ARC by NetGalley and the publisher.


Newlywed Sam is in the throes of wedded bliss as all her dreams are finally coming true. Her husband Ben and their future life together hold a promise of happy normalcy that she has so longed for. Sam’s honeymoon state of mind is short lived and hijacked away as her mother-in-law falls suddenly ill. Causing the new family to move to Edenic Camilla Island in order to care for her. Upon arrival Sam and her daughter Emma are met with welcoming open arms from the island residence. However, as ghostly pasts are revealed it becomes apparent that this picturesque island and the people there are hiding deadly secrets behind their warm smiles.

Don’t Eat the Pie is a hauntingly atmospheric slow burn horror that served all the eerie dread that I absolutely love in my spookier reads. Reading this was like watching a movie, as each chapter unfolds you begin to slowly piece together the puzzle and understand where the shadows are leading you to. As such this debut will absolutely give you Rosemary’s Baby vibes as well as American Horror Story. Told through dual POV we follow both Sam and Emma as they unravel the truths that the island hides; like the fact that Ben’s previous wife mysteriously died during childbirth and now her ghost is trying to warn Sam and Emma, but of what they don’t know. The books pacing and mounting unease had me reading at the edge of my seat screaming at the characters and clamoring to uncover all the secrets, as if learning them may somehow aid in these characters fates. Asher expertly weaves tension and ghostly cult filled horror while also managing to explore deeper subjects such as pregnancy loss, generation trauma, tough family dynamics, and DV. Again I can’t say enough how much I truly enjoyed this book and am shocked that it is a debut! If you are a fan of gothic horror reads with ghosts, a secluded island location, cults, unhinged twists, and enjoy pie then you absolutely have to pick up this one!

Don’t Eat the Pie comes out September 24th, 2024.

Thank you NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing Co. for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This one didn't work for me. The character interactions and dialogue felt unrealistic and very contrived and it distracted me from the story. I just didn't mesh with the writing style.

“Don’t Eat the Pie” by Monique Asher is a gripping gothic horror novel that plunges readers into the eerie world of Camillia Island, where darkness lurks beneath the island’s seemingly perfect surface. Newlywed Sam moves to the island with her daughter, Emma, to care for her ailing mother-in-law, Nadine. At first, the island appears idyllic with its friendly residents, beautiful homes, and colorful flowers. But as they settle in, the island’s sinister secrets begin to unravel.

The novel masterfully builds tension through its atmospheric setting and unsettling events. Emma starts seeing ghostly apparitions and receiving grim warnings, but Sam dismisses her daughter’s concerns, eager to maintain peace with her new family. The mystery deepens when Sam becomes inexplicably ill after participating in a local pie-making contest, despite being warned not to eat the pies.

Asher’s writing is reminiscent of classic horror tales like “Rosemary’s Baby,” blending supernatural elements with the psychological unease of a mother-daughter relationship strained by secrets and trauma. The dual perspectives of Sam and Emma add depth to the narrative, making their fear and confusion palpable. “Don’t Eat the Pie” is a chilling, atmospheric read that horror fans will devour. With its twisted plot and unforgettable setting, it leaves readers with a lingering sense of unease and anticipation for what Monique Asher will conjure up next.

This was soooo good! I loved the characters, the atmosphere, and the fantastic tension building. Really well done and I look forward to reading more from this author in the future.

I really enjoyed this book! It has fantastic "Get Out" vibes! The creepy progression of knowing things are not ok, and there's nothing you can do to stop it will keep you reading this one! It has a lot of classic Gothic feelings to it. It slowly builds from one crazy event, to the next. There's a lot that happens, and it's written much like a movie.

The journey embarked upon by Sam, her husband, and their daughter Emma, upon relocating to an island due to the illness of Sam's mother-in-law, was a captivating one. Eerie occurrences manifested themselves immediately, piquing my interest. Despite Sam's attempts to rationalize these phenomena, Emma remains skeptical. It becomes apparent that the spirits haunting the island carry a message, albeit a mysterious one. I fervently consumed this literary masterpiece and wholeheartedly endorse it to all enthusiasts of the supernatural.

This book started off so well and I was really enjoying it, but by the end the characters were kind of annoying in how not smart they were being. So it was pretty frustrating.

When I started reading this I definitely got Rosemary's Baby vibes which is great as I love that story. Then it kind of turned into Rosemary's Baby with all the same details of things happening which was odd, but I didn't mind too much. Like it could have been a fun, updated sequel to that book almost which I liked. So I wasn't that surprised when I got to the end and saw that the author wanted to write a gothic in the vein of Rosemary's Baby. But it went downhill from about the mid-way point for me.

