A monster horror, sci-fi which blurs the lines between art and product.

This was my first visit to the Tingleverse and it did not disappoint. I love the mix of horror with sci-fi beneath the themes of queerness and it's connection to unrestrained capitalism.

Our main character, Misha, is a screenwriter in Hollywood and told to kill his gay characters, following a trend so popular in early 2000s primetime television shows that the term 'bury your gays' was coined. Misha's producer tells him that queer stories aren't bringing in profits, and even goes so far as to tell him to 'start digging', when talking about killing off his gay characters.

Misha refuses and starts to be stalked by the very monsters he created in his previous horror films. Misha is supported by his best friend and his boyfriend, which adds an important dimension to the story.

I haven't read Camp Damascus yet, but I love that Tingle name-checked it in this book, as well as a Die Hard reference! This author knows the way to my heart.

The audio was so well done! André Santana brings Misha to live in a really compelling way. And I was so excited to hear other amazing horror genre authors lend their voice to support throughout. If you like audiobooks, I highly recommend picking this one up!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

This book is best read on an airplane. If you think someone is watching you, you're probably right. Run.

This was so good! And creepy, but in the best way.
A great blend of horror and sci-fi.
I was immediately drawn into the story. This book brilliantly kept the suspense high while interweaving commentary on many aspects of LGBTQ+ experience & queer representation in media.

Oh, and the multicast audiobook was 10/10!

Thank you so much to NetGalley / Tor nightfire for an early listen.

Thanks NetGalley, Tor Nightfire and Macmillan Audio for the DRC/ALC!

Now this is my kind of Pride month reading - this was such a fun queer horror story! This was my first book by the author, but I definitely plan to pick up Camp Damascus next! I loved how creative the plot was and Misha was well developed and easy to root for. The book does cover a lot of ground and there were some pacing issues, especially in the flashback scenes. And while I enjoyed the multi-cast portions on audio, I’m not totally sure I understand how some of them fit the story. While it’s never scary, there is some gore and creepy characters. A great combo of social commentary, humor and horror that’s entertaining and fun!

The narration is really well done on the audio, though I did get confused at times with it and had to switch to the ebook. I loved the full cast portions which also included sound effects! 90% of the narration though is done by André Santana, who does a great job bringing Misha to life. I split time between ebook and audio and would recommend either format.

The book was fun and interesting. Loved the visibility and representation of LGBTQIA. I wanted some more horror aspects but the horror was for AI and how it’s slowly taking over the world.

The most brilliant audiobook that has ever blessed my ear holes, and I am not exaggerating. Not only was Chuck Tingle's writing and execution of this story incredible, but the narrators really hit this out of the park.

I loved the MC, Misha, and his determination to stand his ground, no matter how far he was being pushed. The supernatural elements were fantastic, there was one "monster" that I found to be especially interesting, so much so that I wouldn't mind if she had her own little Novella :)

Chuck Tingle has crafted an outstanding horror that really sheds a light on the horrors those in the LGBTQ+ community face in Hollywood. I HIGHLY recommend this audiobook.

I went into this really not knowing much about the storyline but had heard the positive reviews it was getting. I am definitely a Chuck Tingle fan. The character of Misha was my favorite but totally loved the entire cast of characters. This was very clever. I liked the narration very much.

5 STARS! This (audio)book was so good I finished it within two days - excellent narration on behalf of all involved. The "scripted" portions of the book were also well executed. With respect to the story itself, it's creepy, campy, entertaining, intelligent, and relevant. I'm looking forward to a second listen. I received an audio arc of this book from NetGalley & Macmillan Audio.

This was a good novel that explored the role of queer representation in horror media. I found the discussions surrounding this topic to nauced and well thought out.

As a horror novel, I did not find it conventionally scary but instead more of an important piece of social commentary.

The full cast narration was fantastic and it was cool to see so many contributions from iconic voices.

If you are still looking for a queer horror book to pick up in Pride Month, this would be a good one to read.

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

Zombies are not real, but they are effective for showing audiences our racist proclivities. I’m paraphrasing here, but the concept of horror as a way of confronting our learned behaviors and fears is new (and interesting) to me.
This behind-the-scenes Hollywood novel is about a screenwriter who is only “out” in LA (ie not at home in Montana), nominated for an Oscar for his short film, and getting push-back (ie lots of “notes”) from the studio to revise the happy ending he has written for the two female co-stars on his TV series. The title refers to the common practice of killing off any gay (or non-white, for that matter) characters instead of giving them happiness and joy.
Then the story veers wildly into the near future (2025?) where a studio’s proprietary A.I. brings back a dead actor to star in a new movie. And things get weirder (and more interesting) from there!
It’s also a story about being brave and true to yourself. I quite liked it!
My thanks to the author, publisher, and #NetGalley for providing an advance copy of the audiobook for review purposes.

First off, many thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this book as an audio ARC! I greatly appreciate it!

