{"id":20029,"date":"2025-09-08T07:00:56","date_gmt":"2025-09-08T11:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/?p=20029"},"modified":"2025-09-07T22:30:52","modified_gmt":"2025-09-08T02:30:52","slug":"review-beast-pines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/review-beast-pines\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: The Beast in the Pines by S.W. Lynch"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><i><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright \" src=\"https:\/\/m.media-amazon.com\/images\/I\/71YTF8Dw-2L._SL1360_.jpg\" alt=\"cover of The Beast in the Pines\" width=\"286\" height=\"429\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Beast-Pines-S-W-Lynch\/dp\/B0F973CCLB\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Beast in the Pines<\/a><\/i>\u00a0by S.W. Lynch<br \/>\nSerotonin Press, October 2024<br \/>\nReviewed by Rowan B. Minor\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">S.W. Lynch is a writer and editor who lives in Philidelphia, Pennsylvania. He has worked for nonprofit organizations such as Moonstone Arts Center and the Nick Virgilio Haiku Association. Lynch has been the editor of various journals, magazines, and anthologies, such as Rocky Wilson\u2019s <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Last Bus to Camden<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and Chidi Ezeobi\u2019s <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Remind the World: Poems from Prison<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. He is the author of five books of poetry: <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the city of your mind<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (Whirlwind Press, 2013), <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Broad Street Line<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (Moonstone Press, 2016), <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">100 Haiku<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (Moonstone Press, 2017), <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">On Violence <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(Radical Paper Press, 2019), and <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Halo Nest: Poems on Grief<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (Alien Buddha Press, 2024). Lynch\u2019s debut novel is <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Beast in the Pines<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Beast in the Pines<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a fresh and terrifying story about the Jersey Devil that embraces both supernatural and psychological horror. Distracted by daydreams of leaving his small town and joining the Army toward the start of the Iraq War in 2003, main character Cody discovers a book about the Jersey Devil. After delving into this mysterious book, Cody decides to investigate the Pine Barrens where the demonic creature supposedly resides. What he discovers is more sinister than he ever could have imagined and forever shifts his perspective of what is possible.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Beast in the Pines<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is a slow, but entertaining read in a way that steadily builds tension and rattles both the conscious and subconscious. Lynch has a firm grasp on enticing and engaging language that consistently moves readers forward throughout his exposition. These characters are so well-developed they seem familiar, and the plot is haunting and distinct to the author\u2019s originality. This is a fully evolved and well-executed story that showcases a new approach to cryptozoological fiction, as Lynch invites readers to discover the Jersey Devil\u2019s origin alongside his main character. The plot, which also taps into Indigenous practices and mythos, is just as much about Cody\u2019s journey through fighting his own personal demons as it is about the discovery of this local demonic entity.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are several Evangelical Christian references throughout <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Beast in the Pines<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and so this book might need to be avoided by those with severe religious trauma. There is also mention of bombings and descriptions of news coverage with graphic details that might be sensitive for those heavily affected by the Iraq War, but the vividness is not distracting overall. Most talk of war is quite tactful and necessary for the main character\u2019s development.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For fans of <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Mothman Prophecies<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Blair Witch Project<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Beast in the Pines<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> might resonate with anyone obsessed with all things cryptids and cults, with those interested in mythic horror, and with anyone who finds their place in the world through dark literature. Lynch has already proven himself through his poetry, and his novel is no different. He is a natural with fiction, and his writing is a much-needed, fresh perspective in contemporary cosmic horror. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Beast in the Pines\u00a0by S.W. Lynch Serotonin Press, October 2024 Reviewed by Rowan B. Minor\u00a0 S.W. Lynch is a writer and editor who lives in Philidelphia, Pennsylvania. He has worked for nonprofit organizations such as Moonstone Arts Center and the Nick Virgilio Haiku Association. Lynch has been the editor of various journals, magazines, and &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/review-beast-pines\/\" class=\"more-link button bg-gold white\">Continue Reading!<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Review: The Beast in the Pines by S.W. Lynch&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[80],"tags":[79,3226,3460,3461],"class_list":["post-20029","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews","tag-reviews","tag-rowan-b-minor","tag-s-w-lynch","tag-the-beast-in-the-pines"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Review: The Beast in the Pines by S.W. 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