Book Review: Lucretia’s Hum by Priscilla Bettis

This story was published in Among the Headstones, an anthology of graveyard themed stories edited by Rayne Hall.

Lucretia is a lonely young woman who hears the industrial hum, and seeks to escape it each night by sleeping in a graveyard where the bodies are left on the surface to rot and be predated.

There’s a lot about this story that I liked. Bettis writes well, and her descriptions draw you in and immerse you in the story.

The type of graveyard makes for an original, and particularly off putting, setting. I appreciated mention of the industrial hum, how it torments Lucretia and the lengths she goes to escape it.

Unfortunately, the story missed the mark for me in a few places. I loved the oddness of Lucretia’s crush, Blake, and the kindly Melody, but at times they came across as weird for weirdness sake and building atmosphere rather than progressing the story. I was disappointed in the direction the plot took, and I wasn’t a fan of the pov change at the end.

However, despite these qualms, it is still a thoughtful, atmospheric and engaging short story.