Feral and Hysterical by Sadie Hartmann
Page Street Publishing (August 2025)
Reviewed by Rowan B. Minor
Sadie Hartmann, also known as Mother Horror, is a writer and editor from the Pacific Northwest. She is the co-owner of the horror fiction subscription company Night Worms and has been the editor-in-chief of her own horror fiction imprint, Dark Hart Books. Hartmann is a 2023 Bram Stoker Awards Winner for her book 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered from Page Street Publishing. Her most recent book is Feral and Hysterical: Mother Horror’s Ultimate Reading Guide to Dark and Disturbing Fiction by Women, also from Page Street Publishing.
Feral and Hysterical is a fully illustrated reader’s guide to horror, dark fantasy, folklore, and gothic literature by women. The cover itself, by Rosie Stewart is eye-grabbing and brilliantly invites readers into the book’s pages. With a foreword by horror author Ania Ahlborn and introduction by the editor herself, the audience becomes informed with why this book is necessary and how this innovative idea came into fruition. Hartmann also includes a readers’ advisory, in which she states “Curating a good reading list is its own magical alchemy and reminds me of making mixtapes for my friends.” She also warns “My method of recommending books prioritizes the reader’s interest above my own personal experience.” It is disclosures like this that makes Feral and Hysterical feel like it’s curated for each individual reader.
Feral and Hysterical includes short essays from Alexis Henderson, Christina Henry, Alma Katsu, Laura Purcell, and Rae Wilde. These essays encompass “Damsels and Demons,” “History and Horror” and “On Feminist Fiction,” and are an important accompaniment to Hartmann’s lists. The essays not only provide external knowledge and perspectives by other women authors, but seamlessly stitch together these recommended reading lists. Henderson’s essay, “On Feminist Fiction,” asks and answers the challenging question “Can a book be considered feminist if its central character doesn’t uphold feminist ideas?” and follows the reading list “What Women Say About Femicide in Latin America Through Horror Fiction.” These pairings are both complimentary of one another and essential to understand the depth and breadth of Hartmann’s vision.
Hartmann’s masterlist is broken down into numerous short categories, including: “Not Your Dad’s Westerns,” “Women of Splatterpunk,” “Exposing Historical Erasure,” “Gótico Familia,” and “Psychic Trauma.” These sub-lists contain a dynamic dissection of each subgenre and “book vibrations,” which gives readers a hashtag-like section of short genre descriptors, as well as the book suggestions for that category. Most sections also have beautifully haunting illustrations by María Amaya that will speak to readers as though they are tarot cards. Each recommendation is accompanied by the book’s cover, publication information, a gripping summary, and Hartmann’s intricate thoughts on each book. Some books on Harmann’s lists include: The Woman in Black by Susan Hill, Kindred by Octavia Butler, The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin, and The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw. There is also a list of recommendations for “Modern Middle Grade Horror by Women Authors,” written by middle grade horror author Ally Russell, as well as “YA Horror from Women Authors,” curated by YA novelist Kelsea Yu. Other small reading lists include: “50 States, 50 Books by Women,” and “The Mothers of the Gothic and the Macabre,” compiled by Hartmann herself. Closing out this fantastic guide is a clever book checklist with a full list of recommendations and a checkbox where readers are able to mark off Hartmann’s suggestions.
Feral and Hysterical is a much-needed contemporary guide filled with favorite classics, up-and-coming authors, and underground publishers who deserve more attention. Hartmann tips her hat to famous authors like Shirley Jackson and Anne Rice, as well as fresh voices in the genre, such as Elliott Gish and Trang Thanh Tran. Although this book focuses on women horror authors, it is not marketed solely to women or femme-presenting people. From short story collection reading lists to Amazon Original Series recommendations, and books from 1794 to 2025, there is surely a new story and subgenre for everyone to love. Hartmann has developed a brilliant and beautiful must-have guide for the shelves of all horror lovers.
