A dark and moving look at mental health through the lens of horror.

When Kori Driscoe heads to the now abandoned mental institution, the last known place of her father, she finds far more than she expected. Peter Driscoe has suffered from mental illness his whole life, and his family suffered along the way. After Peter is admitted Northville Psychiatric Hospital, a doctor offers him a new kind of treatment. One that would put a new meaning to his cycles of mania and depression, one that will forever change him and others at the hands of the doctor during the facilities last days.

This book affected me so deeply, I could feel it in my core. Having dealt with mental illness in both myself as well a parent, I could easily identify with the characters. Framing the subject in the world of horror, likening the cycle of bipolar disorder to a werewolf, was a perfect fit. The writing was so deep and dark, I found myself reading slow, savoring each line of prose, and highlighting the hell out of it. It is haunting and intimate, beautiful and depressing, disgusting and wonderful, and exactly what you want in tackling a subject such as this. Yeah, I liked it!

All that aside, the horror in this truly are terrifying. Its got the bloody and disgusting parts us weirdos crave, all while putting a new twist on it so it doesn’t feel like any other werewolf story.

I loved it, I will be rereading it, and I’m excited to read more from Mark Matthews.

NetGalley and the publishers provided me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The first thing -- the very first thing -- that struck me about The Hobgoblin of Little Minds, before I even started reading it, before I even looked at the cover or researched the author Mark Matthews, was its title. The phrase is mentioned quite a few times in the text, and it is by no means a throwaway title. It means something to every character in this engrossing horror novel. It was coined by the poet, essayist, and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, taken from his 1841 essay Self Reliance. In it, Emerson states that "foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds, adored by little statesmen and philosophers and divines." A quick search on the internet explains this in layman's terms for me: basically saying that just because you've thought the same thing for most of your life, or performed the same actions, it doesn't absolve you of the importance of critical thinking, and the necessity of changing your mind and opinion when better information comes to light. (Sounds like a lot of politicians could use this advice here, but we won't go there.)

Emerson's metaphor takes on new life (literally) during the course of this novel. Told in a somewhat non-linear way, beginning in 2002 and ending in 2018, The Hobgoblin of Little Minds centres around five main characters. Kori Persephone Driscoe, who's father Peter has been in and out of psychiatric institutions, serves as our introduction to Mr Matthew's insane and dangerous world. Kori's mother is about to hightail it out of Detroit and set up home with her new partner in Florida. Kori doesn't want to go, and instead visits the hospital where she last saw her father. Anyone from Detroit will be familiar with Northville Psychiatric Hospital in Northville Township,Wayne County, and former Governer Engler's closure of the hospital for economic reasons. Patients and staff were moved on elsewhere. Kori visits the abandoned building, already the subject of blogs and videos which suggest it's haunted, and finds that nothing is what it seems anymore.

Peter has been the subject of genetic medical experiments by his doctor, the mysterious Dr Ziti. She is an expert in mental illness, and because of her own family trauma as well as a God Complex, she invents a pharmaceutical that she hopes will harness Peter's bipolar disorder into something she can use. Basically she Dr Frankenstein, Psychiatrist. But Peter isn't her first attempt at harnessing this disorder. Her previous failed attempts are chained up in the tunnels under the hospital, and when Kori finds them and her father, the narrative takes a number of strange and disturbing detours.

Maya, a Black woman, traumatised by her mother's suicide, and subjected to heinous treatment by her local pastor, lands on Dr Ziti's doorstep, and is partnered up with Peter in a bizzare and horrifying experiment; the result of which is the book's fifth character, whom I will leave for you to find out more about. I've gone far enough into spoilery territory, and wish to go no further.

Over the last few years or so, there has been a plethora of vampire and zombie novels, movies, and television shows, but few if any on what we call werewolves. I want to point out that Mr Matthew's monsters aren't classic werewolves in the Lon Chaney, jr. vein; they are their own creation, but follow similar patterns of behaviour. The Hobgoblin of Little Minds is as much about how mental illness affects the families of those who endure bipolar disorder as it is about the victims of this illness themselves. Dr Ziti sees that classic attempts to treat sufferers of bipolar disorder don't work anymore and that it's time for something new, something extreme. She sees the foolish consistencies of those in the field who preceeded her. But she has an agenda of her own, a deeply personal one.

