"Maybe the concept of friendship wasn't that different from possession. It took a different form, of course, but we all borrowed the best parts from each other, sharing in the traits and strengths that we admired."

🍹

Suburban Hell by Maureen Kilmer was such a fun read! Think The Burbs mixed with Finlay Donovan, but with more emphasis on female friendship. Another good comparison would be My Best Friend's Exorcism but with adults with kids. I really liked this one and thought it was an entertaining fluffy horror read! I wanted a little more sarcasm and more gore, but that's just me being a horror fan. Honestly, I find the suburbs terrifying enough! Who's with me?!

I did not like this book. Everything felt too heavy handed that after about 25% the humor became obnoxious and mean spirited rather than funny and relatable. I did not thing the moms we follow had any personality and I found it incredibly difficult to distinguish between the characters. This book felt very dismissive of suburban life. I wanted it to be silly but ultimately empowering, however it never progressed to that point. The husbands were absolutely useless. None of the characters felt real because they were all so flat and generic. The horror elements were unique but didn’t go dark enough for me to consider this even adjacent to horror. This book is a comedy drama, not a horror comedy.

Maureen Kilmer's book Suburban Hell is wickedly funny. Kilmer proves that humor and horror really can combine to leave an indelible impression. Ordinary mundane events are turned into terrifying situations with notes of humor. It is a delightful break from normal thrillers.

Synopsis:
A small group of moms meet at their children's school events and form a bond. Initially, the friends met once a month for a movie and wine night. For their meetings, one member starts construction on a "She-Shed" for their get togethers in her backyard. As the digging of the shed begins, are the women prepared for the demonic forces that soon transform their peaceful life into a Suburban Hell?

Suburban Hell by Maureen Kilmer is a fun read that is laugh-out-loud funny. It is available on August 30th. (4.25 ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫)

Thank you, NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, G. P. Putnam's Sons, for allowing me to review this refreshing book. Your kindness is appreciated.

#SuburbanHell #MaureenKilmer

With the combination of the title and the cover art I knew I had to read this book. My two big comparative vibes for this is Cackle by Rachel Harrison meets My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix.

This book is very in your face in the sense that there's really no deeper meaning or theme behind it. It can really be summed up by this quote, "That our love and friendship had been enough to battle the darkest of forces. [...] We had done it. We had exorcised a demon from our friend and our neighborhood. Just suburban moms, who are routinely dismissed and pushed aside, whose position in society seems to be in the background, taking care of everything. And yet, we had figured out how to save everyone. Suburban moms had saved the world." So, like I said, very obvious there. And I'm not saying it's a bad theme to have, I really enjoyed it. I loved the relationships between the friends and how they were really just women supporting and helping other women. But to me, it feels like it couldn't have been conveyed with a little less direct exposition. Like it almost feels like a fourth wall break.

The characters were all written pretty well. I wish we had been able to interact more with Liz (the possessed one) and gotten a couple more scares/creepy scenes with her. For most of the book she's tucked away inside her house while our other main characters find a way to help her. The relationships between the women was really nice to read. The characters and their relationships felt really genuine.

I had a few issues with the writing itself. The phrase "pregnant pause" is used far too much and some of the characters have very distinct words/phrases they say but not in a way that felt real. The one character says "yo" and it felt forced a lot of the time. Like it was used as a way to distinguish the character from the others. It stuck out to me. I did find it to be a super quick read, I think I finished it within a day. It was really easy to get immersed into. There were some really funny scenes in this book. The possessed roomba scene was so ridiculous I couldn't help but find humor in it while not being taken out of the story. It still felt like a scary situation and I could feel the fear in the characters but also feel the comedy as an outside, reader, perspective. The horror elements were there but it didn't feel very *scary* to me. The story itself didn't feel like a new idea BUT it was pretty well executed overall.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for sending me a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Wow, this one has been such a fun/creepy read. I loved this!!!! Humor horror - it’s a myth-like beast - you so rarely find it, and then when you do, bam… you’re a believer and you want more. I loved that Suburban Hell hit on real-life issues and neighborhood politics mixed in with the supernatural horror. This was such an enjoyable read.

