Kathmandu, Aug. 1 -- Nepali horror has often found itself caught between two impulses: imitating familiar western supernatural fiction or leaning so heavily on folklore that it becomes little more than a catalogue of ghosts and legends. 'Aghortantra' attempts something more ambitious.

It borrows from oral traditions, Tantric mysticism, village myths and psychological suspense to create a horror novel that feels unmistakably rooted in Nepal. While the novel occasionally loses momentum under the weight of its own mythology, it succeeds in proving that local landscapes and belief systems can be just as unsettling as any haunted castle or Gothic mansion.

The novel follows an unnamed narrator struggling with fragmented memories and recurring...