I enjoyed the beginning more than the end which I felt really fizzled out but I can't say I loved the book. I loved the idea and what the book promised to be about but it was kind of flat. It was unsettling and there was a sense of unease throughout the book but then you really need a good pay out for all that I don't think we got one. I felt like there was a lot dropped subplots and themes that an editor should have picked up on. It almost felt to me like the book was partially written, put away for a long time and then picked up again with the author forgetting some of the foreshadowing they had written. It wasn't bad but I can't say I'd recommend someone going out of their way to read it either.

This is a suburban thriller that tried to do too much in my opinion. I am eager to read more from this author, but there were a few too many plot holes and moving parts for this one to stick out as memorable for me. That said, we chose this for our book club this past year and it made for great discussion! I just had higher hopes of enjoyment for this one.

I really liked the premise, but unfortunately this wasn't the book for me.
While I liked the characters, I had a hard time engaging with the story itself.
I'm sure it will be a good book for a different reader.

I REALLY wanted to like this book because I had enjoyed everything else that Vincent has wrote and I enjoyed suburan horror. However, this story felt like it was constantly setting up for something big to occur but it never really happened. I really wasn't a fan of the ending because again it felt like something big was going to happen but it really didn't.

3.25⭐️s
We Came to Welcome You is an eerie dive into the real-life horrors of HOA communities, white privilege, and loss of identity, mingled among some Body Snatchers-Happening hijinks.
There was a lot I liked about this, most of which occurred in the second half. The beginning felt like too slow of a build-up for me (Im impatient, so more of a me thing?). Tirado definitely does character development and eeriness well, as we experience a rollercoaster of emotions through Sol, while simultaneously being creeped out as she navigates the hellscape she finds herself in.
After trudging through the beginning, I felt the ending wrapped up too quickly. I was really enjoying the ever evolving developments within the community.

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the eARC!

I wasn't super crazy about this, but to be fair, it was never going to be my type of story. It was classified as a domestic horror or something, I think.
I really didn't care for any of the supernatural stuff and honestly, I zoned out quite a bit during the second half of the book.
I'm rounding up to three stars, which I believe is a tad generous.
Thanks to #netgalley and #williammorrow for this #arc of #wecametowelcomeyou in exchange for an honest review.

The premise was interesting but the story fell to come together for me. There were many plot holes, the story dragged in many places and I’m not sure how I feel about the ending. I understand where the story was going and the reason why but I don’t know that I liked it. It did make me sit with it for a while though.

I am so thankful to William Morrow Books, Vincent Tirado, and Netgalley for granting me advanced access to this galley before publication day. I really enjoyed the dialogue and plot of this book and can’t wait to chat this one up with my friends!

I heard that this was better on audiobook, so I think I will try it that way when I can. The premise of this book is so good. TI speaks to my soul. I love/hate friendly neighbors. Give me more of those.
I was not feeling this like I expected to but I am fighting a cold and dealing with my own weird issues so likely that is why. I just can't seem to get a book to get into my soul this week.
I will give this another go soon when I am not a mess.
Thank you for the ARC. I liked it. I just wanted to love it.

Sadly, this was a miss. I love social horror, I just could not get behind Sol. She was so negative and hard to empathize with, though I did really love the ending of this one. I also appreciate what it had to say about cutting ties with family members who are toxic, about the insidiousness of racism, and how hard it can be to have multiple identities that are not of the majority. I'd read this author again though!

