Ingest Me, too by Lesley A. Camphouse is a brutal little follow-up to her visceral novella Ingest Me, and let me tell you, it goes just as hard, if not harder. This time, we’re locked inside the unhinged mind of Tristian’s sister, Evie, who’s grieving her loss in a way only Camphouse could write. Evie’s hungry, and now that Tristian’s gone, she’s desperate to replace his taste with anyone who satisfies that craving.
When she’s sent to a sanitarium, things only get stranger. There, she meets another purple-haired heroine from the Camphouse universe and starts plotting her escape… and maybe something bloodier.
Evie’s descent into an animalistic, instinct-driven force of nature is chef’s kiss horror. Camphouse doesn’t hold back, and what makes it hit so hard is how real Evie feels. Her hunger is both terrifying and weirdly sympathetic. You want her to stop, but also, you kind of don’t.
This is a quick read, but Camphouse crams so much character and carnage into this novella that it never feels rushed. There’s no filler, no pointless monologues—just a fast, feral ride straight into the abyss. And of course, she nails the ending. In the usual Camphouse fashion, the final twist was a gut-punch, and it left me staring at the last page in stunned silence.
On the technical side, it’s worth noting: Camphouse’s writing has leveled up. In her earlier works, there were moments where the phrasing was a little clunky (English isn’t her first language), but here the prose flows clean and sharp. It’s a big step forward and makes Ingest Me, too, her most refined work yet.
Lesley A. Camphouse is carving out her space in extreme horror with a voice that’s unapologetically raw, weird, and unforgettable. If you haven’t read the Ingest Me duet, now’s the time. You’re in for something deliciously disturbing.
Big thanks to Lesley for providing me with an early copy of Ingest Me, too.