In some ways this reminded me of YA mystery/thriller mixed with horror aspects from the 80’s that I used to read (Lois Duncan vibes especially) and I adored that.

Recommended.

As soon as I read the blurb and found out this was a book about 3 PTO moms who accidentally summon a demonic presence into their suburban neighborhood during wine night, I wanted to read this. With a premise like that, how could I not request the arc? And I am happy to say that this book was truly horror comedy at its finest.

One of the strongest parts of this book is it’s humor. This was easily the funniest book I’ve read since Kill the Boy Band. Where this book truly succeeds is how nonchalant the humor is. The characters will just drop the most random and outlandish remarks in the most nonchalant way like it’s just no big deal, and it’s so outlandish that it just works. This book was just really FUN. If you’re into dark humor, you’ll especially enjoy this as much as I did.

There are pretty generic elements of horror with nothing new that you haven’t read or watched before, but it’s just so entertaining and so hilarious that you can’t stop reading. I wanted to drop all of my obligations so that I could finish this book. Despite the horror part being fairly generic, some of the more grotesque parts were described very well, being pretty mild. It won’t have as much grotesqueness or unease as a full blown horror novel will give you, but this is horror comedy gold. With two seemingly contrasting genres mixed into one novel, the goal isn’t to put a shiver down your spine as much as it is to entertain you. The characters are hilarious and this book is so much fun. Also, I loved the theme of friendship. Definitely worth a read if you’re a fan of dark comedy!

Thank you to Netgalley and Putnam Books for sending me an advanced copy in return for my honest review.

I absolutely loved this book!! Spooky and creepy and at times downright scary! Gave me vibes of MBFE. I can’t wait to read more by this author.

If you love Desperate Housewives and classic possession stories, then you would love this!

These suburban wives, who met while mocking the PTA, quickly became best friends! During their regular movie nights they joked about getting a She-Shed. A joke that one member decided to make reality.. But,
this group of friends is going to find out just what kind of nightmares you might unleash when you start to dig into the earth.

Suburban life meets demon possession.. what more could you want?!

Thank you @NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book is a mix between Desperate Housewives and The Exorcist in the best of ways. It was a delight. It's easy to read like your favorite beach read, but the suspense of the horror keeps you turning the pages to find out what happens next. Although the book touches on dark topics, it does so with care and a lightness that makes you believe that everything is going to be ok. Despite the flaws of the characters, you are rooting for them the whole time.

Holey Moley, but this was so freaking good. The writing sucked me right in and did not let me go.

Here we have Amy and her group of other mom friends that live in suburbia. They have a night where they all get together to drink and be away from the kids. One night they celebrate a new she shed and summon something bad.

That summary does not actually describe how funny this was, while still being a horror story. I did not get scared or grossed out, but I laughed a heck of a lot.

Writing like this is rare and I really hope to see more of this in the future.

This had an interesting flow that I don't think I was a fan of. Overall, very interesting storyline though it had me confused at the intention of the characters.

Suburban Hell wasn’t really on my radar, but, while browsing NetGalley, the title and the book cover caught my eye. Suffice it to say, I was intrigued, and I’m so glad I read it.

Suburban Hell was over the top and dramatic, but it was a horror comedy through and through. There was a certain degree of cheekiness to how the neighborhood was portrayed complete with an idyllic suburb, PTA cliques, and a group of friends who planned to build a backyard clubhouse—dubbed the “She Shed”—as their official monthly meeting place. What could possibly go wrong, right? Well, as Suburban Hell proved, there were a lot of avenues that ordinary setup could go, and it went sideways and dipped right into paranormal territory.

I really loved the gradual build-up of the intensity within the story. It had such an unassuming beginning, so that when things started going wrong, it created a sense of foreboding that carried throughout the rest of the book.

The setting worked well too. It wasn’t isolated per say, but there was a limitation to it, as the events took place in a very small section of a neighborhood (pretty much within a single community). The characters were sorely out of their depths in this situation, and because of it, the friendship between Liz, Amy, Melissa, and Jess was on the verge of a breaking point.