I loved this book! I haven't read a book like this in so long. The diversity was everything I expected it to be in 2024. I found the horror elements to bit predicable in some areas while I was pleasantly surprised in other areas. Over all, it was a great read and a top read of 2024. Thank you Netgally for letting read this book as an ARC

A Touching Story with Room for Growth
We Came to Welcome You is a heartfelt exploration of grief, family, and the power of human connection. The story follows a young woman as she navigates the complexities of her family's history and the loss of a loved one.
While the author's intentions are admirable, the execution falls short in some areas. The pacing is uneven, with some sections feeling rushed while others drag. The character development is inconsistent, and some characters lack depth and complexity.
Despite these shortcomings, the book offers moments of genuine emotion and insight. The author's ability to capture the nuances of grief and loss is commendable. However, the overall narrative lacks the necessary tension and suspense to keep the reader fully engaged.
Ultimately, We Came to Welcome You is a sincere attempt to address important themes, but it falls short of its full potential.

Sol Reyes has had a rough year. After a series of workplace incidents at her university lab culminates in a plagiarism accusation, Sol is put on probation. Dutiful visits to her homophobic father aren’t helping her mental health, and she finds her nightly glass of wine becoming more of an all-day—and all-bottle—event. Her wife, Alice Song, is far more optimistic. After all, the two finally managed to buy a house in the beautiful, gated community of Maneless Grove.

However, the neighbors are a little too friendly in Sol’s opinion. She has no interest in the pushy Homeowners Association, their bizarrely detailed contract, or their never-ending microaggressions. But Alice simply attributes their pursuit to the community motto: “Invest in a neighborly spirit”…which only serves to irritate Sol more.  

That's enough to tell you things can not possibly go well...

I wanted to love this so much. First I loved the fact that the couple were married lesbians, a subject that just was not something that was in italics or bold so you knew. It just was.

I really like the character of Sol, she was the kind of woman I would befreind even with all her issues. The problem was the story just took to long to get to the good, meaty heart of it.

Just as it got good, it would peeter out and my interest would shift. it just never got to where it was heading. There were very creepy moments, then some silly Stepford Wives moments. But it never delivered on the promise it made to the reader.

Thanks to @netgalley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read this eArc in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion.

I loved the concept of this book, but the story never really seemed to find itself and it missed the mark for me. I really enjoyed the character of Sol and what we learned about her; however, the pacing could be so daunting that even the most gut-punching emotional moments barely registered on my radar as I was eager to get into the meat of the story. There is some great characterization and sinister moments in the story, but I wish it had all come together much better.

thank you netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review. this was awful, from the writing to plot to the very end. the only good reviews i've seen for this are that they listened on audio, maybe its creepier.

Perfect for fans of Get Out, Don’t Worry Darling and Stepford Wives.
🏡
Sol Reyes is struggling even though she and her wife, Alice Song, just bought their first house together. She’s on leave from her professor job at Yale for plagiarism, her father is a homophobic alcoholic, yet she still visits him every week at the nursing home and now her neighbors in Maneless Grove seem very odd. The HOA is pressuring Sol and Alice to join, despite their reluctance. Sol also struggles with clinical depression, panic attacks, an aversion to social events and alcoholism so when weird things start happening, she wonders if she’s losing it. What is happening in this seemingly perfect community?
🏡
I can always count on @v_e_tirado to bring the creepy/horror vibes in their writing. This story is full of topics surrounding racism, homophobia, sexism that reminded me of another recent title I read: One of Our Kind by Nicola Yoon. I love that Tirado has ventured into the adult horror foray and I can’t wait to see what they write next!

CW: racism, homophobia, alcoholism, alcohol, sexism, gaslighting, body horror, suicide, child death, fire, physical abuse, car accident, child abuse, death, blood

So much potential, but what was that ending?!

Vincent Tirado's We Came To Welcome You is a well-intentioned exploration of immigration and cultural identity, but it falls short of truly capturing the complexities of the subject matter. While the novel offers moments of insight and poignant storytelling, it ultimately feels uneven and somewhat predictable.

The central premise of the novel, revolving around a young man's journey to reconnect with his immigrant roots, is a promising one. Tirado does a decent job of portraying the challenges faced by immigrants and their children, particularly in terms of balancing cultural traditions with the demands of a new society. However, the narrative often feels rushed, and the characters lack the depth and nuance necessary to make them truly memorable.

