Review: The Devouring Light by Kat Ellis

Author: Kat Ellis
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication Date: October 2025

Clown in a Cornfield meets The Cabin in this twisty, blood-curdling delight from acclaimed author Kat Ellis about a group of rivals stranded in an abandoned house that seems to have its own plans for them.

When Haden Romero and her rival, Deacon Rex—alongside their bands, including Haden’s ex, Cairo—are stranded on their way to a rock festival, she thinks missing the gig is the worst thing that could happen.

She’s wrong.

Marooned in treacherous swamplands with no way out, the group stumbles upon an eerie, decaying house. It seems like a safe haven, a place to wait out the storm.

The house, however, isn’t just abandoned—it’s been waiting for them.

Bodies begin to pile up. The walls start to close in. Twisted secrets come to light. And unless Haden and the others can survive long enough to escape, the house will claim them—forever.

True horror in the most fun sense of the word, The Devouring Light will have readers on the edge of their seats, bracing themselves for jump scares, flinching with every plot twist, and—most importantly—reading with the lights on.

I have read 2 other books by this author.  One I gave 4 stars and the other 2. The Devouring Light sadly sits right in the middle at a 3 star.  It wasn't awful but it wasn't fantastic.  I also have a hard time finding any comparison between Clown in a Cornfield or The Cabin.  There were also no real jump scares or blood curdling delight as the synopsis above claims.  

I did like the beginning. The story started out strong and I was intrigued once they got to the house. It was creepy being in the swamp and the house seemed ominous and not a place I would want to be. However,  I didn't really like any of the characters. None of them were particularly interesting. In a word, I was kind of bored once they got to the house.  The ending was exactly what I expected and was predictable.  I would have loved the ending had it gone a different way. Overall, I was underwhelmed but this.