The Ghost That Ate Us by Daniel Kraus is a fictional nonfiction horror novel. The book is set up to look like it is nonfiction even though it is fiction. The poltergeist haunts a fast food staff which at first is cute and innocent, soon turns deadly. This book was not what I was expecting, with the premise of a ghost at a fast food restaurant I expected a lot more humor (there is a tiny bit), but what we get is a depressing novel that is a slow-burn horror novel. The horror in the novel is almost all at the end, and it gets pretty intense but you have to get through a lot of depressed teenagers. The book was interesting in the way it was written where we are told what happens to the restaurant and some of the kids, then we get interviews with the survivors who fill in part of the story and the narrator watches security tapes that add to the story. Daniel Kraus gets to be a horror novelist who is interested in the case and involves himself in the story, which was interesting as one character reads his books and keeps asking him questions about them. The pace is very slow in this story it picks up at 75% and moves pretty fast after that. The climax is exciting and the epilogue is well written. This is the second Daniel Kraus novel I read and loved his work on The Living Dead which he co-wrote with George A. Romero. He also wrote the screenplay for one of my favorite movies The Shape of Water. I received The Ghost That Ate Us from Netgalley and Raw Dog Screaming Press for free in exchange for a review. The Ghost That Ate Us was published on July 12, 2022.

Plot Summary: A murder happens at Burger City location #8 in Iowa that affects everyone who works there as it sets off a paranormal event. The location is haunted by a poltergeist who is cute and meme-able as it makes the mascot move around, but then the spirit turns vengeful and starts to kill. Some employees laugh it off but others become obsessed. The restaurant soon becomes popular as a ghost hangout and draws attention from a ghost hunter show called Spectral Journeys. Will the kids that work there remember high school or the time a ghost haunted their fast-food restaurant?

What I Liked: The final chapter that Daniel Kraus wraps up the with story is great writing, which I wished was more present throughout. The final chapter is the only one that I truly loved. A funny bit is if you see a ghost while you a masturbating in the bathroom do you take a picture? In this book, the answer is yes. The climax was wild cause you kind of forget who dies and who survives even though it was stated at the beginning. I liked Spectral Journeys' scene where you see how produced it is, and they have an agenda going in for the kind of story that they want to tell. How COVID was added to the story really timestamps it.

What I Disliked: Don't these kids have any fun, a lot of the teenagers were so depressed it is okay to have some but not so many. The pacing for this book is awful, I don't like to not finish books but I considered it. I wanted a lot more humor. A ghost at a fast food restaurant is funny but the book leans away from it.

Recommendations: It pains me to say that I do not recommend The Ghost That Ate Us since I have loved Daniel Kraus in the past. The ending is great but all other chapters are slow-paced. Only a few of the characters are interesting and Kit is a standout character and the only one. The story did remind me of an episode in Buffy: the Vampire Slayer where she gets a job working fast food and it is super depressing, I do not like that episode and it reminded me of this. Daniel Kraus is a good writer even though this book was a miss for me. The Living Dead by George A. Romero and Daniel Kraus is one of my favorites and is a highly recommended 5-star book.

Rating: I rated The Ghost That Ate Us by Daniel Kraus 2.3 stars.

I nabbed this because it looked fun and it sounded hilarious.
I am pleased to report I was right!
This was a silly, goofy time and I enjoyed every minute! The true crime style of “delivery” was a really smart and interesting touch.

Blew my mind! Loved the combo of Kraus's real life, the pandemic, and the fake true crime of the Burger City massacre (Starz documentary, Saturday Night Live skit, Tweets). Everything feels so real--I was googling everything to make sure it wasn't! Total buildup to find out what really happened in the fast food restaurant and the book ends, but the reader is still left uneasy because the horror lives on. I laughed and chuckled and found myself highlighting passages because I appreciated Kraus's turn of phrase. Loved the footnotes and pics that were involved since they make it seem more true.

Questions - Why did Bob Nutting dig the hole in his office? What were the dog bites from? Did Kit bite them? or the octupus thing?

The fluctuations in weight of everyone involved was creepy af. "It has been only seventeen days since I was in that room with Kit Bryant. In that time, I have gained forty-four pounds."