The novel's strengths lie in its exploration of themes of family, identity, and belonging. There are moments when Tirado's writing is evocative and thought-provoking, and he succeeds in conveying the emotional weight of the characters' experiences. However, the pacing is uneven, and the plot often feels contrived. The ending, while satisfying in a certain way, feels somewhat rushed and leaves some questions unanswered.

Overall, We Came To Welcome You is a worthwhile read for those interested in exploring themes of immigration and cultural identity. However, it is far from a masterpiece. The novel's uneven pacing and lack of character depth ultimately prevent it from reaching its full potential.

They had me at HOA horror. What can I say about We Came to Welcome You? I was hooked right from the beginning, when Sol and her wife Alice move into what seems to be the perfect home. Right away, Sol can tell there's something off, whether it's the pushy HOA board members who show up at their door with a contract immediately, the suffocating atmosphere of the house itself, or the neighbors whose microaggessions against Sol are almost unending. But Sol thinks she's being her usual mistrustful self, a thing she's been trying to work through during the therapy Alice suggested she start. So what happens when twigs show up under Sol's skin, or steps disappear in their house? THAT couldn't be all in Sol's head...could it?

There was a lot I really enjoyed about this book. I liked Sol as a main character, I liked Tirado's cinematic writing style, and I really loved how layered it was. The supernatural elements were woven really well with the more human horrors of racism and homophobia. I do wish that Sol and Alice could've been a bit more unified of a couple -- from the beginning, it felt like every scene with them was a constant argument and/or needling. I understand WHY their relationship was that way, but the brief glimpses of their past weren't enough to make me really root for them together. I also wish that some of the threads throughout could've been tied up more neatly -- some characters felt dropped.

Like a lot of readers, I also struggled with the ending. There's a twist at the end which definitely lives up to The Other Black Girl comp, but it felt very abrupt and I would've liked more exploration of the supernatural elements behind it. Basically (spoilers here!!), Sol discovers that the tree behind her house is a parasite, belonging to an older cult which feeds off of Maneless Grove. About half of the horror elements that Sol's attributed to Maneless Grove throughout the novel are actually the work of this parasite -- so, to strike back at Maneless Grove, Sol decides to embrace the parasite and join that cult instead. It's a good ending in theory, but was revealed with only about 20 pages until the novel's end. I guess I just wish it hadn't ended so abruptly.

Still, I really enjoyed Tirado's blend of social commentary and horror. It's very well done, and if they write any more books in this genre, I'll definitely check them out.

Many thanks to NetGalley, William Morrow, and Vincent Tirado for gifting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

I wanted to loved this book until I got to the end. It was super creepy and thought it was the perfect October read, but I guess it left me wanting more in the end. Sol was a bit of a mess in her work life and personal life and her behavior throughout the book was based off of her interactions with the past so she is hyperaware of her surrounds and interactions with people. Moving to Maneless Grove has caused her to lose herself even more, whether that be racist neighbors and just feeling completely out of place. It doesn't help that everyone around it seems to be adding fuel to the fire with cryptic messages. Off topic, but Veronica was really my favorite character, even though her only job was to raise the creep level. There were a lot of plot lines that didn't get wrapped up and was disappointed in the end.

Sol and Alice has just moved into a gated community, Maneless Grove. Sol has been put on leave for accusations of plagiarism and spends a lot of time at home while Has gone to work and Sol hfrom her parents. It starts with the neighbors being very pushy about joining the HOA. Sol doesn't want to because she wants to be able to have a backyard garden which is forbidden under the HOA among other issues. The children are strange and the neighbors are never really seen and Sol is digging to find out why when she finds a journal buried in the backyard but what Sol doesn't know that in Maneless Grove, either you become a good neighbor—or you die.

As a queer, multiracial person, the ending of this book was “turn butch into femme and persons of color into white.” A whole person’s culture and identity are warped. This book gave me the ick.