Thank you to the publisher & @netgalley for gifting me the ebook version!

Campbell and Quinn are a struggling young couple making it one day at a time. Campbell aims to be an author who managed to have one novel published called The Shattered Man but his sales fizzle with nothing else on the horizon. Quinn is holding on to a bar job and still finding an identity for herself.

So when a strange lady shows up at the bar and invites Campbell to be a writer-in-residence at Edenville College that’s a few hours away, Campbell is ecstatic to finally feel recognized. But Quinn smells trouble. Sure enough, when they arrive at Edenville, everything seems off. Why do the sunflowers feel like they’re watching? And why does the town have so many old ladies? Quinn can’t put a finger to it so goes to the town’s library to unearth the town’s history and get pulled into some very disturbing events. Meanwhile, Edenville’s faculty has an agenda with Campbell and they’re not going to let him off the hook, no matter what it takes. Soon, the couple realizes their lives are in danger but can they make it out alive?

If you like (very) dark academia vibes sprinkled with a lot of small town STRANGE folklore, violence and gore, then give this book a try. Honestly for me, the story was a little too strange and the plot continuity felt choppy at times. The pace also felt very slow for the first half of the book and sped up towards the end. I couldn’t connect with any of the characters. However there are a lot of great reviews for this book so don’t let me deter you from giving it a shot.

Unsettling and Immersive!

This book was insane. The ideas behind it blew my mind and I often found myself rereading parts in utter disbelief. It felt like Stephen King meets Stranger Things with gothic vibes in an academic setting. The fictional town of Edenville felt both creepy and cozy, and I loved learning all the myths associated with it through its cast of characters. I don’t read a lot of horror anymore so this was an interesting treat. I enjoyed the build up to the main antagonist, and the gory descriptions of his underlings stuck with me even after finishing it. I also love reading anything set in New York—either the city or upstate—and this story mentioned both.

One of the main characters, Campbell—a published indie author whose book, The Shattered Man, didn’t sell and wasn’t reviewed well—accepts a temporary teaching post in Edenville. He’s portrayed as narcissistic and I found him to be annoying throughout the book. His girlfriend, Quinn—the voice of reason—tries to warn him about the strange goings on in the town before he accepts the job, having experienced eerie things herself growing up. She is definitely the character I rooted for the most, secretly hoping she’d abandon Cam and head back to Brooklyn alone.

The world Rebelein created under Edenville’s cozy exterior was disturbing and extremely gross. If you’ve ever watched a Sam Raimi horror movie, you’ll grasp the level of gore I’m talking about. There were scenes of body horror that made me feel nauseated. One in particular still sticks with me in which Quinn accepts an invitation to what she thinks is a historical society meeting, only to find out it’s her ‘transformation’ ceremony where the real villain behind the horror is introduced. A highly unique and imaginative idea I’ve never read about before, but definitely not for the faint of heart. Consider yourself warned!

3.5/5⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
For readers who enjoy dark, gory horror with cosmic/lore/gothic vibes mixed in.

Seeing the plot, I really thought I was going to enjoy this. Sadly, this wasn't the case. Slow burn horrors are a tough sell for me.

Where to start with this one. Did I love it - parts of it I did. Did I hate it- a big chunk of it I did. It confused me. What I liked was the townswomen and hearing them tell the backstory about the history of the town. This was verging into folk horror territory and I loved it. It had a great culty vibe that drew me right in. I enjoyed this part of the story immensely and would have liked more of it.
The other two narratives were spread between the young couple who has just moved to the town and some weird type of otherworldly entity. This narrative starts heading into cosmic horror and I just didn’t care. Oh, and did I mention there is goo? There’s lots and lots of it. I was having flashbacks to that 80s horror movie The Stuff. Yes, it started heading into ridiculous campy territory with lots of extreme gore and it ultimately lost me. I wanted to stay with those interesting townswomen and hear more of their story. I’m sure there are many of you who will love this book, it just wasn’t for me. 🤷‍♀️. Thank you to @netgalley and @williammorrowbooks for this arc.

