A group of dating show contestants and a TV crew travel to a remote island to film the show's finale. As soon as they arrive, things seem off - something strange seems to be lurking in the shadows.

This was a fast-paced, gruesome social satire/horror/comedy. I thoroughly enjoyed it and breezed through it in about 24 hours. Much as I liked the fast pace, I did feel that some narrative threads were wrapped up a little too abruptly in the end and would have benefitted from a bit more fleshing out. All in all though this was a great read and I'd happily read more by the author Samantha Allen.

I recently discovered and fell in love with the TV show Unreal which documents the backstage drama and staged reality of a season on ‘The Bachelor’ and was getting very similar vibes from the blurb of Patricia Wants to Cuddle, just with a slight… twist!

The first half of this book I really enjoyed as we are introduced to the finalists of The Catch - there’s bible loving Lilah-Mae, image obsessed Amanda, vicious Vanessa & disinterested Renee who are all hoping to gain a fiancé and serious ‘Glamstapix’ clout. The chapters jump perspectives between the contestants interspersed with snippets from a gossip blog about the filming and Casey, one of the producers. I thought this was well-plotted and paced and as a reader I got into the idea of the competition and liked hearing about their game plans and motives. Although we are dropped right in at the end of the season there’s enough exposition to feel like we haven’t missed too much.

Then there’s the other element of this book which is basically a sasquatch/bigfoot gore story. This is where I really felt the book started to slip. The book itself is only 250 pages which isn’t enough time to establish both plots properly and the monster is only really introduced at about 70% of the way through. There’s a few love letters between lovers on the island but these did very little to further the plot and could have been skipped. As it stands, we are left with a confusing bigfoot plot wedged into the narrative and we didn’t learn anywhere near enough about the backstories of the people on the island or Patricia. The contestants and production crew are dispatched with relative ease which just made the fact we had spent over half the book on them feel like a waste.

Overall, Patricia Wants to Cuddle is a book of two halves; the ‘Catch’ part of the book is fun but the segue into a monster horror is not done well enough and really needed some more pages dedicated to setting it up or explaining it to make it work. Thank you to NetGalley & Faber & Faber for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was pure chaos and I’m obsessed with it! The romance reality show lured me right into a false sense of security and I completely forgot to wonder who ‘Patricia’ was until the last third. But that last third was wild.

I thought the pacing was perfect and the level of dark humour throughout kept the story from becoming too ‘creepy’ whilst keeping the suspense going as to what was actually happening.

I have to say that Renee was presented as the main protagonist and to be honest I didn’t really care much for her at all in the book- I thought Casey had more going for her…

I really enjoyed this tongue-in-cheek romp through vapid influencers, the jaded brains behind them and the escapades of the lady Sasquatch.

Patricia Wants To Cuddle by Samantha Allen is a high camp, high fun story of four women who are racing to the finale of The Catch, a Bachelor-esque show where they each are vying for ex-tech bro Jeremy’s last corsage. As the final episodes are filming on remote Otter Island, the cast and crew begin to feel like they are being watched…and then they start going missing. This was a quick read that anyone who follows influencers or is into reality TV would enjoy with the added benefit of some creepy, “horror-lite” vibes.

A fun little mix of reality tv and gore - it takes a while for much to happen and there wasn’t as much ‘horror’ as I would’ve liked but this is campy and fun and I really enjoyed it

When the final contestants of a reality TV show end up on an half abandoned island for the finale of the show, they end up in a more deadly situation then anyone signed up for!

I absolutely loved this novel, it reads like a classic monster horror from old Hollywood, the author brilliantly builds up the tension with creepy moments and hints of horror before the ending with a bang. Each character felt well rounded but Renee especially was my favourite, I liked her attitude toward other characters and the TV show. Also the TV show was such an amazing idea to add to this story.

I cant wait to read more from this author!

Patricia Wants to Cuddle was a quick, daft read: a horror-comedy that pokes fun at reality TV and doesn’t take itself too seriously. Good fun if you’re looking for something short and entertaining to read.

Short and sweet and ridiculous. This was compulsive reading and great fun. Thank you to Faber and NetGalley for the advance review copy.

A fun read, but not the book I was expecting.  Other reviewers and the hardback cover made me think this was going to be something else.  Despite that I did enjoy it, I think if you like Grady Hendrix and satire then you will enjoy this to.  I think it is the type of book that could do very well in our store.

this was truly so much fun, im so happy i picked it up. a little slow to start but i dont have a problem with that since it was so entertaining.

This is a difficult book for me to review, as I don't have any strong feelings about it.
Whilst I did enjoy parts of it and liked the humour, it didn't quite grab my attention.
It all felt rushed as if this was an extended short story. This is definitely a unique read and I would recommend it but it never wowed me.

Patricia Wants to Cuddle by Samantha Allen is a novel that starts as an exploration into competing in reality television and then things take a turn. It wasn't really my cup of tea but that's just down to personal taste and I can see this book generating a lot of discussion.

