A special announcement from Raven Rollins introducing Dreadfully Yours: Conversations with Dark Storytellers — a brand new companion-ish podcast dedicated to conversations with authors, filmmakers, journalists, podcasters, musicians, and the minds behind the stories that linger long after the final page.

🎙️ Now streaming wherever you get your podcasts.

From chilling novels and psychological thrillers to horror, film, true crime, and the art of storytelling itself, Dreadfully Yours is a podcast that invites listeners into conversations with the minds behind the stories that stay with us.

Hosted by author, audiobook narrator, and podcaster Raven Rollins, each chapter blends cinematic narration with intimate discussions exploring fear, creativity, obsession, grief, suspense, and the human experiences woven into dark storytelling.

Find the podcast anywhere you stream your podcasts or web stream on Captivate.

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Dreadfully Yours, Raven Rollins

Seven-year-old Athena Strand should have been safe at home.

Instead, on November 30, 2022, she vanished from outside her father’s property in Paradise, Texas after a FedEx delivery driver came to the home. What followed became one of the most haunting child murder cases in recent memory — a case that would ultimately lead to the arrest, conviction, and death sentence of Tanner Horner.

In this episode, I walk through the timeline of Athena’s disappearance, the search efforts that gripped the community, the disturbing evidence shown during the capital murder sentencing trial, and the heartbreaking testimony from the people who loved Athena most.

Portions of audio featured in this episode come directly from the live trial proceedings, including testimony from Maitlyn Gandy and the Medical Examiner.

Listener discretion is strongly advised. This episode contains discussion of violence against a child, forensic testimony, and traumatic material.

Advocacy. Investigation. Education. Storytelling.

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Mentioned in this episode:

This Is True Crime (Book)

This Is True Crime: How to Become an Advocate for Justice (book) by Raven Rollins

In this episode, I'm joined by Kathy Reichs, one of the most respected voices in forensic science and crime fiction. A practicing forensic anthropologist and the author behind the Temperance Brennan series (Bones), Reichs brings a rare dual perspective—working real cases involving unidentified remains while also translating that science into compelling narrative.

Our conversation moves beyond pop-culture portrayals of forensic work and into the reality of what bones can—and cannot—tell us. We talk about skeletal trauma, time since death, identification challenges, and the responsibility that comes with speaking for the dead. Reichs also reflects on how her real-world experience shapes her fiction, the limits of forensic certainty, and why patience and restraint matter as much as expertise in death investigations.

This is a grounded, thoughtful discussion about science, truth, and storytelling—centered not on spectacle, but on accountability, accuracy, and the lives behind the evidence.

Kathy Reichs is a board-certified forensic anthropologist who has worked on hundreds of cases involving unidentified human remains. She is also the bestselling author of the Temperance Brennan series, which inspired the television show Bones. Reichs is known for her insistence on scientific accuracy, ethical storytelling, and victim-centered work—both in the lab and on the page. You can get her book here, or wherever you get your books.

Mentioned in this episode:

That Which Separates Man (Book)

Find That Which Separates Man in paperback and on Kindle Unlimited.