"Jopp Yennigan needs another skin again!"

Weirdly wonderful and creepy, not typical creepy either, the creepy you felt the first time you felt something behind you in the hallway in the middle of the night and had to run to the bedroom. Creepy like Bradbury creepy! There's something very wrong with Edenville and it's wrongness wants to swallow you up and keep you forever. Jopp Yennigan is probably one of my favorite characters of all time. The body horror alone is superbly creepy, add in the hellishness that is Edenville Campus, and spooky cultish old chicks and you have a horror like no other. An absolute must read for every horror conniseur.

I knew as soon as I started the first chapter that I was in for an intense ride (add gummerfolk to my list of NOPES!) and that made me all the more excited to keep reading this horror story.

There is something seriously wrong with Edenville, and those eerie / “not quite right” vibes are felt heavily throughout the entire book. I felt like screaming at Cam and Quinn to get out of there from the minute they decided to spend the semester at Renfield! This uneasy feeling builds up tremendously as the book goes on and they learn more about the town that so recently summoned them.

This book was insanely gory and descriptive, with some of the most vivid imagery I have come across in a really long while. I can safely say I chewed every nail off while getting through this one, and don’t think I would be able to handle it as a movie (because I’m a wimp)!

All in all this was a fantastic and nightmare-worthy story, and a really well done debut for the author.

Thank you to the author and netgalley for my e-copy of this creepy read!

Cam is struggling to write a new novel following the success of his debut. After an open mic night at the local bar, he's approached by a representative for Edenville, a college upstate, with a job offer to be the writer in residency for the next semester. His girlfriend Quinn grew up near Edenville and she thinks it sounds like it's too good to be true. When they arrive, Cam is shocked to see the attic in their new place is the one from his dreams, the one that inspired his story and the legend of The Shattered Man. From there the story only gets weirder.

This is a hard one for me to review. There were elements of Edenville that I really enjoyed, but others that I really did not. I think part of it is that I didn't realize this was a cosmic horror when I downloaded it - I was expecting more of a creepy cult town/urban legend horror novel. There were many different points of view and they were hard to follow at times. I really liked Quinn's character and thought she should have ditched Cam when she had the chance. He was kind of the worst.

I ended up switching to the audiobook about 1/4 of the way through and think that is the way to go if you find yourself struggling.


Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for a review copy. While I didn't like this one as much as I hoped I would, I'd definitely give this author another chance.

If part of what you like in a horror movie is the blood, guts, and gore, this book is for you! If you tend more toward the creepy, something’s-off-here side of things, there is something here for you too. Follow our very likable MCs Quinn and her less-likable boyfriend Cam into Renfield County, a historically something’s-off-here place. Stagnating in their careers as well as in their relationship, Quinn and Cam head off on an ill-advised adventure to Edenville College where Cam has been invited to act as a writer-in-residence. I enjoyed the meta exploration of horror with our characters (big horror genre fans) as they view this move like characters in a horror movie. Unfortunately for me, there was more focus on the ooey-gooy, monstrous creature side of things, and not quite enough of the unsettling atmosphere and characters as I would have liked.

Thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC of this title.

Edenville by Sam Rebelein is not for the faint of heart. It contains some intense gore. It's not for those sensitive to foul language. "F bombs" flow freely from one of the primary character's dialogue and thoughts. But it's true to the character, so it didn't bother me. Finally, Edenville isn't for those who are turned off by sci-fi. While the heart of the book is horror, it has a touch of science fiction to explain what's actually going on. If an explanation is even possible.

So, I hear you asking, "who IS Edenville intended for?" The answer to that question would seem to be ME! This book spoke to me! I loved the sci-fi/horror mesh. I wish there were more books like this! It took the eeriest reaches of science fiction and mixed them with the darkest horrors imaginable, and sprinkled in some sunflowers for good measure. The characters were well written and fully captured my imagination. I was even hoping the antagonist could win a few battles. Bits of dry humor made me giggle right before or after being repulsed by a bit of gore. My emotions were all over the board while reading Edenville. It really was quite an adventure.

