It’s extremely fast paced. Lots of splatter and gore, but I’m okay with it. I can’t say I really like the idea, this is the zombie apocalypse but with a bio-engineered rapidly mutating octopus thing. Towards the end the thing can perform miracles but has weirdo limitations for the “good” guys to win. But like I said it was fast paced and I had a fairly good time reading it.

There are a couple of peeves though. I don’t feel entirely comfortable with a poc main character written by a non poc author (apologies if I’m wrong and the author is poc). In this case, Lucy is from Peru, and she’s in a white majority town in Oregon. The demographic is worse than a standard American town, she’s one of four or so poc students in her school. The other is her best friend, a Pakistani called Bucket. I’ll come to him in just a moment.

So one of the things this book tries to do is play with the horror/thriller trope of horny kids getting into a world of trouble because they couldn’t keep it in their pants, and in the course of this, we get to know a little too much of Lucy’s sexual fantasies. Tiresomely, she goes for the white jock. She knows how tedious this is, but does it all the same. In almost the same breath, she thinks about how she is an object of both disrespect and lust by the white guys at school. I mean. Let’s not. Her best friend is a Poc like herself, he’s not gay, but apart from one unconvincing moment of attraction that was supposedly there all along (it wasn’t), he’s not her type.

There are more unfortunate it’s okay for me not for you type moments. I had a passage typed out with them but then, it’s not the first time I’ve encountered such a thing. I What bugged me also are the conspiracy theory proven right thing, which is a pet peeve, and evil corporations that know not what they unleash, which is another pet peeve. Not because I trust evil mega corporations to do what’s best for the people but because it’s also lazy. The scientist the kids meet seems to not know what the hell this is - at first he says it’s artificial, then he flip flops to maybe it’s an alien thing, with no backing evidence whatsoever. He’s in shock perhaps? Whatever, I wasn’t very convinced and at this point I barely cared what they were as long as they were goners. But the book itself should have. Because then - if it was alien, would a bomb destroy everything? You’d need a nuke? Would you nuke Oregon? If it was artificial, code, would you have to destroy its central controlling unit? It was supposedly connected to some kind of super internet, so how controlled is it, really?

There’s also a surprising lack of diversity in the book - no, I know that’s the point or whatever, but POCs do have a presence in the tech industry. They may not be the money bags, but they’d have enough of them at the mid level, say. Enough of them would have kids who would be attending school with Lucy. It’s different if the industry itself was based elsewhere and chose this small town to experiment, but it didn’t work here. Come to think of it, how big was this town? It felt small, even though I was told the whole thing rapidly expanded.

It doesn’t really matter - ultimately this was something to be entertained by. And it’s reasonably entertaining. But since the book makes its main character consider all the social issues, it made me do so as well.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

The opening to this book was so freaking good....and that was just the beginning. I was hooked from the start and I tore through this book in a day and a half. Must read for lovers of zombie stories.

Wow, what a surprising wild ride this was. We have a nasty biotech company, IMTECH, in small town Turner Falls implanting a parasite in some entitled teens. Of course as in all parasitic implants it needs to feed and grow and expand and take over. The beauty of this story is that it basically is told over the course of a few days. A party from hell, a heart pounding car chase, oh and lots and lots of gore. Plus the hero teens are just amazing. Still saying teen things and having teen dreams. With a dynamic ending, fun and fast. Not for the faint of heart.

The Loop is a creepy sci-fi thriller.  The cave scene was seriously intense.  the premise of the novel is fascinating and very well written - very engaging.  i like the podcast chapters as well.

Turner Falls is a small tourist town nestled in the hills of western Oregon, the kind of town you escape to for a vacation. When an inexplicable outbreak rapidly develops, this idyllic town becomes the epicenter of an epidemic of violence as the teenaged children of several executives from the local biotech firm become ill and aggressively murderous. Suddenly the town is on edge, and Lucy and her friends must do everything it takes just to fight through the night. 

What an interesting summary! This is definitely what made me pick up this book. But the characters really kept me going! There is some gore and violence in this book, so be warned. However, I have to say seriously, what did I just read?????

It's fast paced and so relatable especially now.

This was one of the more creative horror/thrillers I've read in quite a while.  I really liked the sci-fi aspect.  This is not for the faint of heart as it is pretty violent and grisly.  If that doesn't bother you and you are looking for a biotech zombie like horror show pick this up.  It is action packed and pretty much never stops moving once things start to go bad.

Not only is this a horror book, but it touches on the human condition as well.  Johnson also hits on bullying, racism, survival, ethics in science, and a lot more.  This really shows up in the friendship dynamics between the main character Lucy and the relationships she develops as she tries to survive this biotech nightmare.

