What Blood Remembers
by C. William Phillips
Reviewed by Devin Ford on February 6, 2026
Est. Reading Time: 10 min
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Title: What Blood Remembers
Author: C. William Phillips
Series:
Published: June 15, 2024
ISBN-13: 9798999355911
At a Glance: A Gritty and Brutal Thriller
What Blood Remembers is best described as a brutal mashup of The Sopranos and Breaking Bad covered in blood and topped with a dash of psychological terror. It’s a gripping tale of revenge, grief, broken families, mental health, and a brutally honest look at closure. This debut takes us on a multiple point of view journey through a dark world that feels far too real at times. Revenge is the motivator but not the thematic focus as Phillips explores trauma, expectation, and circumstance throughout. It’s perfectly paced and will have you up way too late to finish it because you won’t be able to put it down until you know what comes next.
With a hook this strong I figured this was going to be a wild ride, but I never anticipated my first thriller experience to be not only so gritty but so emotionally captivating.
Revenge Has no Boundaries
What Blood Remembers starts in the southwest and takes us all the way to Mexico then back again as this story and hunt for revenge unfolds. Even though the scope of the world in this story gets broad, it never loses that close up feeling you get because the characters keep us grounded and focused on the moments as they unfold.
There is some clear power dynamics at play here between the crime families, the average person, and the police as they all end up intertwined after the tragedy that unfolds during the opening scenes of the book. Phillips does an incredible job at making the world feel lived in and giving vivid detail only when it serves the scene and amplifies the moment which is a welcome change of pace compared to the typical exposition laden world-building some fantasy can have. The way he describes a scene makes you feel like you’re standing in the room watching it all unfold giving a level of immersion that is rare for me, especially in stories that take place in worlds that parallel our own.
The society isn’t the innovation in this book since it closely mirrors what anyone in the United States is living in, the innovation is how it’s portrayed through the experience of the characters. The multiple POVs allows us to see how the power dynamics work from all sides and avoids the common pitfall of feeling preachy and instead it allowed me to connect deeply with these characters, and even allowed me to empathize with the antagonist.
Characters Driven By Grief and Desperation
What Blood Remembers is told through multiple POVs which helps build the tension, build the plot, and lay out the history without making it feel like an info dump. There are three “main” POVs that really shape this story and allow us to get a glimpse of the same situation from different perspectives adding a high stakes feel to both the antagonist and protagonist simultaneously.
Cole Traeger is our victim and is introduced to us as an older man who runs a gas station that has his life thrown into turmoil as he is the only survivor of a home invasion. Cole is awash with grief as we start to unfold what he remembers from the night of the event through detective interviews and conversations with his estranged son Marcus. As the novel continues we start to really see the depth of Traeger and his journey goes from one of dealing with grief and seeking revenge to one of regret. As Marcus and Cole begin their journey to get revenge, Cole is face to face with his choices and how they have deeply affected the trajectory of Marcus’ life and when he is forced to confront the consequences of those choices, his reaction is one of the most human I’ve read.
Marcus is Cole’s estranged son who is introduced to us on the brink of losing his apartment, a writer that is barely scraping by financially, and very clearly emotionally distressed. When he finds out about the home invasion, he is forced to see his father Cole after they had a severe falling out. This forced reuniting of father and son with a common goal doesn’t wash away the past, but instead forces it to the surface and really allows Phillips to explore the damage a parent can do to a child even when they believe in the moment they are doing what is best. Couple fresh grief of lost family members on top of it and it’s a recipe for some very intense moments that had me questioning my own way of handling situations with my children.
Viggo is our antagonist who sets this entire story into motion in an act of abhorrent violence against the Traeger family. What stood out to me most about Viggo was the thoughts he was having, the fear, regret, and denial during these indefensible acts chilled me to the bone. I found myself internally warring with being shocked at what happened but also feeling such a strong sense of pain for the characters mental state that ultimately put him in the situation. Viggo is not a story about redemption nor does the novel ever try to justify the actions in any way, but instead uses the POV to demonstrate just how broken someone has to be to get to that point.
It was entirely possible he would end up killing someone, maybe more than one person. He had to stay calm, keep his heartbeat steady.
Pacing That Doesn’t Let Up
What Blood Remembers opens in spectacular fashion that leaves your jaw on the floor, your mind reeling, and the pages turning. That pace and intensity continues from cover to cover as you jump between different aspects of this interwoven situation from criminal enterprise, murder, and an unwavering commitment to keeping the violence visceral without crossing the line into being gratuitous.
I was in a huge slump after completing 3 incredibly long books and What Blood Remembers is the definition of a slump buster. This book kept me up late, sitting in my driveway because I couldn’t get out of the car until the chapter was over, and then picking up the book as soon as I got back in the house. The book flows incredibly well, knows when to slow down enough to really let the gravity of the situation sink in, and the twists hit so hard that I was literally re-reading sections because I couldn’t believe my eyes. The best way I could describe it is a constant state of adrenaline and shocked, where once your finished you just have to sit in silence until your brain can catch up and process what just happened.
