The Marigold is one of those books that will stick with you for a long time after reading... a must-read for fans of dystopian novels and eco-horror.

The plot: Set in the near future, the novel depicts a Toronto on the brink of collapse due to non-stop real estate development, anti-human corporations controlling everyday life, and environmental disaster. A mysterious new and tremendously powerful force called the Wet is slowly taking over the city by rotting infrastructure and claiming human victims. Several characters (a health inspector, a down-on-his luck man trying to pay his bills, and a teenaged girl) all share in the same quest to understand this force before it destroys the people and places they call home.

My perspective: Sullivan does well to develop a number of interesting characters - some we feel compelled to root for, and some we hope to see suffer miserably. The social commentary is biting - the author highlights the all-too-familiar themes of capitalist excess, the destruction of the planet we call home, and the anomie felt in an increasingly data-driven and "online" world. The writing of the novel is efficient with few wasted words and pacing that feels slow to start and accelerates rapidly toward the end of the book.

Thank you NetGalley and ECW Press for this ARC!

Thank you Netgallery for giving me an ARC copy to review.
The Marigold is an enjoyable dystopian novel, with an interesting premise, set in an Dystopian Toronto. The dystopian world and the social commentary in the Marigold feels relevant and reflects discussions on Environmentalism and corporate greed . The world building adds to both the atmosphere and social commentary. All of the main perspective characters offer a unique view of the world, coming from different backgrounds. Overall, The Marigold is an engaging read with strong world building and social commentary.

The Marigold offers a unique, fast-paced plot with an eerie yet plausible glimpse of urban life impacted by climate change. I came for the plot and the “eco-fiction” genre descriptor, and stayed for the writing, which is spot-on and evocative.

In the future city of Toronto, below the frequently-flooded subways and basements, below cavernous sinkholes that have now dotted the urban landscape, something is alive.

Something - a living decay called “the Wet” - is making itself known to the characters in The Marigold, one by one. There’s namesake of The Marigold luxury condo skyscraper, Stanley Marigold, who has inherited a real estate empire from his ailing father, and is building a second Marigold tower, even though the first is struggling. There’s gig worker Soda, who earns a living driving through the changing urban landscape…and his father Dale, who has fully bought into many conspiracy theories about what’s really happening with the Wet. There’s Cathy Jin, a public health worker who has witnessed firsthand how the Wet has grown from a persistent, mysterious fungus into something else entirely. And then there’s Henrietta, who lives nearby one of the city’s sinkholes.

Overall, it’s a well-written (if slightly too long) story of what lives in the shadows: the handful of powerful, rich families who control the city; the data that builds algorithms, surveillance states, and eventually empires; and the ever-persistent beat of chaotic weather - torrential rain, floods, winds - which rots and undermines the city from below.

Over the course of The Marigold, the individual stories merge and mesh as the mystery unfolds. There’s a lot of exposition offered by characters - their motivations, social commentary, etc. - maybe a bit too much at times that veers into Bond-villain territory. This was offset, though, by the intricate (dystopian) world building, which was interesting and well done.

As someone whose basement has flooded twice from 100-year and 500-year rain events (both occurring within 8 years of each other), the climate impacts detailed in The Marigold don’t feel that far-fetched at all. Yes, the more horror-inspired elements are pretty terrifying; and it’s safe to say this book won’t leave many feeling uplifted. But it will leave readers thinking about the price we pay for progress - and it certainly won’t be a tale they’ll forget anytime soon. It’s a wild, original, and memorable ride.

Thanks to Net Galley and ECW Press for the eARC copy of this book.

The Marigold is, at the surface, a story of an insidious, sentient killer fungus known as “The Wet”, and the everyday lives of Torontarians who are dealing with the changing world around them. There are more layers than an onion in the story though, and they peel back the further in we delve.

The characters were brilliant, I especially loved the dynamic of Jasmine & Cathy. Working as an underfunded Homecare nurse during Covid, I could relate to them completely as jaded public health workers thrown in to a nightmare with limited support & resources. The author flips between a few main characters, and the bizarre tenants actually living in the Marigold. The tenant chapters were my favourites.

A Canadian setting was very refreshing. Also, living in St.Albert, I was so hyped up seeing it actually mentioned in a book for probably the first time ever!

