Advance Review: THE LEGEND LIMINAL

by | Sep 7, 2025 | Book Reviews, Reviews, The Horror Review News | 0 comments

The Legend Liminal
Ren Hutchings
Stars and Sabers Publishing (September 30, 2025)
Reviewed by Carson Buckingham

The Legend Liminal.  Hmmm. Let’s start with the fact that it’s only 67 pages of actual story, which, to me, makes it a longish short story rather than a novella, since the definition of a short story is a story that can be read in a single sitting.

I easily read it in a single sitting.

I find it interesting that it is bound like a book. I see this happening more and more, and I am assuming that it is to address the preferences of younger readers these days.

OK. That’s fine. Something for everyone is a good thing.

But Amazon wants $13.99 for it. To me, this is not a good value for my allocated book money. This kept me entertained for less than an hour. I paid less for David Copperfield and Great Expectations combined. Used, but still… I was given this book to review, because I never would have paid $13.99 for it. But that’s me.

Not that it wasn’t an interesting book. A group of twenty-somethings jump into their camper van one day and decide to go off the grid and drop out of society. The motivating factor for this was the death of their beloved mother five months prior, and they are having a hard time dealing with it, so they take off.

The book is about how we cope, or don’t cope, with grief.  After stopping at a gas station, they pull away into a different reality—a desert world where there is nobody else. There are buildings, and all the electricity still works; they can pump gas, etc. All the lights are on, but nobody’s home. Time does strange things here, and it is impossible to keep track of.

In the guise of coping, one of the siblings tries to ignore his grief by immersing himself in obsessively collecting useless data, one tries to run from his grief by driving and driving and driving, and one continues to mourn with no idea of how live with the soul-shattering heartache. There is also a friend of the family along, and she isn’t much help, but spends her time creating new tattoo art in her sketchbook. Either immersed in misery or actively ignoring it, nobody is dealing with anything.  Somewhat reminiscent of Groundhog Day, they must learn to cope before anything changes. It finally does, thanks to a calico cat (called ‘beckoning cats’ in Japan).

Though the book is small, the author really couldn’t have made the story any longer without it becoming boring and repetitive. It ended when it had to end, with a satisfying conclusion that made sense.

Rather than a terribly thin standalone book, I’d have liked to see this as a part of this author’s collection of stories.

I will say that The Legend Liminal could have benefited from a good edit, however. There were misused words and grammatical errors that pulled me out of the story a couple of times, but they may not bother you as much. That being said, I would be interested in reading more by this author.

If you have a fan of weird fiction or time travel in the house, grab them a copy for Christmas! A good stocking stuffer. Or get a copy for yourself—you’ll enjoy it.

3.5 stars.

About Carson Buckingham

Professionally, Carson Buckingham has made her way in life doing all manner of things, most of which involve arson. She is currently employed as a freelance writer on a work release program. In her spare time, she studies forensics, in hopes of applying her new knowledge to eluding the authorities more effectively the next time. She is originally from Connecticut, but now resides in Kentucky—and Connecticut is glad to be rid of her.

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