The blurb of this book has me excited to get into it and I did enjoy parts of it. Sadly, for me personally, I didn’t enjoy how many characters and storylines were going on as it felt a bit disjointed and I couldn’t get into any of them that well. Parts were good but overall it didn’t hold me.

The beginning of this book gave me so much hope for the rest of the story with the strong start and actual plot line. As the story went on, so many characters were introduced, which led to so many point of views that it was hard to keep track of. For this reason, I’ll give the beginning of the book 3 stars, but I was unable to finish the rest due to conflicting plot line and a point of views.

When I read the blurb, I was immediately intrigued and thought of a dark, sinister version of the slimy goo from Ghostbusters II.

What you'll get is so much more…

Corruption, greed, avoidance, hatred, manipulation, vengeance

All the classics that make a horror story with a unique eco-villain that feeding on psychological "trauma."

Yet, the thriller of the story is lost within the various point-of-views. I eventually lost track, but there's no less than 6 different perspectives and all of their individual interactions. Basically, dozens of people pulled into the story that might not have been needed?

But, I do have to say, I did like Cathy. She reminded me a lot of Anne Heche's character in Volcano ('97).

Favourite book of 2023!

This book is perfect for readers who love Emily St. John Mandel and Guillermo del Toro. The prose are beautiful on a backdrop of grotesque horror. I can not say enough good things about this book other than read it. Especially if you currently, or ever lived in Toronto, there is another layer of magic to it.

The book follows many different people who all live and work in Toronto, as a black mold slowly starts to take over the city's buildings. The characters are fascinating to follow as they navigate a city in chaos. Slowly we start to see connections between the people, places and information as the mold continues to grow and change. There is no third act lag which you usually find with atmospheric books like this - which is a gift itself.

One of my favourite quotes, "A true human scream behind them finally, then a guttural shuddering sound, like a new god being born from an old would reopened, pulled out in one piece and set free in these capillary tunnels, the stream of the city itself."

Also there's a racoon that keeps showing up through the book. which was honestly one of my favourite parts to read.

Although I received this book from NetGalley and ECW Press (thank you!), I'll be purchasing this book when it's out and gifting it to all the twisted beautiful souls I know.

This book is best read on public transportation, while wearing a mask and occasionally making direct eye contact with racoons.

Overall 2.5 star read. It'sa fascinating synopsis. Unfortunately, i had issues with the execution. The writing style wasn't for me. I had a hard time adjusting to be able to comprehend. I found myself reading passages multiple times to understand. Because of the writing style, the characters were bland and I cared nothing about the story or whatever they were going through.

#THEMARIGOLD #NETGALLEY. # ANDREWFSULLIVAN

Toronto is dying. The land is falling apart from eroding lakes to sinkholes. There is also a plague which starts under the earth and works its way up buildings. Is it a mould? Is it a fungus? We follow people involved with the condo apartment building from tenants to the owner. This book incorporates apocalyptic fiction, ecohorror, fungus horror, body horror, and more. The book starts off by introducing us to the characters and building, The Marigold. With horror in mind, it is a slow start focussing on world-building (city-building). The horror slowly works its way into the story taking over about halfway through. I really enjoyed this book. It uses some of my favourite horror sub-genres. It is a totally fascinating plot with many characters both main and one-offs. I couldn't stop turning the pages and the climax is brilliantly dark and dismal, my favourite endings always are.

I have somehow found myself immersed in fungal fiction recently, between finishing up Ghost Eaters and binge watching The Last of Us. Not that I'm complaining because it's a pretty neat horror sub-genre. I mean, what's scarier than plants evolving and adapting and overtaking, right?!

Here we have The Marigold, which is a highrise apartment complex in a Canadian city that is slowly being overtaken by a strange black mold. Cathy, a public health inspector, is determined to understand what this toxic goop is and attempts to locate its source as it continues to spread, infecting and killing those who come into contact with it. Soda, a taxi driver, ends up with a thumb drive that contains some answers. And Henrietta, a thirteen year old girl, returns to an underground tunnel on the hunt for the thing that took her friend.

A bit slower and clunkier than I had anticipated, these three individual storylines come crashing together, as they tend to do, in this eco-horror, fungal fiction dystopia. No one is safe from the Wet, and once it comes for you, there's little chance of escape.

This was interesting! I’m not super familiar with eco-horror, and this book definitely fits it as far as I understand the genre, so it was fun reading a genre I’m not as familiar with while still keeping within horror. The Marigold gave me the same vibes as Leviathan Wakes by James S.A. Corey — different character POV’s and eerie mysteries being solved, so I instantly vibed with it.

I’m normally not the biggest fan of a huge cast of characters and having chapters be from different POV’s but it worked exceptionally well with The Marigold. You get a deeper understanding of how deeply rooted The Wet is in every dark corner of Toronto, how this affects the different communities, and how each character is personally affected by this. From the poor that suffers from it, to the rich that supposedly are unaffected by it. It’s definitely an interesting read if you’re into eco-horror and have a preference for horror that involves fungi and infections.

