This started off well, and then devolved from spooky mystery into dramatic fantasy soap opera. I skimmed to get through the last half of the novel and wasn't impressed with how it all wrapped up.

The concept in this one is fantastic. Jason, a single father, is grieving the loss of his 8-year-old daughter, Delta, who drowned 2 months ago. But… There is CCTV all around Jason’s house. There are never any visitors to the house. And the cellar is always locked. And in the cellar, there is a girl. The girl who claims she is Delta. The girl who doesn’t understand why she is no longer allowed to be in her room upstairs. The girl who would love to go shopping with her Daddy again. The girl who Jason desperately wants to believe.

With this premise, the book initially really drew me in. When Jason’s late wife’s sister comes to the town to visit, we slowly start to learn the events that have led to the current situation. The matters turn out to be much more complicated than one might think: there is the terrifying figure of The Mother and her followers, there is a weird smell in the cellar, and the animals outside the house are behaving in an extremely bizarre manner…

All of the above were great elements of this horror story (with a very good red herring thrown in!), however, there were several aspects that did not work for me at all. The dialogues often felt stiff and unnatural; the majority of the book dragged unnecessarily, and just when things started moving at a pace and got really interesting – it ended!
What’s worse, it ended in an extremely frustrating way. Firstly, it seems like the author reaaaally wanted to make Jason SUFFER. Honestly, at some points it felt like trauma p*rn. Dear Authors, why are you doing this to your characters??? Have they harmed you in some way?

Secondly, the ending cannot even be called an open one; it is a 100% cliffhanger that makes me think – hope? – that there will be a sequel.
I will certainly reach for the sequel if there is one. I need to know what happens next!!!

This story was a slow burn but kept me glued to the pages. Well done.
Many thanks to Black Rose Writing and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book was very unique. The concept was very interesting and it kept me engaged. Definitely a page turner!

I loved Delta, I couldn’t put it down but I had to mark it down a star as I didn’t like the ending. Even if there is going to be a second book to explain everything that wasn’t explained in Delta, it was still an abrupt ending, it felt a bit like the author had just stopped; I felt a bit cheated.

I would definitely recommend it as I literally couldn’t put it down, but I’m desperately hoping for a follow up book as there was so much that wasn’t explained.

Jason Carico is mourning the loss of his daughter. His wife had died then his daughter drowns. It’s been two months of mourning when he discovers a little girl who looks and acts like his dead daughter but he can’t believe it. He locks her in the basement. Why? Wanting to believe that she is Delta, Jason pretends to live a normal life. When the sister of his late wife appears, he doesn’t know what to do. Should he tell her about the little girl? He is afraid. Will she believe him? If the police find out, will they believe him?

It is a terrifying story and fascinated story. The author wrote it in a way that made me want and needed to know what the circumstances of this strange situation as suddenly there is a cult that wants them both. The excellent writing had me “hooked” as I could not wait to see what happens. The twists and turns captured the horror of the feeling of Jason “being crazy” and wondering at the same time why this has happened.

I totally enjoyed this story. There were so many twists and turns that I wasn’t sure what was going to happen, but it truly kept my interest. I so hope there is going to be a sequel to this one because I will surely be looking for it. I will now be going to check out Mr. Starita’s other stories.


I received a complimentary copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

This book started out similarly to another book that I read this month (These Silent Woods which I DNFed then went back to a month later to finish and ended up liking but not loving) but then went barrelling into a direction I did NOT see coming! I'm glad I stuck with this one despite the initial similarities between the two because even now I'm still kinda like 😦😮😯😲😳🤯😬

While I would love to just start word vomiting everywhere and get deep into this, I feel like that would be a disservice to others who want to read Delta.

I will say that this was a compelling slow-burn turned fast-paced horror thriller that took me by surprise. The author's use of flashbacks really helped to flesh out the characters & expound their relationships with one another. I felt A LOT while reading this book. Sadness, rage, confusion, suspense. There were multiple points in the story where I could not put the book down because I needed to know more/what would happen next. Better buckle up with this one!