Patricia wants a cuddle was a really fun read. The story follows 4 contestants on the fictional reality dating show ‘The Catch” on their last dates before the finale. Set on a remote island known for a series of mysterious disappearances.

We swap view points between a few character but mostly the four contestants Renee, Vanessa, Lilah-Mae and Amanda as they compete to see who gets the guy and who survives.

I really enjoyed this book it was like is someone mashed up the bachelor, and creepy monster movie wich wasn’t something I thought I would enjoy but instead i loved it. In some places it is really funny and I really enjoyed mystery of the people who went missing. I did find that for me the ending came up a little quickly and I would have enjoyed more about who Patricia is and why the conclusion played out the way it did.

Overall a really fun read with a great premise.

What a ride! I really liked the concept of this book, but I agree with other reviews that the length and lack of in-depth fell a bit flat for me. I wish it could have extended a bit longer! The cover and the title also spoil the twist of it as well, but overall I really enjoyed it.

Patricia Wants To Cuddle is a horror comedy novel in which dating show contestants find themselves on a remote island and don't get the season finale they were expecting. Renee is one of four contestants left on The Catch, a TV dating show, but she's really pretty apathetic towards Jeremy, the man whose attentions they are meant to be competing for. The other three contestants—a Christian good girl, an influencer, and a model—seem determined though, fighting to win even as they start seeing a strange figure on the island, known for being a queer haven, that they are staying on to film the next episode.

From the opening, you know this is going to be a fun ride. The book combines the perspectives of a range of characters, mostly the four contestants, alongside blog and forum posts and letters, to slowly set up the mysterious story whilst taking a satirical look at TV dating shows, before the horror element suddenly ramps up at the end. The characters' personalities are purposefully over the top (sometimes making the style of the writing over the top too), but the book really does delve into how reality TV treats its contestants, stars, and crew alongside a wild plot line that offers some satisfyingly queer monster horror. It's a short book that doesn't overstay its welcome and could easily be adapted into film or TV, playing up both the comedy and horror.

There always needs to be more queer monster horror, but I didn't expect adding reality TV to the mix would make such an enjoyable read.

Because I’m a happy wee paranormal sad sack, I knew exactly what this story would be about simply from the title alone and that’s why I wanted to read it!! And it did not disappoint. Think The Bachelor meets The Missing 411 conspiracies. What a combo! Reading this on the back of two duds was great timing as it was funny and satirical and just an all round good time of a book! I had to giggle at the alternative social media platforms - ‘glamstapix’ and ‘click clack’. Oh and mixed media features you say? Thumbs up from me! This is a really easy read and a great wee yarn about the toxicity of reality TV for all involved (crew, contestant AND viewers) and that good things happen when gals look out for each other! Also shout out for some queer rep in there too.

Patricia Wants to Cuddle is a funny, campy horror that follows the contestants of a dating show as they all compete for one man’s affections.

I may be more of a Love Island fan than The Bachelor, but I loved the concept of a book set during a reality tv show. Also loved the alternative perspectives and the small parts that were revealed along the way.

This book worked really well visually, I felt like I could see everything that was happening and I do think it would make a very good film too.

Characters were really well fleshed out and easy to form opinions of, especially due to the alternating perspectives.

The length of the book was a bit disappointing, I love a short read but this novel needed a bit more to fully round it off. I also think some things were left a little confusing and could have done with a bit more clarification.

Overall I enjoyed this book but it needed to be longer!! It seemed like it stopped just as it got good, it could have done with a further 100 pages.

thank you to netgalley and faber books for this digital copy in exchange for review !

This didnt quite work for me. Struggled to hold my attention. Left feeling disappointed as I trawled through it.

Description:
A group of women, contestants on a Bachelor-type show, are ferried to a remote island in the Pacific Northwest. As they bicker their way through the penultimate round, a threat lurks...

Liked:
Pacey and easy-going, doesn't outstay its welcome. The characters are fun and their relationships compelling, if caricatured. It's good reading in the same way that 'reality' dating shows are good watching.

Disliked:
I feel like the title and cover (although excellent - I love the brown fur!) really spoils this one. Most of the revelations come in the final third, but the cover, title, and some early hints at around the one third mark combine to make this much more predictable than it would otherwise be, which is a shame. I could have done with a more even distribution of action - felt like it all kicks off quite late, and therefore some of the meatiest bits are somewhat rushed over.

Overall, would recommend: an entertaining snack read.

Well this filled the ‘trashy dating show’ hole in my life! This book was part trashy dating show (love it) and part mysterious island goings on (also love it)
I didn’t know exactly which direction the book was going to take and I was so happy with the reveal
I really enjoyed Renee and was excited to find out what she was going to do
This book included some blog entries written by the sister of a woman who had gone missing on the island. I really wanted a bit more of her pov. There were also forum posts from a dating show group, I think these helped to explain some of the things that weren’t explained in the book
I would have liked this book to be a little longer. I’d have enjoyed to know more about the blog and what happened after the events of the tower
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and just want more ‘when dating shows go wrong’ books! And more trashy dating shows too