A near-future Toronto is infected by the Wet: a mould-like organism that is slowly but surely growing, changing, absorbing unsuspecting inhabitants of a new luxury apartment block, The Marigold. Told through multiple POVs, this story follows a diverse range of characters as their lives are changed by the Wet, and out of the miasma unfurls an eco-horror tale about poverty, overcrowding, and the soulless cruelty of human ambition.

I loved the premise of this book, as well as the urban, climate-dystopia setting and the focus on down-and-out characters. However, because of the multiple POVs and the sparse, almost offhand writing style, I really struggled to follow what was happening, which made it quite a tiring read. There were times I was tempted to give up, but I didn't, and I do think it came together in the final third of the book with an ending that made it all worthwhile.

An interesting read, not easy, but I appreciate what the author was trying to do here and I do think it's worth a look, especially if eco-horror is your thing.

I was really intrigued by the premise of this novel (eco-fiction, a fungus taking over the city, the importance of community), and I'm a science fiction fan, but very quickly, the story seemed to fall apart, and the many characters got all tangled up and confused. I found myself going back to re-read chapters I read the day before, which I never do - but it's hard to retain information when you're just not interested. Unfortunately, this book wasn't for me, but perhaps I just have the attention span of a gnat! :) Give it a go if you like science fiction, social commentary, multiple POVs, and body horror.

I was not a fan of this book. I found it very hard to get into and the content seemed very strange. I do not think I am a virus/sickness thriller girly. This book probably will be adored by others.

Set in a near-future city based on Toronto where big corporations have turned the world into a surveillance-ridden, economically downturned, rich-get-richer scheme, the Marigold building sits supreme. Slicing into the skyline, the expensive, characterless condos inside are full of used-to-be hockey players, live-streamers, haunted men, and even Stanley Marigold himself in the penthouse suite. But underneath the foundation of the building, of the whole city, is the Wet, an ooey gooey fungus calling for bodies and blood. With engrained ancient rituals, the cut corners of capitalism, and down-on-their-luck conspiracy theorists trying to reveal the truth, The Marigold is made up of interweaving stories of Stanley Marigold, the gardener, two Wet fighters, a recently-fired food delivery worker, a girl looking for her father, and many characters in between.

This book's strength lies in how quickly a character is introduced, how unique they are, and the way the stories overlap to give a bigger picture of the world. I can understand why it's not to everyone's taste to be introduced to so many characters, but I enjoyed even the characters who were shortlived in the narrative and on the page. There's gross body horror and false victories and grime across everything. It's a slow crawl to the end, but I enjoyed every second.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

Received this ARC on @netgalley for an honest review. I don’t think I’ve ever rated a book this low and it pains me to do so because I know how hard authors work but this was just really hard to get through.
I’ve seen a lot of reviews say there is a good story in here somewhere but it’s so hard to get through because there are just so many characters and so much back and forth. I was confused and bored most of the book but pushed through to finish. Wouldn’t recommend but hope with some feedback Andrew can write an awesome next novel

Who knew, the landlords were the bad guys all along?!

Jk, we all knew that.

This is so timely, especially with the housing crisis we’re seeing in Southern Ontario. It’s a little horror, a little social commentary and honestly a little humour (the raccoons, omg).

This crumbling dystopian version of Toronto was so interesting to read about. I especially loved the quote “Although people swore this was the end of the world, Dale knew the truth - the world was only flipping the mattress.” Life, uh, finds a way… right?

I thought the writing was very easy to read and enjoyed reading all the Toronto references. The Wet is such a weird, gross enigma and the only thing I’d say is that I almost wanted more of this weirdly sentient mold. And more about the gardeners! I’m honestly so intrigued by all the lore.

Out April 18, 2023.

I struggled with this. The writing is disjointed and clunky. Too many characters introduced at once made the story feel not very cohesive. I was intrigued by the plot but was ultimately let down by the writing.

Loved this book! The body horror, the originality, the pace. It was perfect for me. I am a Palahniuk fan and would this to anyone who also enjoys his work.

An extremely timely body/eco horror read! Overall very enjoyable. I enjoyed my time in the world and setting. Good world-building.

This book has a fascinating premise but the narrative voice wasn't engaging enough for me - I got through some of it but eventually had to DNF.

In a future Toronto shady deals are being done by property developers to ensure that their new buildings are built quickly. However, once strange happenings begin and people start disappearing the full truth will be brought to the surface quite literally.

This was a really gripping dystopian horror novel about how we live and the community that we live in. I was gripped by each character in this strange world and desperately hoped for a happy ending (for some of them!). A gripping and unsettling tale of progress at any cost and what makes us a community.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review