This is an absolutely fantastic, disturbing nightmare of a book. A secluded artists' colony holds dark secrets in the abandoned hotel on the property and Sarah has nowhere else to go. This was her escape, her first step towards a new future. She never expected to find a dead animal rotting in her bed or an absolutely horrible misogynist sharing the pottery studio or a long buried coffin at the site where she's digging a pit kiln. She never expected the other residents to be descending into madness or to unearth awful secrets from a past century. By the last chapter, I was completely rattled, something that rarely happens. This one hit me HARD.

The book was intense with each chapter, where resolving one thing opened up three new issues. It rarely slowed down and kept my mind thinking about what will happen next. I can’t say I expected the ending, although I guessed part of it about a third of the way through, but it was one of a few theories I had, so the book wasn’t entirely predictable.

I do wish we had gotten more answers about the artists and what happened with them after the ending of the book

After fleeing her toxic relationship and finally cutting ties with her alcoholic mother, Sarah is ready to take back her life. She used to create beautiful works of pottery so when the chance to participate in an artists retreat pops up she can’t accept quickly enough. As Sarah begins digging for an outdoor kiln, she discovers the unmarked grave of a woman who appears to have been buried alive. As strange things begin happening to the other artists and Sarah begins to have dreams where she’s in somebody else’s body, you can’t help but wonder what exactly Sarah has unearthed.

It took me a little while to get invested in the story, but I’m so glad I kept reading because I ended up really enjoying this one. Setting the artists retreat in such an isolated place really elevated the creep factor and while I was never really scared, I definitely felt unsettled more than once while reading this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey for a review copy.

What a harrowing tale. Delilah S Dawson put together a story of anger, betrayal, trauma, community, autonomy and survival.

The novel follows Sarah, a young woman determined to reclaim the life she gave up for her ex-boyfriend of six years. On an artist's retreat, she discovers a trauma bond steeped in the past connected to the very location she is visiting.

The mystery is captivating. The characters are compelling. The narrative is gripping and the book is, at times, difficult to continue in the best way.

I enjoyed living in this world and experiencing what survival actually means from a perspective not my own.

Highly recommended

Thanks to Del Rey Books and Netgalley for the ARC.

This is an intense ghost story! Delilah absolutely has a way of setting a scene and building the atmosphere and then turning and turning it until the creepiness is on maximum. It is also a journey back from an abusive relationship, so you may need to check content warnings, although the abuse is primarily off page. Sarah has left her controlling boyfriend and as a way to restart her life she is participating in a 6-week artist residency in the mountains of Georgia. In a remote area, a group of artists work in studios on the grounds of an old posh resort, Tranquil Falls and Sarah hopes that getting back to the pottery making that she loves that it will give her life new direction. In order to fire her pots, Sarah sets out to dig a pit kiln, and while doing so, she unearths a coffin with the remains of a woman inside. And that's when things really start to get freaky. There are accidents, deaths and a number of her artist colleagues begin to act very strangely, and it all sets Sarah on a path to find out what happened to the woman in the coffin. I was immediately drawn into the story as Sarah is an easy FMC to like and the rest of the eclectic group of artists has some really interesting characters, especially Lucas and Ingrid. The only issue I really had was the ending felt a bit abrupt in relation to the other characters of the story, as we don't find out what happened to a number of them, and I would really have liked to have known what happened to them. Some mystery is fine, but this felt like a bit too much left undone, but it's a small thing. I listened to the audio and very much enjoyed the narrator.

Upon arriving at Tranquil Falls, a secluded artists’ colony, Sarah Carpenter hopes for a fresh start. She recently escaped an abusive partner and hopes to retake control over her own life by returning to her love of pottery. The longer she stays at the colony, however, she discovers disturbing truths about the property's history. Strange, paranormal events begin to happen to her and the other artists...and someone dies under mysterious circumstances.

I entered this book having loved a previous experience with Dawson's writing. Her horror novella, Bloom, was one of my favorite reads of 2023, so I was ecstatic when I was approved for a Netgalley ARC of her most recent publication. Unfortunately, this novel missed the mark. That isn't to say that I don't respect and appreciate Dawson's motivations for writing this narrative. I recommend that if you do read It Will Only Hurt for a Moment, make sure you pause and read her author's note at the end. Dawson opens up about a terrifying experience—a reality that so many women can relate to—and how it gave her the groundwork for Sarah's story.

