Title: The Thirteenth Mark

Author: James Lincoln

Release date: November 13th, 2025

*Huge thanks to James for sending me a digital review copy of this one!*

Some time ago, I received a DM on Instagram from a reader who’d read my Father of Lies compendium and let me know they really enjoyed it. I thanked them and shared that ‘When I Look…’ is related to that, they let me know they were snagging it, and then, as two book fans often do, we went on our way, liking some posts by each other.

Recently, they DM’d me again (and I’m hoping you don’t mind me sharing this!) and they mentioned that their husband had released a novella and asked some questions about ways to increase visibility etc. etc. Now, if you’ve been following me for any length of time – and this goes all the way back to my time with the mighty Kendall Reviews and even my feature there, Books From the Crypt – I love reading and reviewing and promoting books that haven’t been plastered everywhere. You know the ones I mean. Books From the Crypt was focused on sharing books with less than 50 Goodreads ratings. There’s an entire world of books waiting for readers to discover that don’t have big press push and influencer posting. And by all means – read those books, post those books, love those books. Big books are as amazing as little books. But if I can share some of my online platform space by showcasing those other books, I will.

And ‘The Thirteenth Mark’ is one of those books that I hope I share, one of you buys it, loves it, recommends it and more and more people find it, because this is a book worthy of being on all of our horror shelves – digital and physical.

After receiving that DM, I mentioned a few different ways that they might increase visibility, but then also offered to review it. I wasn’t sure when I’d get to it, but wanted to try and get in read sooner. Then, the other night, I had a bit of insomnia and cracked it open on my Kindle. 50% later, I forced myself to go to sleep, knowing that if I didn’t close my Kindle cover, I’d have to finish it.

What I liked: Is Liminal Isolated Forest Horror a subgenre? I know I’ve kind of tried to write some stuff that borders on that description before, but I can’t think of anything that even came close to what I read in this one.

The book follows our unnamed main character, who awakens disoriented somewhere in a forest. He’s relatively unscathed, but doesn’t know his own name, where he is, why he’s there or even what he looks like. He starts walking. The forest around him is calm, quiet and unnerving. Is the forest even real? Is he?

Soon, he comes upon a cabin. The cabin seems familiar, but he’s not sure why. He thinks he’s been there before, but he can’t be positive. He enters and finds a place that’s walking the line between abandoned and lived in.

Lincoln does a great job of subtle sightline shifts. For a first release, his mastery of atmosphere is phenomenal and its that aspect that he slowly adjusts – to the readers frayed edges of anxiety’s detriment – as the novella goes on.

On its surface, the book is ‘simple.’ A sort of Ground Hog Day idea, where this character goes to sleep, wakes up, repeats. But there’s these unseen, but felt, volume adjustments to the tension with each passing page that really snap into you as you read.

We get the addition of a Polaroid camera and pictures left behind that seem to shift with each glance. We get a dense fog that arrive and noise within. We get shadows that suggest someone else is there. And we get a growing dread that when we finally get to the grand revelation, we won’t like what we discover.

I won’t share where this one goes – for me it was a fantastic ending, one that really does the idea the author was trying to accomplish justice – but I think even if you don’t like the ending, the story that leads up to it was absolutely captivating.

What I didn’t like: While this one grabbed me and never let me go, if you’re looking for a book packed with action and gore, you won’t find it here. Some readers will find this book doesn’t move along fast enough for them. This one is like a Skinamarink or The Backrooms style story set in the forest and if that doesn’t appeal to you, then this might not be a good fit.

Why you should read this: In his afterword, James doesn’t allude to any of his own personal influences in writing this, but the closest atmosphere I’ve come across to this one was in Adam Nevill’s ‘Last Days.’ A growing dread where each page feels heavier to read and every paragraph seems to stack another weight on your chest.

‘The Thirteenth Mark’ hits all the high-notes and for me it’s one that is easily a hidden gem. I’m hopeful more people discover this one because it was fantastic and I think it’s one that will grow and grow over the next few years as more readers find it.

Outstanding.