A wildly imaginative fusion of haunted-house horror and pulp science fiction.
Rife’s fourth volume in the Cool Thing series begins with a haunted house but quickly reveals that the ghosts are merely one layer of a far stranger mystery. The Roaton House sits atop an ancient alien spacecraft whose buried technology has attracted government experiments, grotesque mutations, and restless spirits, while Shadow’s dead daughters return as murderous apparitions. Hoping to put the haunting to rest, Frankie and the others hire the flamboyant medium Nostra, whose séance unleashes forces beyond anyone’s control, leaving one of the group missing as the house itself begins to transform. Staircases appear where none existed, hidden chambers awaken, and the supernatural collides with science fiction in increasingly unpredictable ways.
Rife’s greatest accomplishment lies in making this improbable mixture feel remarkably cohesive. Ghosts, extraterrestrial technology, cosmic horror, dark comedy, and pulp adventure are woven into a mythology that continually expands without losing sight of its characters. Frankie steals nearly every scene with his outrageous personality and quick-fire dialogue, while Shadow provides the novel’s emotional core, grounding the increasingly bizarre events in genuine loss and loyalty. The shifting relationship between the haunted house and the buried spacecraft creates a constant sense of discovery, ensuring that each revelation raises the stakes rather than simply explaining them away. Although the prose occasionally lingers on descriptions and the tonal shifts between horror and humor may not suit every reader, Rife’s energetic voice and refusal to follow genre conventions give the novel an identity entirely its own.
An inventive, genre-bending blend of supernatural horror and science fiction…perfect for fans of haunted-house mysteries, cosmic horror, and creature features.
***
DEEP PORTAL PUBLISHING
Pub date June 1, 2026
ISBN 979-8986280677
Price $19.95 Hardcover, $10.99 Paperback, $4.99 Kindle edition