It Will Only Hurt For a Moment by Delilah S. Dawson

Available now

CW: check out The StoryGraph for a list of all content warnings.

Are you looking for a book that makes you question whether to ever enter the woods again? A book that will scare your pants off and give you nightmares? How about one that makes you slightly uncomfortable with how happy you are when bad people get what’s coming to them? Looking for a hefty and therapeutic dose of female rage?

From the Publisher:

Sarah Carpenter is starting over.

She's on the run-leaving behind her unsupportive, narcissistic ex-boyfriend and alcoholic, abusive mother-and headed for a new beginning at Tranquil Falls, a secluded artists' colony on the grounds of a closed hotel. There, with no cell signal or internet to distract her, she hopes to rediscover her love for pottery and put the broken pieces of her life back together.

But when Sarah uncovers the body of a young woman while digging a hole for a pit kiln, things start to fall apart. Her fellow artists begin to act in troubling ways. The eccentric fiber artist knits an endless scarf. The musician plays the same carousel song over and over until his fingers bleed. The calligrapher grins with ink-stained teeth. Not to mention the haunting dreams Sarah has night after night.

When she discovers glass shards in her clay, Sarah wonders if someone is out to get her-or if she's losing her grip on reality out here in the wilds, where the pounding of the waterfall never, ever fades. As she investigates the beautiful valley and the crumbling resort looming over them all, she unearths a chilling past that refuses to remain buried...

Delilah S. Dawson is one of my favorite go-to authors for all things horror, thriller, and female empowerment. It WIll Only Hurt for a Moment is a fast-paced thriller that really leans into the eeriness of its setting. Sarah, our FMC, has finally found the freedom to start her life over and on the way to Tranquil Falls, she receives a drunken call from her abusive mother. This is just the first in a series of unsettling and disturbing events that Sarah will have to persevere through in order to survive. As Sarah is facing one crisis after another, the remoteness of the artist’s colony begins to feel like a character itself. The more Sarah begins to feel in control of herself, clawing back her joy of pottery and creativity, the more unsafe the woods and what they contain become. On the property is a mysterious old hotel with a disturbing past that is strictly off-limits to the artists. I love a creepy old hotel in my horror and this one may be the creepiest yet.

If you, like me, enjoy a little “Awful Man Gets His Just Deserts” in your books, you will love what happens to the awful bastards in this story. Without being too spoiler-y, there is a character early on that was so infuriating and misogynistic that I was rooting for his downfall from the moment he was introduced. The Bad Guys in this book are incredibly awful so definitely check the content warnings carefully. There is some real karmic justice dished out and it is so, so satisfying.

This is one dark, creepy, unsettling story of female rage and self-discovery and I really loved it. I thought the characters were great, the pacing was really good, and it had the perfect blend of psychological thriller and paranormal horror. If you loved Dawson’s other book The Violence, definitely add this one to your TBR.

If you’d like to add this book to your shelf, you can find ordering information by clicking on the cover above. Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own. This post may contain links, including Amazon Associate Links, and I may earn from qualifying purchases.All opinions and mistakes are my own.