If you are easily offended or triggered by gore or violence of any kind, I wouldn't recommend this book.  The story takes place is less than 24 hours so it doesn't pull any punches to keep things moving along.  If you are looking for a weird, creative story, and are OK with graphic violence give this a go.  I'm a horror fan, so I did enjoy this, but it made me uncomfortable at times.  That is a sign of a good horror or thriller, so job well done by the author.

I was provided an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars rounded to 4

Ok, so hear me out... This book was incredible in so many ways, but it also had so many unnecessary inclusions that I could have done without, hence the "not fully 4 star" rating. I'm not even referring to the content warning aspect of this novel; if you're the type of person who finds themselves offended by virtually anything, this probably won't be the book for you. It's violently graphic, gory, and uncomfortable, which are all things I enjoyed (gulp: what kind of a person does that make me?), but it also included full on animal violence and racial slurs that I just can't get behind. If you're looking for an all out bloodbath for fall, this is definitely it, and I felt like that World War Z meets Stranger Things comparison is fairly accurate. Also, it's really ambitious and successful in the aspect that the entire novel takes place in essentially one evening, so I guess what I'm saying it proceed at your own risk, but if you're looking for something that pushes the envelope, give The Loop a try.

The Loop by Jeremy Robert Jordan is a wild ride in the best way possible.  Set in a small town in Oregon, we follow our main character, Lucy, through a night of terror as some of the teens in the town suddenly become murderous.  She and a few others fight to survive and put an end to the sudden outbreak of violence.

This book is full of very graphic, gory scenes that rival any that I have read or watched recently and kept me on my toes, wondering if the crew would survive the night.  I really enjoyed getting a glimpse of Lucy’s internal thoughts through all of the events.  It made everything seem more realistic and gripping.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jeremy Robert Jordan and Gallery/Saga Press for the opportunity to review an e-arc of this book.

Honestly, a solid premise with some good qualities, but maybe I just wasn't in the mood for it. Thank you for the copy.

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: The Loop

Author: Jeremy Robert Johnson

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 2/5

Recommended For...: sci-fi fans, thriller/mystery lovers

Publication Date: September 29, 2020

Genre: Sci-Fi

Recommended Age: can’t recommend, dnf-ed

Publisher: Saga Press

Pages: 320

Synopsis: Stranger Things meets World War Z in this heart-racing conspiracy thriller as a lonely young woman teams up with a group of fellow outcasts to survive the night in a town overcome by a science experiment gone wrong.

Turner Falls is a small tourist town nestled in the hills of western Oregon, the kind of town you escape to for a vacation. When an inexplicable outbreak rapidly develops, this idyllic town becomes the epicenter of an epidemic of violence as the teenaged children of several executives from the local biotech firm become ill and aggressively murderous. Suddenly the town is on edge, and Lucy and her friends must do everything it takes just to fight through the night.

Review: I had to DNF at 20%. The book is really slow and I just couldn't get into it as much as I wanted to.

Verdict: Not for me but maybe for you!

“But in the big picture, we had a chance to save humanity from pain, depression, addiction...everything. We were going to give people a broad spectrum tool for truly controlling their lives, and minds, and bodies. Oracle was going to cure society’s ills.”
What could possibly go wrong?
Kids are starting to go violently crazy in Turner Falls. Deaths are covered up and marginalized. Action immediately gets this book rolling and doesn’t slow down for quite some time. Explanation in the middle of the book kills the pace for a bit but I still couldn’t put it down. 
A small group of teens try’s to escape while the rest of the kids in town are hunting and killing. 
These are realistic characters with their flaws and imperfections just like everyday teens. This group of outcasts quickly grow into people you care about. Hopefully some will survive.

The Loop ended up not being my cup of tea. I was drawn to it based on the synopsis and the comparison to Stranger Things and Blake Crouch, but I didn’t see the parallels. A lot of the descriptions were too intense and I didn’t love the “frat boy” vibes.

4.5 stars / This review will be posted at BookwormishMe.com on 15 September 2020 . 


Turner Falls is a perfect little ski town in the high desert of eastern Oregon. Quaint, friendly, as long as you’re not Lucy or Bucket. Lucy and Bucket are “brown” and outcasts from most of the Turner Falls students. Spring Meadows High School is mostly broken down into the wealthy kids, the burnouts and the nerds. And then there’s Lucy & Bucket.

As such, they’ve bonded over weird things like Bucket’s obsession with porn. They hang out at The Exchange, a retro vinyl store where two other outcasts, Toni and Judah work. Now, they’re going to have the night of their lives as the students celebrate the end of the school year, brought on early by two tragic deaths in the community. The first deemed a “murder/suicide” by a boy who wouldn’t hurt a fly, and the second, in a classroom right before Lucy’s eyes. Lucy watched a mild mannered classmate beat their teacher to death.

