Wishwood

I’ll admit, I approached *Wishwood* skeptical of yet another ‘bride in a haunted manor’ tale, but Wheeler’s sharp prose and Beresford’s nuanced narration won me over within an hour. The real masterstroke? The horror isn’t just in the ghosts—it’s in the way Thomas Westwood’s politeness feels like a threat, or how the manor’s decay mirrors Kate’s eroding sense of self. Beresford’s performance is *exceptional* in its restraint; she doesn’t overplay the fear, which makes the rare moments of panic hit harder. I especially loved how she voices the secondary characters—Thomas’s smooth, almost oily charm, the maid’s clipped terror—each distinct without veering into caricature. That said, the pacing stumbles slightly in the middle. The mystery of the curse takes a backseat to domestic tension for a stretch, and while that’s intentional (the banality of evil, and all that), it risks losing listeners who crave constant dread. The production, though, is flawless: the audio levels are perfect, and the ambient sounds—like the wind through the ruins—are used sparingly but to devastating effect. My only real critique? The ending feels *slightly* rushed after such a deliberate build. Still, this is gothic horror for grown-ups—less about jump scares, more about the creeping realization that some prisons are gilded. If you’re a fan of *The Death of Jane Lawrence* or *Mexican Gothic* but want something leaner and meaner, *Wishwood* delivers.