The only thing I would have changed in this book is the whole ritual/secret builders club bits. That was a bit hard to understand, and honestly, a killer fungus created by climate change was enough in itself to interest me in this book. Due to some of the puzzling narrative surrounding the Gardener (& builders cult) that is why I am giving this a 3 star rating.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and ECW Press for a copy.

Many thanks to ECW Press, the author, and NetGalley for my copy of the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Something sinister is stirring in Toronto. Deep in the recesses of the earth, clawing its way up and up and up, comes the Wet, a toxic mold that everyone who holds any power does their best to pretend isn't a problem. Mask, deflect, and bury. Deeper.

I was drawn to The Marigold by the synopsis while browsing one day. I was pulled in by the promise of a dystopia, of ecological horror, and social commentary. In short, it sounded very much like this was going to be in a similar vein to Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer, which is my favourite book of all time. I could barely contain my excitement when I got the email saying I had been approved for the eARC, and I began reading immediately.

Unfortunately - and I say this with great sadness - The Marigold can't compare to Annihilation in any way, shape, or form... except for the fact that Sullivan is indeed an excellent writer, as is VanderMeer.

The Wet is supposed to gradually infiltrate the reader's mind and spread fear and a sense of foreboding as the story goes on. It is meant to create deep unease. For me, at least, it completely missed the mark, as I was not unsettled or anxious at any point while reading. The narrative, regardless of who's point of view we were looking through, spent far too long on the social commentary and not nearly enough on the horror or tension aspects. The random sexual parts were also deeply jarring and unpleasant to read... but maybe that was the point.

There are a number of characters in the book; some appear for one chapter, some are featured throughout. I thought that seeing the Wet from the perspectives of many people was a really good method for giving us a more rounded understanding of what this thing can do and why we should be afraid of it. However, I also think that too much time was given to the mundane parts that almost tip into purple prose territory, and too much focus was put on Stanley Marigold himself. I ached to know more about the start of the Wet, to solve its mysteries, and to follow Henrietta more closely. Her journey was the most interesting by far, and we really don't get enough of her and Cabeza.

The social commentary was spot-on, of course. The rich take and take and take; what do they care if the poor and the bereft die to—literally—make their empires grow? What's a few sad souls compared to a life of money and fame? I thought the use of humans as seeds for the prosperity of buildings was a clever idea, and a highly sinister one if given too much thought. The way in which the normal working class is treated hits a little too close to home sometimes, us plebs only being fodder for helping the rich get richer. Sad, but true.

As I said previously, I am sadly disappointed in The Marigold. I think Sullivan has all of the components here for a fantastic book: a brilliant plot, diverse range of characters, a creepy 'enemy', solid worldbuilding... but it was largely lost underneath the huge number of POVs we get, the utter lack of tension for the majority of the book, and the focus being on anything other than the Wet itself for far too much of the book.

I really, really wanted to enjoy this, and I will happily and eagerly read further works from this author, but unfortunately The Marigold was just lacking that spark for me.

I was very excited to see a dystopian novel set in Toronto as a fellow Canadian! This could've been any city at the end of the day.
I liked the premise of the book, it ties together human stories, a bleak future, and the forever rich wanting to get forever richer.
Unfortunately the "monster" itself was a bit too 80s thriller for me, and the "dark elite club" aspect of it was also maybe a bit out of context.
There were way too many stories for me, I struggled to care about the characters with every chapter being about a different person.

The Marigold by Andrew F Sullivan was not for me. I’m thankful I got a chance to read it however I will not read this again or recommend this to others. Thank you!

A really enjoyable dystopian thriller. Lots of different threads and maybe a few too many characters but all came together in the end.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an ARCof this book.

The beautiful and intriguing cover is what initially drew my attention to this novel, but the original and well-developed story is what kept me enraptured throughout my reading. I really loved how this story was told through the various individual perspectives, meaning we saw The Wet from every angle as the story progressed. I especially loved the small chapters of the inhabitants of the hotel! I felt these chapters really helped to give the reader more of an understanding of how The Wet behaved and how it preyed on people before the POV characters began to understand it themselves. This was such an original idea and it was paced really well, nothing felt like it dragged on too much or was rushed. I will definitely be recommending this book to friends.

Thank you, ECW Press, for allowing me to read The Marigold early"

Terrifyingly good. I devoured it.

