Author

AJ Reid

Loose cannon on deck
Social hand-grenade
Walking time-bomb
A bit lonely

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About

AJ Reid writes from a small seaside town on the Wirral, crafting stories that blend Northern grit with a spark of dark humour. His works—haunting shorts like Seppuku and Rare Exotic Breeds, the tense thriller Grey Noise, the stark dystopia The Horseman’s Dream, the mythic surge of The Knights of Snowdonia, the sly satire A Smaller Hell, and the raw poetry of Marshmallow—probe the human psyche with subtle force. Writing Magazine called them “darkly playful”; some see hints of Ballard or Kafka. Read and decide for yourself.
Steeped in Ballard’s bleak futures, Banks’ bold narratives, Shelley’s gothic shadows, Eliot’s sharp verse, Dahl’s twisted tales, and Jung’s mythic depths, Reid explores questions that linger. When not writing, he’s walking in the woods, cooking vegetarian food, playing guitar, soldering circuits, reading or lost in the music of Jimi Hendrix and Ann Peebles. Find his books on Amazon or follow him on X for what’s next.

Books

A darkly comic, Kafkaesque thriller set in a decaying Northern England town. New employee Black is ensnared by store owner Dianne Doyle in a surreal department store, unraveling at a shocking Christmas party.
A dystopian psychological horror set in a flooded, fascist-ruled Britain. Likened to Orwell and Ballard, this “shockingly prescient” thriller explores trauma, resistance, and reality’s fragility.
A mesmerizing anthology of dark, surreal short stories blending horror, humor, and folk tales. From a butcher’s grim dilemma in the award-winning Chop-Chop to a cosmic odyssey in The Quetzal’s Coda, these eclectic tales probe the strange and profound.
A bullied teen discovers he’s King Arthur’s reincarnation in this thrilling Arthurian legend. Recruited by a secret order, he wields mystical powers to battle Yakuza hitmen in Tokyo and Big Pharma in Paris. A modern, coming-of-age dark fantasy.
A chilling psychological thriller with dark comedy, Grey Noise follows Patrick McDonagh, a troubled sound engineer haunted by a sinister "grey noise." Likened to Hitchcock’s "Psycho”, this surreal crime novel grips fans of dark, character-driven horror.
A provocative anthology of 17 dark, surreal short stories blending gritty Northern England settings with Kafkaesque psychological depth. Praised for its "darkly playful elements", Seppuku captivates fans of literary horror and speculative fiction.
A haunting poetry collection weaving dark, surreal verses with gritty Northern England backdrops. Exploring vulnerability, identity, and societal decay, Marshmallow juxtaposes soft imagery with harsh realities, infused with Reid’s signature dark humour.