Echoes of the Forgotten: Web of Malevolence
P.D. Alleva
Reader Reviews
5.0
1 rating
S.
May 19, 2026
Web of Malevolence – Echoes of the Forgotten Collection
By: P.D. Alleva
Star Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: June 12, 2026
Length: 90 pages
Content Warnings: Graphic Violence, Gore, Child Endangerment, Cannibalism, Psychological Horror, Folk Horror, Trauma, Possession
Naia Tomes. Naia Tomes. Naia Tomes.
Wow. Paul’s prose never stops surprising me. While this isn’t the first book I’ve read from P.D. Alleva, this is my first official review of one of his works, and what a place to start.
Michael Tedesco is sent to his grandfather’s home on a remote Florida Keys island during the winter of 1971 after a tragic accident shatters his world. The island appears peaceful on the surface, but something rotten lives beneath it. The winds whisper the name Naia Tomes, a woman said to have devoured human flesh before being buried and forgotten… or so the locals claim. It doesn’t take long before Michael realizes something evil is trying to escape the island, pulling him into a nightmare he cannot outrun.
As part of the Echoes of the Forgotten collection, twelve standalone folk horror stories written by twelve different authors, Web of Malevolence delivers ninety pages of relentless tension, brutal violence, and eerie atmosphere from beginning to end.
Alleva wastes no time throwing the reader directly into tragedy and dread. From the opening moments, you feel the emotional fracture in Michael’s life, and that pain becomes the perfect gateway into the nightmare that follows. The island itself becomes a character: isolated, claustrophobic, humid, and oppressive. The forests, shadows, and silence constantly feel alive, like something is watching from just beyond sight.
And then there’s Naia Tomes.
She is terrifying.
Not just because of what she does, but because of how deeply her presence infects the island and its people. Her relationship with the townsfolk feels almost symbiotic, especially through the children she possesses and manipulates into carrying out her will. Those moments genuinely got under my skin. Alleva handles her with the kind of restraint and mystery that makes her feel larger than the story itself.
One of the strongest elements in the novella is the fragmented flashbacks revealing pieces of Naia’s past. They add emotional depth to her vengeance and slowly unravel the horrific history behind the island. It transforms her from just a monster into something tragic, hateful, and mythic all at once.
And yes, the brutality absolutely delivers. The gore is vicious and effective, but what impressed me most was how immersive Paul’s writing feels during those moments. You don’t feel like you’re reading violence from a distance. You feel trapped inside it alongside the characters.
Also, as the designer behind the cover artwork, seeing Naia fully come to life within the pages made the experience even better. The visual concept and the story feed into each other perfectly, and after reading the novella, that cover hits even harder.
If you’re looking for a short, addictive folk horror novella packed with atmosphere, brutality, and a genuinely memorable supernatural antagonist, Web of Malevolence deserves your attention.
For transparency: I am part of the Echoes of the Forgotten collection alongside the other authors, and I received an ARC from the author. However, this review is my honest opinion, and after finishing this one, I genuinely cannot wait to read the other stories my fellow authors have created.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅ REAL – This one absolutely earned it.
— Angel R. Sánchez
By: P.D. Alleva
Star Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release Date: June 12, 2026
Length: 90 pages
Content Warnings: Graphic Violence, Gore, Child Endangerment, Cannibalism, Psychological Horror, Folk Horror, Trauma, Possession
Naia Tomes. Naia Tomes. Naia Tomes.
Wow. Paul’s prose never stops surprising me. While this isn’t the first book I’ve read from P.D. Alleva, this is my first official review of one of his works, and what a place to start.
Michael Tedesco is sent to his grandfather’s home on a remote Florida Keys island during the winter of 1971 after a tragic accident shatters his world. The island appears peaceful on the surface, but something rotten lives beneath it. The winds whisper the name Naia Tomes, a woman said to have devoured human flesh before being buried and forgotten… or so the locals claim. It doesn’t take long before Michael realizes something evil is trying to escape the island, pulling him into a nightmare he cannot outrun.
As part of the Echoes of the Forgotten collection, twelve standalone folk horror stories written by twelve different authors, Web of Malevolence delivers ninety pages of relentless tension, brutal violence, and eerie atmosphere from beginning to end.
Alleva wastes no time throwing the reader directly into tragedy and dread. From the opening moments, you feel the emotional fracture in Michael’s life, and that pain becomes the perfect gateway into the nightmare that follows. The island itself becomes a character: isolated, claustrophobic, humid, and oppressive. The forests, shadows, and silence constantly feel alive, like something is watching from just beyond sight.
And then there’s Naia Tomes.
She is terrifying.
Not just because of what she does, but because of how deeply her presence infects the island and its people. Her relationship with the townsfolk feels almost symbiotic, especially through the children she possesses and manipulates into carrying out her will. Those moments genuinely got under my skin. Alleva handles her with the kind of restraint and mystery that makes her feel larger than the story itself.
One of the strongest elements in the novella is the fragmented flashbacks revealing pieces of Naia’s past. They add emotional depth to her vengeance and slowly unravel the horrific history behind the island. It transforms her from just a monster into something tragic, hateful, and mythic all at once.
And yes, the brutality absolutely delivers. The gore is vicious and effective, but what impressed me most was how immersive Paul’s writing feels during those moments. You don’t feel like you’re reading violence from a distance. You feel trapped inside it alongside the characters.
Also, as the designer behind the cover artwork, seeing Naia fully come to life within the pages made the experience even better. The visual concept and the story feed into each other perfectly, and after reading the novella, that cover hits even harder.
If you’re looking for a short, addictive folk horror novella packed with atmosphere, brutality, and a genuinely memorable supernatural antagonist, Web of Malevolence deserves your attention.
For transparency: I am part of the Echoes of the Forgotten collection alongside the other authors, and I received an ARC from the author. However, this review is my honest opinion, and after finishing this one, I genuinely cannot wait to read the other stories my fellow authors have created.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
✅ REAL – This one absolutely earned it.
— Angel R. Sánchez