Andrew F. Sullivan crafts a story that includes elements of science fiction, moments of fear and tension, and action. An enjoyable dystopian novel.

DNF - There were so many aspects of this book that drew me to want to read it. The cover art alone is a magnificent feat & I felt the promise of a fantastic story must be held within. Unfortunately, this story could do with some editing to remove some of the excess dialogue & points of view. I say this because the horror that was being built upon the prologue was absolutely lost by including over seven (7) characters before we hit 20%. Far too many people are being granted permission to twist & turn the narrative in various directions & ultimately strip the story of its thrill. By the time I had hit 17%, I was confident that I must be nearing 30% & was very discouraged that this was not the case.

Including so many people who are all granted their independent point of view, detailed backstory, & series of events drowned the story in excess. We knew the world that this story takes place in - this was explained in the beginning chapter. Therefore, it brings nothing but excessive detail to have the world of every character, within the story's world, granted pages of descriptors. Should the author be dedicated to having nearly ten (10) people be given dedicated chapters, these chapters do not need to explain everything so flamboyantly. It rains a lot, we know this, not everyone needs to comment on this. It's grimy in the streets, we know this, not everyone needs to explain how grimy it is.

Ultimately, I am choosing to not finish this book because I think it deserves more work & timing. I wanted to know what became of "The Wet" & its origin but this was taken away from me by the inclusion of so many tertiary characters. With that being said, the visceral aspects of this book would translate well into film so, I hope that is an opportunity that is presented because I think seeing "The Wet" absorb & destroy people at random would be haunting.

I had a really hard time with this book. There were so many characters and plots that I couldn’t really figure out what was going on.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Full review closer to publication date!

I'd like to thank the publisher, ECW Press and Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. It was thought provoking and entertaining at the same time. There were only a few parts that I thought needed skimming but it wasn’t a deal breaker!

It was at times a little hard to follow with the different narratives however I’d recommend this book to fans of sci-fi/dystopian thrillers. I’d be interested in more books from the author as well.

Thank you to NetGalley, ECW Press, and the author Andrew F Sullivan for allowing me to receive an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

The Marigold is set in a dystopian type Toronto. This novel is a thriller, a mystery, science fiction, fantasy, and horror all rolled into one. The cover of this book is what initially drew me in.

The story itself was well thought out. I did think there were far to many side tales about unimportant characters that made this book at times drag on a bit.

The ending was somewhat expected, but I am still happy that I chose to request this ARC. For anyone who is a fan of any of the above mentioned categories, I think they would find this to be an interesting read.

This was definitely not my favorite dystopian type thriller but overall it was a decent read.

Such an intriguing, chilling sci-fi! This isn’t really my genre of choice but I did enjoy it, and could definitely see people who really like the genre rating it 5 stars.

Thank you NetGalley for allowing me to receive an arc in exchange for my honest review- all thoughts and opinions are my own.


You know those books/movies … where you feel like maybe it’s not too far fetched? Yeah. The corporate greed and general human crappiness is real in this. A little close to home, eh?

What initially drew me into this novel was the striking cover and the premise. Set in the near-future Toronto, this dystopian novel follows a cast of characters navigating a world where climate change and corporate greed without ethics runs rampant

Andrew Sullivan does a great job of setting the stage and building atmosphere without drowning us in exposition. The book has a great vibe and at some points reminded me of season 1 of Stranger Things. Similar to the show, you have different groups of characters investigating the same phenomenon that eventually intersects with one another.

There are times where the book dragged for me. I think the book would have done well either cutting some of the perspectives or breaking up the plot over the course of a number of books. Of the characters involved in the storyline, you only feel for a few because the story jumps around so much.

3.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and ECW Press for this free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I'm a sucker for dystopian future stories and The Marigold delivers. It takes place in a near-future Toronto where disaster, corruption, and horror weave through the city. Due to the various characters and storylines that need to be established, the book takes a bit to get going, but I feel that it starts hitting its stride around Chapter 5 and becomes hard to put down. Andrew F. Sullivan does an excellent job of explaining the characters and their motivations and I found myself wanting to learn more. If you love dystopian survivor stories and sci-fi thrillers, this is a great book for you. Special thanks to ECW Press and NetGalley for the eARC of the book!