“In Lock Haven, a quiet little town in Washington State, there is a very special street.
Bird Street. The residents of Bird Street are all successful, wealthy, healthy and happy. And their children are all well-mannered and smart and high achievers.

At least they are for eleven months of the year.

In November, however, the ‘Darker Days’ begin. For November’s the month when things take a turn for the worse: accidents, bad luck, familial conflict and illness take hold. And it is in November that a stranger comes to Bird Street to collect the debt owed by the residents.

Because, you see, there is a price that must be paid for all the happiness and good fortune they enjoy for the other eleven months of year. And that price is one human life. Every November. Without fail.

And so it has been for over a hundred years. To ease their guilt, the residents of Bird Street seek out individuals – usually the elderly or the terminally ill – who wish to die with dignity and are content to be helped on their way.

But this year, things don’t go to plan. This year events take a terrifying turn . . .”

Hello and welcome to damppebbles. Today I am delighted to share my review of Darker Days by Thomas Olde Heuvelt. Darker Days is published by Bantam Books today (that’s Thursday 23rd October 2025) and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats with the paperback to follow. I chose to read a free eARC of Darker Days but that has in no way influenced my review. My grateful thanks to Anne at Random Things Tours for inviting me to join the blog tour.

I love Thomas Olde Heuvelt’s books! He’s an auto-buy, must-read author of mine. For me, it all started with HEX back in 2016. Since then, I’ve read every one of this author’s books that have been translated from the original Dutch into English. So, of course, I leapt at the chance to have an early read of Darker Days. How could I not? With that striking cover, that highly intriguing blurb, and knowing it was written by one of my favourite authors. An author who always, ALWAYS delivers. Darker Days is one of the most exciting releases of 2025, without a doubt!

Bird Street, Lock Haven, Washington State. The perfect place to live. Or is it? The residents are happy, contented and fulfilled. For eleven months of the year, anyway! Because Bird Street isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. In return for happiness, wealth and prosperity. In exchange for their children being top of the class, high achievers, the residents have made a deal with the devil. Or the accountant, as he likes to be known. They live perfect lives from December through to October. In November, all that good fortune, all that luck and promise withers and dies, to be replaced by anger, fear and loathing. Accidents happen, relationships are torn apart. Until a sacrifice is made. A human sacrifice. It’s the price the residents of Bird Street have to pay to return to the good times. But this year, things really don’t go to plan…

Darker Days is a compelling, tense and unnerving horror novel with strong characters, a delicious premise and bucketloads of suspense. Life on Bird Street is pretty sweet. If you ignore November. November hangs over the character’s heads like the Sword of Damocles. It’s always there. Always on the horizon, watching and waiting for the days to tick by. But the residents have managed to get their yearly search for a sacrifice down to a fine art. In the months leading up to November, they’re on the lookout for those who wish to end their lives early. The sick, the elderly. People who have received a diagnosis that there is sadly no going back from. I don’t normally include trigger warnings in my reviews, but it’s hard not to with this book. So, please be aware that suicide does feature quite heavily in the storyline. But even the best laid plans go to pot sometimes. People are, well, people, and things change. Which puts the Bird Street residents in a bit of a pickle…

But this is only part of the story. There is so much more to this book than initially meets the eye. We mainly see life on Bird Street through the eyes of Ralph and Luana. They have two children, fifteen-year-old Kaila and ten-year-old Django. At the grand old age of sixteen, residents are inducted into the ‘street pact’. Knowing this is imminent for their daughter causes both Ralph and Luana a lot of concern. I found the dynamic between the two children and their parents absolutely fascinating. There are, of course, other characters in the book, but the Lewis de Silvas had my full, undivided attention from the get-go. Speaking of those other characters, there are a lot of them but there is a helpful guide as to who is who at the start of the book. Whether a smaller character or a lead, every single person in this novel is well-written and totally believable.

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. Darker Days is a suspense-filled horror delight. The premise is utterly irresistible. Olde Heuvelt delivers a superb story with stand-out characters, a perfect setting and a twisty storyline that will get under your skin from the moment you pick this book up. How quickly those perfectly laid plans turn to dust. How quickly life as you know it unravels and becomes something so much worse than you ever imagined. I loved it! Every dark and devilish detail had me rapt. I cannot wait for more from this author. Sign me up now, please! Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Darker Days. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.

Darker Days by Thomas Olde Heuvelt was published in the UK by Bantam Books on 23rd October 2025 and is available in hardcover, audio and digital formats with the paperback to follow (please note, the following links are affiliate links which means I receive a small percentage of the purchase price at no extra cost to you): | amazon.co.uk | Waterstones | bookshop.org | Goodreads | damppebbles bookshop.org shop | damppebbles amazon.co.uk shop | damppebbles amazon.com shop |

Thomas Olde Heuvelt is an international bestselling author from The Netherlands.

His breakthrough novel HEX was published in over twenty-five countries and hailed as ‘totally, brilliantly original’ by Stephen King and as ‘phenomenal, phenomenal’ by film director Mike Flanagan. His follow-up novels Echo and Oracle have since seen global publication, the former boasts, according to the Guardian, ‘possibly the most frightening prologue ever written’, while the latter was judged by The New York Times to be his ‘sharpest, most compelling work to date’.

His newest novel, Darker Days, is a devastating modern take on the Faustian bargain. It will be published in the US with Harper Books and in the UK with Bantam in October 2025.

Olde Heuvelt, whose last name in Dutch dialect means ‘Old Hill’, was the first translated author to win a Hugo Award, in 2015.

He lives in the south of France with his partner and pet lizard.