“Those woods… they wanted her attention, wanted to absorb her into the darkness until the world forgot her name. Wanted to steal her breath and return the forest to complete stillness.”

Rachel Kennan, a police chief of a small conservative town ridden with issues of substance abuse, is tasked with solving a mystery after a body is found in the woods. Plagued by her past and current imperfections, the situation gets more and more personal as she eventually is fighting for her family and her sanity.

‘Nowhere’ definitely had that creepy, unsettling vibe that I love in horror novels. It was slow to set that up in the beginning and then ramped up in the end to a suspenseful and chaotic mess. I liked that this story gave us a lot to dissect - complicated and flawed characters that are sent to judgement by a monster that represents likely some very real hatred in this world.

I struggled a bit with the dialogue in the book and the pacing. But I was surprised with how much overall I ended up enjoying this, especially with the switching POV. The ending definitely kept me intrigued! I’m excited to read Allison Gunn’s future work!

Title: Nowhere
Author: Allison Gunn (Debut Author)
Publisher: Atria
Genre: Mystery Thriller, Horror
Pub Date: March 25, 2025
My Rating: 3.3 Stars
Pages 304

Rachel Kennan is the chief of Police in Dahlmouth, Virginia which is a small Appalachian religious town.
She and her husband Finn- an unemployed journalist as well as their two daughters are suffering the loss of their son 8 year old Aiden who died in a car accident.
~It seems Finn’s alcoholism had something to do with the car accident.

Rachel and Finn have given up on working on their marriage. The only reason they stay together is for their two daughters. When a series of crimes happen one after another, Rachel's investigation reveals a terrifying force from the forest that wants the town's children.

I was draw to this story as I was born and raised in wild n wonderful West Virginia-
As I continued to read I knew this wasn’t my usual read but I was hoping it would work- as the ‘Author’s Note’ got my attention.

Debut Author Allison Gunn is a researcher, writer, and tarot reader with a penchant for all things whimsical and strange. Allison has extensively studied marginalized communities as well as folklore.
She tells us in her “Author’s Note” that her own life is the foundation for this story.
She hopes that is anyone is encountering a similar situation that they will find comfort in knowing they are not alone – you are strong and will escape your own Nowhere”.

Ms. Gunn is currently resides in the wonderfully weird land of West Virginia with her twin daughters, precocious pup, and one seriously troubled tabby.

Want to thank NetGalley and Atria for this early eGalley.
Publishing Release Date scheduled for March 25, 2025.

This book was spooky. I started reading this at night and it had me creeped out. The atmosphere is fantastic. I was completely immersed and intrigued to find out what was going on throughout this story.

Rachel and her husband Finn are still grieving from the loss of their son when Rachel gets called out to a crime scene in the woods. There is a very mysterious death and children start to go missing.
There is a lot of mystery behind all of the disappearances and tensions rise as everyone starts to become uneasy.

The characters are extremely unlikable but it doesn’t make the story any less good. In fact, I think it might make the story better. I appreciated the glimpses of real life drama within this story. The characters were incredibly cruel to each other and it made me see how marriage really might be for some.

I was engaged in this story till the very end, and this certainly is not a story where you will have any sort of happy ending. If you love dark, mysterious, scary reads then you will probably love this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.

I very much enjoyed this book. The writing was great and the characters were well developed. I hope to read more from this author in the future.

This story had me hooked from the beginning as it created such a strong creepy feeling and then as we neared the second half of the story it sort of became a bit repetitive and lost my interest. I was hoping for so much more but was left a bit just unfulfilled at the end of this book.

I felt a bit conflicted about this one. At first, I really enjoyed it because it created a genuinely eerie vibe that was somewhat frightening. I found myself constantly curious about what might be lurking in those woods! I nearly gave up on this because I just couldn’t stand the main female character at all. When I reached the second half, it felt like it lost its excitement. The book seemed to repeat a lot of what had already happened in the first half, and there wasn't anything new introduced. I really loved the mythology and wished there was more of it, along with a greater sense of creepiness. It started to bore me, and I found it quite odd. I just wanted it to wrap up. Despite not enjoying the second half, I still liked the book overall.

Wow, this was incredible.

Nowhere by Allison Gunn is pitched as Mare Of Easttown meets The Outsider. It follows our main character, Chief Rachel Kennan. Her and her husband went through a devastating tragedy that rocked their family. Things begin to go wrong in this small town and Rachel and her husband must come together and save their family.

I cannot believe this was a debut. Gunn outdid herself her. Nowhere is equal parts thrilling, horrifying, and emotionally charged. I really could not put it down. This book oozes with atmosphere and I think this would be a great book for summer/fall.

I think the comparison to Mare of Easttown/The Outside are apt. Although, I think fans of True Detective, Night Country will love this.

Thank you Atria Books for the copy of Nowhere by Allison Gunn. I should have read the description more carefully because the genre said this was a thriller/mystery, not horror, and this was definitely horror. The writing was excellent and really kept me reading, even though horror isn’t really my thing. The book started out strong, but after the action started, it got a little repetitive because we didn’t learn anything new about the ‘victims’ or the reason things were happening. Enough was going on that held my interest and even though it wasn’t my usual read, it really kept me reading to the end. Maybe I am so accustomed to reading books with a definitive ending this one didn’t feel it really ended - it just stopped. Most of it was a riveting read, though. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Beautiful writing, found the characters multidimensional and richly drawn. Very atmospheric and immersive. Excellent read.

A unconventional couple moves to a small southern town with their family and tragedy occurs. Was it the result of carelessness or something more otherworldly and sinister. The wife is the town police chief. The husband an unsuccessful author and stay at home dad. The tragedy, along with a somewhat buried secret, has driven them apart. Now children are going missing. Can they forgive each other, figure out what’s going on and save their marriage, family and town? The premise really drew me in but the story did not tell for me. The characters’ actions really made no sense to me in many instances and the relationship turns seemed to come out of “Nowhere”. Not for me.

