Thank you NetGalley, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, and Maureen Kilmer for an arc in exchange for an honest review! This was an easy read that’s definitely a good “guilty pleasure” book to pick up. I really enjoyed reading about the friendship between the main character and her female friends and I think that that was the best part of the story. It was also pretty funny and unique and would be a great read for the beach or when you need something more light-hearted.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free eARC copy of this novel.

This is a true popcorn novel with very little “literary” merit but absolutely a good way to sort of zone out and relax and recharge while you read. I loved that it centered female friendship and motherhood, and I enjoyed the scenes of rich planned community pta mom one upmanship. I didn’t love that the friend group felt largely undeveloped, and I didn’t think all the bits regarding the lead’s sister did anything to help the book— they felt like padding to lengthen the book, but that space could have been better used to develop the friends.

Also hate that every chapter early on ended with like a “but little did we know xyz” type sentence. I would have loved for a little more concern and questioning and even involvement of Emily and the other kids— like why is only ONE child affected? And what had been going on with Liz’s kids??? WAY more interested in that than in the dead sister stuff which just— would have been more at home in a more literary novel.

Overall a fun, easy, mindless read. It’s set up for a sequel, and I’ll probably check that out too when it comes out. Absolutely will read more from this author when I’m in the mood for popcorn, but I just kept wanting it to be a little more developed and polished. I’m optimistic about future books though!

This book wasn't bad, but it also wasn't the humorous horror I was looking forward to reading. I'm not sure if this is the fault of my own expectation or the way this seems to be marketed. Most of the humor here is more in the irony, rather than anything that would make you laugh out loud. Our main characters are your standard "I'm not like other moms, I'm a cool mom" suburban mothers, each clinging to who they were prior to suburbia heavily. Some of the plots feels jagged and detached, but it all comes together in the end, though, of course, the power of friendship.

This is definitely in the category of a beach read horror for me, a very quick read without heavy emotional baggage attached to it.

CAWPILE:
Characters: 7 | Atmosphere: 7 | Writing: 5 | Plot: 5 | Intrigue: 5 | Logic: 8 | Enjoyment: 5

Suburban Hell
By: Maureen Kilmer

Storygraph Rating: ★★★★☆
4.11 Stars

My Rating: ★★★★☆
4 Stars

Pub Date: 8•30•22

Thank you at #netgalley for the eARC and thank you #putnam for the gifted ARC!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! Let's get this straight, anything compared to Grady Hendrix I will instantly be intrigued by! The whole Horror Comedy genre just gets me.

I love some of the one liners in this book and the witty banter. There were definitely some Midwest inside jokes in this one and they made me giggle!
I would say though this book feels a bit closer to the heavy side.

The characters were well written and had a bit of a bad moms vibe to them which I can appreciate as I personally am not the pta kind of mom.

I found the plot to really pull me in and want to keep reading on. For the most part this book had a great flow.

While there are definite nods to Hendrix's My Best Friend's Exorcism and The Southern Bookclubs Guide To Slaying Vampires, the author was really able to make this into their own story and add their own style.

If you like Grady Hendrix's writing I really do think you will enjoy this one and can't wait to see what Maureen Kilmer does next!

It all started with a She Shed. Who knew that the building of such a simple club house would be the cause of a demon possession and terror raining down on the neighborhood? Amy, Jess, Liz, and Melissa the best of friends. They come together against all odds to form a friend group that while not made up of the coolest people in the neighborhood, they are some of the funniest. Yet when Liz starts to act strangely and an odd smell permeates the neighborhood that seems to be coming from the hole dug in Liz's yard for the foundation of their new She Shed. Amy, Jess, and Melissa are swept up in odd happenings that can only mean one thing. Their friend Liz is not Liz, but who is she? More importantly what is she?

This book will sweep you up in an epic adventure to figure out what is really happening in neighborhood. There really can't be a demon possessing their friend can there? Yet why are appliances going crazy? Children and adults alike are having nightmares. And not just nightmares they are having the same nightmares. Overall this book is fun. I enjoyed the characters. I didn't really find it super scary. I feel like Liz as a demon could have been in the book quite a bit more. The supernatural activity is kind of minimalistic for as powerful of a spirt that is controlling Liz. If you are looking for a semi scary book then this one will be perfect. It is a fast read though and very smoothly written. So might be the perfect book to pick up during the scary season if your looking for something fast and fun.

Thank you so very much to Penguin Group Putnam and Netgalley for allowing me to read this title.

I was hoping for Grady Hendrix, and instead I got blah. I prefer my writing to be a little more witty and a little less reliant upon telling and suburban mom cliches. Like, I LOVE mom cliches, as I am a walking suburban mom cliche with my Rothy's and flavored sparkling water. But when I'm looking for satire, I want it to have zing and bite. Not enough zing in the first few chapters to keep me reading to the end.

Such a fun read! I am a huge "Housewives of ANYWHERE" fan and this book truly spoke to that part of me. I love the horror aspect of it, it made it so fun and different. I will definitely recommend this to so many types of readers.

As a suburbanite myself, I had high hopes for this novel and they were actually surpassed! A surprising and original novel that I highly recommend to all those that have enjoyed Grady Hendrix’ novels.

I absolutely love when a book lives up to its synopsis. This was a perfect mix of horror and comedy (my favorite genre!), and I LOVED it! Love when the focus turns towards "the power of friendship'!

5/5 stars!