Ooh, this one was fascinating! I'm a slut for all things Hollywood, especially when horror is included! And queer rep, too! What more could you want in a book? I liked Misha a lot (Though every time someone said his name, I was picturing Misha Collins), and his trauma was handled super well, which I really appreciate. That's hard to do. The bits with the lamb were my favorite! My only complaint was that Chuck Tingle has once again fallen into the bad habit of calling established characters by descriptors instead of their names, and while that's pretty annoying, it's not enough to remove a star. It deserves five! What a fun, spooky read! Perfect for Summerween!

Five out of five stars for Chuck Tingle's Bury Your Gays!

What to say about this book? It is so many things. It is a commentary of the state of Hollywood and how above all else it is a business and capitalism is what sells. It is also a commentary on AI and it's drawbacks. It is a book that tackles LGBTQIA+ issues with a deft hand showing the complexities of issues facing the community. Chuck Tingle does a wonderful job of showing the underbelly of of life in this day and age. He does it with a David Lynch style tale that makes you wonder at some points what the hell is going on? Expertly narrated by Andre Santana and featuring voice talents of well know authors. This second horror novel by Tingle just builds onto commentary that he started to show with Camp Damascus. Cannot wait to see where he goes next in this sphere.

Bury Your Gays is a campy, gay horror novel that follows Misha, a gay screenwriter. Misha is tasked to bury his gay characters in an upcoming season finale, and while deciding and working on the task at hand, ends up being pursued by his previous characters that he's written. There were plenty of things to love and enjoy about this novel - from the campiness of the story to the messages and overall queer representation.

With that being said, I do feel as though the "creatures" fell a little flat. Personally, I didn't find them all too intriguing and felt like they were lacking. The ending of the story also didn't do it for me. It felt uneventful.

In receiving an audio book production of this, I will say that the primary narrator, André Santana, did such a wonderful job emphasizing certain aspects of the story and conveying such strong emotions through his words. There wasn't a single point of narration from any of the cast that left me wanting more - it was a strong collaboration throughout.

I truly wish that every book I read was along the same pace as this one. It kept me intrigued and hooked up until the ending.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for giving me the opportunity to listen to and enjoy this novel!

Thank you so much for this audio ARC of Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle. I was curious about the number of narrators as I normally don't care much for a full cast narration, or even dual narration, but it's predominantly single narrator and he is marvellous! The other narrators come in for the odd scene interspersed amongst the narrative and they work really well, even if I was surprised and confused the first time it happened.

I think I was expecting more satire, and whilst it IS satirical, it is also very heartfelt and I loved the handling of queer trauma in media. The horror parts were genuinely frightening at times. I could FEEL the panic as I listened and I had to stop listening last at night at one point, but it wasn't so bad that I had to stop altogether. The story is very satisfying and wraps up well.

Highly recommend this audiobook, and I'll be looking for more narration by this narrator.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan audio for the ALC of this book. I listened to this book in a day! It really surprised me by how quickly I was pulled into the story.

Things I loved:
- The characters - both real people and scary creations - were fully realized and interesting.
- The tension and suspense were very palpable! I couldn't put this one down.
- The ideas were very original while dealing with topics that we've all dealt with before (coming out, the bury your gays trope of media, horror as expression, A.I.'s growth in the arts, the evils of capitalism, etc)
- The narration on the audiobook was acted wonderfully. The intonation and emotional range was all present.
- The flashback scenes were so vulnerable and heart-stricken! This book will stay with me.
- I really loved that Tingle was focused on showing more than just queer tragedy! We do need more queer joy!

Things that took this from a 5 star read to a 4 star read:
- The ending. The final almost 30% of the book felt unnecessarily long. I was racing along with the book up until that point, but it felt like "and another thing... and another thing..."
- It began to feel like Tingle was just "doing too much", as the youth say, lol. The book became too full with too many points by the end.
- There were a few points where Tingle had these beautifully symbolic scenes and thematic touchstones and then he would just... tell you what he just showed you. It was unnecessary because he'd already done the good writing work. I got it, Chuck!

Not either way, but something to note for future readers - assume that, yes, this is a horror book, and, yes, there are some graphic instances of violence. Only one really crossed the line into being too much for me (a torture scene that just kept going), but if you are not comfortable with that, it is something to note.

Overall, I really enjoyed the ride of this book, and I can see others getting a lot out of the experience of reading it! The print book is out now, but if you want the full audio experience, you'll have to wait a couple more weeks until July 9th!

Smart, scary, gory meta look at LGBTQIA+ representation in the media. Has a lot to say and says it well, but it is also a lot of fun to read and extremely entertaining and fast paced.

4.5 stars, rounded up to a five. Though the beginning was slow and lost me monetarily I did enjoy it. It's not extreme horror leaning more into the camp end of the spectrum. I love the representation and the nods to tropes/common themes of the horror and sci-fi genres.

Well slap my 🍑 and call me buckaroo. THIS WAS AMAZING! Narration SUPERB. Chuck Tingle absolutely KILLED IT (pun not intended but I like it) with Bury Your Gays. I had no idea what was going to happen, no guess at how the events taking place were possible, and most importantly, I was SUFFICIENTLY creeped out.

