User blog comment:Hyperborean/"The House of Hades" – official expectations blog/@comment-5247339-20130918165545/@comment-4521561-20130919173549

I actually don't think Rick has started writing any darker stuff, cause if you look back to the other stories the characters all endured a great amount of pain somewhere in each book. I think it's just the way he read that one section is what made it seem so dark and painful.