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I went into Episode Thirteen with cautious optimism. I’ve picked up a fair few books lately that had been hyped up online, only to find them flat, predictable, or just not worth the buzz. Honestly, I was ready for another disappointment, but wow, Craig DiLouie completely blindsided me with this one in the best possible way.
From the start, the book hooked me. It’s written in a “found footage” style—emails, transcripts, diary entries, video logs—which could have felt gimmicky, but instead it made everything creepier and more believable. I felt like I was right there with the crew of the ghost-hunting reality show, digging deeper into this supposedly haunted house. You know that feeling when you’re watching a documentary and the tension just keeps ratcheting up? That’s exactly the vibe this book gave me, only darker, more disturbing, and impossible to put down.
What really impressed me was how layered the story is. Sure, it’s got the scares, there are some scenes that honestly gave me goosebumps, but there’s also this clever, unsettling undercurrent about obsession, human ambition, and what people are willing to risk for answers. It’s horror, but it’s also tragic in places, and the characters feel like real people rather than cardboard cut-outs screaming their way through haunted corridors. I actually cared what happened to them, which made the slow unravelling of events even more tense.
I loved how it escalated. It starts with that classic haunted house vibe, the creepy little things, but then the scope just widens and widens until you’re dealing with something so much bigger and stranger than you first thought. It’s one of those books where you think you know what kind of story you’re in, and then it rips the floor out from under you in the most satisfying way.
By the end, I was sitting there thinking, “Okay, this is what horror should feel like.” It wasn’t cheap jumps or predictable tropes; it was unnerving, intelligent, and it stuck with me long after I closed the book. Easily one of the best horror reads I’ve had in a long while, and certainly a refreshing change after slogging through so many overhyped disappointments.
If you’ve been let down lately by books that promise terror and originality but deliver recycled plots and flat writing, trust me—Episode Thirteen will remind you why you love horror in the first place. Absolutely a five-star read for me.
Gareth Ellis - Author 