With an eclectic cast of characters, readers will be drawn into this dramatic thriller. Sarah is running away from a bad situation and finds herself in an even more precarious one. The setting of the story is described in creative detail by the author which puts the reader in the story. The plot moves steadily as clues are uncovered. It is easy to follow along as the story develops and unfolds.

This was one of the most heartbreaking yet liberating books I’ve read in a long time. It had heart, hauntings, tragedy, and more.

Our MC Sarah is fleeing her ex boyfriend after realizing her relationship was abusive. She’s found what she thinks will be a fresh beginning at an artist retreat at an old “luxury spa” from the 1800’s.

Her tranquility is cut short after she discovers a long buried corpse. Strange things start happening at the retreat, people start acting weirdly, and soon things take a sinister turn.

This is a perfect mix between thriller and horror, with some supernatural stuff thrown in. I enjoyed the writing style and loved following Sarah along this journey of discovery about not only herself but the hotel’s past. She starts out meek and afraid but turns into a badass of a woman.

This book portrays what it was like to be a woman in the 1800’s, and how men so often then (and still now) believe women are mentally unstable because of their unwillingness to bow down to their every whim and craving.

This is by far one of my favorites, and i intend to buy a physical copy to have on my shelf.

Thanks to netgalley & Random House Publishing for this arc!!

It Will Only Hurt for a Moment releases October 22nd!!

Sarah Carpenter, on the run from an emotionally abusive ex, gets accepted into an artist's retreat at Tranquil Falls, a secluded artists’ colony on the grounds of a closed hotel. She plans to start making pottery again - something she had to give up when she moved in with her ex. There is no cell signal or internet to distract her,, which is perfect. But things go wrong from the time she arrives, and when she goes to dig a hole for a pit kiln and discovers an unmarked grave, things begin to get even weirder. Her fellow artists begin acting in troubling ways - the musician plays an old-timey carousel song over and over until his fingers bleed, the eccentric fiber artist knits an endless scarf, broken bits of stained glass are found in freshly opened packages of clay, and everyone is having strange dreams and going into trances. As Sarah begins to investigate the history behind the crumbling hotel, she discovers a dark history the owners want to keep hidden, no matter what.

Looking for a spooky ghost story to read this Halloween? Look no further. This book was excellent. I couldn't put it down. As the artists got eliminated one-by-one, Sarah (the pottery resident) and Ingrid (the photography resident) teamed up to do detective work (& ghost hunting on Ingrid's part) around the old hotel. Sarah kept having visions through the lens of one of the women who was "treated" there at the hotel, and wanted her story to be heard. I highly recommend this for anyone who loves a good paranormal story!

Haunted artist retreat, gothic vibes, and feminine rage.

Sarah Carpenter escapes a bad relationship and heads to an artist retreat to rediscover her love of pottery. What she finds at the retreat is a bit more than she bargained for. But when Sarah uncovers the body of a young woman while digging a hole for a pit kiln, things start to fall apart. The other artists begin to act strangely and there are mysteries on the property that will soon take a dark turn.

I found the story of the girl named Emily that Sarah found buried was a really intriguing story. I felt terrible for the life that Emily endured and I enjoyed the flashback to her life. I liked the other artists in the book and the atmosphere, I could really picture the retreat. The only thing I didn’t like was every chapter she mentioned Kyle, her abusive ex boyfriend, it got a little annoying because she was going to the retreat to get away from him, but never stopped mentioning him.. Besides that I really loved the story!

Add this book to your spooky season TBR!

Thank you to RandomHouse and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

TW: Substance Abuse, Animal Death, Sexual Assault, Domestic Abuse, Misogyny, Self-harm (graphic), References to Abortion

I’ll start by saying I loved Bloom and Guillotine by Dawson. They’re two of my faves for the year and some of my favorite novellas ever. I have yet to read a full length novel by this author but I went in with the highest of expectations. Unfortunately, it fell a bit flat for me.

What did I love? The atmosphere, the backdrop of a dilapidated mansion creating a perfect gothic setting, the chilling flashbacks, and the tension. The first chunk of this book held a lot of promise for me and I was dying to see where it all went. I found myself feeling a little unsatisfied by the ending. There was such a slow build and I expected the payoff to be worth it. But so much happens in the last 40 pages, and a lot off page. It just felt like what was the point? I think if this had been condensed to a novella or a slightly shorter book, it might’ve been more effective. I don’t like finishing a book and having more questions than answers.

Overall, there’s a lot to love here but I was hoping for a stronger ending to tie everything together.

This is my first Delilah S. Dawson book and while I've heard great things about Bloom, I'm not sure how to feel about this.

I enjoyed the way she created atmosphere and quiet tension in this story, but I can't say I enjoyed her writing style as a whole or her characters. For one, it felt like the writing dragged here and there, with too many unnecessary descriptions and repetitions, and stuff that added nothing to the story. The characters were just not very likable and they were a bit strange, I can't quite put my finger on it. I didn't HATE them, but I didn't like them either.

Also, while there's a creepy mystery here, I don't feel like the plot was executed well at all. The ending felt RUSHED, like she didn't want to write anymore and found the most convenient, easiest way to give the story some kind of conclusion. As a result, there are many loose ends and it's just... not good.