Eldritch cosmic infested baby lamb with tentacles, a eyelid-less smoker man that will literally smoke your bone dust, a lady that will suspend you in the In between completely helpless, a murderous bride, an even more murderous… Enzo. This information is not spoilery don’t worry. They are small bits of what you can expect waiting for you writing the pages of Burt Your Gays and are just a SMALL portion of the story.

And as far as supporting characters go, Tara and Zeke are amazing. Tara is the definition of supportive ride or die bestie and Zeke is probably the most dependable, stable, steadfast and non-judgmental BF to ever BF.

A huge thank you to NetGalley for an early audio to Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle.

Confession, I found an ARC for sale and snagged it (because this was highly anticipated for me and I knew it would be love), but when I saw the audio was possibly available and who was narrating...I couldn't NOT try. The cast of well known authors help narrate this amazing story with wonderful feeling and voices for the different characters. There were even sound effects that really placed you in the pages, which I happily read along to.

You have to follow the rules if you are to survive. But the system is rigged and the algorithm is always a step ahead. Do you have the courage and strength to change them? Misha is a great writer with great ideas. His past experiences are his muses, and so far they've worked in his favor. When the hammer falls on his latest creation, demanding his gay characters essentially be buried, Misha now must face his personal demons in order to save what he cares for most.

Chuck writes his creations with the encouragement that the readers read between the lines. I hope to the literary gods that I did it right.
We look at the ever corrupt Hollywood system, with it's drive to produce things that are supposedly trending/targeted marketing, while taking much to give so little in return. We get a quick nod to the sleazy actors that get away with disgusting sexual advances because of their standing fame.
The guy was caught red-handed being a creep, yet his legendary status renders anything I could possibly say utterly meaningless. -p. 19
"In case you didn't notice, I rented out this whole floor," Jack continues. "I write it off as a health expense, can you believe that?... -p. 79
"You know who the real villain is?"...."Unchecked capitalism and the desire for capitalist systems to monetize other people's trauma" -p.242

A quick side note of dorkiness love: Magic the Gathering, Peter Gabriel and Meryl Streep. Also, be ready to have Sledgehammer playing as the soundtrack of this book. I digress.

This book obviously discusses a very important topic: normalizing LGBTQA and any I forgot to add. Chuck tackles elements flawlessly as we venture through this novel alongside Misha and those closest to him.

"It's not just about real queer suicide, though", She explains. "It's also about the romanticization of gay trauma in media. It's dark stuff." -p. 37
"I'm Los Angeles out," I finally admit. "I'm not... Montana out." -p.43
Fuck that show and their mid-nineties fake-progressive don't ask-don't-tell queer-bating bullshit. -p. 102
There's a wonderful exchange between Misha and a driver, Lily, on page 239 that was done beautifully and the message was so eloquent.
Lastly on this note, there's a very honest nod to reality in respect to certain reveals discussed in the chapter Killjoy. Thank you for discussing something that should truly be more evident, but then again, we are in dire need of books like this.

Now I know there's a lot of big discussion points highlighted above and you may be wondering if there is in fact any truth to this being a horror novel..... holy shit, yes it is!!! Every encounter with a horror element was so in the moment and intense. I've almost convinced myself to never leave the house without a match book or BIC ever again! Or dare to pet a lamb...oooohhhh (shudders). No, no. Your skin is going to crawl and you are going to squirm. There's also real life horror instances in here too that will definitely hit you in the heart feels.

I loved this experience, everything about it. I had fun with the horror and felt the ride through the pressing points. The writing is absolutely amazing and moving. Definitely going on my auto buy list.
On a long enough timeline, endings are inevitable. Tragedy is inevitable. Fortunately, so is joy. -p. 294

I'm not typically a horror reader, but I've only heard amazing things about Chuck Tingle, so I gave it a try. I am so glad I did! This book is an exploration of queerness in the horror genre, the purpose of horror, and it creeped me out big time! I won't spoil the ending, but I will say that the ending was really satisfying, which I don't think I typically experience with horror!

I listened to an audio ARC courtesy of Net Galley and MacMillain audio, and I think it's a phenomenal way to read this book. The sound effects in the sections written as a screenplay scared the crap out of me with the extra background noise! It was extra cool to hear some amazing authors like TJ Klune and T. Kingfisher on the audio narration!

I loved it!
Not only is this a fantastic horror story in its own right, with great elements of psychological terror and body horror, but it's also a layered tale of corporate greed and queer erasure.
It takes a lot of talent to write seriously about such heavy matters while still being entertaining.
The few flashbacks of Misha, the main character, growing up and coming to terms with its sexuality were so perfectly written and so deeply touching.
The pacing was perfect and the story so engaging I had trouble putting it down. It has a lot of meta references but I found it adds to the point without being distracting. And the ending was so satisfying!
I listened to the audiobook version and the narrators were great, adding a lot to the emotion and terror of the characters.
I highly recommend this book.