What is going wrong in idyllic Turner Falls? Does it have something to do with the recent rise of IMTECH, a biotech company building the next great AI? Whatever it is, Lucy and Bucket are going to have to fight to get through the madness that has consumed this town.

I’ve seen this mentioned as a kind of World War Z meets Stranger Things, which is why I picked up this book. It maybe goes beyond that. Not for everyone with extensive violence, gore, sex and profanity. This isn’t your happy ending teen novel. It depicts a crazy, apocalyptic 24 hours in the lives of a group of people trying to save themselves and their town. 

Johnson is clearly a master of this macabre genre, as he kept my attention riveted to this book. Dark and twisty, yes. But impossible to put down. If you’re ready for a trip into the frightening world of AI gone wrong, grab this one.

"It was so surprisingly calm that it took a few minutes before anyone in the room even noticed the way that Chris Carmichael was twitching at his desk."

The first hint that something has gone wrong in Lucy Henderson's town is a horrific event in her high school classroom. The violent-nature of the event triggers trauma from Lucy's past, an emotional wound that goes so deeply into her psyche that she hasn't begun to process it- let alone the damage it has left behind.

It doesn't help that Lucy feels like an outcast and an outsider in her small hometown. Part of this is baggage from Lucy's past, but the majority of it is the racism and tribalism she faces from the small-minded young adults in the community. They won't let her forget she looks different from them and torment her with their racial hatred on a near-daily basis.

The only semblance of friendship in her life is with a young man who goes by the name of "Bucket," for reasons that are explained in the story. (No spoilers.)

When all hell breaks loose in town, Lucy and Bucket only have each other and a few acquaintances to help in a race to save their families. The nightmare that they had been living solely in their minds becomes all too real.

"What the hell is going on in this town? Sometimes it feels like things are f*cked up in every direction, you know?"

The character and world-building of The Loop is well done in that I connected deeply with Lucy and Bucket before the story took off.

My lack of enjoyment of the book stems from the graphic nature of the violence against people and animals, both physical and mental. There are also brief instances of sexual abuse between underage teens as well as the discussions of porn with descriptions vague enough that young adults reading this book will immediately turn to Google to answer any questions they may have. There is bullying, unaddressed by the adults in the young peoples' lives, as well as the trauma Lucy suffered at the hands of a system that should have protected her.

Which brings me to another discussion point, this is not a book for young adults. If it was television, it would carry a mature rating. The horror genre has a huge following and graphic violence is definitely a part of that. That being said, it is strange to me how cavalierly some treat depictions of absolutely horrific things.

I feel like society has become desensitized to violence in the media we mindlessly consume. Descriptions of fingers popping through eyeballs and knives cutting through flesh is delivered as a matter-of-course, part of what makes the story so scary.

I picked this title out of the myriad being published in the next months because it was compared to Stranger Things, a horror show, true, but one that leans on the psychological and paranormal scares far more than the physically violent ones. I watched that show with my young daughter. I would not let her read this book, at least until she's 18.

I say that as a former librarian but also a mother.

All that being said, there are beautiful lines in the book that perfectly capture the agony of mental pain.

For example: "She imagined herself tilting her head back and opening her mouth to scream again, only this time her mouth kept opening and her jaw detached like a snake's and she kept splitting until she was cleaved in two and all that came out of her was white flame."

But I didn't feel that the beauty of those fleeting moments made the time I spent reading the title worth it.

Recommended only for adult horror readers who can handle the triggers of violence and everything else described above.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a free digital advance readers copy of this book. The brief quotations I cited may be changed or omitted in the final, printed version.

Insanely creative, insanely gory, and insanely good. Jeremy Robert Johnson captures a blend of the Purge meets Stranger Things so well that I couldn't put this down. An absolute thrill ride that makes you think just as much as it makes you furiously turn the pages. I couldn't get over how seamlessly deep metaphors about class systems and capitalism as well as the way violence permeates our lives got mixed in with crude humor. Johnson balances a lot of topics really well and delivers a dark punch to this novel that leaves you feeling satisfied. I cannot thank NetGalley and Gallery/Saga Press for the advanced copy.

“It’s like you get sick from the anger and the helplessness of living in this fucked-up system and you feel like destruction might be the only way to shut it all down.”