Some of the twists aren't shocking in a good way, they're shocking as in "Okay, she literally pulled this out of nowhere and I can't believe it," and others were obvious, so it's just messy. Overall, while I liked the premise and the way she created the atmosphere, I can't really say I liked this story.

My biggest issue is how dissatisfying it is. The first question that came to mind when I finished this was: "Why did I read this? What was the point?" and that's never great. I can't say it was a waste of time, cause I liked some elements of it, but I can't in good conscience say this was good or recommend it 100%. Give it a shot, I guess!

Dawson is a great story teller but this book felt disjointed. Was it a horror? An almost romance? Who knows! The setting was the best thing about this book. The retreat was in the middle of the woods, no cell service, peaceful.... a place a lot of us would love to be able to spend some time at.
The characters were flat, the plot was repetitive and there were so many loose ends. The ending felt rushed and not fleshed out completely, almost like Dawson decided she was done and that was that.

"In this highly atmospheric thriller from the Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of The Violence, a young woman hopes to reinvent herself at an isolated artists' colony...only to be drawn into its dark, twisted past. Sarah Carpenter is starting over.

She's on the run - leaving behind her unsupportive, narcissistic ex-boyfriend and alcoholic, abusive mother - and headed for a new beginning at Tranquil Falls, a secluded artists' colony on the grounds of a closed hotel. There, with no cell signal or internet to distract her, she hopes to rediscover her love for pottery and put the broken pieces of her life back together.

But when Sarah uncovers the body of a young woman while digging a hole for a pit kiln, things start to fall apart. Her fellow artists begin to act in troubling ways. The eccentric fiber artist knits an endless scarf. The musician plays the same carousel song over and over until his fingers bleed. The calligrapher grins with ink-stained teeth. Not to mention the haunting dreams Sarah has night after night.

When she discovers glass shards in her clay, Sarah wonders if someone is out to get her - or if she's losing her grip on reality out here in the wilds, where the pounding of the waterfall never, ever fades. As she investigates the beautiful valley and the crumbling resort looming over them all, she unearths a chilling past that refuses to remain buried..."

Well, it won't remain buried if you keep digging holes for a pit kiln! In all seriousness, this is THE BOOK everyone is talking about this October.

I would read Delilah S. Dawson's grocery lists at this point, everything she publishes is pure gold and she is tragically under-hyped. I need MORE from her!

Thank you to RandomHouse and NetGalley for the ARC.

4.25 stars

The first half read as ominious lit fic, which I was ok with because I very much enjoy Delilah Dawson's writing style. However, I was missing the terror. The book had a spooky vibe and you knew something was coming, but we had to wait awhile for it.

Once the book hit the 65% mark, the terror really ramped up and it was nonstop until the end. I loved the story in both the past and present. I assume readers were supposed to focus on the resolution we got in the past, but I was wanting more answers about the other artist attendees that we didn't get. I understand the focus was meant to be on the women but I liked some of the male characters and I wanted to hear about what truly happened to them.

Additionally, I'd love to know the backstory on how the artist retreat really came about. We got a snippet but I was so fascinated by the whole history of the property.

Either way, Delilah Dawson's horrors are a no-brainer for me. She ends all her chapters on cliffhangers and immediately picks it up in the next chapter, so you don't have to wait. The care given to victims in the story was amazing and the protagonist was likeable in so many ways. She showed courage, resiliency, and growth.

Overall I'd recommend this one.

I really liked The Violence and Bloom by this author, so I was naturally excited for her new novel.
On one hand, it did not disappoint me when it comes to character development and social discussions. On the other hand, I expected more creepiness, a more eerie vibe to it.
I'd recommend it to any horror fan readers out there.
I'll come back with a full review by the official publication date.

Thank you, NetGalley and Del Rey, for providing me with a free eARC of this novel.

Another great read by Delilah Dawson. Wow, the characters kept me invested in this story. Intense and creepy all rolled into one. I enjoyed the ‘flickering’ reality, of past and present woven together. Enjoyed this one.
Thank you NetGalley, Delilah Dawson and Penguin Random House for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I uploaded my review to Goodreads. I will upload it to Amazon on release day.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Delilah S. Dawson for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for It Will Only Hurt for a Moment coming out October 22, 2024. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I really enjoy this author’s writing! I was excited to get this book. I love horror and spooky stories. I think I was expecting something a little different. There was definitely some suspense with her dark past at the beginning and it felt a locked door mystery. I really enjoyed those aspects of the book. However, I didn’t relate to the characters and I think I was a little lost in the plot during the second half of the book. I liked it, but it wasn’t my favorite book from her. I’d definitely read more books by this author!

It Will Only Hurt for a Moment is about a young woman who hopes to reinvent herself at an isolated artist colony. The catch is that she is drawn to its dark and twisted past. This book will have readers captivated from the first page and you will be turning the pages until the end. The author was new to me and I can not wait to read more of her books. It was written really well and the book has secrets, suspense but also sinister happenings. All of the characters in this were really great and I loved the main character, Sarah, the most. This was the perfect spooky fall read and was such an amazing, gripping thriller. I loved this so much and would recommend it to any reader but especially to readers who love a good horror or thriller book. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine/ Del Ray for this thrilling read.

