When we get word that a new Haunted House novel is on the horizon, we get a little anxious. Haunted Houses are our jam, but we may go a little overboard with anticipation and imagination. Unlike vampire, werewolf, and aquatic horror, when we finish a chapter in a Haunted House novel, turn out the light, and settle into bed, we’re essentially IN the novel. Every creak and groan becomes an ominous portent of doom. Pipes settling are 100% rattled chains in the attic. Don’t even get us started about the furnace kicking in. Let’s just say we’re lucky we had fresh underpants. There’s only so much rationalization you can do until you have to accept the fact that you’re going to be dragged kicking and screaming into the deepest recesses of Hell…and we wouldn’t have it any other way. Evoking that dread is the key to a great ghost story, and “Accumulation” by Aimee Pokwatka does so subtly at first, and then really finds its groove, dragging you straight into nightmare territory by its thrilling conclusion.

Aimee joined us to talk about the essentials of a cracking good Haunted House story, the delight of creating an atmosphere steeped in dread, how domesticity is its own haunting, and so much more. Aimee is a newfound favorite, and “Accumulation” is one of the best Haunted House novels we’ve read since Mark Z. Danielewski’s “House of Leaves.” You’ll be both amused and amazed by this conversation with Aimee. She’s one of the nicest people we’ve ever had the pleasure of chatting with, and we’re still tickled that someone so genuinely nice can create such atmospheric terror, but boy howdy does she!

You can purchase “Accumulation” here.

You can follow Aimee Pokwatka on Instagram here.

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