This is the story of Emma and Sam, Sam who has just married Ben and is hoping that her life will be good and happy from now on. That Ben really is as great as he seems and she can leave her horrible past behind. And Emma her daughter whose life is going to be uprooted when they all move. Only Ben's mom has an accident while they are on their honeymoon and they have to go back to his hometown to help take care of her. A small island community where weird things start happening.

I did really love the first part of this book and was ready to recommend it to everyone. It was just fun to read and I loved the writing. But as I said as it progressed Emma's thought processes got to be really annoying. Like if you know weird, bad things are going on why would you just trust the people who are being weird? I did not get it and it was very frustrating to read. I know she is young, but still. So unfortunately I was left with a very meh feeling overall. I would be interested in reading another of the author's books since I did enjoy the first half so much.

Don’t Eat the Pie is a horror novel that tells the story of Newly Wed Sam and her daughter Emma and when they move to an island to take care of Sam’s ill mother-in-law. While everyone on the island is friendly, weird things happen. Especially at the house next door.

Rating: 2/5 stars. ⭐️

I want to start off by saying thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I thought this book had a good idea for the plot. Reading the description, I was excited to see where it went. After reading, I found it interesting.

The writing style just wasn’t for me. I felt that scenes weren’t connecting and we were jumping from one place and thought to another. The dialogue and internal thoughts felt awkward to me.

The occult aspects don’t really fit into the story and I think they could have been left out. I also think the interaction between Emma and her father could be left out as well as it just felt weird.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing Company for providing me with an eARC of Don't Eat the Pie in exchange for my honest review!

I very much wanted to enjoy Don't Eat the Pie, but unfortunately, that doesn't really happen. It's determined to create an eerie tale that can make me feel like something is terribly off-kilter beneath the idyllic exterior, and there's certainly plenty of meat to work with via the dysfunctional family dynamics at play. However, the narrative simply comes across too formulaically to me. I've followed tons of this type of story already, so much of what happens in this book doesn't truly surprise or scare me. And once I reach the ending, I'm left with a big old shrug while wishing Don't Eat the Pie could have stood out more successfully. Oh well, I'm still glad I gave it a try, and now I'll officially rate it 2.25 out of 5 stars, which I'll round down to 2 stars.

This was a slow start for me, everything was so normal and I was expecting magic and witches as described. Once things start rolling, I was not disappointed. Sam falls in love and marries her dream man, her young daughter approves and everything is perfectly ideal. But then Bens mother has a fall and she along with her daughter, sister and nephew travel to a strange island for the summer to take care of her. Once they reach the island there’s no avoiding the empty house next door, it belongs to Ben but stands empty due to his first wife dying there. And that’s just the start of the creepy things that unfold. Emma is worried, unexplainable things are happening and the islanders are hiding things, they’re watching them and everyone is suspicious. After what can only be called an adult pie party things get worse, Sam never wanted more children, she barely survived her first child being born, she always takes her protection, and yet she falls pregnant anyway. What was once a overly friendly island now becomes obsessive, the child is everything and this small family might not survive the islands ways.

The only thing I didn’t like about this was the ending, it fell flat and left too many questions unanswered

Oh yes!! This is my type of book. Suspense, murder, ghosts, magic, gothic horror, weirdness, it's got the lot! Thank you to @Netgalley and Rising Action Publishing Co for letting me have an advanced copy of #donteatthepie by Monique Asher.

Sam moves to Camillia Island with her new husband Ben, to look after his mother who has recently become ill. She and her teen daughter Emma are welcomed to the island by the residents, and everything seems perfect. However, Emma starts seeing things in the abandoned house next door, the house where Ben's first wife died. Emma is determined to leave the island and get back to normality, but she knows something about the island and its residents isnt right, and she needs to uncover the truth and protect her mom from whatever the residents have planned for her.

I liked Monique's style of writing, and the story kept me gripped, with a good amount of suspense throughout. I would recommend this book, and would definitely choose to read other books by this author.

This book was one for those who like witch and haunted stories, I was drawn in to it very quickly because I knew there was just something weird with this family. The back and forth in the story was a bit confusing at times but nothing that is bad or that would really take away from the story. I could see this being a movie or season of American Horror Story.

This is a creepy tale of horror and I was immediately drawn to it just on the title alone. The cover looks so delicious too!

Sam and her family move to an Island to care for her new husband’s mother, Nadine. When they get there, things start to take a dark turn. There is a pie making contest and everyone must sample every single pie. Once Sam samples the pies, she starts to become ill. What on earth is in it?

