Suburban Hell by Maureen Kilmer | Book Review
I may simply be too grouchy for horror comedy 😅
A Chicago cul-de-sac is about to get a new neighbor...of the demonic kind.
Amy Foster considers herself lucky. After she left the city and moved to the suburbs, she found her place quickly with neighbors Liz, Jess, and Melissa, snarking together from the outskirts of the PTA crowd. One night during their monthly wine get-together, the crew concoct a plan for a clubhouse She Shed in Liz’s backyard—a space for just them, no spouses or kids allowed.
But the night after they christen the She Shed, things start to feel . . . off. They didn’t expect Liz’s little home-improvement project to release a demonic force that turns their quiet enclave into something out of a nightmare. And that’s before the homeowners’ association gets wind of it.
Even the calmest moms can’t justify the strange burn marks, self-moving dolls, and horrible smells surrounding their possessed friend, Liz. Together, Amy, Jess, and Melissa must fight the evil spirit to save Liz and the neighborhood . . . before the suburbs go completely to hell.
My 2 Cents for Free!
We read this in April on the Horror Spotlight discord. You can always join us as we keep the threads live. Here's an invite: https://discord.gg/EtkYZzZZg9
This was a fun horror-adjacent, horror-lite read. Not too spooky or too scary. I'm almost afraid to say that after all of the recent horror categorization discourse online but I'm saying it anyway. It read more like a made for Netflix movie about a group of stressed-out suburban moms who have an encounter with the weird. I didn't find it lol funny (but honestly, I don't find much lol funny) but it was amusing and had some good snark. I do wish the horror had been a bit heavier. There were a few things that the writer spent ages setting up that sort of fizzled when it came to the horror bits and that was a disappointment but that might just be me being a regular reader of the grotesque. I did like the found family thing and the sense of community thing between the women which feels like it doesn't really exist in too many places out in the real world.
I recommend it if you're in the mood for something that won't hurt your heart or give you nightmares. It's a great choice to read in-between heavier, darker, grittier and emotionally devastating books. It'd be a great palette cleanser!
Hope you read it, hope you love/like it!
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I'll have to keep this in mind for when I'm in the mood for a novel that's horror-lite and a little funny. The title certainly made me smile.
ReplyDeleteIt was definitely amusing. I hope you love it, if you get a chance to read it.
DeleteThis sounds like a good, easy read, maybe as a palette cleanser:-)
ReplyDeleteDefinitely!
DeleteSomething that won't give me nightmares as always good.
ReplyDeletelol
DeleteThe kind that don't give me nightmares is the only kind of horror I can read!
ReplyDeletelol, that's understandable!
DeleteThanks for sharing your thoughts! It sounds like a light horror read so there's definitely an audience out there for that! Great review!
ReplyDeleteMost definitely. I think I just have to be in a certain mood for it.
DeleteI did enjoy this one but the horror was definitely lighter. I am looking forward to her upcoming book!
ReplyDeleteOooh, I'll have to look it up. I'm interested to see what she does next.
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