The Militia House - the horror of war and a haunted house
“I imagine someone at a desk making the decisions that put me in this exact place at this exact moment. That person has no idea who I am or where I am now.”
In 2010 Corporal Loyette is finishing up his deployment in Kajaki. The days are long and boring, the heat is neverending, and him and his unit have no idea really why they’re even there. To break the boredom, the unit investigate an abandoned barracks that has a terrifying history. But they soon regret the visit as everything around them begins to break apart including reality itself.
The Militia House is the debut novel from John Milas and is a fascinating take on the haunted house trope mixed with some fascinating commentary on the war in Afghanistan.
“And we’re just standing there watching it suffer, acting like we’re not responsible for anything because we’re farther from home than we’ve ever been.”
Here’s what I loved:
Milas has perfectly captured the feel of the war, the apathy of the American public, and the lack of care from the military during this time. Considering Milas himself has served, I think he’s done a phenomenal job of putting it into words. At times heartbreaking and aggravating, it was incredible to get to read from a first person perspective.
I thoroughly enjoyed the slow descent into madness captured here from multiple characters, from the house itself, and the environment. It’s one of those great stories where you can’t pinpoint something specific, but simply that everything was dread inducing.
The last third of the book is superbly creepy and gave me a mix of Insidious and Amityville House vibes. You feel the horror easily as you follow Loyette throughout the maze of events that bring us to a very satisfying and stomach dropping ending.
“militia house. the flies come at night. flies in the air. flies on flies. flies on the sleeping marines. marines dream inside. scorpions on the floor. wasps in the dirt.”
Overall, The Militia House is a strong first novel from Milas and I’m excited to read whatever he comes up with next. The Militia House is on shelves now, and a big thank you to Henry Holt & Co for sending me a finished copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