This reminded me a little bit of the series True Blood on HBO. Creepy women and their rituals. Unnerving characters. Atmospheric, gothic and witchy vibes. I do think it ended abruptly. However, maybe Asher was setting the tone for a second one. I suppose we will find out and I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you to @risingactionpublishingco @moasherwrites and @netgalley for the opportunity.
Publication date 9/24/24
4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This started a bit off for me but once it got going, it definitely hooked me. The book struggled to stay in the lane at the beginning, teetering back and forth, but then found its footing and made this into a fun and thrilling gothic debut novel that I was glad I got to enjoy. When things started to really take off, I couldn't wait to go back to read it and to finish it. So bottom line: don't give up on it right away. The book will get better.

As much as I liked both main characters, Sam and Emma, it took me some time to really get into their characters. The supporting cast played their parts well, the authors placed them at the right place and right time, but I struggled with the main ones. There was something that I couldn't place at the beginning to where Sam and Emma were somewhat unlikable until the author gave them a bit more of a punch and more of a backbone. By the end, I came to like Sam and Emma.

And the character Ben... he was just a prop for me. I was hoping there was more to him, but I can't say much more than that without spoiling. But I think Ben was a missed opportunity for sure. But I had fun reading it and I recommend this book for sure.

Thank you to NetGalley and Rising Action Publishing for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

I read this in a couple of days - it was easy going and I found the pacing just right. I'm not entirely sure the occult themes fitted into the story as a whole, and I felt like I had a lot of unanswered questions at the end of the story, but it was a fun read. I found the dynamic between Sam and Emma very realistic for a teenager and her mum, and I felt like Sam's mixed feelings about motherhood added depth to that. I think it could potentially have been a bit longer as the last third or so felt a bit rushed, but there was lots of creepy imagery and as a whole it kept me wanting to know what would happen next.

What. Did. I. Just. Read? I finally found a gothic horror story that I’ve been craving! 👏🏻 This delicious debut novel centers around Emma, Sam, and Krysten. Sam, Emma’s mom, hasn’t had the best of luck with men. Her ex-husband beat her to a pulp when she was 9 months pregnant, she woke up bloody in a hospital, but miraculously, Emma was born as healthy as could be.

Fast forward ⏩ a few years and Sam meets Ben. Ben is handsome, rich, and the man of her dreams. During their honeymoon, Ben receives a call that his mother has fallen and he needs to come quickly to take care of her. Ben, Sam, and Emma rush to Camilla Island to live with Ben’s mother, Nadine, while she recovers from her fall.

Sam and Emma quickly notice that there’s something very wrong with this island; there’s shadows standing in the windows of the house next door, but no one has lived there in years. The house used to belong to Ben and his late wife, Krysten, who mysteriously bled out and died during childbirth. Krysten’s spirit is trying to warn Sam and Emma through a series of clues: Don’t. Eat. The. Pie. What follows are dark, twisty, raunchy, and an unhinged secrets. You won’t be able to sleep at night because they’re coming for you from the shadows of your bedroom…😈

I personally had some issues with the writing style of this book that left me unable to fully enjoy this. I often felt disoriented from scene to scene, like there was some missing context about how characters were interacting with the space and people around them. I don't know how to put it other than I didn't feel fully immersed in the setting or characters.

BUT I seem to be the outlier based on other reviews, which are glowing so far! I would say test the waters with a few pages if you can and see if you like the writing before diving in.

You might like this if you like:
💀 Gothic horror
🔮 Cults & the occult
🐍 Family drama
🥧 Small towns with secrets

The cover of this book drew me in instantly and I had to read it. I seem to not be reading as many horrors as I usually do so this one was a treat. You are drawn into this complicated family right away and you know something weird is going on but you can’t quite put your finger on it.

I zipped through this book enjoying the pie fair and the creepy old ladies. There’s always something about food and horror books that goes together.

Thank you to NetGalley, Rising Action Publishing and Monique Asher for an eARC for an honest review of the book.

I’ll never look at pie the same way again after reading this book.

Wow this book was so special. I need some time to process all of it. I was hooked from the beginning, it had me gasping out loud and it was so creepy! I highly recommend to read this one during spooky season 👻

Thank you Netgalley and Rising Action Publishing Co. for this arc.

This is a fast-paced, unsettling story that horror fans will enjoy. My one complaint is that I feel that it was a little too long…I think it would have been better at fifty pages less.

I look forward to seeing what Ms. Asher comes up with next!