I absolutely love genre-bending horror when the person writing it is a master of their craft, and Jeremy Robert Johnson is absolutely that, so this turned out to be an incredible reading experience. In just around 300 pages, we get a little sci-fi, a little horror, and even a tiny bit of romance. I went into this one not knowing anything about it previously, and since the cover doesn’t really give you any insight into the story, I wasn’t sure what I was getting myself into. I was blessed with a weird, outrageous, fast-paced conspiracy thriller that completely absorbed me, yanking me right out of my world and into the town of Turner Falls.

There are some really specific things I love in horror (but will obviously still enjoy books that don’t include all of these): I prefer it to be teen/20s based in character age range most of the time, I love small town settings, and I can’t get enough of a good conspiracy. THE LOOP checked every box for me, and while I’ve seen it referred to as “Stranger Things meets World War Z”, I think a much more accurate vibe is The Faculty meets Disturbing Behavior from the 90s, which is also my absolute favorite decade for scary teen movies. Did I already mention how perfect this book is for me?

Johnson writes characters that are believable and heartfelt, both in their strengths and in their weaknesses. I loved our main heroine Lucy, and also really adored Bucket and Brewer, her high school buddies. Their relationships and friendships reminded me of what it was like to be in high school and have a primarily male social circle – gross things are funny, porn is an almost constant topic of conversation, and there are lots of confusing feelings going on a majority of the time that are joked away and not really talked about. The way the characters and their connections were portrayed in this, in such a wholesome, honest way, really stands as a brilliantly stark contrast against the absolute bonkers gorefest going on in the rest of the book.

While some books opt to give you all the information about a specific virus or contagion right up front, this one prefers to lead up to it without revealing too much too early on. This method of storytelling keeps the reader in the dark for a large chunk of the mayhem, which really invests you in the confusion and worry that the characters experience. Things go wrong for Lucy and her friends very quickly, and the violence and trauma and struggle are unrelenting. Since pretty much everything takes place over the course of a single night, you may be like me and will feel compelled to keep reading until you finish the book in a single sitting at 4 AM – and to this, I say do it! It’s worth it.

Truly, this is a wild ride of a book, and one that I’ll absolutely be recommending as often as possible from this point on. I’m not a new reader of Jeremy Robert Johnson’s work, but even if he weren’t already cemented as an author I’d auto-buy, he would be after reading THE LOOP. It’s that good, seriously! Don’t miss the late September release – you can pre-order both the hardcover & the digital version on Amazon today!

The Loop by Jeremy Johnson is a superb page turner. Well worth the time and the read! Looking forward to the next novel.

a YA sci fi horror.  I am a sucker for a strong female main character.  The Loop does a good job of making you care about these characters and their survival.  This isn't my normal genre but I was engaged and felt it was a refreshing book to read!  Memorable and unique.  There were a few cringe worthy parts when the characters were making racist comments.  Good amount of gore too!

First of all, this was quite the rollercoaster read! Thank you to NetGalley, Gallery/Saga Press, Simon & Schuster, and the author, Jeremy Robert Johnson, for allowing me access to this ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Book release date set for September 29, 2020.
320 pages
My rating is 4.5 out of 5 stars.  

Perfect choice for a 2020 horror thriller honestly - and some parts might hit a little too close to being believable in the sense of how technology keeps growing and expanding. It is not inconceivable that our biotech industry might cross some ethical lines at some point and create some horrific apocalyptic nightmare. This was one book that I found difficult to put down as it is just quite fast-paced and the horrors just kept building.

This one follows a group of teens, focusing primarily on one girl's experience, when their small town is overtaken by an untested biotech implant that was supposedly designed to link people together in such a way that violent behavior could be shut down in an individual before it could occur. However, the dangers of releasing untested implants, while obvious to most of us, may be overlooked or ignored by corporate conglomerates just looking to be the next big thing - or perhaps something more sinister can occur and biotech becomes the new testing ground for biological warfare to the next level. 

I may never think of an octopus in the same way again though - and if you want to know why that is, you will have to read this book.

Let us travel to a quaint little town in Oregon, where the scenery is beautiful and the influx of biotech companies has helped boost their economy. Now meet Lucy, adopted by the loving Hendersons after a hard upbringing by her alcoholic parents in Peru that ends in tragedy. Lucy and her best friend Bucket are just trying to survive the last year of high school, leaning on each other to get through the stress of life in a small mostly white town. 

But surviving takes on a whole new meaning when a classmate suddenly attacks another student in the class and then the teacher. Perhaps it's a one-off, a student who just snapped. Lucy and Bucket try to keep it together, classes and graduation are canceled and they meet up with Brewer to party away the mess and stress in the local caves.

Then...all hell breaks loose. 

The Loop is a face-paced, adrenaline read. It's hard to say much more without spoiling the book as from then on it's action-packed and full of info.