I'm always a sucker for a good horror comedy, and Suburban Hell didn't disappoint! Amy and her friends Jess, Melissa, and Liz look forward to their monthly ladies nights, drinking bad wine and unwinding from the stress of their lives. When Liz decides to break ground on a She-Shed in her backyard, a special space just for the four of them, all hell breaks loose.

Literally.

Filled with the usual fun horror tropes - Ouija Boards, Exorcisms, Creepy Kids, Creepy Kids Drawing *shudders,* this book was a blast from start to finish. But at the core, this is a book about friendship and the importance of community and support. At times gripping and creepy, at other times, totally poignant and moving, Suburban Hell is a fun, morbid time!

*I received an ARC from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions and views in this review are my own.

This book had the right mix of horror and comedy in it for me. I couldn't stop reading it and actually found myself laughing out loud (and getting strange looks from those around me) at points.

This book is addictive!! I could not put it down until I finished it. Amazing story of friends, life and a bit of the afterlife. Some parts make you snort in laughter and some make you cringe. The storyline is unique with the voices of the main characters being clear. Perfect beach read!

Thank you to NetGally and Penguin Group Putnam for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Idyllic suburban neighborhood with a demon problem, what could go wrong? Suburban Hell is a fun (albeit a bit campy) take on a demonic possession story. It's on the lighter side, so even horror wimps can handle it.

Read this book if you're more scared of the PTA moms than literal demons.

Cross-posted to goodreads at: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4650005261

This is an entertaining read about living in the ‘burbs demon style lol! Four moms - Amy, Liz, Jess, and Melissa meet up once a month for wine & movie night, they decide to make a She Shed in Liz’s backyard. On the night of the unveil, they christened it with a ceremonial drink unleashing a demonic presence! Liz is possessed and chaos ensues on their cul-de sac, it’s to the other three to save Liz and their neighborhood. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a gifted copy.

A playful horror story with the atmosphere of a light-hearted comedy. This is a nice, easy read about a stay-at-home mom who feels like an outsider in her suburban life, except in the company of her three best mom friends. Life is shaken up when one of those friends starts to demonstrate signs of demonic possession.

Overall the story is simple and enjoyable enough, though it doesn't do much new and exciting with the genre. The main character is a bit flat and annoying with her constant judgement of the suburban lifestyle that she is ultimately a part of. Her group of female friends is what saves the story, keeping her from falling completely into the "not like other girls" cliche, the edge of which she teeters on throughout.

If I'm being honest what caught my attention was the cover. After I read what the book was about I was convinced I had to read it. A book about an exorcism? Count me in ! Unfortunately I was a little disappointed. For a book advertised as horror it wasn't very scary at all. Since it's about an exorcism you'd think there would be a lot of creepy scenes but there was hardly any. The mc who was possessed didn't come out in the story as much. This was mostly about her friends trying to find a way to save their possessed friend while juggling mom life. The ending was anti-climactic. I was expecting a little more chaos from the demon. I would recommend this to people who want to ease into the horror genre. I also see this as a good book club pick for older women. Overall I'd rate this 3 stars.

This review will be posted closer to release date at:
www.instagram.com/chibichapters

First and foremost, this book was a ton of fun, and I definitely found a new thing to be scared of! In the horror genre, this was definitely on the lighter side - both in tone and scariness. I thought this book would remind me of the TV show Cougar Town, and it did. The description likens it to My Best Friend’s Exorcism, and this book feels like an adult version of that. I like that it leaned on themes of motherhood, depression, isolation, loyalties and - of course - friendship; they all couple well together to give the book some psychological depth. The characters felt real and authentic. Early in the book, there is some heavy-handed foreshadowing that felt unnecessary. I don’t need lines that feel like “I didn’t know how bad things would get, but I soon found out.” I also wish the ending was scarier. It just didn’t have enough going on for it to make my skin crawl.. While some scenes certainly were scary, I think I might use this in my general fiction book club (at a library) next year.

I was lucky enough to grab a copy of this ARC before it released. The title and the cover drew me in, naturally, and the story was exactly what I'd hoped for! Equal parts funny and unsettling, this book features a good ol' fashioned possession, a link to a tragic history, and a trio of modern mothers who band together to solve the problem in a way only Moms can handle.

This book gave me Santa Clarita diet vibes in the way that it balanced the supernatural with the mundane -- it's not just dealing with a possession our heroine has to worry about, but balancing summer vacation and community obligations too!

This isn't a book I usually gravitate towards, but I'm glad I picked it up. I definitely recommend this for anyone who likes reading books that err on the side of realistic fiction versus fantasy!

I had so much fun reading this book. The cover is what caught my eye but the story was so fun! I also saw a review where someone compared it to a “woman’s version of Supernatural” and I love that TV show, so I had to read this. It did not disappoint! I loved the mom friend crew and the friendship they shared but I also appreciated that it was told from a one person perspective. That made it easier to keep up with all of the characters. Enjoyed this book so much! It releases on 8/30/2022 so it’ll have you ready for that spooky season vibe!

Thank you. NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

The description of this book compares it to Grady Hendrix’s My Best Friends Exorcism. From someone who is a big Grady fan, I actually liked this more than My Best Friend’s Exorcism. An apt exploration of the pressures and complexities of modern motherhood. Reflecting on how isolating motherhood can be, when it was never supposed to be that way. And ultimately, how female friendship can save us. Every day moms save the world, even if it’s only the small ones we exist within.