The Hobgoblins of Little Minds is at times a violent novel. There is one scene that literally had me crossing my legs, but the victim in question deserved their end. Hat's off to the author, though, who had me enthralled from the first page, and I finished the novel over two nights. (This is a book to read in the dark, trust me.) It's the terrifying offspring of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and H.G. Well's The Island of Doctor Moreau. It also raises questions on medical ethics, and how it can be that sometimes the people we trust to help us won't always have our best interests in mind: which is something equally as terror-inducing as anything you'll read in these pages.

It's worth reading the author's Afterword at the end of the book. Mark Matthews offers us his experience in the field of mental illness and treatment and how he came about to write his book. I found this very informative. If you want to learn more about Northville Psychiatric Hospital, you can check out the links here and here.

A unique and admirable werewolf story, written with genuine care and understanding towards mental illness.
Mark Matthews has done himself proud.
Believable characters. Great setting.
Everything was handled wonderfully.
Not much else I can add. It's all in the synopsis.
Five stars.
Buy it.

The Hobgoblin of Little Minds was about Kori Driscoe and the struggle her father had with mental illness. He ends up in a psychiatric hospital where a psychiatrist, Dr Zita, was using the mental illness of the patients to create monsters. Timing their mood swings and the cycles of the moon, the doctor was using drugs to create things which were no longer human. Kori is determined to find out where her father disappeared to and she enters the ruins of the hospital which has been abandoned and earmarked for demolition. She isn't prepared for what she finds in the ruins....

This was an unique way to look at bipolar disorder. The descriptions used to demonstrate what having a manic episode felt like were haunting. Linking it to werewolves made it even more fascinating.

I was a bit worried that the writer would exploit the very real issues mental health patients have and spoil the book. However, he described bipolar disorder with such profound respect that I felt like he opened a door for us to see what people afflicted with this disorder go through.

The character development was quite well done and left me feeling quite sympathetic towards the doctor at the end. But my favorite character would have to be Hades, Kori's dog. I just wanted her to be okay.

I would definitely try more books by this author based on this offering.

This book has very graphic sex scenes and a heavy dose of violence. For these reasons, this book should be read by adults only.

"She was going to find a way to fix bipolar disorder. To siphon out the worst parts, and make the best parts boil to the top. She had to try something new, because foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds. The same efforts bring same results."

Kori has been suffering though her father's mental illness since she was a child. She witnessed his sudden mood swings and his pain until he was admitted in the Northville Psychiatric Hospital, and this is where she last saw him years ago. Now that the hospital is closed and its patients transferred to other facilities far away, Kori wants to visit his father and she finds him living in that very same abandones hospital. But he is not the person she expected, and he is not alone...

Let me start by saying that I was drawn to this book by its stunning cover, which caught my attention on bookstagram and brought me to Netgalley. And since there's scary werewolf holding a human heart in front of a huge red moon, I was expecting a nice horror story with hairy howling creatures. But The Hobgoblin of Little Minds turned out to be so much more: yes it's a horror story, but it also describes mental illness and bipolar disorder in a way that I personally found very respectful and real. There's action and tension, internal monologues and a very well written villain, which was also my favorite character.

I admit that I didn't immediately connect with Kori or the other characters, as I found the first third of the book a bit confusing (mostly because of the time jumps and my inability to remember names), but then I really enjoyed the story and loved the ending. I was also really happy when I found out that there is going to be a second book, I feel like this story has more to give and I can't wait to read it! 4 stars.

* Thank you to Wicked Run Press and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I read my first book by Mark Matthews, Milk Blood, 3 years ago and I was amazed by his talent. I had never read anything quite like it and I needed more. I went on to read his books On the Lips of Children and Body of Christ along with a few of his short stories in anthologies. He writes addiction horror and has a career in behavioral healthcare. I think his personal experience is what makes his stories so unique and thought provoking

His latest book lived up to my expectations and then some. I didn’read the synopsis but I assumed it was a werewolf story by the stunning cover. It IS a one but not like any other werewolf story you’ve read before. The main character, Kori, grew up suffering through her father’s mental illness. One day he disappears and Kori decides she must find him. She breaks into an abandoned mental hospital where he was treated and encounters him but in a different form than she ever could have expected. That’s all I’m going to say about that portion of the plot because I don’t want to spoil it.

There were many characters in this book that you immediately feel something for but the character that I really was the most intrigued by was Dr. Zita. She’s basically the villain of this book but I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.

There was a really interesting afterword byMatthews where you can learn more about the connection between bipolar disorder and werewolves. It also gives the reader details about the real Northville Psychiatric Hospital, the hospital in the novel.

I’m giving this book 4 stars. I found it to be an informative and entertaining read. The release date is January 28th, 2021. Don’t miss this one!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher Wicked Run Press for the review copy.

