This Wretched Valley

By Jenny Kiefer

Book Overview

A pulse-pounding wilderness horror novel in which four climbers enter Kentucky's remote backcountry seeking adventure, only to face an ancient supernatural force that turns survival into an unimaginable nightmare.

2024 Bram Stoker Award (R) , Nominee for Superior Achievement in a First Novel

"A hallucinatory nightmare of a novel that blends adventure, horror and historical fiction, and isn't shy about violence or strangeness."--New York Times

"If you love wilderness horror, This Wretched Valley is a must-read."--Alma Katsu, author of The Hunger and The Fervor

This trip is going to be Dylan's big break. Her geologist friend Clay has discovered an untouched cliff face in the Kentucky wilderness, and she is going to be the first person to climb it. Together with Clay, his research assistant Sylvia, and Dylan's boyfriend Luke, Dylan is going to document her achievement on Instagram and finally cement her place as the next rising star in rock climbing.

Seven months later, investigators discover three bodies in the trees just off the highway. All are in various states of decay: one a stark, white skeleton; the second emptied of its organs; and the third a mutilated corpse with the tongue, eyes, ears, and fingers removed. But Dylan is still missing--and no trace of her, dead or alive, has been discovered.

As questions multiply and impossible evidence emerges, the mystery surrounding the doomed expedition reveals an ancient force hidden within the forest--one that twists reality, preys on fear, and refuses to let anyone leave unchanged.

Inspired by the enduring mystery of the Dyatlov Pass incident and written by experienced climber Jenny Kiefer, This Wretched Valley combines relentless psychological suspense, visceral body horror, and Appalachian folklore into a terrifying debut that lingers long after the final page.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 168369368X
• ISBN13: 9781683693680
• Release Date: January 2024
• Publisher: Quirk Books
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 5.4" x 7.6"

Customer Reviews

Room For Improvement

The dog lives, don’t worry. This was an overall meh read for me, I finished it because I was curious how everyone met their end but I could and should have just DNF’d. For me, a lot of this just didn’t work, all of the characters grumbled and said f*ck every other sentence, no one really felt fully fleshed out. Justice for Sylvia tho, she was the only one I liked. I also wish instead of the completely pointless and unnecessary flashbacks we spliced what happened to the characters with maybe online forums, armchair detectives, trying to unravel the mystery. I feel like that would have been more fun? 3 stars tho because the climbing scenes genuinely had my heart POUNDING, I thought those parts were written very well. Not bad for a debut but a lot of room for improvement.

This wretched valley is a must read for horror and nature fans.

I literally could not put this book down. Highly recommend this book to any horror and mystery fans.