Sarah runs away from her past and lands herself in a seemingly idyllic artist’s retreat. With a cute little cabin to herself, a studio to rekindle her love for pottery, and a condemned health spa on the grounds - what could go wrong?

As things start to get a little ~weird~ with the other artists, Sarah begins to question her sanity. Things are definitely not as they seem and there is a lot to dig up with this one.

It Will Only Hurt For A Moment is a very deceiving title as this one hurt for quite a while. Some of the topics explored in this book were painful to listen to and I couldn’t help but think of how painful they were for women that actually experienced them.

While some of the characters were a bit goofy and awful, this book delivered a lot and I couldn’t stop listening to it. After reading Guillotine in one sitting, I was so excited for this one and did not leave disappointed. I think Delilah S. Dawson is officially an auto-buy author for me in the horror genre and I’m off to check out Bloom next!

Check this one out if you like horror, haunted houses, art, and dark secrets!

**Thank you to Del Rey Books and NetGalley for the eARC of this one, and to PRH Audio for the amazing listening experience!**

We follow Sarah as she joins a remote artists’ retreat after leaving an abusive relationship. She discovers that the old mansion everyone is forbidden from entering has secrets of its own.

This book is A Lot. Each character has an extreme personality, verging into caricature territory. There’s a misogynistic man who expects Sarah to clean up after him, a goth girl who wears only black and takes morbid pictures, a costume designer who doesn’t wear modern clothing-and more. The descriptions of these characters provides levity as Sarah discovers the extremely dark past of the resort, and unpacks her own abusive relationship. These details are much darker and upsetting than the rest of the book, which made me appreciate the light-hearted sections. The contrast was sometimes quite jarring, and the first detailed description of sexual assault caught me off guard.

Overall I enjoyed it, but it felt long and sometimes repetitive. I’ve attached trigger warnings so please check them before picking this up!

Thanks to the publisher, I received a free copy in exchange for my honest review.

I picked up It Will Only Hurt for a Moment by Delilah S. Dawson, craving a spooky artist retreat story, and I wasn't disappointed. To be fair though, I always crave thrillers or mysteries featuring artists or writers at the center! The plot follows Sarah, a potter escaping an abusive relationship, who joins a secluded artists' colony. Things take a horrifying turn when she unearths a body, and it only gets worse as more corpses appear and her fellow artists start acting bizarrely (somewhat reminiscent of the possessed students in Lois Duncan's YA gothic horror Down a Dark Hall, if anyone remembers that?) Sarah's journey from victim to investigator kept me on edge, and she was an absolute hoot - her snarky inner monologue often had me laughing out loud despite the increasingly disturbing events. While the ending felt a bit rushed, I loved the vivid setting of the crumbling resort and the quirky cast of increasingly unhinged artists in this thoroughly enjoyable and very satisfying read.

An artist recovering from a narcissistic and abusive relationship tries to find herself and her art again by going to an eclectic retreat for artists of all mediums. We are given very classic archetypes of characters, none of which are likable.

Things I liked: The premise/atmosphere of the story was very intriguing to me. Some of the quirky characters were fun and there were scenes that held tension really well. Making a ton of toilets is also ... fun.

Things that annoyed me: There was so much description. Things were described multiple times in a row when just once would have gotten the point across. Ex: "... her eyes were wide open, their pupils blown so wide that here is almost no iris left, just gaping, empty pools of black." Points the author is trying to convey get reiterated in a similar manner. The pop culture references also felt a little old.

I would recommend this book to: fans of Knives Out/Glass Onion or Rachel Harrison

Sort of a "Poltergeist" meets "Handmaid's Tale," this thriller didn't really hold my interest. Some of the characters were interesting and premise of an isolated group of artists in a supposedly idyllic location with weird things happening had promise. Unfortunately, it just kind of plodded along and then suddenly wrapped up in the least believable manner. Not recommended

Thanks to NetGalley and Del Rey for an advanced reader copy.

I really really wanted to like this, as I read The Violence last year and did enjoy it, and in general I do enjoy Delilah Dawson's writing style and her feminist takes. However, I had a lot of problems with this story. The biggest ones were 1) that the teenager character felt plucked out of time, with interests and tastes that felt more like what a teenager would have been into 20 years ago rather than now, and this made the character feel inauthentic and pulled me out of the story, 2) the ending did not feel like it resolved most of the things that were introduced in the story (I don't need endings to tie everything up with a neat bow, but I do feel like there needs to be SOME satisfaction, or if not, then a greater justification for this lack of satisfaction than we got in the story), and finally 3) the sheer number of mentions of and instances of on-page sexual assault, something that is a HUGE turn=off for me and that I feel needs to be greatly justified, otherwise it grossly undermines any feminist commentary by leaning on the shock value of descriptive sexual assault in order to engender empathy for what women go through. Overall, I'm sad to say this was not for me, but I will definitely read more of Dawson's future works and hope to enjoy them more than I did this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House / Del Rey for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.