The Nightmare Continues: S. N. Short Returns to Wicked Ink Publishing with “The Rocking Horse”
Wicked Ink Publishing is thrilled to announce that horror author S. N. Short is returning for a second book, signing her next supernatural horror novel, The Rocking Horse, set to release in Fall 2027.
When S. N. Short first joined Wicked Ink Publishing with her debut novel, A White Death, we introduced readers to an author with a penchant for nasty revenge tales, unexpected character demises, and all things horror. Now, we're excited to continue that publishing partnership as Short prepares to unleash an entirely new nightmare on readers.
Horror has been part of Short's life long before she became a published author. As a child, she and her twin sister would sneak out of bed late at night to watch horror movies and anthologies on their parents' old black-and-white television. That fascination soon extended to frightening books smuggled home from the school library, at least until her mother discovered them and promptly banished them from the house.
Fortunately for horror readers, the stories didn't stay banished for long.
Before making her novel debut, Short spent years sharing her macabre stories and novellas with close friends and fellow horror enthusiasts, developing the dark imagination and taste for the unexpected that would eventually lead to A White Death. Her debut took readers into the unforgiving expanse of Canada's High Arctic, where isolation, ancient legend, and supernatural terror collide against a landscape as beautiful as it is deadly.
With The Rocking Horse, Short is leaving the frozen wilderness behind for a very different kind of nightmare.
Her second novel turns something familiar and innocent into the source of mounting supernatural terror, weaving together a decades-old tragedy, a vintage wooden rocking horse, and a past that refuses to remain where it belongs. While The Rocking Horse tells an entirely new story, readers can expect Short's signature fascination with the macabre, the unexpected, and the darker sides of human nature to follow her into this next chapter.
Outside of writing, Short continues to balance her storytelling with the pursuits that have always inspired her adventurous side, from riding her motorcycle and attending HorrorCons and Tattoo Fests to travelling, exploring new destinations, and finding any excuse to spend time around the water.
At Wicked Ink Publishing, one of the most rewarding parts of what we do is having the opportunity to continue growing alongside our authors beyond their first book. We couldn't be more excited to welcome S. N. Short back for another novel and to continue building on the partnership that began with A White Death.
If her debut A White Death taught readers anything, it's that nowhere, not even the frozen reaches of the High Arctic, is safe from the darkness of S. N. Short's imagination.
This time, that darkness is coming much closer to home.
Every antique has a story. Some are dying to be heard.
The Rocking Horse by S. N. Short is coming Fall 2027.
EVERY ANTIQUE HAS A STORY. SOME ARE DYING TO BE HEARD.
Stacie has always had a weakness for things with a past. But some things should be left there.
When she wins a vintage wooden rocking horse at an online estate auction, she sees nothing sinister in its chipped paint and weathered frame. To Stacie, it’s simply another forgotten treasure waiting to be restored and the perfect gift for a friend’s young daughter. Then the animals start reacting to it.
Strange sounds creep through empty rooms. Shadows move where no one is standing. And the longer the rocking horse remains, the harder it becomes to ignore the unsettling feeling that Stacie didn’t bring it home alone. Something came with it. Something that has been waiting a very long time.
Searching for answers, Stacie uncovers the story of a rural family in the late 1950s, a childhood scarred by violence and secrecy, and a tragedy that left more behind than anyone could have imagined. At the centre of it all is the same wooden rocking horse, an innocent childhood treasure that somehow survived. But some things survive for a reason.
As unexplained disturbances turn increasingly violent and those closest to Stacie are drawn into the nightmare, the line between the past and present begins to disappear. To stop what she has unwittingly unleashed, Stacie must uncover what happened all those years ago before whatever has awakened becomes impossible to contain.
Because it isn’t the rocking horse she should fear. It’s what’s still riding it.