The first half of the book is far stronger than the second half. I enjoyed the narrative pacing, the eclectic group of characters, and the direct way Dawson addressed issues like misogyny and not believing women when they seek help/support. The latter half is where the narrative action felt too hurried, and there was an awkward imbalance once in a while when the author tries to infuse humor and banter during a serious situation. Moreover, I found the random rivalry between Sarah and another woman at the colony to be odd and distracting from the social commentary at hand. It also seemed that the backstory of Sarah's alcoholic mother went nowhere and had no influence on the plot, so I wonder why it's so heavily included in the first couple chapters.

CW: animal death, forced institutionalization, gaslighting, domestic abuse, SA, some body horror, an alcoholic parent

Actual Rating: 2.5 stars
Original Pub Date: 22 October 2024
Reading Format: audio

Thank you NetGalley and Del Rey for an E-ARC copy in exchange for this honest review!

the vibes were stronger than the plot. the setting was a lot of fun, and i was definitely creeped out several times.

I have become a big fan of Dawson's novellas as of late and I truly feel that's where she shines. This full length novel fell a little short for me. There are graphic and violent scenes that I believe were done well but overall the story left something to be desired. I will continue to read Dawson's this one just did not completely work for me.

Ugh, idk if I hated this book, or if it all just made me so angry that reading it was an awful experience, or if all the characters were awful, or the fact that there are GRAPHIC and BRUTAL rape scenes in multiples. I ended up swiping past the pages of Emily Engle's POV b/c they were so graphic and horrible. There is also no resolution in this book, so if you need that to feel okay about horrible stories, this is a pass for you!

4.5 stars

It Will Only Hurt for a Moment by Delilah S. Dawson  is a psychological thriller about an artists retreat.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher Random House - Del Rey, and the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
  

My Synopsis:    (No major reveals, but if concerned, skip to My Opinions)
Sarah Carpenter is one of eight artists at Tranquil Falls, an isolated colony on the grounds of an old hotel which hasn't been in operation for many years.   She is there for a fresh start, having escaped both her controlling boyfriend and her alcoholic mother.   Sarah really needs this time to be something for herself.  She used to be a potter, and looks forward to having her own space to work her magic.  With no outside distractions like cell service or wi-fi, she is sure she will find the peace she needs.

But things go wrong almost from the start.  Sarah ends up sharing her working space with a man who seems to hate women.  When she decides to build a pit kiln, she uncovers the body of young woman, who Sarah thinks may have been buried alive.  She keeps her thoughts to herself.  Her fellow artists are all a little strange, and when Sarah finds one of them dead, and glass in her own clay, she starts wondering if she's being targeted.

Meanwhile, Sarah has been having dreams about a young woman, maybe the one she found that had been buried alive.  In her dreams, this young woman was spending her honeymoon at the closed hotel, when her husband becomes abusive, and she is sent to the hotel's basement, where the doctor will remove her rebellious attitude.

When Sarah and another artist break into the hotel to have a look around, Sarah realizes that she recognizes these rooms from her dreams.  She also realizes that this was more a nightmarish sanatorium than it was a hotel.
 

My Opinions:
I loved this book.  It will stay with me for a long time.  It sucked me in at the start, and held me captive til the end!

It was a very dark, atmospheric tale.  Dawson's vivid descriptions help immerse you in the story, without adding unnecessary details.  The story continued to build suspense as it progressed.   It is part psychological thriller, part horror, part supernatural, but it truly about a woman who learns to stand up for herself.

Okay, I could have used a heads up about the dead animals in this book.  I don't care if people die, but animals is a no-no for me.    There were actually a lot of tough topics in the book, including strange medical treatments (torture), sexual assault, masculine aggression and controlling behaviour, and pure misogyny.   But there were also a couple of strong female characters which balanced things out.  I liked both Sarah and Ingrid.

I loved the ending.

Sarah Carpenter is trying to put her life back together, especially to find her love of pottery again. She finds a place, Tranquill Fall, that she thinks will be perfect. When she finds a body while digging a pit for her kiln, things begin to change, and not for the better. Can she find her way out?

I was fortunate enough to have been chosen to read this book early before it was published. Normally, this is not a book that I would enjoy but I must say I was pleasantly surprised. I liked the overall basis of the book, and I would definitely read the authors other books after finishing this one. If you like paranormal thrillers, I would definitely give this one a try.

Wow!!! This book!!! 5 stars! I absolutely loved the writing and the suspense. Sarah, the main character, is running away from the life she doesn’t love and wants to get back to finding herself. She runs off to tranquil falls to rediscover her love for pottery. While there, odd events start taking place and you wonder if there is a haunting, another member who’s just crazy or if there’s some big mystery. This book kept me on the edge of the seat.

