I really had to sit with this book for awhile after I finished, and I'm very glad that I did. It is bleak, it is gloomy, and there is truly a black cloud over each character, each line in the story. There is a dread from the very beginning and that feeling does not let up throughout the entire book. The two main characters are deeply flawed- complex and nuanced in a way that I have not often seen in horror novels. Rachel is a closeted queer woman who has let her internalized rage take control of her, and Finn is an alcoholic whose guilt has made him into a shadow of a man. They are co-parenting their daughters, Lucy and Charlie, after the loss of their golden child, Aidan. And they hate each other. They hate each other so much, but there is a ruined love visible behind that violent hatred, and that is what carried the story forward for me.

There are several triggers and I would not go into this book unaware of that. It is a truly SAD book, but it is beautiful and I recommend it to fans of true horror, Gothic horror and HBO dramas. You will not find a happy ending here, but you will find so much more and it will stick with you long after you're done. I am grateful and glad that I had the opportunity to read an ARC of Nowhere, and I look forward to seeing what Allison Gunn will do next. This was truly something special.

Good debut book by this author. Thriller, horror, small town creepiness. Lots of time spent in the Appalachian woods.

Content Warnings: Homophobia, Biphobia, Misogyny, Gore, Child Death, Lynching, Missing Persons, Drug Abuse (Meth), Depression, PTSD, Car Accidents, Intimate Partner Violence (Verbal abuse, Physical Abuse, including Strangling), Suicide & suicidal ideation

The writing overall in this book is good. Vivid horror imagery, evocative interpersonal trauma between two parents who have lost a child (and each other, emotionally), and a comprehensive sweep of issues that rural communities experience were all present. I also, in a technical sense, appreciate the ending. I didn't like it, but I can appreciate why it ended as it did.

That said, I found the novel overall unsatisfying. It tries, unsuccessfully, to balance a police procedural, a family drama, and folk horror. Of these three, the family drama and folk horror were done the best, and if the book was just about these two elements, it may have been better. The police elements just felt extraneous. While I appreciated the characters in theory given their complexity, I ultimately didn't like any of them and had no one to root for, so the horror just became creepy moment after creepy moment with no feeling of investment or resolution.

I do think there are horror fans who will vibe with this book more than I did, and for the creepiness in it, I would recommend it to that crowd.

Ummmm…WOW! I was literally on the edge of my seat reading this one. It’s different from what I have been reading lately but I definitely enjoyed it. I started it yesterday afternoon and finished this afternoon. I read it so fast because it held my interest the entire time.
It’s supernatural, on top of mystery/thriller so if that’s your kind of book you will enjoy it as much as I did. I recommend this book completely. I don’t like spoilers, when looking to see how others rate books so I’m not going to give anything away. I hope you give it a chance.

Thank you Atria Books, Allison Gunn and NetGalley for this EARC. This was my first one and hopefully not my last.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this arc!!

I really enjoyed this book. More than I thought I would. I liked the characters! Great writing style and I liked the storyline. This book kept me guessing. I finished it in one sitting.

Nowhere is a novel about a family who moved to a small town where Rachel the mother became the Chief of the local police. The family never really fitting in starts to have odd thing happening that lead them to find out more about the town than anyone was ready for.

I am going to start off with saying TRIGGER WARNINGS.

This story was so harsh and sad that it was hard to get through at times but I am glad I did because the story was gripping, the writing was vivid and horrifying. I really enjoyed this book. Highly recommend to anyone looking for a really good horror/thriller. 4.5 stars

This was taut and edgy and filled with venom. The police chief of a small town in Virginia is dealing with a crime that seems impossible while her and her family are separately grieving a tragedy from the year prior. This was an extremely well-written debut, that feels mostly horror-adjacent to me. The supernatural horror arc being tied with the fear of queerness in this small Appalachian town was a gripping way to tell this part of the story. I loved that none of the characters (aside from Lucy) were all that likable, and clearly all dealing with their own traumas in varying, ineffective ways, and also that we got to read from different perspectives. Each character felt well-defined. Certain scenes were incredibly tense and others were emotionally devastating and others were horrifying and the writing really worked to elicit these emotions in their respective scenes. The ending was also extremely great.

This novel was the perfect start to my fall reading list. It incorporated just enough small town family drama and creepiness to keep me turning every page until the end. I felt that the main characters, Finn and Rachel, could have been developed more but the writing and storyline on folklore left me wanting to read more! Definitely left me terrified of what lurks out in the woods. Overall, I would recommend this book.

Small-town folk horror featuring a cop mom doing her best (probs could be doing better tbh) to keep her family together. after the death of her son, her life, along with her husband and two daughters' lives sort of never recovered. When a body shows up in the woods, everything really starts to get creepy and weird.

