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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
ARC Received: a NetGalley - Poisoned Pen Press
Publication Date: September 2, 2025
Breathe In, Bleed Out is what happens when your healing retreat turns into a slasher film, and you didn’t pack running shoes.
Brian McAuley blends horror with wellness culture in a way that feels fresh, unhinged, and way too real. Between the hot springs, sound baths, and suspiciously serene guru, I was never sure if we were heading toward a breakthrough or a breakdown, and that’s the fun of it.
Hannah is a haunted, unreliable narrator in all the best ways. You’re never sure what’s real, who to trust, or when the blood will start spilling, but when it does? It goes there. The desert setting is eerie and isolating, and the creeping dread builds until it bursts.
Why not 5 stars? A few reveals felt a tiny bit rushed, and some of the supporting characters didn’t hit as hard as they could’ve, but that didn’t stop me from flying through this one.
If you like:
☀️ Midsommar vibes
🔪 Slasher horror with heart
🧘♀️ Trauma, grief, and guru-level manipulation
…this one should be on your list.
Publication Date: September 2, 2025
Breathe In, Bleed Out is what happens when your healing retreat turns into a slasher film, and you didn’t pack running shoes.
Brian McAuley blends horror with wellness culture in a way that feels fresh, unhinged, and way too real. Between the hot springs, sound baths, and suspiciously serene guru, I was never sure if we were heading toward a breakthrough or a breakdown, and that’s the fun of it.
Hannah is a haunted, unreliable narrator in all the best ways. You’re never sure what’s real, who to trust, or when the blood will start spilling, but when it does? It goes there. The desert setting is eerie and isolating, and the creeping dread builds until it bursts.
Why not 5 stars? A few reveals felt a tiny bit rushed, and some of the supporting characters didn’t hit as hard as they could’ve, but that didn’t stop me from flying through this one.
If you like:
☀️ Midsommar vibes
🔪 Slasher horror with heart
🧘♀️ Trauma, grief, and guru-level manipulation
…this one should be on your list.
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I loved this book so much! This is the 4th published book from Brian McAuley with the first being Curse of the Reaper in 2022. Breath In, Bleed Out is being published by Poisoned Pen Press and will release on 09/02/2025. I was graciously provided this advanced reader's copy of this book, and I am so thankful for this opportunity. To say that I was inspired by a horror novel is saying a lot because this book had so much depth and left me thinking about deeper issues in the human experience. I went in not knowing anything about the premise or the author, just knowing the title and seeing the beautiful cover on NetGalley. This book begins with the main character, Hannah, who comes back alone from a wilderness journey without her fiancé Ben and no one but Hannah knows how Ben died. She is struggling with grief and is presented with an opportunity to go on a wellness retreat by her best friend Tess. This is where all the horror begins, and you are introduced to Pax who is the Guru of the wellness retreat at the end of Dead Man's Due. You are brought on this journey with Hannah and there are so many twists and turns that make this book so good. Not only is this book a good slasher, but it also hits on social issues, "Two hundred dollars for an oversized doily? That's not spiritualism. That's Capitalism". Even with the social commentary, which I personally think is the best part of this book, the writing is so good. You have several things so well written, like, "The darkness welcomes me back like an old friend, all bundled up in sheep's clothing", that you are seeing this book like it is a horror film. This is one of the best books I have read in 2025, and I am so thankful to NetGalley, Poisoned Pen Press and most importantly, the author, Brian McAuley for being able to read this story.
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Slasher horror with a side of camp.
Hannah, a doctor who has spent the last year dealing with hallucinations after her fiancé’s death, decides to join her friends in Joshua Tree for a healing retreat after she is benched for accidentally overdosing a patient. While she faces her demons and her own mind, she also has to fight for her life when her friends start disappearing.
This truly was a fun book that leans into all the horror tropes while keeping things fresh. The retreat and guru is a mismatched blur of other cultural traditions that have been whitewashed for general consumption. We see discussion in the book about how problematic this kind of practice is. We see the spectrum of personalities and issues of each character as we go. They all face some sort of challenge that humanizes them. I also love that the author makes references to other franchises in a fun way. The ☠️ scenes were gruesome and creative and paced really well. There was just enough misdirection and twistyness that I was kept on my toes.
There are also deep discussions of mental health, trauma, and trusting oneself. I really felt for Hannah and she was easy to root for.
Overall this was a great, fun read that I would love to see on the big screen some day!
Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!
Hannah, a doctor who has spent the last year dealing with hallucinations after her fiancé’s death, decides to join her friends in Joshua Tree for a healing retreat after she is benched for accidentally overdosing a patient. While she faces her demons and her own mind, she also has to fight for her life when her friends start disappearing.
This truly was a fun book that leans into all the horror tropes while keeping things fresh. The retreat and guru is a mismatched blur of other cultural traditions that have been whitewashed for general consumption. We see discussion in the book about how problematic this kind of practice is. We see the spectrum of personalities and issues of each character as we go. They all face some sort of challenge that humanizes them. I also love that the author makes references to other franchises in a fun way. The ☠️ scenes were gruesome and creative and paced really well. There was just enough misdirection and twistyness that I was kept on my toes.
There are also deep discussions of mental health, trauma, and trusting oneself. I really felt for Hannah and she was easy to root for.
Overall this was a great, fun read that I would love to see on the big screen some day!
Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a refreshing book! It’s a modern day slasher unlike any other I’ve read. The setting was so unique and brought an amusing flair. I laughed more than I should have! The way it was laid out and executed gave the story a good flow and pacing. I was so invested in what was going to happen next. I found the various subplots entertaining and interesting. I was kept guessing and so curious how everything would play out. I do feel like there were some loose ends, but overall satisfied! The authors love of slasher films shines bright in this story!
Thank you so much to Camp NetGalley & Poisoned Pen Press for the complimentary copy!
This book will be released on Sept 2nd.
I have never read this author before but I have seen him from a few horror bookstagrammers and the opportunity came to read this, I couldn't help. but snagit. And wow, this book was such a fun time!!
"What if I'm so shaken up that I can't be unshaken?"
"You're a human being Hannah. Not a martini."
The book kicks off with Hannah pulling her fiance through the snow. But we don't know exactly what has happened except that he is dead. Hannah is grieving the loss of her fiance and being haunted by her ex. She sees a therapist but after an incident at work it has caused her to take a step back. Her friend asked if she wanted to join her and some of their other friends to a few days at a wellness camp. With consulting her therapist they both agreed that this is what she needs to reset and to wan off the medication. Only things aren't what they seem and Hannah is questioning everything.
It hard to talk about specifics of the book because I don't want to give away anything. At no point was I confident in who to pinpoint who was behind all the killings. I was so sure it was going to be one thing but McAuley had me second guessing myself. I felt the pacing of this was quick and I like that the chapters were on the shorter side. It felt like I was zooming through because I needed to know what was going to happen next. Did I ask myself some questions once the reveals happened? Yes but I still felt like it was a fun read (we rate based off vibes and not logistics).
I recommend this book if you love unreliable narrator, secluded location, cult vibes and an overall fun thriller/horror!
PS - I also am a fan of reading author's notes and acknowledgements and I thought McAuley provided such extra content on the making of this book as well as inside into who he is.
This book will be released on Sept 2nd.
I have never read this author before but I have seen him from a few horror bookstagrammers and the opportunity came to read this, I couldn't help. but snagit. And wow, this book was such a fun time!!
"What if I'm so shaken up that I can't be unshaken?"
"You're a human being Hannah. Not a martini."
The book kicks off with Hannah pulling her fiance through the snow. But we don't know exactly what has happened except that he is dead. Hannah is grieving the loss of her fiance and being haunted by her ex. She sees a therapist but after an incident at work it has caused her to take a step back. Her friend asked if she wanted to join her and some of their other friends to a few days at a wellness camp. With consulting her therapist they both agreed that this is what she needs to reset and to wan off the medication. Only things aren't what they seem and Hannah is questioning everything.
It hard to talk about specifics of the book because I don't want to give away anything. At no point was I confident in who to pinpoint who was behind all the killings. I was so sure it was going to be one thing but McAuley had me second guessing myself. I felt the pacing of this was quick and I like that the chapters were on the shorter side. It felt like I was zooming through because I needed to know what was going to happen next. Did I ask myself some questions once the reveals happened? Yes but I still felt like it was a fun read (we rate based off vibes and not logistics).
I recommend this book if you love unreliable narrator, secluded location, cult vibes and an overall fun thriller/horror!
PS - I also am a fan of reading author's notes and acknowledgements and I thought McAuley provided such extra content on the making of this book as well as inside into who he is.
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
In Breathe In, Bleed Out, Hannah is a Xanax-dependent med student struggling with the death of her fiancé. Haunted by images of him and in trouble at her job, she accepts a friend’s invitation to a relaxing wilderness retreat. Until her friends start getting murdered.
This book was a really mixed bag for me. I enjoyed the lore building of the local ghost story and the spooky chases and ghost/killer appearances. However, the characters fell flat for me and the killer reveal at the end wasn’t super satisfying to me.
All of the characters fit into classic slasher archetypes (the macho aggressive man, the artsy lesbian, the one dating the aggressive macho man, the good guy love interest, and the traumatized main girl that everyone thinks is crazy), which I feel led to their characters being one-dimensional.With an out-of-nowhere killer reveal, that only kind of made sense to me, it just fell a little flat at the end. I’d still recommend to anyone who loves a good slasher movie!
Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press, NetGalley, and Brian McAuley for the eARC!
This book was a really mixed bag for me. I enjoyed the lore building of the local ghost story and the spooky chases and ghost/killer appearances. However, the characters fell flat for me and the killer reveal at the end wasn’t super satisfying to me.
All of the characters fit into classic slasher archetypes (the macho aggressive man, the artsy lesbian, the one dating the aggressive macho man, the good guy love interest, and the traumatized main girl that everyone thinks is crazy), which I feel led to their characters being one-dimensional.
Thank you to Poisoned Pen Press, NetGalley, and Brian McAuley for the eARC!
tense
fast-paced
This slasher story had me hooked from the beginning with so many twists and turns! I was second guessing myself throughout the entire book. Based in Southern California in the remote desert surrounded by Joshua trees this dysfunctional group of friends are fighting for their lives.
Our main girl Hannah has been struggling to release her demons after she comes back from a harrowing wilderness journey without her fiancé Ben. She has pushed away her friends and begun to have vivid hallucinations of her fiancé. In an attempt to take back control of her life she agrees to go to a spiritual retreat. What starts as a peaceful weekend reconnecting with herself and friends quickly transforms into a much more sinister situation culminating in a night she’s unlikely to ever forget.
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I've really been enjoying Brian McAuley's books, and I can't wait to see what he writes next. As for "Breathe In, Bleed Out," it's exciting and a horror movie reference gold mine. I loved the setting. If you're a slasher fan, check this one out for sure.