Aisle Nine is set in a world transformed by the sudden appearance of portals that spew out monsters. In response, a company called Vanguard Corporation emerges as humanity's protector, taking up the daunting task of guarding these portals and fighting off the monsters, and giving virtual points to any civilians caught up in attacks. Earn enough points, get some free candy! The story follows Jasper, a retail worker in a Walmart-like store that has a portal conveniently located in Aisle Nine. Although the portal occasionally releases monsters into the store, Jasper is more preoccupied with the unsettling visions he's been having about the end of the world. Maybe the new Vanguard trainee, Kyle, has something to do with it?

The book leans into its wackiness, creating a narrative that's both clever and inventive. There are some genuinely surprising twists that keep the reader engaged, even as the story explores the more mundane aspects of life in retail. (I can't talk about my favourite character for spoilers, but she is absolutely brilliant.) One of the novel’s strengths is how it captures the monotony of retail work and the human capacity to adapt to even the most bizarre circumstances.

While the concept might seem a bit out there, the book’s charm lies in how it blends the extraordinary with the ordinary. It manages to create a world that’s both surreal and relatable, reflecting on the absurdity of everyday life in a context that’s anything but normal.

My high school readers will find this funny as heck. The dry wit is appealing, and the world built is plausibly close to our own.

Initial thoughts: This book had me thinking of a Simon Pegg movie, The End of the World, mixed in with a bit of Black Mirror. It was hard to take serious but understood there were some serious undertones about humanity underneath it all.

Aisle Nine by Ian X Cho is a very fast paced dystopian, YA book. Jasper is stuck working retail in store that is a host site to a portal that shoots out monsters and demons, conveniently located in aisle nine. The book takes place in a world where a couple of years ago portals all over the world opened, and the Vanguard company stepped up to the plate to save them all. Over time, society has tried find a "normal" around these monster portals. Jasper finds himself feeling that he doesn't feel like quite fits into the world around him. He finds himself partnering up with Kyle, a Vanguard empl0yee, to piece together his past, present and possibly even the future, as the Black Friday of Doom looming right around the corner.

Me thinking possibly deeper than I need to be, enjoyed that the author kept it rather light despite speaking about the human emotions of hopelessness, gluttony, and, rage (may have missed the mark on that one). It was the human condition wins out above all type of situation. It did make think about how society can be ugly, with its overconsumption, hate towards each other, feelings of depression, and how we may feel like we are being navigated by social media/big corporations. There is some truth in all these movies and shows that "joke" about the ugly side of humans, but that we shouldn't lose hope and that people can change the situation they are in. Four stars.

Thank you HarperCollins Children's Books | HarperCollins, Netgalley, and the author for this opportunity in an exchange for an honest review.

I will be posting to Instagram, Goodreads, and Storygraph.

This book just really wasn’t my cup of tea. Seemed a bit silly and couldn’t connect with the main character.

Publication: September 24, 2024
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Ian X. Cho’s Aisle Nine is a surprisingly moving story about our connections in the most ordinary places. The novel follows characters in a supermarket whose lives unexpectedly intersect in the aisles. Cho does a great job capturing the little details that make these moments feel real and meaningful. While the pacing drags in a few spots, the book’s heart and relatable characters more than makeup for it. It’s the kind of story that sticks with you, making you appreciate the small, everyday encounters in your own life. I never read a book like this and I found it very interesting how it was told and the storyline.

Thank You Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books | HarperCollins

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5☆

I really enjoyed the premise and thought the whole hell postal aspect was really well done, I struggled with Jasper as the main character, his blackouts were frustrating to read. I thought that Vanguard was well fleshed out and loved the addition if the VC point system too.

Thr story was let down partially by Jasper, and partially by how rushed the ending was. Overall an okay read, suited to the older end of YA readers due to language, gore and violence.

I loved Lara, and Pete was hilarious too.

This is a tongue in cheek apocalypse story, hell portal day happened, opening millions of portals worldwide that spew out demons. Our MC works in a supermarket complete with its very on demon portal and the story is set in the leadup to the Black Friday sales. This books reminds me of hitchhikers guide to galaxy but with demons, its got the same humour. I had a fun time reading this, the story did fizzle out a bit once we started to leave the supermarket but its a quick read so that held my interest. I loved Lara as a character and wish we got more about her back story and how she came to be. This is a quirky, fun short read and I think its worth a read.

This was a fun book to read. It was a good twist on dystopian/horror with some humor thrown in. I don’t like this 100 word minimum - I try to write minimalist reviews

This was such a fun read! I love a one off crazy story and this hit the mark perfectly. The main characters are fun, especially Lara, and the premise was fresh and new. It did lose me a bit at the ending but overall very enjoyable. I finished it in one sitting.