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October 11, 2024
3.5 stars!

After losing her young son in an accident, Rachel Kennan throws herself into her career as police chief of a small Virginia town to avoid focusing on her grief. Meanwhile, her husband, Finn, a washed-up writer whose alcoholism led to the devastating tragedy that changed everything, struggles to redeem himself before his family completely falls apart. Their two daughters are the only things keeping Rachel and Finn together, but the girls have demons of their own.

At the same time, a disturbing crime rocks their tightknit, religious community, sending Rachel chasing leads in a place that does not take kindly to outsiders. When an ominous force in the forest starts calling to the children, fear spawns hate among the townspeople, placing the Kennan family directly in the line of fire. Left with no choice but to rely on each other, Rachel and Finn must come together to face threats inside and out.

A haunting family saga and a disquieting horror debut, Nowhere draws from Appalachian folklore to caution us that true terror is what we bury in our own hearts.

I had some mixed feelings about this one. In the beginning, I loved it It has a very creepy atmosphere, and it's a little scary. I kept wondering what is in those woods! The children's nursery rhyme songs were very creepy too, coming from the woods.

The first death was very grotesque and the descriptions of it freaked me out. I felt so sorry for Rachel and Finn losing their son Aiden in an accident It is so heartbreaking. They are together just because of their children. They are coping with so much grief. Their family is falling apart. I enjoyed the supernatural aspect in this book.

When I got to the second half it seemed to lose its fizzle. The book seem to be very repetitive of everything that happened in the first half. Nothing really happened new. I love the folklore in the book and wanted more of it, and also wanted more creepiness. It bored me and I thought it was really strange. I just wanted the book to end. Even though I didn't enjoy the second half I did like it.

Huge thank you to the publisher for allowing me a chance to read this book as an ARC reader.
For the first time In a while, I was actually looking over my shoulder while reading. An awesome story line with a perfect amount of horror and spook!

Beware the woods, the fairy tales, the whispers, the small towns, your neighbors...especially the children.

Spooky read, but not too scary. Leans more on the mystery side for me rather than horror. Will likely leave you afraid of the woods by yourself. Or even with others. May leave you nervous to travel through the one-stop towns on road trips. And why does it always have to be kids who are terrifying? Something about innocence corrupted is so much worse.

This book was just ok for me. I enjoyed the first half, but the second half seemed to drop off and repeat. I was hoping for more and had to trudge through to the end. Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy.

It begins like any other domestic thriller. An already fragmented family relocates for a wife’s new job as police chief of a small town. The husband, a failed author who has lost himself in alcohol, is responsible for the accident that killed his young son. None of this endears them to the suspicious, closed minds of the townspeople of Dahlmouth. Those townspeople still whisper about the old legends and tell their children to stay out of the woods. They don’t. Then the true horror begins.

Nowhere pulls you in slowly. You concentrate on Chief Rachel’s failing marriage to Finn and her attempts to gain respect from the rest of her small force. You don’t notice what is really happening until it is too late. Nowhere is skillfully paced with an expected ending. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Atria Books and Allison Gunn for this ARC.

I think the descritpion of Mare of Eastdown and The Outsider was spot on. This book was everything you could want in a horror novel. It gave that heart pounding, can’t sleep because you’re too scared feeling. I enjoyed that while there were supernatural elements, the characters had their own demons and issues haunting them, it was a multi layer story. I thought it was well paced and it definitely kept me invested. I do feel that the ending left a little too many questions unanswered and I wish that the Appalachian setting was a bit more descriptive and atmospheric. All in all, I think this was an excellent debut horror and will definitely pick up the author’s books in the future!!

After losing her young son in an accident, Rachel Kennan throws herself into her career as police chief of a small Virginia town to avoid focusing on her grief. Meanwhile, her husband, Finn, a washed-up writer whose alcoholism led to the devastating tragedy that changed everything, struggles to redeem himself before his family completely falls apart. Their two daughters are the only things keeping Rachel and Finn together, but the girls have demons of their own.

At the same time, a disturbing crime rocks their tightknit, religious community, sending Rachel chasing leads in a place that does not take kindly to outsiders. When an ominous force in the forest starts calling to the children, fear spawns hate among the townspeople, placing the Kennan family directly in the line of fire. Left with no choice but to rely on each other, Rachel and Finn must come together to face threats inside and out.

The atmosphere here was creepy. This is such a thought-provoking book, in the way those thoughts send creepy vibes down your spine. The writing, the POV switch, the forest, the characters. Love them or hate them. This book was SO good. Read it! 4.5⭐

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy. This is my honest opinion of the book.

Nowhere tells the story of a grieving mother who throws herself into police work to avoid feeling her emotions. This read like a classic crime thriller. The backdrop of a fundamentalist town definitely made the reading experience more unique as opposed to similar stories. Overall, this was an engaging book!

First, the cover on this book is fantastic, and it was the first thing to draw me in. But I also thought the story sounded interesting, so I requested the book. I’m glad I did. The writing kept me engaged and I appreciated the pace of the story. I especially liked Rachel as a character. Sure, she was miserable and angry, but also so full of grief and sadness. This book is a well written thriller, and interesting from start to finish, I highly recommend it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the opportunity to read and review this book.

I liked the premise of this book and the eerie setting the author created throughout. The story did get a little muddled as it progressed and became a little confusing, but it was really creepy and pretty interesting.

I personally did not like any of the characters, I thought they were all annoying but they did have a bit of a ‘come to’ moment. I also wasn’t too keen on the depiction of poor folks, especially if this books takes place in a rural area with majority low income people.