The book was told only from Amy’s perspective, so you never got into the heads of the other characters. Despite that, their personalities showed through, and I liked Amy’s POV. There was a mixture of her dealing with her day-to-day life (with her kids and husband), as well as her trying to unravel what had happened to her friend. Her emotional journey sort of grounded the story in a way, so it wasn’t too over the top with so many comedic aspects.

All that to say: I had a great deal of fun reading Suburban Hell. I appreciated what it did. And with its August release date, it’s right on time to make it onto any October reading lists.

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (G.P. Putnam's Sons) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

Suburban Hell is Maureen Killer’s debut horror book. In it, we follow Amy, a stay at home mother of two who enjoys the suburban life, for the most part. She just wants something more fulfilling. Having one of her friends get possessed by a demon after breaking ground to build a she-shed isn’t exactly what she had in mind though. The summer was supposed to be about being stress free by the pool, not fighting the forces of evil!

If you are a fan of Grady Hendrix’s My Best Friends Exorcism and The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires, this book is for you. It has that same kind of humor/horror that makes those books so fun. I think it is exactly the kind of niche horror that I really enjoy.

While I don’t think this book was overtly “horror,” it did have some spooky imagery. That juxtaposed with the summer mom life made it a really good blend of horror and comedy. The first half of this book had me laughing out loud several times. Without doing any research on the author at all, I can tell you with absolute certainty that she is a mother of multiple children. Amy is painfully relatable as a main character if you are a mom. The children characters felt very authentic. I have an issue with children characters in adult books because I feel like they almost never seem like they are true to life. They either act older or younger than they are supposed to be and it always pulls me out of the story. The husbands were the worst in the best way. I also really loved the friendship dynamics between our main characters.

As far as negatives go, I don’t have a lot. The second half of the book is definitely weaker because things become less funny and more serious but it never really felt like it really went all out like it should have. I would have loved more intense horror towards the end. There is also a subplot with Amy’s sister that just felt like it was a different tone than the rest of the story. I know the subplot helps Amy’s character development and creates more backstory for her but it just really seemed pointless for the most part. I would have loved more scenes with the women as a group instead.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book. I had high expectations and I think it definitely exceeded them for the most part. I think this book would appeal most to moms, in particular moms who feel like they don’t really belong in the “PTA type” mom crowd. This is a book that I will be picking up when it is released.

I couldn't put this book down. Read it all in one sitting. Part of what sucked me in was being able to relate to being a bit of a PTO outcast, balancing mom duties, and finding a group of mom friends that turn into family. I felt that there were enough creepy scenes to keep me wanting to read more. As far as horror, this is a light horror. I know it's about demonic possession, but I feel like it's not so scary that it will keep you up at night. Just the perfect amount of scare/creepy.

Well now this was a treat and a little bit of a trick. Amy, Melissa, Jess and Liz are all good friends that live in the same suburban neighborhood. Their kids play together and everyone is friendly. Liz asks her husband to build her a she-shed in the backyard as somewhat of a sanctuary for the women. When digging up the ground to start the build, they unearth something sinister. Now Amy, Melissa and Jess must find a way to save their friend Liz before supernatural forces destroy their neighborhood.
This book was a treat in which I loved how the women banded together to save their friend. The power of friendship shown true for the characters. I loved the story and plot. It was intriguing and quite different than most stories. Desperate Housewives meets Supernatural. The trick for me was how long the story took to actually get good. It was a bit boring at first until incidents starting happening and making the story interesting.
I would read this again. I enjoyed it.

Did you love My Best Friend's Exorcism? Themes of horror, demons, possession, and strong female friendship? Then you will get down hard with Suburban Hell. I blasted through this book in two sittings and just had so much fun. Making friends as an adult woman with kids, careers, and homemaking is tough, but Amy and the gang have found a neighborhood sisterhood. After they break ground for their future she-shed, Liz isn't quite herself, and they are strange smells coming from her backyard. Can Amy convince her friends that something is very, very wrong, or will the neighborhood go to the dogs? Suburban Hell was the exact pick-me-up I needed, and I strongly suggest checking this one out on pub day!