Between the Sheets: Love Looks Different
BroMantasy Spice Rating
Barely There
(Chaste Romance)
What Blood Remembers is not a romance nor is that even a little focus of this book, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t love here. Love just looks a little different and messy in an incredibly human way, but for the purposes of our scale this is a 🌶️ (1.0) on the spice scale—and that’s because we don’t have a lower one.
The love in this story isn’t the typical you’d find even in fantasy, it’s very much a look at what love can drive someone to do, both good, and bad. It explores how the love for family can drive revenge when they are stolen from us, but also how it can cause pain and damage to a family when making a decision out of love is the wrong one.
Bro Reading Comfort: Safe for the Subway
What Blood Remembers isn’t anything you have to worry about if you’re out and about reading it. The cover is subtle but still incredibly eye catching, it provides the tone and setting without giving anything away or raising any eyebrows, earning this a 😳 (1.0) on our comfort scale.
The themes and violence in the book may cause you to flinch or be a little slack jaw between stops, but nothing that will make you blush while you read it.
Darkness Factor: Revenge Isn’t Lighthearted
What Blood Remembers is dark, violent, and includes some brutal but warranted descriptions of scenes that add gravity and intensity to the story. While it’s bloody and brutal it all serves a purpose and never feels like it’s added for shock value, but even then it’s still very dark, earning this a 💀💀💀💀 (4.0) on our darkness scale.
Not only is the violence descriptive, but I think what sticks with me even more was the level of depth the thematic exploration into grief, mental health, despair, and consequence of choices goes in this. Phillips isn’t afraid to dive deep into his themes to drive the point home without it ever feeling too “on the nose.” It’s well balanced, but this story does have some perfectly timed moments that aren’t as heavy so it doesn’t feel like a constant stream of dread.
Book Battlefield: My First Thriller
Thrillers aren’t a typical read for me so I don’t have any great comparable titles for What Blood Remembers. What I can say is that Phillips has 100% sold me on the genre and I have been looking for similar titles I want to read in the future that will hopefully live up to my introduction through this novel.
If you’re a fantasy fan, in particular a grimdark fan then I can say I think you should really give this one a try. I’ve seen so many people who read primarily fantasy talk about this book with nothing but praise because of the intense emotional connection they had to it and the incredible edge of your seat moments throughout.
Should You Bother?
For Thriller Fans: This may have been my first dive into the genre, but there is no way this shouldn’t be on your radar if you’re a thriller die hard
For Fans of Breaking Bad: Absolutely great comparable work here, it has everything that made the show great packed into under 400 pages.
For Fans of the Sopranos: The crime family element to the story very much felt like a sopranos arc and the characters have that depth similar to Tony.
Final BroMantasy Verdict
What Blood Remembers certainly doesn’t read like a debut novel, it’s polished, the prose are phenomenal, and it didn’t have anything that felt like a hiccup. This story was so gripping and emotionally dense that I couldn’t pull myself away multiple times, left me shocked, mortified, and feeling profoundly sad for almost all the characters during different sections of the novel. I’m so glad this was my introduction to the genre and I find myself wishing I had more from Phillips to read right now which is why What Blood Remembers is getting a much deserved 4.75/5.
It’s rare that a book takes me by surprise these days, but What Blood Remembers has the emotional depth and descriptive prose that I absolutely love when I’m reading. I was in a horrible slump prior to picking this up and I went in with no expectations so when I tell you that this is a certified slump buster, I’m saying it with my whole chest. Even if you’re not in a slump, this is a book you NEED to read if you love an emotional exploration into grief, trauma, and family. It’s tragically human, disturbing, and violent in the best ways possible. I usually hate when someone says “you could read this in a weekend” because 400 pages as a slow reader is not a quick read, but this is 100% a book that you could finish in two or three days because it’s impossible to put down.
This also embodies why I love independently published authors, because there is nothing better than being able to finish something like this and then message the author a good old fashioned middle finger—politely people—for the absolute shock they’ve caused you.
I implore you to go pick this book up and read it so I can see more people suffer… I mean enjoy it as much as I did. You can follow the author on Instagram and order a copy direct—the best way to support indie and get a signed copy—here.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is this book part of a series?
No, this is a standalone book.
How spicy is the romance?
We rate the spice level at 🌶️ (1/5). 1/5 because there's no lower rating—love is present but as grief's fuel, not intimacy or romance.
How uncomfortable is it to read in public?
We rate the public reading discomfort level at 😳 (1/5). Subtle cover and no intimate content make this subway-safe—violence may cause flinching, but no blush-worthy scenes.
How dark are the themes in this book?
We rate the darkness level at 💀💀💀💀 (4/5). Visceral violence plus deep exploration of grief, mental health, despair, and consequence of choices.
What age group is this book for?
This book is generally recommended for adult readers due to its mature themes. We recommend checking specific content warnings if you are sensitive to certain topics.