I’ll Make a Spectacle of You
I’ll Make a Spectacle of You by Beatrice Winifred Iker is a chilling Southern Gothic folk horror novel primarily set in and around the fictional Bricksbury University, a historically black college in Jonesborough, TN, in the heart of Appalachia.
What drew me to Iker’s novel (besides my affection for Southern gothic as a whole and the fact that I live a few miles from the fictional setting) is that it also falls into the Affrilachian - coined in 1991 by poet Frank X. Walker to highlight the contributions of black Appalachians to culture and society - lit umbrella.
When I - and I suspect a lot of people - especially white people like me - think of hoodoo in the U.S., I think of it in lowland Southern places like Louisiana, while Appalachia is reserved for Euro-centric witchcraft and folk magic, and I appreciate that Iker’s novel dispels that myth by setting her story not only in the East Tennessee mountains but at a historically black university.
Zora Robinson is working on her thesis at Bricksbury which involves researching local folklore about a beast who lives in the nearby woods. Her investigation uncovers much more than she expected including secret societies and dark rituals and sacrifices, and a connection to her own family.
As she digs deeper, she finds herself in more danger and isn’t sure there’s anyone she can trust - her mentor, her girlfriend, even her own sister are suspect.
I’ll Make a Spectacle of You is a perfect combination of atmospheric Southern Gothic, terrifying folk horror, and queer dark academia with elements of hoodoo and the black experience in East Tennessee - not to mention some deliciously spicy scenes.
Note: I listened to this on audiobook along with reading the ebook, and Ozzie Jacobs has a beautiful rich voice and really embodied the characters, especially Zora.
Thank you to NetGalley, Orbit Books, and Hachette Audio for the advance copy for my unbiased review. Pub. Date 11/18/25
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