Suburban Hell is for sure a mixture of Desperate Housewives, any Bravo reality show about moms and The Exorcist or Southern Bookclubs Guide to Slaying Vampires.

I enjoyed the experience of this book for sure. I enjoyed the plot as it unfolded and as the story grew more and more horrific.

I do find the classification as horror to be a little misleading...it's horror-lite. It's Andy Cohen does horror. It's like watching the Scary Island episode of RHONY where there is an exorcism at the end. When I say that this book is horror fluff, I don't necessarily mean that as a bad thing. If you are a die-hard horror fan this book will not be for you at all BUT...if you want to laugh a little and still experience some scary things (i.e. a vacuum attack, Barbie Dreamhouse of Terror or a school carnival gone awry) then you will enjoy this book.

As I am more of a traditional horror fan I was surprised by the tone of this book, though I guess I shouldn't have been given the title and the description. The writing is quick, quippy and fun. The plotting is dangerously fast and drops you right into the story. I almost never say this but I kind of wanted more exposition and table setting before dropping us right into this group of moms and friends.

I did love the exploration of the inner lives of suburban motherhood and what it means to be looked over or exhausted and what that can really do to someone. The fact that these women are really all they have and they have to do the work to save each other says a lot. I did find that very touching as the book progressed. I also really liked all of the characters which is a real testament to Kilmer's writing and world building.

Overall I enjoyed the experience of this book but it will not be a book that I re-visit in time and i would only recommend this to friends who just want to dip their toe into horror instead of being fully immersed.

Book Grades:
Plot Development and Pacing - 90/100
Character Development - 85/100
Theme and Subject Matter - 85/100
Writing Style - 90/100
Reader Engagement - 80/100

Overal Grade: 86% - B OR 3/5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Expected to be unleashed on: 9/27/22.

Suburban Hell finds neighbors in a Chicago suburban Amy, Melissa, Liz, and Jess being close friends and attempting to build a She Shed. One night toasting to the upcoming fun to be had in their Shed during their routine girl/wine night, a slight breeze is unleashed. Over the next couple of days Liz begins to act extremely out of character and there is a horrid stench coming from her home.
The next chapters unravel Amy trying to discover the source of Liz’s odd behavior. Her behavior gets worse. I love Liz’s outright creepy behavior and the terrifying acts throughout the book. It is soon discovered by Amy that her dear friend has been possessed by a demon and she has to break the news to her friends. It takes some convincing because that sounds insane, but they soon believe her. The biggest obstacle is how do they get their friend and neighborhood back? Amy soon discovers she must find the ultimate source of the issue to get her friend back. This was a good mix of comedy, horror, and thought provoking what if moments. It was also a very enjoyable and easy read that flowed together nicely.
This was a 4 * read. Thank you to Penguin Group Putnam and NetGalley for the EArc and the chance to review it!

What do you get when you mix chick/mom lit with horror? You get "Suburban Hell," the perfect melding of both genres. Not too horrifying and not too mom-ish. Just the ideal book for a beach read or when you want something lite!

Four women with the prerequisite toddlers and Kindergarteners -Melissa, Amy, Liz, and Jess want a "She Shed". Well, one starts to get built but unbeknownst to Liz, the mom building it, something horrible is going to be unleashed. And it really isn't pretty!

Now Amy has to take steps to release what has been unleashed. So she reaches out to the others in their little group to stop what has taken over their pal.

I loved this book. The women were so diverse. The author made them come alive for me. I would want these women for my own friends, and the neighborhood was just so perfect. It was like stepping back in time what with the parties that would close off the streets and the school fairs. However, this book also had the feel of the modern what with the kitchen reveal that one neighbor devised.

Frankly, I don't know why I loved this book but suffice it to say that I did, and it is going to go on my 'comfort book' shelf so I can re-read this book for Halloween!

*ARC supplied by the publisher PENGUIN GROUP Putnam, G.P. Putnam's Sons, the author, and NetGalley.

The style/perspective of this book made it difficult for me to get into. I might try again at a later date but it wasn't working for me.