I won't share much about the book itself. This is a book that I'll put alongside The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward. There are so many strange twists and turns. Things are never quite as they seem. You've just got to keep on reading and it will all come together. Or will it? I guess you'll just have to read it for yourself to figure that out!

I give Edenville five stars. I want to read more from Sam Rebelein. I want to find more sci-fi/horror beauties like this. And I'm going to stay far away from the dark stained wood scattered around Renfield County. Go Crows!

I received a copy of the book in order to provide my honest opinion. All thoughts herein are completely my own.

Thank you to @bookclubgirl, @harpercollins, and @williammorrowbooks for this copy of Edenville. It sounded like a great spooky book to read for Halloween and it was definitely wild and weird. I was OK with the story until about 60% through and then I had to skim to finish it. It was a little too manic for me.

Thank you for the early read on EDENVILLE. I tried several times to start this book and was never able to get more than a few chapters into it. DNF

I’m in agreement with other early reviewers that this is very hard to follow and also that it is sci-fi, not horror.

The later isn’t really a problem to me, though I don’t appreciate being misled by book summaries and promos, and if you’re seeking horror you’re going to be disappointed.

The fact that it’s hard to follow makes the story hard to enjoy, and it’s hard not to wonder why this wasn’t better edited for clarity and some semblance of a linear plot. That disjointed construction along with a story comprised of two halves that don’t really fit together in tone or content also makes the book tough to appreciate. I was pretty bored reading this when I wasn’t frustrated by struggling to follow it.

I do like some bizarre, concept fantasy and horror, but not at the expense of a good story. This has some clever humor and plenty of plot elements that held promise, but the final product needed a lot more revision to succeed.

Edenville may have the distinction of being my biggest disappointment in 2023, and as it stands now, it’s also probably my lowest rated book of the year. I’m not even going to do my usual rundown of the plot because, quite honestly, I’m not even sure I knew what the hell was going on! For the sake of clarity though, here’s the gist: We have a young couple who move to Edenville because Cam, a failed author with no real job prospects, has taken job at the local college, and his girlfriend Quinn reluctantly follows along because she grew up nearby and has heard all kinds of creepy urban legends about the town. Soon after they arrive, however, Cam starts having these terrible nightmares, and Quinn realizes there may be more than a grain of truth to the horror stories she’s heard growing up.


At this point, I feel I should mention that this was also the year I started DNF’ing books, and the only reason Edenville was spared from this ignominious pile was due to my 25% rule—that is, if I’m not interested in reading any more by the time hit the quarter mark, then it’s time to throw in the towel. Somehow, this novel managed to squeak by this threshold despite being a snoozefest for the first fifty pages or so, mainly because right before 25% was when Cam and Quinn finally made it to Edenville. I thought to myself, well, at the very least, I really should give the novel a chance to win me over now that its namesake has—at long last!—entered the picture.


Which turned out to be a huge mistake. Things not only failed to improve but took a turn for the worse as the plot grew increasingly confusing and nonsensical. As I mentioned before, the opening chapters were a struggle, and most of this was due to the overly indulgent and cumbersome prose. The writing itself is pretentious to the extreme and exudes an air of someone who feels awfully clever and satisfied with themselves. This just made all the jokes unfunny, the profanity crass instead of witty, and robbed any satire of its sophistication. Unfortunately, this attitude of excessive self-satisfaction continues through the entire book. Meanwhile, more important matters like succinctness and lucidity go out the window.


Then there were the characters. Cam was an insufferable snob, but believe it or not, Quinn was the bigger disaster. Girl had no agency, no backbone, no mind of her own. Randomly, she would say, do, or think things that were so jarringly stupid or absurd, many times I found myself wondering if the author was purposely doing this for shock value, or if Quinn was really just that badly written. Evidently, there’s a belief that some male writers struggle to portray female characters realistically, and I’m thinking maybe there’s some of that happening here.