This book is absolutely bonkers, and I loved it. While it's a short book, it packs quite a punch. I honestly didn't see some of the twists coming, which is what gives this one a higher rating for me. It's so interesting to think about what would happen in this sort of situation... but it's also funny? I definitely think this one will be a hit.

I love when a book doesn't take itself too seriously. The writing was good, the characters fell a little bit flat. If you've ever worked retail you'll especially appreciate the antics and take on capitalism. A quick, decently fun read with demons and amnesia plaguing the MC.

3.5 rounded up

Aisle Nine
by Ian X. Cho
YA Fantasy
NetGalley eARC
Pub Date: Sept. 24, 2024
HarperCollins Children's Books
Ages: 16+

Millions of people lost their lives when the portals of hell opened one day worldwide, freeing demons, but thanks to the Vanguard, a private security company, who was able to kill the demons but couldn't close the portals, life went back to a semi-normal state, including shopping. Even though aisle nine is closed because of a portal, people still want their deals... And Black Friday is fast approaching.

Jasper lost his parents when the portals opened but he can't remember them or anything before waking up in the hospital because of an accident at the store he worked at. But as fate would have it, in one of his treks to find his memories, he walks back into the store and restarts his job.

But he is having visions of an apocalypse, and deep down he feels as if aisle nine in his store is where the end of the world will start.


Anyone who has worked retail will get some flashbacks and some laughs, but that's only during the first few chapters, because the comedy fizzles out, which was disappointing, as I was hoping it would continue to call out those 'shoppers', especially during Black Friday, but that humor didn't happen.

I'm not sure if that was where this book started to go wrong, because it started out really good; the plot, characters, especially Lara, the world-building, and the pending apocalypse, but it started to go flat as the story progressed. Plus right away I had hunches about three of the characters, and all three of them were correct.

And while this book seems to be aimed at the YA audience, I think it's more for a little bit of an older reader, but then again one always hears about the real-life horror stories about Black Friday shoppers every year on the news, but to get the full effect of the humor in the first part of the book, one needs to work retail for at least six months and during a Black Friday event.

A low

3 Stars

I really enjoyed this read. This lives at the top of my list in books that clearly tap into modern sentiments regarding the "post"-Covid world that Teen readers will find too relatable.

The idea of the new norm when things are still very clearly broken, people capitalizing on the

The monster design is just perfect for the setting and tone of this book. I also greatly appreciated that nothing was given away about the demons' designs in the book blurb.

I think the element that really made me enjoy this book was that I found it reminiscent of the Hatchetfield musicals put on by Starkid productions on YouTube. Aisle Nine to me felt like a pretty thematic blend of the shows Black Friday and Nerdy Prudes Must Die.

I think this is a really great outlet for Teens into that type of media to branch out into reading with.

A dystopian novel about a future where portals to hell have opened up all around the world and demons periodically come out of them, "Aisle Nine" by Ian X. Cho manages to remain humorous and even light at times. Humanity is resilient and now the hell portals and demons are almost commonplace. Jasper, a 17 year old suffering from amnesia, works at a big box store where there is a portal in aisle 9, but works goes on as usual, interrupted occasionally by monstrous demons. Once the demons are destroyed by the corporate security force, Vanguard, everything goes back to normal. Jasper has been having scary apocalyptic visions more often and wonders what they mean. He also wishes he could remember more about his past. When he discovers that a coworker has the same visions, Jasper decides to delve deeper.
A recommended purchase where dystopian fiction is popular.

This was a fun, fast past, YA book with a really cool world. I really enjoyed the portal element of the story which kind of overshadowed the characters a bit but overall would recommend.

In a world where portals to another dimension allow the world to flood with demonic beings, salvation comes in the form of minimum wage employees who really, really don’t want to work another black Friday — especially when this one promises to bring forth the Apocalypse. It’s a cute idea with strong, clear writing and a fast moving plot but … for me, it felt like it was all setup to a joke that never landed.

Jasper has amnesia, but he also has very little personality. He’s neither smart nor silly, strong or driven. He just goes through life, with his only real motivation to be to talk to the pretty girl who won’t talk to him. Kyle, the girl in question, is likewise a little on the vague side, mostly just wanting nothing to do with Jasper, then wanting everything to do with him. The side characters are names only, though I did appreciate Pete’s role in things — another underpaid retail employee.

The world building is fun, with the commercialization of demon attacks — if you survive, that is. Vanguard feels like a fully realized institution, and that’s really the best part of this book, the world it all takes place in. It’s light, it’s quick, and while there’s a bit of gore, it’s all done with a sort of silly, flippant air.

A pleasant read, but not one I’ll come back to. I will, however, be on the look out for more from this author because their writing style really was a joy to read.

I want to thank Net Galley and the publisher for granting me access to an advanced reader copy