Loved it!

Love this author, but I was so bored here. I kept waiting for the pace to pick up and for something to happen and then it was just *meh*. Disappointed

Sarah is looking to start fresh. She’s left her abusive ex and she was accepted to an artist’s retreat with the hope that she can rediscover herself and her love of pottery. Enter Tranquil Falls, a woodland artists retreat on the land of an old closed hotel with whimsical cottages, no phone signal, and maybe ghosts? I loved the premise of this novel, and for most of the reading experience I really enjoyed the novel. Weirdly enough, it was when the more spooky/supernatural stuff started happening I kind of checked out. Overall, I think Dawson handled the heavy themes of societal and individual abuse of women and how this abuse has continued through history quite well. I think that theme is maybe hammered in a little too much. The amount of times the main character will do something and reflect on how she couldn’t do that thing in her last relationship was very repetitive. It’s not bad information, but it happens enough times that you notice the trend. I love the arc of Ingrid the best, she’s definitely the most interesting character. This is also one of those books where so much happens in the final chunk that it’s honestly disorienting. And then it just ends. I can’t go into it without entering spoiler territory, but that was the overall vibe of the finale.

This was one of my most anticipated for 2024 but unfortunately it wasn’t for me. I love the way she writes horror and gore which she does a beautiful job with here but unfortunately the story fell flat to me. I kept forcing myself to push on and it felt like nothing really happened. Wasn’t for me this time but I will keep supporting this authors other work. Thank you NetGally for the ARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

⭐️: 2
DNF. I tried to get into it, but it didn’t hold my interest Maybe I’ll give it another chance at a later time.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

It Will Only Hurt for a Moment by Delilah S. Dawson explores feminine rage, injustices, and abuse through unique circumstances and memorable characters. Sarah is an artist that is looking to start over, to leave behind the life she had with her shitty ex. At Tranquil Falls, an artist's retreat, she hopes to reconnect with the parts of her that have withered away and fallen in light of living a life not in line with her true self. But bodies start to pop up around the property as Sarah can no longer feel settled, wondering if this a terrible coincidence or something more nefarious following her.

Dawson explores how much cruelty can be found in this world even in the unlikeliest of places. You would think that an artist's retreat would be the place for tranquility (hence the name), but this unique setting proves to be the perfect reckoning ground for Sarah. Not everything is terrible though as Dawson gives us some unlikely friendships along the way for Sarah to understand the truth of what is happening at Tranquil Falls. It Will Only Hurt for a Moment is a book that is the epitome of the past colliding the present, demanding for the price to be paid. Fans of books such as The Redemption of Morgan Bright would enjoy this as well.

Sarah Carpenter seeks a fresh start at an isolated artists' colony called Tranquil Falls, set on the grounds of a former hotel. Hoping to leave behind her troubled past, she soon uncovers a body and begins to experience disturbing behavior from the other artists. As she digs deeper, Sarah realizes that the colony's dark, twisted past may be more than she can escape.

I think this is going to be a 3-star rating for me, maybe 3.5. I did enjoy the story, but the ending kind of ruined it.

The premise was really interesting, especially the artist's retreat in an abandoned hotel. The creepy vibes were there from the start, and I liked how the author wove together the stories of past guests with those of the current retreat members. It was fascinating to see how their stories were so similar, even across the years.

Since this is a mystery/thriller, I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what was going on. For most of the book, I had no idea who was doing what. The author did a great job of making everyone look suspicious enough that I couldn’t figure out who the real villain was. Unfortunately, once we find out what’s really happening and who the villain is, the story just ends very abruptly. There’s no conclusion, no resolution. We basically find out who did it, and that’s it.

It would’ve been nice to see a full conclusion, like the villain being brought to justice or the secrets of the abandoned hotel coming to light. But we don’t get any of that. We learn about what happened at the hotel, but there’s no closure. It just felt incomplete.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review

Sarah is a young woman who is trying to find some peace and a quiet place to discover herself. Living with an abusive boyfriend has made Sarah only knowing that she needs a safe place where her boyfriend can’t find her. She is going to a secluded isolated artists’ colony on the grounds where there is no internet or cell phone signals, she won’t be distracted in rediscovering herself. The place is called Tanquil Falls. Just when Sarah is getting her life back to herself, strange things happen. She goes to a hotel on the grounds that is slowly disintegrating only to discover its dark past.

I found this book difficult to read as it didn’t keep my interest. The authors writing is fine. The plot is decent. I felt that this story has been told so many times in different ways but yet was not “new” to me. The novel can be classified an abusive horror novel that is gothic.