Title: PainSpaceAuthor: Jon Athan
First Published: April 30, 2026
Publisher: Independently Published
Pages: 97
Genre: Horror, Paranormal
Format: Ebook
Source: Purchased
Rating:
Synopsis:
His daughter went into the tubes. She never came out.
During a break from work, Lucas Flores brings his six-year-old daughter, Alexis, to Buddy’s Burgers—a local fast food joint—for a quick bite and some playtime at the attached indoor playground dubbed ‘Buddy’s PlaySpace.’ But after he awakens from a lengthy, impromptu nap, he finds the playground vacant with only his daughter’s shoes near a tube entrance.
He hears her playing in the playground, but he’s unable to lure her out. Worried for her safety and kicking himself for dozing off, he ventures into the tubes to find her... unaware of the horrific secrets lurking in the playground.
Jon Athan, the author of Shared by Two and Her Suffering, blends white-knuckle suspense, bone-chilling visuals, and raw emotion in this twisted novella of cerebral, supernatural horror. Enjoy your meal... it could be your last!
This book features twelve high-quality, full-page illustrations.
WARNING: Although this is not an extreme horror story, it does contain some graphic content. Reader discretion is advised.
Get the Book: AmazonReview
Painspace is a liminal horror novella about a father searching for his daughter among the colorful plastic tubes of a play palace. Lucas brings his young daughter to their favorite fast food restaurant and falls asleep while his daughter plays. He wakes much later to find that it’s now the evening, and when he goes to pick up his daughter she’s nowhere to be found, but her shoes are still outside the play palace. Left with no other choice, Lucas climbs inside to look for her, and finds himself lost as well.
The story is wonderfully surreal and his journey through the tubes is genuinely creepy. Things go in wild directions that I didn’t expect and weaves together an emotional story about the struggles of parenthood. This little novella is different compared to Jon Athan’s usual violent extreme horror and I found it refreshing.
Quote
“You’re supposed to be a grown man, but all I see is the child in you.”
Content Warnings
View Spoiler »About the Author
About Jon Athan
Jon Athan is an author from California. Jon was born on September 12, 1992 during a stormy night. As a child, he enjoyed writing and telling scary short stories. Some of these stories got him into some serious trouble with his teachers, but he persevered through the detentions and therapy sessions.
Discover more from Radical Dreamer
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
