Black Water Tales: The Unwanted by Jean Nicole Rivers

Title: Black Water Tales: The Unwanted
Author: Jean Nicole Rivers
Genre: New Adult Psychological Horror

In the remote, eastern European town of Borslav there is St. Sebastian orphanage, a place where people discard their unwanted children. For the American, Blaire Baker, it’s the perfect place to volunteer her services. Paired with a cheerful volunteer nurse, Blaire is enthusiastic about the possibilities, but is quickly discouraged when she encounters the nefarious nature of the staff and the deplorable conditions of the facility and the children.

Upon arrival, one of the children informs Blaire, “There’s something in the basement.” It isn’t long before strange things begin happening, including Blaire’s flashbacks of the accident that killed her parents. The children soon suffer injuries that Blaire, first, fears may be the deeds of the callous workers but she soon thinks the abuse may originate from a source that is less than human, something unwanted.

The unwanted is coming but in order for Blaire to fight it, she must dig into St. Sebastian and herself in search of truth. Blaire wants nothing more than to help the children, but when she discovers the tragedy that happened in the basement and learns that the same evil forces are still at work, it will be Blaire who needs help…There’s something in the basement.

Reviews

OH MY GOD I LOVED THIS STORY! If I could pick a novel to be turned into a major motion picture, I would pick Black Water Tales: The Unwanted. This thriller/horror story is sooo scary! And I loved every minute of it! –A Well Read Woman Book Review

I got chills so many times and couldn’t read it before bed! –A Book Lover’s Life Book Blog

The book starts off right away with the creepy and it doesn’t let up until the end. – Vik Booklover

I was completely engaged in the story and had a hard time putting it down, partly because I was interested in the answers and partly because I was terrified, and also just because it was just a really well written read. — SMADA’s Book Smack

Soft scratching echoed through the room and Blaire woke, tossing on the thin mattress. The scratching continued, morphing into whispers some moments, and then hissing the next.

“Rats,” she whispered to herself, solving the facile mystery. She lifted herself and placed her feet into her plush slippers. Through the blur of sleep she looked at them, and then up at the room, realizing they too did not match this place, fur covered and embroidered with a designer logo that reminded anyone who cared. Blaire removed her feet from the slippers and used her toes to send them sailing under the bed. The floor was cold under her naked feet and it felt good.

Blaire cringed at the loud groaning of the bedroom door as she opened it. She looked to Travis who moved just slightly in his bed, nowhere near consciousness. Blaire’s feet began to drag across the hall floor toward the bathroom when she stopped. Down the hall, by the stairs an almost imperceptible whimper called to her. Whimpering gave way to the cry of a baby.

No babies, no babies. There were no babies at St. Sebastian, Marko’s words suddenly came charging toward her. Starting toward the stairs, her feet stopped abruptly. She took a step back as the baby screamed now, the excruciating wails blaring. A forceful trembling started somewhere deep inside her as she watched a tiny pale hand reach up over the top step. Blaire cupped her mouth as the baby struggled to pull its small body up. It was coming for her just like the blood on the basement steps. Then it stood there on chubby little legs, with its arms stretched out at difficult angles. Little dimples dotted the knuckles of its stubby rubber hands. Blaire’s mouth gaped open as the headless body of Dolly made wobbly baby steps toward her.