The title alone just spoke to me because I am obsessed, and it was such a fascinating read I couldn't put down

The Ghosts that Ate Us by Daniel Krause, from RDSP, I had difficulty connecting initially, maybe it was the format, documentary style, I’m had a hard time with. I ended up giving the audiobook a try to see if I it would hit different that way, It totally did. The audiobook was great, I connected immediately, and had a good time with it. The conclusion is superb, really enjoyed it.

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was on the 2023 shortlist. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2023/01/2023-reading-list-announced-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

I had no idea what to expect going in to this one, but I loved it.

As soon as I started reading I had found myself fully immersed in the story and I could not put it down. The Ghost That Ate Us is set up like a true crime novel, minus it being true.

I am a big true crime fan so this book immediately drew me in. I felt like I was reading the most bizarre true crime podcast. It was such a fun and unique read and I had a blast reading it!

This was a really unique concept and kept me wanting to read. I loved the faux true crime angle and thought the format was great. The ending was fantastic but it felt a little slow getting there at times.

A great overall plot and memoriable characters that hook you into the story right away! I will be recommending this title to my fellow readers!

I found this story interesting and was initially so fooled by the concept I had to check whether it was real! Ultimately, given the structure, I think I might have preferred to listen to this as an audiobook, but I still found it enjoyable and compelling.

Big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Daniel Kraus is always a fun time for me. I think he does a great job of honing in on specific characters and emotions and telling a well-rounded tale in the midst of this. This was spooky and anxiety-inducing in the best way.

I think this would be a great addition to any library collection.

The premise drew me in and the writing kept me there. Such a fun read and a unique take on a old familiar poltergeist story.

Synopsis: On June 1, 2017, six people were killed at a Burger City franchise off I-80 near Jonny, Iowa. It was the bizarre and gruesome conclusion to nine months of alleged paranormal activity at the fast-food joint—events popularly known as “the Burger City Poltergeist.”

The story inspired Facebook memes, Twitter hashtags, Buzzfeed listicles, Saturday Night Live sketches, and more. But the case was never much more than a punchline…until bestselling writer Daniel Kraus decided to head to Iowa to dig up what really happened.

REVIEW: As someone who loves reading stories with a paranormal or horror storyline, I found this read quite entertaining. I loved how there was a slow build to the incidents in the burger joint, and the character development was cleverly written. I found myself empathizing with many of the characters, and easily shared in their joy, sadness, and frustration. I liked that the story was told through different character perspectives, as well as methodology— interviews, transcripts, third person, etc. I also really appreciated the photos that were included; these additions really did bring the story alive.

Though this isn’t anywhere near “scary”, it definitely is a compelling read, and I enjoyed reading a chapter or two every night before bed. If you are someone who loves to watch paranormal documentaries, or tv shows, this book is right up your alley!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Review will also be shared on Instagram soon— @slowerlowerliving

The Ghost That Ate Us is absolutely fascinating. The story covers the haunting at Burger City burger joint. It covers talks with various people and also contains photographs of the investigation into the murders at the property. This well investigated haunting is spoken about in depth. It’s chilling and a must-read book of Poltergeist activity. This is fiction at its best.

This was an interesting take on the "true crime" novel. I loved the meta-commentary of the author "character." This followed the unfortunate fate that followed a group of fast food workers who encountered a poltergeist at the burger joint. This started off strong, but it lost me in the second half a little bit. The characters were well-drawn and the world felt very lived-in, but I wanted it to keep the same momentum throughout the novel.

⭐⭐ -- Great cover on this one!

I feel like I should have enjoyed this one more than I did. The ending was fantastic, but by god was it a slog to get there. 🤷🏻‍♀️

**ARC Via NetGalley**

I was excited for this one. I absolutely loved the premise, however, it fell flat. Somehow, in execution, this just did not reach its potential and I was left disappointed and a bit exhausted and not entertained. So unfortunate.

I got my hands on an ARC and expected a schlocky B-movie style story. This is not what this is at all. This is a faux true crime story that is compelling, scary, and an absolute treat. Read it, you'll love it if you love horror.

This was such an original take on a horror novel and I totally loved it. It's so unique. I'm definitely going to be checking out more by this author.

I really liked the concept of this book, but didn’t think it worked. There is a lot of footnotes, which became extremely distracting. I know this was supposed to add to the authenticity of the true crime vibe, but it was too much. I did appreciate the added pictures.
The story to a long time to build. Overall I wasn’t mega into it and found there were too many unimportant back ground builders and characters.