It’s rare for a book to grip me from the very start, The Lamb by Lucy Rose’s first sentence had me hooked; > On my fourth birthday, I plucked six severed fingers from the shower drain The book takes the tropes of folk, horror, and romance – smashing it together to create a beautiful meal for us to devour. The ending did leave a bitter taste in my mouth, which left me a little hungry for something else to have happened instead. I finished the book in 3 days, a breakneck speed, reading 167 pages yesterday alone so I could finish it late last night. The slightly larger text and shorter chapters helped me feel like I was making progress with delicious hits of dopamine as an accoutrement to the story. Margot and her mum (Mama) live in an isolate house on the edge of a large woods. Mama offers help to those who are lost in the woods, had their cars break down, or gotten a flat tyre, Mama calls them strays. She offers them respite from the cold, a hearty meal, and ultimately skins them alive to eat them. A pretty normal existence, right? One day a stray arrives, Eden, and Mama quickly falls in love. Nothing quite like roasting a human finger over the fire to bring people together. The tension starts to ramp when it’s clear there’s only room for Mama +1, not +2. Although the final 10% of the book left me wanting more, I did have a great time reading the story. I don’t think cannibalism in horror is for me, but it’s nice to read something a little outside my normal comfort zone. Also, given the first sentence of the book is all about finding six severed fingers in the shower drain I did really enjoy the hardback book I picked up from my favourite local bookshop had this bookmark! Overall, this was an enjoyable read and I’ll be recommending it to people in months to come. #bookreview #books