Thank you Black Rose Writing & NetGalley for this e-ARC! Pub Date: 8/4/22

I give Delta by Tom Starita 4 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Jason Carico is a grieving father, desperately trying to come to grips with the loss of his eight-year-old stepdaughter, Delta, who drowned two months ago.

But if she's dead, then why is there a little girl claiming to be Delta locked up in his basement?

Desperately wanting to believe her, Jason attempts to live a normal life while hiding his nightmare below. His anxiety explodes when his late wife's sister appears on his doorstep. Can he trust her? Would she believe him? And what will the police think if they ever find out the only African American man in town has a white girl trapped in his basement?
The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

I just read Delta by Tom Starita and here is my review.

Jason is in a dark place, grieving the loss of his father and step-daughter in the river on the same day, 2 months ago.

They never found Delta’s body, heart broken, Jason goes home and to what he thinks is a now empty house…. So who is the little girl standing there claiming to be Delta?

Locking “Delta” in the basement and not knowing what to believe, Jason sets about trying to keep her safe after her mother begged him to protect her from the cult that brought her into the world.


THIS BOOK HASN’T LET ME GO YET! It was so dark and twisty that I am still slightly rattled.
This book was so eerie and dark and with this menacing undertone. I felt such sympathy for Jason. His wife died giving birth to Delta, a child not his, (I WILL NOT SPOIL THIS FOR YOU) and then he loses her and his dad in the same moment. Then you find your dead daughter in your house but she is not dead! How did she get there?

The whole book kept kicking me around like an air dancer during a hurricane! I loved the tone of the story, the character development was really simple but massively effective with the location of the book being the house Jason can’t seem to leave. This read was executed with military precision, it nailed it. I rarely gush over horror books but this one was fantastic.

I have given it 5 stars unless there isn’t a sequel then the ending makes it a 2! The ending is a massive mind warp of possibilities and I am excited to see what comes next.

Do you love horror books with a thriller twist? This is the book! This IS the book! Out Aug 4th 2022

Thank you netgalley and black rose writing for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

Almost gave up on this one and not sure if sticking with it was worth it in the end. It just felt all together average and underwhelming. Really couldn’t find a hook into the story and just as it was actually getting interesting in ended. The dialogue felt awkward and something about it just felt empty. I don’t always fully agree with “show don’t tell” but this book had a lot of showing and it just became a lot. I gave it 3 stars cause I know how hard it is to write anything at all and there’s some clever things here but ultimately a let down. Thanks Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for honest review!

Tom….sir…..STOP IT! You better be writing a sequel! Ahhhh! That last page?!

Wow.

Delta was bananas!

Complete chaos.

I freaking loved it!

Horror fans…..I found your next read!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me to read an arc.

"The Universe has a plan, independent from the wants of man."

Jason Caricos life flipped upside down when his father and daughter drowned two months ago. As if grieving the loss of two people you love wasn’t enough, there’s a little girl in his basement claiming to be his dead daughter. He’s trying to live a normal life while he has his “daughter” locked in the basement. Unfortunately for Jason his late wife’s sister is in town and she wants to know why he keeps so many locks on the basement door, and what is that foul odor?

This was a wild ride, I honestly didn’t know what I was getting into but man am I glad I read this.

This book is in four parts, the first being Jason and his day to day life with his so called daughter who lives in the basement. You see the stakes he goes to to protect her from the bad people he swears are after her. I won’t lie there are some parts in this that were super creepy and made my skin crawl just thinking about it.

The second part is Beth his now deceased wife. We get to see how her and Jason met, their relationship and also her relationship with her family. Beth’s story is tragic and this is where the really shocking twist comes in that I did NOT SEE coming at all. It’s twisted and dark and again I was so happy this book went in this direction.

