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3.5 AVERAGE
3.5 AVERAGE
“Bad Moms meets My Best Friend’s Exorcism”? Yes please!!
Four moms get together once a month for a movie (a.k.a wine) night to escape their kids, husbands, and general suburban life madness. One night, after discussing the building of their Instagram-worthy She Shed, they decide to go out into Liz’s backyard to christen the land. The next day as the construction workers break ground, a horrible smell is suddenly spreading out from the yard, and all hell breaks loose- literally! Liz seems to be possessed by a demon and something is wreaking havoc on their neighborhood, and Amy, Jess, and Melissa have to fight to try to save everyone.
I absolutely loved this book! I’m a big horror fan, and since becoming a mom last year I’ve developed a new love for books about being a mom. Suburban Hell is the perfect combination of a story about friendship between mothers, and spooky scary demonic possession, and I would recommend it to anyone who likes a bit of horror with some lightheartedness built in.
This book did so many things well! The writing style was wonderful and held my attention. I loved the characters, and they felt like real people that I would want to be friends with. The weirdness and creepiness was *chef’s kiss*, the humor was funny but not obnoxious, and the ending was PERFECT.
My only real “complaint”, if you can count it as such, is that the climax felt like not enough pay off for all the buildup. It wasn’t bad, I didn’t dislike it at all, I just wished there had been more to it- it felt very quick and abrupt.
All in all I’m super glad to have read this book, I think it’s become a new favorite!
Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam Books for allowing me to read this eARC for an honest review!
Four moms get together once a month for a movie (a.k.a wine) night to escape their kids, husbands, and general suburban life madness. One night, after discussing the building of their Instagram-worthy She Shed, they decide to go out into Liz’s backyard to christen the land. The next day as the construction workers break ground, a horrible smell is suddenly spreading out from the yard, and all hell breaks loose- literally! Liz seems to be possessed by a demon and something is wreaking havoc on their neighborhood, and Amy, Jess, and Melissa have to fight to try to save everyone.
I absolutely loved this book! I’m a big horror fan, and since becoming a mom last year I’ve developed a new love for books about being a mom. Suburban Hell is the perfect combination of a story about friendship between mothers, and spooky scary demonic possession, and I would recommend it to anyone who likes a bit of horror with some lightheartedness built in.
This book did so many things well! The writing style was wonderful and held my attention. I loved the characters, and they felt like real people that I would want to be friends with. The weirdness and creepiness was *chef’s kiss*, the humor was funny but not obnoxious, and the ending was PERFECT.
My only real “complaint”, if you can count it as such, is that the climax felt like not enough pay off for all the buildup. It wasn’t bad, I didn’t dislike it at all, I just wished there had been more to it- it felt very quick and abrupt.
All in all I’m super glad to have read this book, I think it’s become a new favorite!
Thank you to NetGalley and Putnam Books for allowing me to read this eARC for an honest review!
I don't know if this truly merits a 4-star rating when it's very mundane at best. The horror never fully asserts itself with a definite fumble for an ending, and the setup to the situation is something I'd never be able to relate to, but overall, I had fun. I tore through this book much faster than I've been able to and the suspense was honestly fantastic. I wish it had committed a bit more to the horror, but for what it was, it's an easy read, no dog-deaths and some of the visuals were great. More than that, it put me back in a reading mood. Between being bed-bound with illness and too many medications, it was hard to lose myself in a story. This did the trick, so to me that's worth 4-stars.
This book was exactly what I wanted it to be, simple and fun. it’s so rare to find a book like this where the MC is in just a nice, healthy relationship. Most suburban mom stories that I read up until now feature just the worst husbands you could think of. Even though that reality is all too common, it’s nice to see the opposite end of the spectrum too, and see modern marriage portrayed as a two equals in a partnership instead of a prison.
Oh my god, I hated this book so much. I am reluctant to DNF, but this was a struggle to get through.
Surface-level mommy issues. We have to do all of the housework and child-rearing (which must suck because it doesn’t seem like Amy is that interested in her children), some of our husbands are jerks or can’t be bothered to be interested in us ~ but that’s fine, it’s wine-o’clock. Why dive any deeper or try to make a change in your world when you can be a functioning alcoholic? That’s so much easier! No accountability on anyone to do better and we can all keep complaining! These are real issues that real women face - I feel like a more nuanced and interesting point could have been made about these women demanding better. I feel like I’m disappointed in this book because it had potential. It just didn’t follow through with it.
Main character saw a horror movie once, omg so quirky, weird! Thank god she’s here, to continue to not be helpful. And shove in like one slightly-altered plot point from Midsommar to have a smidge of personal development (making peace with her sister’s death (while mostly making it about herself?))? She also did start a company at the end, but it seems like a stretch to the extent that she was unable to find work through out the book - and also seemed to hate having to participate or plan things. Or make more than a half-hearted effort without coercion. So much whining about the Carnival for that not to be the climax of the story.
Also, why did the rabbit at the end have to be a “sign” from the dead sister? I had to go back to refresh on the pet bunnies at the beginning. It didn’t leave enough of an impression for Amy to show, not tell us what the “sign” was at the end.
