in the dark fields beyond the farmhouse.

As James struggles to reconnect with his ageing parents, he’s forced to confront not only the cracks in his family but the presence of a malevolent force that has haunted the valley for generations. What begins as a quiet homecoming becomes a descent into horror — a meditation on memory, guilt, and the monsters that live inside and outside of us.

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“Hogben’s Horse avoids the pitfalls of both folk and cosmic horror beautifully, crafting a tale that is equal parts unique and terrifying… The tense atmosphere is palpable, the creature deliciously terrifying, and the visceral language unforgettable.”

— ★★★★  Jason Street Reedsy​

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raw territory between memory and myth, where family history becomes a horror story of its own. It’s bold, atmospheric, and brave. And that deserves to be celebrated widely.

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— ★★★★  Emily B

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It’s haunting, but not in the usual way. The horror isn’t the thing in the hedgerows, it’s the quiet unraveling of what it means to go home again. I think that’s what makes it brilliant.

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— ★★★★  Hidden Reads Collective​

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Horse is a compelling, atmospheric read for anyone who enjoys literary horror, psychological tension, and richly drawn rural settings. It’s thoughtful, unsettling, and unforgettable.

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— ★★★★ James Islington

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