Gray God is a well written atmospheric, slow burning novel. Characters are all unique and met with challenges that will hopefully strengthen their will.
The story begins as two cousins are knee deep in a meth cooking business for their uncle, Kevin. One cooks, Pete, and one forages, Scott, for mushrooms that are plentiful in the Washington forest. Scott decides that he needs to go farther in the forest to get the best mushrooms, but disappears and cannot be found. He has entered into forbidden territory. A society hangout for the ultra rich, that no one is allowed to enter. We then meet the other uncle, Dan, a scary big guy that would rather hurt you than talk.
Throughout this novel you get the feeling that the ultra rich secret society of maanburg is hiding something nefarious. Although everything seems up board, behind the mentors and the lodge itself, there is something scary hiding. The six teens they have chosen all have sketchy backgrounds. They are all hand picked and matched with a mentor to help them fulfill their potential according to “a plan”. The book never eludes to what the “plan” is and the mentors are way to accommodating to their picks. They say leave at anytime throughout the course of this journey, but we begin to find out that it’s much harder to do and much more dangerous. Monsters are hiding and kindness is not always what it seems

I am a huge fan of the publisher Wicked House Publishing, so far the books that I have read from them all have been really good.
I have never read a book from this author before but this book sounded interesting.
So we have Scott and his cousin Pete, one is out picking mushrooms while the other is cooking meth, such an odd combination but that's what they do for "work" for their uncle. This is in Washington woods, the property is bordered by land owned by the mysterious Maanberg Foundation. There is a lot of questions and talk about the Maangerg. Scott disappears while hunting mushrooms and that is where the whole craziness hits. There are stories to come up with, lies, truths and a whole lot more.
This book is a bit slow but there is a lot going on that keeps you interested. I am a mood reader so I had to put it down for a bit when it got too slow for me and then pick it back up a few times because I was really interested in the book and what was going on, I needed to know. It was my own personal battle lol.
Well written, with good character development and backstories (even though I didn't really like any of the characters, but I don't think you need to like them for this book to be good) and the ending is crazy, strange and keeps you thinking about it.
Now to see what else comes from this author.

Pete has an exciting illegal job then his cousin disappears. What happened to him? More kids are drawn into the business. Can Pete figure out what is happening in the woods.

3.5✨/5 rounded up

I feel like this book was beautifully written and atmospheric but could have been a little shorter. It would have been just as impactful. I loved the cult aspect of the book and would read a prequel novella about the cult's origins.

If you want a creepy book this is it!

This book started off strong with a local boy going missing and a quick peak at the monster. After that, it basically lost all traction for me until the last 2-3 chapters where all the pieces start coming together. There was a lot of dialog in this book that I believed was unnecessary. As a whole, it was an enjoyable read and very unique to anything I've read before. I do feel like it should be labeled more mystery/thriller than horror, because it held no scare factor in my opinion. I kept waiting for my heart to start pumping and the adrenaline to start flowing; but it never did.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

I flew through the book in about 2 days. It was very enjoyable. The twist at the ending was a bit predictable, But still a super fun read. I loved all the characters and the way they interacted with Pete.
I would definitely read again. Definitely a 3.5 Star book for me

Wow this book has attitude! I loved it. Sean Flynn's 'The Gray God' refrains from overstaying its welcome, limiting itself to a fascinating story that kept me engaged from start to finish. The synopsis of the book is spot on, it delivers exactly what it says, hovering somewhere between young adult horror novels and the best of slow burn narratives found in recent horror. The build up is amazing, kept consistently till the explosive end, with several riveting twists both large scale and on the level of detail. That said, the book is not perfect (it doesn't have to be), since it suffers a bit on dialogue and characterization; but it brims with atmosphere, terror, and suspense. Sean Flynn is a talented author and I'm definitely keeping an eye out for his next work!

So, this was a pretty creepy book with excellent critic on manhood and the importance of healthy male friendships and role models. But man this book also made me cry so hard I had to start and stop reading it several times.

This was definitely an interesting read, and an intense one for a lot of reasons. One thing that night be improved with a bit of editing down is the way certain social interactions sort of ramble on pointlessly. There's a fine line between "giving a good feel for the characters and situation" and "making a reader wonder what the point of all this yapping is" and at times Sean Flynn erred on the side of yapping.

I wish I could give it 3.5!

The Gray God by Sean Flynn offers an intriguing narrative that challenges the reader to understand the true nature of its characters. The book is filled with sarcasm and snark, creating an engaging if somewhat abrasive tone. While the plot can feel dry at times and the characters lack significant redeeming qualities, making it difficult to form a strong connection with them, the overall story holds enough interest to keep readers engaged. However, some readers might find themselves with unresolved questions by the end, which could either be seen as a frustrating flaw or an invitation for deeper contemplation.

Flynn's storytelling shines through his ability to build tension and atmosphere, particularly in the latter part of the book. The narrative follows Pete, a young man entangled in a life of meth production and mushroom hunting, who is given a chance at redemption by wealthy neighbors. As Pete isolates himself on their estate to get clean and improve his life, a creeping sense of dread takes hold, culminating in a truly nightmarish conclusion. The slow burn of the story allows for a deep immersion into the horror elements, making the final act all the more impactful. Despite its imperfections, The Gray God is a promising work that leaves readers curious about Flynn's future projects.

The Gray God started off with a bang and continued to do so until just past the mid-way point of the novel. The scares began to wear off as the story went on as did the characters which was disappointing as almost all of them started off very strong. the Gray God showed the potential of Sean Flynn and I would be curious to see what the author can do next with a clearer idea of where the story is supposed to go.

The Gray God by Sean Flynn, is an interesting story by far. This book is makes you stop to wonder who are the good guys and who are the villains, and just what does everyone have to gain from helping any of the others? Mr. Flynn's book is full of non-stop attitude and snarkiness, but storywise, the plot is a little dry and none of the characters have much of a redeeming quality to them, making it rather difficult for the reader to connect with them. When the reader manages to read the book all the way through, just be aware the reader may still feel as if he or she may have a question or two left unresolved, but otherwise, the story is fairly good, and I look forward to giving Mr. Flynn's next book a try.

Flynn throws you into this dark world of drug dealing and murder and then switches to something much, much darker. I usually read multiple books at once but I put others aside so I could read this quickly. I cared about the characters and needed to see what happened. The only problem I had was that some of it was too predictable. I will definitely be reading everything I can get my hands on by Sean Flynn now. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this.

Thank you Wicked House Publishing ,NetGalley and Sean Flynn for the ears of The Gray God: A Novel.

This is a slow burn, atmospheric horror that wraps folklore and entwining it into a modern day tale. Bringing with it, the often confusing directions that young people decide to take. The narrative sounds Pete, a young lad who makes Meth and Mushroom hunts. He is given an opportunity by neighbouring rich folk to find his path by isolating himself at their Estate, have counselling, get clean and become a better man. Soon, something starts to feel a miss for Pete and he starts investigating.

I really loved the premise of this book. Sean has a great way of storytelling, building tension, building the very real horror of what going to happen to Pete. It’s creepy and really claustrophobic in places. As the narrative takes its course, the last 3rd of the book, the pace picks up and the true nightmare begins!

Haunting and atmospheric, I devoured this. It delves into some deep and dark things. You won't soon forget this story that's for sure.

This is an intense book about abuse addiction the choices we make in the monsters that live within us all I've never read any books by this author before but I will definitely this book gets under your skin in many ways and that's exactly what horror is supposed to do horror lovers should love this book,Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC