All Hallows is a creepy and twisted novel! Love the Halloween setting and will definitely make you think twice about opening your door to everyone on Halloween night.

Thank you for the digital ARC! All opinions expressed are completely my own.

3.5 ⭐ rounded down

It's Halloween 1984, and something is very wrong on Parmenter Road. Despite all the festive events—the Barbosas' annual Haunted Woods attraction, the big neighborhood bash at the Koenigs'—there is an eerie presence and violent mischief creeping from the forest that runs behind these people's street. Before midnight, the horrors that emerge are unspeakable and plentiful. But boy oh boy does it take us *forever* to get there.

A story told from—let me count—fourteen (I think) perspectives, All Hallows takes the reader through the whole neighborhood's dirty laundry and right into to the heart of their worst fears. However, reading this novel was not a pulse-pounding experience for me. While the events are undeniably awful and even heart-wrenching, the story lacks suspense. One bad thing after another happens to these people who we barely know because we spend so little time with them, and I never once felt like I just *had* to know what happens next. I think I would love some of these characters if I knew them better, and I kind of wish the narrative was limited to about 5 characters—Rick Barbosa, Billie Suarez, Vanessa Montez, Steve Koenig, and Julia Sweeney. And then it probably would be a YA book, and maybe that would have been a better fit all around?

I think this story would do well as film. With music to add to the atmosphere and costuming to help tell all the creepy kids apart (it took be too long to realize that Delilah and Sarah Jane weren't the same character), there could be a sense of *suspense*. As it stands, though, this story just creeps slowly along, with hardly anything to keep me reading. Was I fascinated by the concept? Sure. Do these characters have a story worth telling? Absolutely. Did I enjoy reading their story? Meh. Will I keep thinking about them? Probably.

This had such a great premise that hooked me and it started off strong with spooky vibes, taking place on Halloween, neighborhood families that are close, and an 80s setting. Once it got going and ramped up though, it was a little hard to follow, and I think this was due to the many POV’s. Had there been a few less this would have made it easier. Overall though, I really enjoyed this one, the messed up kids and all, and thought this was an entertaining read that is perfect for spooky season.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the digital galley and ARC to review.

<strong>Creepy Halloween Tale</strong>

I love Halloween. My whole family does really. Right from the first few pages, I identified with the Barbosa family. My husband has an extensive history in the haunt industry, and I helped him run the makeup room for a season at one as well. So reading about Chloe and her dad setting up their home haunt in the woods behind their house, I was immediately hooked.

The story picks up quickly, weaving the stories of the different neighbors' lives wonderfully. The author wastes no time with the creepy elements showing up even as he is giving us the backstory of each character, and the small (or large) dramas going on in their lives.

Very soon we're off and running, with twists and turns around every page. I was kept guessing as each element was introduced, making for a thrilling read. The thing I enjoyed the most though was Christopher Golden's creation of the mythology in this world. I'm very curious to know how much is based on actual lore, if any.

This book is absolutely perfect for anyone who loves Halloween, and the stories that surround it.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

80’s spooky fun. Christopher Golden always has eefective premises that suck me in. I loved this book. I cannot wait to reread this one around Halloween time for the vibes.

After reading and loving Road of Bones last year, I was excited to start All Hallows. While I didn't love this one quite as much as Road of Bones, I really enjoyed the creepiness of it and can admit that Christopher Golden certainly knows how to write scary stories. I loved the Halloween night setting and reading from various viewpoints of grownups, kids, and teens in the neighborhood definitely set a tone for the entire book. Besides it being super creepy at times, there are other things going on in this story, and many secrets will end up being revealed. I wasn't born until 1986 so I didn't technically grow up in the 80s but based on what I've seen in Stranger Things which is 80s perfection, All Hallows did feel a bit too current for the time period. I didn't get as much of that 80s nostalgia that I was hoping for (just because I wasn't born until 86 doesn't mean I don't want it 🙃), and I think there are certain things included in the story that would have been out of place back in 1984.

I saw some reviewers saying this was a fast-paced read for them, but for me, it was definitely on the slower side. Much like the author's last book, I thought it started out fairly slow but then it did pick up and that's when things really start to get spine-chilling. There is definitely some of that horror gore to All Hallows but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle being as squeamish as I am sometimes. I listened to the audiobook as well which really helped with the pacing, and I enjoyed the narrators even though there are only 2 for many POVs. Ronnie Butler voiced all the male viewpoints while January LaVoy (one of my faves) voiced all the females, and while you would think that would get confusing it really wasn’t. I was able to easily keep up with all of the different characters and they were all so perfectly characterized that it wasn’t hard to tell them apart. If you enjoy the horror genre and like slow-burning neighborhood dramas as well, I would definitely recommend giving this book a try.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

😱 I had a weird experience with this book. I was bored to tears in the first half and I was enthralled in the second half.

😱 The first half of the book was a lot of set up for a lot of characters. There were a few odd things happening, but for the most part it was all foundational and I found it to be excruciatingly boring. It took me a full week to get to the halfway point in the book.

😱 Thankfully the second half was uber creepy! It took off at a lightning speed with very frightening imagery and insane events that had me glued to the pages! This was genuinely scary!

😱 I kinda loved that the reader doesn’t know who the bad guys are until the end of the book.

😱 The story is told from multiple points of view and these different perspectives give the story some depth in the second half.

😱 If you have patience to get through the beginning of this book, you will be rewarded with a truly frightening read!!

Thank you @netgalley and @stmartinspress for an eARC of this book, which I have read and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for the eARC in exchange for my honest review!

I was excited for this book, but it ended up just being okay. There was a lot I liked. The nostalgia was great and I really enjoyed some of the characters. The plot was original and appropriately creepy. The writing was solid. Unfortunately, it delivered too little, too late. Nothing even remotely spooky happened until the last third of the book. I read this on my kindle and was shocked when I saw it wasn’t 500 pages long because it certainly felt like it. And there were way too many POVs to follow. I lost count at ten!

I’ve seen a lot of great reviews for this book, so you shouldn’t write it off just because I didn’t love it. Give it a try if you like Stranger Things and don’t mind slow burns with a lot of POVs.

The synopsis mentions 80s nostalgia akin to Stranger Things, which I didn't really get from this one, but nonetheless, I did still enjoy it. There are some spooky little kids running around, a creepy shadowy figure called The Cunning Man, and lots (and lots) of neighborhood drama.

I found this to be an interesting mix of drama and horror which worked for me, because it didn't feel like too much of either, but I can see readers having an issue with the drama if you go in expecting full blown scares. There were also quite a few characters and alternating viewpoints, which seemed to muddy the story a bit.

Overall though, I still found this to be an enjoyable read that I would recommend adding to your spooky season TBR, or just your regular TBR if you're like me, and every season is spooky season.

⚠️ Please check trigger warnings prior to reading

Many thanks to @stmartinspress for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

2.5 ⭐️I hate saying this but I think it would have made a better movie. The beginning was dreadfully slow and filled with drama about people I didn’t really care about. The fact that the only remotely creepy thing that happened before 50% were dressed up kids that gave weird vibes was disappointing. Unfortunately not the spooky vibes I was expecting.

Kept my interest until the last third.. the 'climax' felt underwhelming and a bit disappointed after reading Ararat.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press as well as the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
#NetGalley #AllHallows #St.Martin’sPress #ChristopherGolden

Hear that? That’s the sound of my mind being blown by this amazing book. This is the first book I’ve read by this author but it definitely won’t be the last. This story has everything from ghosts to monsters to human monsters. My only complaint is that I can only read it for the first time once.
It’s Halloween night in 1964 and several families on Parmenter Road are getting ready for the holiday in one way or another. Some are excited and some not so excited. Barb Sweeney has had it with her cheating husband while Rick and Tony Barbosa are both celebrating and mourning their last Halloween before they’re being forced to leave their beloved home. There is a large cast of characters here and each has a different story to tell. They will all converge, however, as they fight an ancient evil. It may not be the one they think though.
This book is told from several different points of view over the course of one Halloween night. Each character is introduced to one of the children at different times. Each is in some type of vintage costume. Each is terrified of the one they call The Cunning Man. Each begs a different resident of Parmenter Road for shelter until midnight. Midnight is when they’ll be safe. We become attached to each member of the neighborhood and grow to care about them despite their faults and differences. Even the worst of the characters has a redeeming quality. This was one of my favorite aspects of this book. I cared deeply about every character, even the worst of them. They’re all united against one common enemy, but it’s not the one they think.
Honestly, the only thing negative that can be said about this book is that it would have been more effective if it came out in October. It so perfectly captures the feel of Halloween night that I could practically smell the leaves and hear the screams.
All in all, this is just about a perfect book. I really hope that it gets made into a movie or tv show. It would be amazing on screen!

Just so you know— you will definitely see this book on my Halloween Reading List!!

If I may, I’d just say that the first few chapters are world-building but not very complex, its more domestic thriller type building that every reader will enjoy. There are some 80’s era references that I enjoyed reading! The second half of the book is just pure horror-fun!!

The story is about protecting children on Halloween from The Cunning Man. Always remember—any story with “Man” is creepy. The supernatural element is just bonus in this scary drama!!

Thank you SMP for the gifted ebook

"…the static seemed to claw at the music, tear it up. Another voice broke in, like the ghost of one radio station overlapping with Kiss 108. But this wasn’t the voice of Sunny Joe White. The voice sounded like someone amused, caught in the middle of telling a joke, but then it changed, as if the man had something caught in his throat. The sound was awful, almost hateful, like an animal . . . and then it was just static again. Barb twisted the dial, trying to tune back in to Kiss, but all that came out was static and squealing, so she jabbed the power knob and the inside of the car went silent."
--------------------------------------
"Nothing in these woods could be more dreadful, more terrifying, than the selfish cruelty of ordinary people."

Coventry, MA may be an appealing looking place, and there are some good things happening there, involving some good people, but below the mask of 1984 suburban bliss there lie some darker realities. And over the course of a single Halloween night there will be a cornucopia of revelation. (A Masque of the Orange Death?) As in Poe’s story, there is no refuge from what is coming, and there will be a hefty body count.

Tony Barbosa is a decent guy. Not hugely successful in the world. Just found a job after a long spell out of work. About to sell the family house, the damage from that prolonged unemployment. He puts on a Halloween tradition on his property every year, The Haunted Woods, with all the things one might expect. Sadly, this will be his last time. Daughter, Chloe, 17, loves helping out. His wife, Alice, puts up with it, and his son, Rick, 13, is simply uninterested. He will hang with his friend, Billie, a rare black girl in this area. Tony and Alice are just emerging from a rough patch. The future of their marriage is shaky. On this Halloween night, there will be a whole lotta shakin’ goin’ on.

Attorney Donnie Sweeney is a drunken, philandering pathetic excuse of a husband, reliably unreliable, a chronic liar. His wife, Barb, is reaching her limit with him. ("Everyone loved Donnie Sweeney, but nobody more than Donnie himself, and for the first time, Charlie wondered if that wasn’t his dad’s defining characteristic. He loved his wife and his kids right up to the moment it threatened his ability to have a good time.") Their kids are a surprisingly decent lot, 18yo Julia, 13yo Brian, and Charlie, 11. Really, dude, you cannot simply put your scattered crap back in the garage and shut the garage door, on a weekend, but take off to do whatever, sticking your kids with the task?

In addition to these two families we follow Vanessa Montez, 17, and her bff, Steve Koenig, 16 Both are crushing on the same girl.

Trick-or-treaters are making the rounds, but there are some unfamiliar faces among the crowd tonight. A young-looking (nine, maybe) girl in a rough, old-time Raggedy Ann outfit. A teenaged scarecrow, his costume also seeming to be from another era, and a very pale boy named Leonard. Definitely not a trick-or-treater is the man they say they are fleeing, Mr. Cunning. They beg the local kids to stay with them, to protect them, until midnight, when the coast should be clear. Um, ok, sure, whatever. It is clear, though, that there is something strange in the neighborhood. A giant blackthorn tree appears, and a new (popup?) clearing in the woods. There is hunting going on.

There are two levels to this one, the presenting horror, which is pretty bloody horrifying, and the underlying horrors, also pretty bloody horrifying, but in a different way. In a 2014 interview with Nightmare Magazine, Golden said, "I’m not just fascinated with monsters, but with monstrosity, both human and—in the way it reflects back the human—supernatural." There is a considerable volume of monstrosity in Coventry, hidden, or at least not publicly professed by the residents. A relatively-recently-arrived couple are suspected of dark doings. Are those suspicions accurate or just speculative hyperbole? Donnie’s low character is not exactly a state secret, but his charming mask will not hide him tonight. Bigotries will be exposed. But there is mask-dropping that will be benign, as some folks allow their true selves be seen, to positive effect.

The strength of the novel for me was its portrayal of middle-class duress. Tony Barbosa’s situation wandered queasily close to home. Everybody seems on the cusp of change. Troubled marriages abound. The adult women are given prime roles, their life goals, and marital experiences portrayed evenly with their mates’. Ditto the interactions among the teens and kids, wrestling with changes in their lives, moving from kid to adolescent, from adolescent to something more, discovering and molding who they are or want to be. The strength of Golden’s kid portrayals reminded me very much of Stephen King. There is an element of nostalgia for the 1980s here, but a much larger perspective on a place and time that is portrayed as far from appealing.

There were some aspects that I thought did not work quite so well. While it was possible to follow the many characters tracked here, there seemed rather a lot of them for a book of modest length. Chapters are short and offer alternating viewpoints. There are sixty two chapters in a book of three-hundred-thirty-six pages, so if you are inclined, you can read this one in small bits. Four characters get the most ink. Barb Sweeney gets ten chapters, Tony Barbosa and Vanessa get nine each, and Rick Barbosa gets eight. One character gets four chapters, two get three chapters, one gets two and five other characters get one chapter apiece. The character voices are distinct and Golden goes into sufficient depth with the majors to gain our interest.

Also, I found the layering of the supernatural evil excessive. And the back-and-forth struggle of one character to gain control inside a terrible space just seemed, even within the confines of a fantasy, a bit much. The gruesomeness worked well, offering shocking turns and some surprise demises.

There is persistent creepiness, ramping up from shadows, noises, and fleeting images to more direct darkness and considerable bloodshed.

By the end of the night, many truths will be revealed, facades of all sorts will be ripped off or tossed aside, many lives will have ended and many others will have been permanently changed. The line between a good scare and good, people-centered storytelling has never been thinner. All Hallows is a scary good read.

"Something moved in the forest. A deeper shadow, back in among the trees. Vanessa narrowed her eyes, trying to focus, but someone said something funny and everyone laughed and she pretended to have heard the joke and laughed along with them, and the moment passed.

Still, something in the air had changed. The night seemed darker, as if the moonlight sifting through the branches had dimmed. The shadows had turned weird, the clearing a bit smaller, closer. This time when her skin prickled, it wasn’t from the flush that Julia made her feel, but from the way the night seemed to hold its breath."

Review posted - 01/24/23

Publication date – 02/10/23


I received a digital ARE of All Hallows from St. Martin’s Press in return for a fair review, and the offering of a few Druid prayers. Thanks, folks, and thanks to NetGalley for facilitating.

For a more complete version of this review, with links, and proper formatting, please head over to my site - https://cootsreviews.com/2023/02/10/all-hallows-by-christopher-golden/

All Hallows is a mesh up of neighborhood drama and horror. The first half draws mainly on neighborhood drama and wow is there drama! Even though the book is set in the 1980s, other than the lack of cell phones, it feels more current day than then and the drama highlights that more than the drama. There are a couple cute obscure 80s references, but the drama is more current day. And honestly, it was over the top. It had a lot of shock value that really took away from the overall horror that was about to take place. That all begins in the second half and it is scary! The descriptions really make the horror jump off the page! I got chills! The pace really picks up from there and landslides to the end, which is well done and left me gasping! I would love more horror and less drama!

There's an excellent concept here, but it feels incredibly long. The various POVs are interesting at first but they very quickly become unwieldy, and by the 65% mark, they are actively hindering the book's pacing.

The book begins well but doesn't stick the landing for me. Too many moving parts, too many POVs, and a plodding place kill it for me.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free galley in exchange for an honest review.

3.5

A promising book that boiled down to familial drama. I was expecting this to be more horror centered than it was. While the last approximately 25% did have that horror I was hoping for, everything else revolved around suburban drama; which I wouldn't mind if that was what was advertised. I liked that not much of the monster was revealed, making it scarier. Based on this book, I'd most likely read more by the author because the writing was great. Not entirely a book for me, but definitely something I'd recommend.

All Hallows
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Thriller
Format: Kindle eBook
Date Published: 1/24/23
Author: Christopher Golden
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Pages: 336
GR: 3.62

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

My Thoughts: I became a fan of Christopher Golden with The Road of Bones and will read anything he writes, this one does not disappoint. The story takes place in 1984 on Halloween night. The Barbosa’s host their final haunted woods, a tradition that is coming an end. The Koenig’s will also be hosing a Halloween Party. Not to mention the usually kids going trick r treating through Parmenter Road. I love the nostalgic 80’s sprinkled throughout the story. Weaved into the story is the tale of the “cunning man,” which is creepy all on its own.

The story is narrated by multiple characters, on Halloween night, through their POV. Even with the surplus of characters, it was not hard to keep up with the characters. The characters were developed well with depth, creepiness, mysterious, and creative. The author’s writing style was complex, suspenseful, packed the horror, and kept me invested cover to cover.

For me, this story packed in creepiness, it was dark and disturbing, and the perfect book to read for Halloween. It had an aspect of Stranger Things going on. Suspension of belief is not a problem for me, especially with Golden’s writing. For the last 30-40% of this book, I was on the edge of my seat. I would highly recommend picking up the book or the audiobook on this one.

It’s been a while since I’ve read a Christopher Golden novel, and now I’m asking myself why.

One neighbor having a big Halloween Party, another hosting the last year of the Haunted Woods display, kids trick-or-treating – Parmenter Road is the place to be on Halloween. But those that survive the night will change their minds the next morning and count themselves lucky to be alive.

This is the type of neighborhood where everyone knows your business – or at least they think they do – and rumors abound. Most have some truth behind them. Many of these characters display some of the worst human traits – infidelity, alcoholism, pedophilia, bigotry, and homophobia to name a few And that’s in addition to The Cunning Man and the strange children combing the neighborhood that night. There’s certainly no shortage of horrors in this novel.

With multiple POVs (more than eight adults and teens), it was a little difficult to keep up at first. With each character dealing with their own perilous circumstances, it didn’t take long to distinguish between them. I love the setting – Halloween night in the mid 80s, a fairly small neighborhood surrounded by a forest, creepy children running around begging other kids to shelter them until midnight – it’s perfect. Honestly, I’m surprised this didn’t release in the fall instead of January. Several reviewers struggled with pacing, but I didn’t mind the slower pace in this case, and most of the story takes place in one night.

As a warning there are gory, disturbing, and heartbreaking scenes alike, so be prepared. Some aren’t for the faint of heart. This may be more of a slow-burn horror story, but I plowed through it in two sittings. This much time between Golden novels won’t happen again.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was really looking forward to a good scare, however this just didn’t deliver for me.

The book seems solely focused on neighborhood drama and very little emphasis was placed on the children that didn’t belong and the cunning man.

It wasn’t very scary and honestly was very scattered with all of the different POVs.

With no clear protagonist and no clear direction to the story I was left a little disappointed.