This month for my Author Chat series, I had the amazing opportunity to sit down with Linda Hamilton to talk about her gothic horror debut, The Fourth Wife, and what unfolded was so much deeper than a typical “about the book” conversation.

We spent a lot of time talking about women’s roles within Mormonism and how, in systems built on patriarchy, oppression doesn’t always feel obvious to the people living inside it. That idea really stuck with me… the question of what equality actually looks like.

Because it’s easy to talk about equality as a concept. But in reality? It’s measurable. It shows up in power, autonomy, and choice. And when those things aren’t there, what does that say about the system?

What I found especially powerful is how gothic horror elevates all of this. The atmosphere, the tension, the unease… it all works on the surface. But underneath it? The real horror isn’t just what may or may not be supernatural.

It’s the lives these women are forced to live. The quiet control. The rules that dictate their existence. The way something as simple as playing the piano can be framed as sin. That kind of restriction, that kind of erasure… it lingers in a way that feels heavier than anything lurking in the shadows.

We also touched on the line between psychological and supernatural horror, and how this story sits right in that unsettling middle space where you’re constantly questioning what’s real… and what’s been conditioned.

And then we got a glimpse of what’s next 👀

Book two is already hinting at something equally layered: Sally Chase, seer stones, buried treasure… and the question that honestly feels like the thread tying all of this together: What happens when women are forgotten because of powerful men?

If you love gothic horror that actually has something to say, about power, identity, belief systems, and the stories we inherit, this is absolutely a conversation worth watching.

💬 Question for you:
What do you think is more unsettling: something supernatural or something that feels entirely real?