“Sixteen Horses,” the debut novel by Greg Buchanan, was published in 2021, and I would go as far as to say that this book is a literary work of art. Its chilling and gory descriptions paired with the desperation of the characters combines into a haunting novel that keeps one thinking days after reading it.
The novel starts with Detective Sergeant Alec Nichols responding to a call about something mysterious found in a man’s backyard. He arrives at the scene and finds 16 horse heads buried in a circle, all with a single eye facing the sun. The tails of the horses are tangled like a rat king a few meters to the side. Later, forensic veterinarian Cooper Allen arrives to help Nichols and she takes the horse heads to examine how the killer may have executed this feat. The story follows their journey of forensics and friendship and the hardships in each realm.
To me, this book is everything I want in a literary work: suspense, detail and an ending that leaves me questioning life. The suspense comes from Buchanan’s amazing work of keeping the killer hidden and keeping the killer unpredictable. The detail comes from Buchanan’s unique style of providing development in the characters and the plot. The ending I will not spoil; however, I did have to sit in my room for a few hours contemplating life due to it.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a good horror novel and classic murder mystery. It provides tangible material for those craving gory imagery with slight elements of terror involved. The reader never knows when the killer will strike next, who they will strike or even when they might pose a threat. This novel, as far as I know, is not in a classic murder mystery style; however, I do believe this book will give fans a fresh outlook on the murder mystery genre.