The hobgoblin of little minds is a modern day masterpiece.

It's brutal and uncompromising, and reading it made me feel as grimy as the underground hospital walls that appear throughout. I believe that was intentional.

Matthews definitely knows his stuff when it comes to psychology and mental illnesses and here he uses this knowledge to create a completely different take on the werewolf genre. It felt real and relevant. The afterword suggests that Matthews feared his readers may take offense in the way some medical ailments are used throughout, but I never felt that way. In fact I remained constantly fascinated.

It's only January but I believe this will be a contender for my book of the year. Its that good.

To begin with, I was gripped by the setting. An abandoned asylum is always a win with me. Throughout the novel it was plain to see that the writer was familiar with mental illness, bipolarism in particular. The description of drug therapies and other treatments as well as symptoms, felt real and were accurately depicted. The periods of manic behavior, delusions of grandeur, followed by dark depression were well portrayed and interesting to read about. Some of the characters, Peter Driscoe Peter and Maya in particular, were easy to empathize with and I found myself thinking of people I know who have suffered from this disorder, including the effects the illness has had on their families.
I also liked the inclusion of religion turned bad – always a win from me. The use of metaphor throughout was thought provoking, as was Doctor Zita’s thoughts on hereditary factors, some of which I found myself mentally arguing against, or at least not wholly agreeing with. For example, she states, “Fears and threats experienced by earlier generations can influence the structure of our genes, making them more likely to switch on negative responses to stress and trauma.” To me this suggests the individual is not responsible, whereas it is my personal belief that a/ such reactions to triggers are often learned behaviors and b/ such reactions are not so much ‘remembered’ but rather, as a species, we have not traveled as far along the evolutionary scale as we like to think, therefore they are often a natural response. Our modern world, filled with ever-changing technology, has helped trick us into believing we have advanced in other ways. I enjoy this in a book – a challenge to what I believe – and that was my favorite aspect.
What stood out to me was the recognition of what it’s like to live with someone with a mental illness. That sense that somehow it is your responsibility to ‘fix’ them. The scene towards the end where Kori has to ‘let go’ of her father for his sake was very well portrayed. In fact, it was the only part of the novel which elicited an emotional response from me. That’s a personal thing, though.
Finally, I loved the inclusion of an afterword from the author. He starts by saying, “Who actually reads an afterword?” Well, me for one. I enjoy the insight into an author’s mind.
There was one negative for me, and I apologize if this has already been addressed, since this is an ARC... the novel could do with another round of proofreading, specifically for inconsistencies in tense. Overall, definitely well worth a read.
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher Wicked Run Press for the review copy.

The Hobgoblin of Little Minds is the story of Kori, who has been suffering through her dad’s mental illness for most of her life. He was in and out of hospitals, and his mood was unpredictable and changed in a matter of minutes. The last time she saw him was in a psychiatric hospital. The same hospital that is now closed and about to be torn down. Kori has been haunting the hospital halls for years, looking for answers and her father. Once she finds him it becomes clear that what lives in this empty building is no longer her beloved dad at all.

Looking at the cover of The Hobgoblin of Little Minds, you might expect a good ole’ werewolf horror story. Like myself, you might also not be a big fan of the werewolf trope. Well, let me assure you this book is so much more than that. What Matthews did here is amazing and deserves a much better review than I will ever be able to give. He combines the supernatural with the world of mental illness, and does a phenomenal job at that.

Now, there are still a lot of horror elements in the book. The creatures are creepy and gruesome. But at the essence, they are broken human beings that have been let down by the people they trusted the most to help them.

Mark Matthews truly is a special gem, and I look forward to reading a lot more of his works to come.

Kori’s father, Peter, suffers from bipolar disorder and he tried hard to do right by his family. However, one night Peter hurt Kori and was admitted to Northville Psychiatric Hospital, never to be heard from again.
Fifteen years after he was admitted, after the hospital was closed and abandoned, Kori wants to say a final goodbye before the building is demolished. What Kori discovers leaves her questioning everything she has been told.
Bipolar disorder is a transformation of the mind from mania, back and forth with depression, sometimes extreme in nature. Maybe sometimes the mind isn’t all that transforms. Sometimes science and genetics create a perfect vessel.
Mark Matthews knows the ramblings of a confused, distracted mind. He writes with sensitivity of those who society would consider “crazy”. He perfectly captures the deep regret that Kori feels for being the cause of her fathers institutionalization, making her somber, and nostalgic but determined.
Overall I did find this to be a difficult read even though I know this will stick with me. There is lots of internal monologue from those with mental health issues.
“The sun was just rising, golden eyelids over the horizon, birds happiest at this hour, and together they sing the song of the universe. Words he understands and they pull him along the sidewalk.”
This book would work well as a reread because you would know more of where the characters were coming from but for the first time through it gets confusing as to what may be important and what seems like mumbled nonsense.

