Blood on Her Tongue: A modern vampire tale not for the squeamish

Johanna van Veen’s gothic horror Blood on Her Tongue offers up a classic vampire tale with some modern contemplations.

The book follows Lucy Goedhart as she is called to the ominously named Zwartwater (black water) estate, where her sister has taken ill. In 1887, there isn’t much in the way of medical treatment, but Lucy’s sister Sarah isn’t fighting off a regular illness.

Sarah has become obsessed with a body found in the bog of the vast estate and since interacting with the 300-year-old corpse she has become increasingly incoherent, struggles with taking care of herself and has developed an insatiable hunger.

As Lucy tries desperately to save her sister, she finds that her sister’s husband, her sister’s doctor and childhood friend, and several other characters who are present at the remote manor house all have their own interests and motivations – some as dangerous as whatever condition is plaguing Sarah.

The book is not for those easily bothered by gore. The title – Blood on Her Tongue – is a pretty good indication of what is to come. Van Veen does not shy away from the horror elements, including two separate scenes of eyeball gouging.

Like any good horror novel, the macabre monster is not the scariest part. The threats Lucy faces are from the men surrounding her sister. Her brother-in-law attempts to seduce Lucy while badgering her to send Sarah away to an asylum.

Sarah’s doctor expresses his own interest in Lucy, pushing his vision of the future while supposedly devoting himself to his patient. The mores of 19th-century upper-class society may be the biggest piece of villainy of all.

In the tradition of Dracula, Blood on Her Tongue tells its story through letters, journal entries and newspaper clippings. The personal correspondence adds to the claustrophobia of the work, with everyone limited to an isolated house, but the media reports remind the reader that the world outside does exist.

The work is the second book from Dutch author Johanna van Veen. It was published in 2025 in English and became a USA Today bestseller. Her first book, My Darling Dreadful Thing, was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for best horror novel. Van Veen grew up in the Netherlands as a triplet, something that influenced her writing about the sisters Lucy and Sarah.

If horror is your thing, Blood on Her Tongue will creep you out and keep you turning the pages.

You can get your copy at the American Book Center.