So much product placement. I am not impressed by your Apple Watch. Why do you keep bringing it up? I do not see how this is relevant. The demons are not impressed by your Apple Watch. No one cares that Jess does CrossFit ~ glad you got a chance to brag directly to the demon-ghost about that one though. It seems like these are a group of pretentious people who think they get a pass on being pretentious because they’re not the popular moms?
It really doesn’t seem like this friend-group liked Liz. Saving her narrowly avoided being an after-thought. Do we like Liz? I guess Liz does stuff for us, we like that. Might as well save Liz. Thank god Liz at least got to ask for a separation at the end (should’ve been a divorce, but baby steps). I was convinced the author was just going to let that slide. I’m glad she got something out of this experience, because being reunited with her friends doesn’t feel like a real prize.
Also, I feel like if your wife says she’s going next door to exorcise her friend, your instinct should be to call the cops before she accidentally kills someone. Not brush it off like, ‘I don’t believe in demons, but to each their own. I think you might be a little weird, but I don’t care enough to try and stop you. That would require some effort on my part and… meh. I’m the good husband, I’m supposed to be understanding not proactive. Gosh.’ This book almost would have been more interesting if they had been delusional and killed their friend, and then had to deal with the consequences of that. The exorcism scene, for what went wrong was still away to easy. I think it’s more likely suburban moms did some property damage than saved the world. That line was pretty ham-fisted. It seems like Heather got possessed by a different entity at the end but it just wasn’t very compelling. There was no tension with this reveal.
Surface-level mommy issues. We have to do all of the housework and child-rearing (which must suck because it doesn’t seem like Amy is that interested in her children), some of our husbands are jerks or can’t be bothered to be interested in us ~ but that’s fine, it’s wine-o’clock. Why dive any deeper or try to make a change in your world when you can be a functioning alcoholic? That’s so much easier! No accountability on anyone to do better and we can all keep complaining! These are real issues that real women face - I feel like a more nuanced and interesting point could have been made about these women demanding better. I feel like I’m disappointed in this book because it had potential. It just didn’t follow through with it.
Main character saw a horror movie once, omg so quirky, weird! Thank god she’s here, to continue to not be helpful. And shove in like one slightly-altered plot point from Midsommar to have a smidge of personal development (making peace with her sister’s death (while mostly making it about herself?))? She also did start a company at the end, but it seems like a stretch to the extent that she was unable to find work through out the book - and also seemed to hate having to participate or plan things. Or make more than a half-hearted effort without coercion. So much whining about the Carnival for that not to be the climax of the story.
Also, why did the rabbit at the end have to be a “sign” from the dead sister? I had to go back to refresh on the pet bunnies at the beginning. It didn’t leave enough of an impression for Amy to show, not tell us what the “sign” was at the end.
So much product placement. I am not impressed by your Apple Watch. Why do you keep bringing it up? I do not see how this is relevant. The demons are not impressed by your Apple Watch. No one cares that Jess does CrossFit ~ glad you got a chance to brag directly to the demon-ghost about that one though. It seems like these are a group of pretentious people who think they get a pass on being pretentious because they’re not the popular moms?
It really doesn’t seem like this friend-group liked Liz. Saving her narrowly avoided being an after-thought. Do we like Liz? I guess Liz does stuff for us, we like that. Might as well save Liz. Thank god Liz at least got to ask for a separation at the end (should’ve been a divorce, but baby steps). I was convinced the author was just going to let that slide. I’m glad she got something out of this experience, because being reunited with her friends doesn’t feel like a real prize.
Also, I feel like if your wife says she’s going next door to exorcise her friend, your instinct should be to call the cops before she accidentally kills someone. Not brush it off like, ‘I don’t believe in demons, but to each their own. I think you might be a little weird, but I don’t care enough to try and stop you. That would require some effort on my part and… meh. I’m the good husband, I’m supposed to be understanding not proactive. Gosh.’ This book almost would have been more interesting if they had been delusional and killed their friend, and then had to deal with the consequences of that. The exorcism scene, for what went wrong was still away to easy. I think it’s more likely suburban moms did some property damage than saved the world. That line was pretty ham-fisted. It seems like Heather got possessed by a different entity at the end but it just wasn’t very compelling. There was no tension with this reveal.
Desperate Housewives meets Poltergeist! 3.5 stars rounding up to 4 because I had so much fun
Please note that I received this via NetGalley. This did not affect my rating or review.
So this wasn't that great unfortunately. I loved the cover. I loved the synopsis. But it took me several days to finish this one. It just moved so freaking slow. And I just didn't care about any of the characters. I kept hoping that something would happen, but nothing really does except for a scene about some baby rabbits. I just thought the whole book dragged and was hoping for a book more similar to "The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires" and this was not it.
"Suburban Hell" follows Amy Foster and her three closest friends who live in the suburbs of Chicago. Amy is still trying to get back into working, and finds the only thing that keeps her going are her friends Liz, Melissa, and Jess who all live in the same upper middle class cul-de-sac. When the four friends have one of their wine girl nights, they go out to have a toast to the she-shed that Liz is having built for their togethers. But something weird happens that is followed by a bad smell. After that Liz is off and then Amy starts thinking that Liz may be possessed by a demon (just go with it). The book follows Amy, Melissa, and Jessa as they try to think of some way of saving Liz.
