Croatoan: A Novel of Possession and Oblivion
About this ebook
—Kirkus Reviews
“Taylor evokes a frightening metamorphosis during the voyage, with John’s physical countenance undergoing startling changes. New terrors are unleashed on nearly every page, as Taylor gradually nudges Kit toward his greater destiny. The reckoning he must face thrums with horror, but Kit’s journey is ultimately one of sacrifice and purpose, rooted in a heritage rich with ancient secrets and meaning.”
—BookLife Reviews (Publishers Weekly)
The sea takes what it wants, and it always collects its due…
Kit Cabot stows away on the clipper Apollyon for one reason: to save his uncle, Captain John Cabot. Ever since John carried a strange red pearl out of a sea cave, something in him isn’t right—his eyes gleam with a red-black swirl, his words hit like a physical blow, and the name he murmurs, Croatoan, makes hardened sailors go quiet.
As the crew whispers mutiny and the lash sings on deck, Kit and his few allies hunt the pearl’s origins, only to learn it isn’t a jewel at all but a window—an invitation—and something on the other side has noticed them. Storms close in; the coast grows treacherous; and John’s humanity thins to a terrible calm.
To save his uncle—maybe even his soul—Kit must decide how far he’ll go, and what he’ll become, in a battle where obedience means doom and defiance is the only prayer left.
Croatoan is the second doorway into The Oblivion Cycle, where the boundaries of flesh dissolve, belief becomes contagion, and identity slips away one heartbeat at a time.
The Oblivion Cycle
What if the greatest threat to humanity is not death—but erasure?
The Oblivion Cycle is a collection of standalone horror novels bound not by recurring characters or settings, but by a singular, devouring truth: identity is not a constant—it is prey. Each novel opens a doorway into the same cosmic hunger, exploring a different way the self can be unmade: not with teeth or fire, but through memory, belief, flesh, and friendship itself. These are not stories about oblivion—they are encounters with it.
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About the author
Welcome to the quiet horror of Rowan Taylor — where memories linger, love unravels, and the line between presence and absence is never quite clear. These are stories that don’t scream — they whisper, weep, and wait in the silence.
Here, hauntings are intimate. Familiar faces become unfamiliar. Rooms remember. And some doors never close.
Rowan Taylor writes unsettling fiction that blends psychological dread with the supernatural, exploring what it means to forget—and to be forgotten. She is also known as Tracy Fobes, author of eight award-winning paranormal romances published by Simon & Schuster and Leisure LoveSpell. Fobes has also independently published numerous romantic suspense stories, including Hard Charger and Billionaire’s Hidden Heart.
As Fobes, she wrote of witches, grimalkins, haunted seas, and dangerous love. As Rowan, she steps fully into the dark.
She lives near Philadelphia, owns too many books and too few flashlights, and believes the scariest monsters are the ones who know your name.
Noted by Critics
Rowan Taylor’s horror fiction has received two Editor’s Picks from BookLife Reviews (Publishers Weekly) and favorable reviews across all three novels of The Oblivion Cycle from Kirkus Reviews, each earning a “GET IT” verdict. Kirkus praised The Memory Keeper as “a white-knuckled, sharply crafted piece of cerebral horror,” Croatoan as “a taut horror tale that simmers with tension,” and Dead Friends Forever as “a wholly absorbing dark mystery,” noting that it effectively closes the trilogy.
Her work is recognized for its emotional intensity, atmospheric craft, and disciplined suspense. Her screenwriting has been optioned twice, underscoring a body of work that blends cinematic tension with immersive, character-driven dread.