Third part is Colleen, Beth’s sister.
In my opinion this was my least favorite but it wraps up everything. Beth is back in town for a short time to see her parents, and she wants to see Jason as this will be the last time she will have a chance to since she’s in college to become a doctor. She’s determined to have a relationship with him despite protest from her mother who absolutely despises Jason. She’s concerned for her brother in law and how he’s handling the loss, she also wants to know why his house has such a foul odor, and wait why are there so many locks on the basement door?

The last part is from Mother.
Who’s mother?
Well I guess you’ll have to read it to find out!

When I got to end I screamed “I KNEW IT” so loud I’m sure my neighbors are concerned haha. I’m honestly still so shocked from everything that happened.
There were some parts for me that dragged a bit,I feel like there were some things that didn’t necessarily need to be said in order for the main story to come across. On the other hand there were some things I wish were more elaborated on.

Overall this was such a fun thrilling read!
Thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for granting me access to an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Jason's life changed forever the day he lost his father and his daughter. Not only because they died, but because when he returned home there was girl that looked exactly like Delta, claiming to be Delta (his daughter). The difference was her lips were very blue, and she smelt like... death.

A compelling horror that started slow but then quickened up to a fantastic final showdown. There's going to be a sequel for this book (based on the ending) and I am ALL for it.

A very good horror, with a big mix of cult. Fans of cult stories and creepy horrors will enjoy this story a lot!

I wasn’t sure how I felt about this book at first. The way the characters conversed seemed to be strange in layout, I wasn’t sure If it was the book or just me. I persevered with it and I am so glad I did. It had a strong storyline and I genuinely wasn’t sure how it was going to end, although I do feel like parts of the storyline could have been explained a little better and more depth was definitely required. I would have loved more background on certain characters. If you like your books with a little bit of strange and a whole load of cult behaviour then I would recommend checking this out. I will definitely be checking to see if there is a sequel in the works.

Story was pretty good, but definitely needs more edits. Lots of issues with past tense. "it's" doesn't work as it was, it's too confusing.

This is an amazing read. Gripping doesn't seem like it does this book justice, I literally had a pain in the neck from reading this book and first degree burns on my fingers from flipping the pages on my kindle. It was so twisty that I don't think even Sherlock Holmes could guess the ending. Incredible.

This was an enthralling, gripping horror-thriller. The story is thick with mysteries slowly revealed through flashbacks of the past. It was a but long though.

When I originally saw this cover I was a little skeptical but found the description intriguing.
No offense but the title and cover WOULD have possibly made me pass, however, this is exactly why that old adage ‘Never Judge A Book By It’s Cover’ has never been more apt!
It was literally incredible.
I pride myself on usually being able to guess ‘supposed’ twists but I never saw this one coming. I say one but I actually mean multiple!
What a tale. My fingers literally could not stop themselves from flipping the pages like a madman, twists, turns and shocks aplenty.
Not your average horror as it had it all. Sympathy for the main characters, empathy for the tragic occurrence of events and total shock at how cleverly written this book is. The ending literally took by breath away!
Progressing through this frightening and believable tale is akin to driving down a dark road when your headlights suddenly shut off, a looming sense of foreboding that grows within you at dangers that, without a doubt, lay ahead.
An absolutely stunning read that I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend with fervor.
A sequel perhaps? Hell yes please and I would be first in line to buy it.

An entertaining horror thriller that kept me enthralled throughout. The first act has you following Jason, a man grieving the loss of his family but has a dark secret and keeps his daughter locked in a basement of his fortified house. It leaves you asking who he is hiding his daughter from and why throughout the first act. Gradually answers come throughout the middle of the book in a series of flashbacks that definitely have a folk horror vibe dealing with a death cult and a mysterious figure known as Mother. The final act culminates in an explosive showdown before leaving you wanting more answers at the end, clearly open for a sequel, which I would definitely read.
This is well worth a read and hopefully the author continues to develop the story of Delta again. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy for review. It was a pleasure.