This novel brings folk town lore and family drama to deliver one pretty scary story. I really enjoyed this book, the kids were so creepy and it gave me the same vibes as the movie Smile. The characters weren't perfect but I think they were likable enough and you could easily see yourself falling into the same mistakes they did.

Overall, I really loved this story and thought it was executed really well and I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to dive into a horror story that will literally give you chills.

This book was creeepy!! I really enjoyed it a lot. The book grabbed my attention from beginning to end. It has very complicated characters, supernatural elements and lots of surprises.

Wowww, Nowhere is one of the best while also most terrifying books I have read this year. This did give off vibes of The Outsider, Mare of Eastown, but also I would say even the horror of Chuck Wendig. What happens if you can't trust your family? If your children aren't acting like themselves? If your innermost horrors are coming alive and consuming the ones you care about most? Nowhere is the eerie feeling of walking through a dark forest and waking and realizing it was a dream, or was it?

A terrifying horror story a dark page turner.A debut that made me look forward to more by this talented author.#netgalley #atriabooks

This was a solid horror debut. I appreciate that it did not hold back from going very dark and very grim. I did think it lagged a bit in some of the interpersonal/character building, it felt like a lot of conversations or internal glimpses were very repetitive and didn’t build in a very interesting way. Other than that, solid writing.

This book definitely gave me early Stephen King. A mixture of horror, addiction, and interpersonal conflict it reminded me a lot of The Shining. The religious, small Appalachian town was a great setting for an creepy tale and the religious aspects melded well with the folklore. This is a very fun Halloween read and would appeal to lovers of the supernatural and true crime. There have been a lot of eye centric violence in horror novels recently and I am here for it!

*Spoilers ahead*


I really enjoyed the beginning of this novel and couldn't put it down. As I read more though, I became less interested. The description of the novel is a bit misleading, as the original crime is mentioned once and then maybe two or three more times. It is not a murder investigation novel, but more of a paranormal novel. While it was enjoyable, I do feel misled by the description. I didn't like any of the characters, and wasn't a fan of the ending. Some things felt abrupt when they shouldn't have, such as the townspeople completely turning on (and trying to kill) the main character and her husband. While it's established that the couple is not liked by the townspeople, the vitriol they show at the end of the novel is intense. Overall, an interesting read. I just wish it were a better story.

What a hard book to rate. I might be editing this a bunch, who knows. I will need to reflect on this novel.

This was an incredibly well written novel. The characters are rich and the emotions are vividly felt. The creeping horror feeling and atmosphere of impending doom were gripping. From this perspective, this novel is clearly worth 5-stars. If you are a horror fan (like me), this might be just what you are looking for.

That said, I personally didn't like this novel that much. I feel like it was a really good novel, but it just didn't connect with me. I liked the reading experience, didn't love the novel. There were a lot of plot choices/directions that I didn't particularly like. The ending in particular I didn't really enjoy, even though I objectively recognize that it is likely a good ending. I also didn't like the many POV's that were used in the novel. I understand why it was done, to show the reader more of what is going on, but I disliked the result of this approach for the protagonists.

So I am thinking 5-stars for this being a great novel, and 1-star for the fact that I personally didn't like it. So what is a reviewer to do? Lol...

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a free ARC. I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

Bizarre, creepy, dark, and mysterious, Nowhere was a strange one that had me thinking about it after I finished the book. This book touches on death, sexuality, marriage, loss, guilt, blame, grief, and addiction to name a few. Plus, it contains Appalachian folklore which makes for a truly unsettling book.

Police chief Rachel Kennan is still reeling from the loss of her son while her husband, Finn grapples with his own guilt after his alcoholism led to the accident which caused their son's death. Both are together for the sake of their daughters, but this family can't take much more.

A gruesome discovery has Rachel's investigative team going where few dare to go, and the forest begins calling to their children......

Again, this was a creepy and bizarre one. While it is sinister, I was all over the place with my feelings on it. I liked it, then I didn't like it, then my interest was piqued, then my interest waivered. One thing that did work very nicely was how the author created atmosphere and tension. It set the mood and created the something-is-very-wrong vibe in the book. The sense of unease and dread that flowed throughout the book was a very nice touch. The creepiness of the forest was stellar.

I really wanted to love this one but it was lacking that little bit of something that would have pushed my review higher.

Others are enjoying this more than I did, so please read their reviews as well.

3.5 stars, rounded up.

This was an interesting story, although it felt like it could have been told much more quickly. A tiny town, small-minded bigotry, and children disappearing. It has all the right elements. I did really enjoy the ending, so kudos to the author for that!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.

This book was gripping and hard to put down. It didn't feel like everything else you see out there, it felt very fresh. I really enjoyed this book!

The spooky factor here was fun and creepy; the character development, not so much. It fascinates me that Gunn lives in Appalachia and purportedly loves it-- the sense I got from the novel was that she kinda thought everyone was a jerk. The folklore element felt a bit pasted on, and not inherent to the setting.