I get this was supposed to be funny, but I didn't laugh or smile once. Everything felt dreary. And after a while I got sick of Amy who talked "crap" on everyone, but her friends. I thought she was so judgmental and even wondered why she cared at all about Liz. The book doesn't do a great job of showing what brought these women together and even why they continued to hang out. Amy goes on and on about how without Liz around they all are not the best versions of themselves. But I kept going, so you all were jerks ands he put up with it? Sounds about right.
And the whole possessed by a demon thing? I expected more gore honestly. And even without that, this demon seemed really lame. Just threatened a lot. At one point I went, so is it going to do something or??? And it seemed to be or. Maybe it would have been more interesting if we got a chance to see if the whole neighborhood would come together. But they really don't. It's just the three women who keep floundering around and not really wanting to do anything and Amy telling her husband about every event with him going well maybe this is what is happening.
I thought the backstory on the whole demon was interesting, but even that wasn't really delved into much before the book drags on forever before we get to a confrontation. I think the book focused way too much on the mom dynamics and Amy hosting a freaking carnival or whatever it was. It just didn't add anything and started to feel like filler towards the end.
The ending seems to be setting up a sequel I am going to pass on.
So this wasn't that great unfortunately. I loved the cover. I loved the synopsis. But it took me several days to finish this one. It just moved so freaking slow. And I just didn't care about any of the characters. I kept hoping that something would happen, but nothing really does except for a scene about some baby rabbits. I just thought the whole book dragged and was hoping for a book more similar to "The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires" and this was not it.
"Suburban Hell" follows Amy Foster and her three closest friends who live in the suburbs of Chicago. Amy is still trying to get back into working, and finds the only thing that keeps her going are her friends Liz, Melissa, and Jess who all live in the same upper middle class cul-de-sac. When the four friends have one of their wine girl nights, they go out to have a toast to the she-shed that Liz is having built for their togethers. But something weird happens that is followed by a bad smell. After that Liz is off and then Amy starts thinking that Liz may be possessed by a demon (just go with it). The book follows Amy, Melissa, and Jessa as they try to think of some way of saving Liz.
I get this was supposed to be funny, but I didn't laugh or smile once. Everything felt dreary. And after a while I got sick of Amy who talked "crap" on everyone, but her friends. I thought she was so judgmental and even wondered why she cared at all about Liz. The book doesn't do a great job of showing what brought these women together and even why they continued to hang out. Amy goes on and on about how without Liz around they all are not the best versions of themselves. But I kept going, so you all were jerks ands he put up with it? Sounds about right.
And the whole possessed by a demon thing? I expected more gore honestly. And even without that, this demon seemed really lame. Just threatened a lot. At one point I went, so is it going to do something or??? And it seemed to be or. Maybe it would have been more interesting if we got a chance to see if the whole neighborhood would come together. But they really don't. It's just the three women who keep floundering around and not really wanting to do anything and Amy telling her husband about every event with him going well maybe this is what is happening.
I thought the backstory on the whole demon was interesting, but even that wasn't really delved into much before the book drags on forever before we get to a confrontation. I think the book focused way too much on the mom dynamics and Amy hosting a freaking carnival or whatever it was. It just didn't add anything and started to feel like filler towards the end.
The ending seems to be setting up a sequel I am going to pass on.
Didn't have anything bad to say about this read and I enjoyed myself so much I contemplated quitting my job early. Good thing I currently work in a bookstore, right? No one would have batted an eye if they caught me in a corner reading.
Seriously though, Suburban Moms save the world from the demon next door in this horror comedy. Extremely entertaining and some parts gave me actual chills. Add to your TBR right now!
See my full review here!
https://takeabookwithyou.com/2022/10/07/suburban-hell-by-maureen-kilmer/
Seriously though, Suburban Moms save the world from the demon next door in this horror comedy. Extremely entertaining and some parts gave me actual chills. Add to your TBR right now!
See my full review here!
https://takeabookwithyou.com/2022/10/07/suburban-hell-by-maureen-kilmer/
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Amy, Liz, Jess, and Melissa are all married moms living in a nice little neighborhood where everyone knows each other and their kids get to grow up together. At their monthly wine night at Liz's house, Liz unveils their new she-shed in her backyard... an idea they talked about at a previous get-together but didn't think would actually be built. Little do they know, the construction on the she-shed has unearthed something evil and sinister, and soon, Liz is not herself anymore. Creepy things start happening to Amy and her friends that cannot be explained - seriously going to stop using my Roomba for awhile.
Such a fun read! It's like Desperate Housewives meets My Best Friend's Exorcism. The ending was good too, and makes you wonder if there is more to come for these suburban moms. Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for an ARC in exchange fr any honest review.
Such a fun read! It's like Desperate Housewives meets My Best Friend's Exorcism. The ending was good too, and makes you wonder if there is more to come for these suburban moms. Thank you to NetGalley and G.P. Putnam's Sons for an ARC in exchange fr any honest review.