The hobgoblin of little minds by Mark Matthews.
Kori dad is in a mental institution. It is due for demolition. Can she save him before the demolition?.
This was a very good read. A little confusing but after reading it I found this dark on creepy. Good story. And some good characters. 4*.

First off, the cover of this book is amazing. A werewolf holding a heart. The blue and red’s were just beautiful together.

I ripped into this book without reading the synopsis because it was a book by Mark Matthews. I have loved all his books so far. He writes addiction horror that really gets under my skin. “The Hobgoblin of Little Minds” takes a departure from addiction and explores mental illness.

Kori Pershone Driscoll has suffered through her dad’s mental illness. She wanted him to get better but he does not seem to improve. One day, he disappears and Kori is determined to find him. She breaks into the abandoned hospital that used to treat him and is unprepared for what she finds.

Every character in this book was so well written that you have sympathy for them. Dr. Zita, suffered her own trauma, which in turn caused her to be the villain. Although her acts are horrific, I could see the driving force between these actions. I wanted all the characters to find peace.



This was a well written book about bipolar disorder. It touches on how medications and medical treatment can influence individuals with mental illness.

Decent book, but not as good as I expected from earlier reviews. I had a hard time relating to the main character. It just never grabbed me and I struggled to finish this one. Good, but not great.

This was an incredibly unique and thoughtful take on mental illness, bipolar disorder in particular, with a twist on the traditional werewolf lore. Ironically, I think the word werewolf was only used once? And then shut down really quickly, which I thought was a nice addition.

The descriptions of what it felt like to go through a manic episode were some of the most haunting and beautiful I’ve ever read. Bipolar disorder has some very negative connotations attached to it, however there is beauty in the heightened awareness that both Peter and Maya observe, and later Lilith.

“She wanted to rip the walls down, wanted to sing her song of rage and pain.”

“Atoms in her brain and all the fluids lubricating her spine started to ooze like hot lava”

The characters were engaging and very fleshed out. I wanted Kori to find peace with her dad. I wanted Maya to find Lilith and be reunited. I wanted Hades the dog to be ok! And I suitably hated Zita. It seemed she justified her cruelty and her Frankenstein complex with her past.

I was drawn to the book by the amazing cover, but I kept reading because of the descriptive prose that Mark Matthews wrote. I felt like I was living a manic episode.

5 stars and will be buying a physical copy when it comes out!

Sometimes I’ll read a book and feel unqualified to write a review. When the author is one whose work I respect and enjoy, I often feel that anything I might have to say would simply be silly. Such is the case with The Hobgoblin of Little Minds by the always excellent Mark Matthews.

What’s so good about it?

First of all, this book was written by Mark Matthews. I know that anytime I crack open something he’s written that it’s going to be inventive and imaginative, and usually go in a different direction than what I might expect. THOLM is no exception; yes, it’s a werewolf story—but these are not your typical werewolves, and the direction the story goes is not what you might expect.

Which brings me to my second point: the best horror writing is typically either allegorical or functions on multiple levels, and that perfectly describes THOLM. While it can be enjoyed as a mostly straight-forward story about werewolves, this can also be read as a dissection of how the children of parents with mental illnesses respond to growing up in that environment. The book centers around three relationships between mentally ill/werewolfy parents and their children, and the main meat of the book is really about how each of the children (some of whom are now adults) have dealt with their parents’ conditions. Some want to save their parents; some want to save humanity by any means possible; and some want to simply watch the world burn. The depiction of the mania and depression that is part of being a werewolf was compellingly written and extremely unnerving.

So why four stars? Probably just personal issues. I found the overall characterization to be somewhat flat. The POV shifts every couple of chapters, but most of the characters seem to speak with the same voice. This was especially true of the female characters.

However, the main issue that keeps this from being 5 stars for me is the extended monologuing (chapters 21-24) indulged in by the villain. If you need four chapters for the bad guy (or woman, in this case) to painstakingly explain what she’s been up to....well, there probably was a better (or more concise) way to give us that information. But what do I know—I am not an author.

Overall, though, this was a wild ride and a good time, and I eagerly look forward to what Mr. Matthews has planned for us next time.

*****I received a free ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This is it.*****