Moving on to the horror aspects. To be fair, this was perhaps the one bright spot of this entire debacle. I do love myself some cosmic horror, which I confess I did not expect from Edenville going in, and it was the singular reason I stayed riding on this trainwreck for so long even after every instinct was screaming for me to bail. In any case, I was already past the point of no return, and I wanted to see things through. There is some serious gross-out gore and body horror within these pages; I only wish the author had exhibited such lack of subtlety from the outset because maybe then the beginning wouldn’t have felt so clunky and ostentatious.


I could go on, but I think I’ve written enough to get the point across. Obviously, I don’t recommend Edenville, and while I won’t deny experiencing a certain degree of catharsis from banging out this review, in retrospect I probably should have listened to my gut and saved myself from this bloated, overly ambitious novel.

What the heck did I just read? This is the first thought I had when I started Edenville by Sam Rebelein. It is also the last thought I had when I finished it and I think that's the feeling the author wants you to have.. Edenville is a metaphysical, cultish, cosmic horror that leaves you fluctuating between, what the heck and ew that's gross. It starts out with a would-be writer who only strives to be published. When Cam has a bizarre dream that leaves his eyes oozing, he suddenly writes a best selling novel that not only gets published, but also gets him a job as a professor at Edenville College. His girlfriend Quinn is more suspicious of Cam's new found success and feels like they are walking in a horror movie. Neither of them are prepared for the truth of what is actually happening.
I was captivated by this story. It was weird and gross but totally enthralling. Throughout the story, I was finding myself wondering where it would all lead. After I finished reading Edenville, I kept thinking about it. Edenville is a definite blend of cosmic and Eldritch horror, similar to Lovecraft and Tremblay. If you are a fan of this type of horror, Edenville is a must read.
Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins publishing for the advanced copy of the book. The opinions are my own.

DNF at 40%
The premise of this book sounded so interesting, but unfortunately this book was not for me. I was putting it up and putting it back down for weeks without making much progress. I found Cam to be deeply unlikeable (perhaps intentionally), to the point it took me out of the story, and Quinn's perspective was very frustrating to read. Many of the other characters felt like caricatures, and the writing was a bit corny as well. I did not buy into the characters' motivations and a lot of their actions seemed to only serve the purpose of advancing the plot. I know this book has an audience who will love it, but that does not include me.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is incredibly unsettling. I love books where the sunflowers are creepy too. They are such a fall flower.
Some of this reminds me of reading those creepy truck stories on reddit. Or the national park stories. Like they're real to the people telling the stories and that makes them so much more terrifying than anything else you could be reading at night.
I also love the description "smells like vacuum cleaner" because I know exactly what that means!
I may change this review in a few days after I digest this one.
It is weird.

Thank you to HarperCollins and NetGalley for providing a review copy.

For fans of: creepy culty small towns, cosmic horror, dry humor and tight writing
I had a great time with Edenville. It combines a bunch of my favorite tropes into a tightly written cosmic nightmare. Quinn is one of my favorite protagonists in the books I've read this year. I also loved the snappy, dry humor throughout. It's not comedy horror, just written very tongue-in-cheek and very self aware. This is a very impressive debut novel and I'm excited to see what Sam Rebelein writes next. 4.5 stars, rounded up.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Campbell agrees to visit edenville. While in town strange things and occurrences are happening. He doesn't know who or what to believe. A good read.

I received a free copy of,Edenville, by Sam Rebelein, from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Author Campbell P, Marion debut book flopped, he is asked to be a writer in residence at Edenville College, where his girlfriend Quin used to live. I thought this was an ok story, it didnt really do anything for me though. I did not like all the swearing either.

REVIEW: Edenville is an ambitious mash-up of small town horror with some body and cosmic horror, as well. There’s a lot going on in this story. Cam and Quinn are kind of an odd couple. We start with the modern trope of a struggling author hoping for a break. From there? Things escalate, if in a meandering way. Readers who are good with a slow build but it intensifies during the last act. Definitely will check out what Rebelein writes in the future.

This book was featured in my newsletter, DISPATCHES. Here’s the link:
Dispatches #8 October 2023
The campaign URL for this campaign is: https://mailchi.mp/c9a5a7ba7640/dispatches-issue-6148340