Thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS for early access to this title for review. Absolutely insane read. Not a single likable character and I had a good time throughout. I wasn’t going to watch the AHS adaptation but now I will definitely be tuning in.

"All mothers have one thing in common: pain."

A feminist retelling of Rosemary's Baby, Delicate Condition will have you screaming into that unending void of thousands of other ignored voices declaring their pain is real to masses of indifferent ears.

I really liked this one and can't wait to see what American Horror Story does with it in season 12. It was intense and I caught myself rolling my eyes and grunting audibly in frustration as our main character struggled to find someone who would believe her when she said something didn't feel right with her pregnancy and the events that were occurring around her.

I would recommend this one to anyone but if you liked Rosemary's Baby or any similar books/movies then I would definitely suggest checking this one out.

**I don't really like to do trigger warnings because -this is horror we're talking about- but will say if you have any kind of pregnancy trauma, be sure to do a little research on this one before diving in, some parts were pretty intense**

Thanks Netgalley & Sourcebooks for the opportunity to read this one.

This started much like a predictable thriller where you sensed someone might be messing around with Anna. I wasn't sure what was reality, dreams/nightmares or hallucinations. And who do I trust?! Didn’t seem like anyone was a reliable source! I even started questioning Anna’s mental health at one point along with my own sanity lol. There is a lot of gaslighting, lies, and deceit. But then, the twists and turns took me on an unexpected, thrilling ride I really enjoyed. I definitely didn’t see that ending coming!!!!! Highly recommend! (I would certainly check trigger warnings especially if you’re pregnant or have dealt with infertility or miscarriage.)

Delicate Condition is ultimately about a woman who will do anything to become a mother, even if it means pushing through her own horrific limits.  This book was pitched to me as a feminist Rosemary's Baby, and also as the inspiration for the next season of American Horror Story, so I was very much intrigued. I appreciated the interludes of history/body horror angle on something that is so often just described as a precious gift. Having a baby you desperately wanted is a miracle in this book, but it's not the easy-peasy revelation fiction often depicts childbirth and pregnancy as.
That's all I'm going to say as I definitely think the less you know before you read this one, the better!

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the ARC!

Creepy and weird while being validating about a very real thing that happens when you’re pregnant - you worry and feel blamed when something isn’t perfect. I liked that it was creepy and realistic in that sense at the same time.

I was So excited to have been chosen for an advanced copy of this book!

It starts off very intriguing with creepy things happening to our main character, Anna, right off the bat. As a celebrity in the lime light she’s found herself being stalked by someone hiding behind a user handle who seemingly wishes nothing but the worst for Anna. While it kept a solid pace for a huge chunk of the book, for me, around the 75% mark the story got a little too weird, it bordered on cheesy. I didn’t find it scary but the suspense is there! Overall this fell just a little flat for me but I am really looking forward to watching the tv adaptation.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this e-book in exchange for an honest review.

If you read this because it's being compared as The Push meets The Silent Patient (like I did), then you will be disappointed. Those were both 5-star books for me and Delicate Condition is not like either of those titles. (Publishers - please STOP comparing books to The Silent Patient!!)
If you read this because it's the basis for the next American Horror Story, then you'll probably like it.

It's a slow burn story about Anna, who is finally pregnant after undergoing IVF treatments. She unfortunately experiences a miscarriage, but is convinced she is still pregnant. The story just gets weird from there. She has hallucinations, weird cravings, and doesn't trust anyone. The story gets very repetitive.

The writing was good, and I can see how some people will like this, but I wasn't one of them.

WOW! I really wasn’t sure what to expect when picking up Delicate Condition, but I knew I wanted to read anything being reviewed as the “feminist update to Rosemary’s Baby”. If you don’t already know, Rosemary’s Baby is one of my all-time favorite classic horror stories. I love how well it holds up over time and the subtle chill that I got the entire time reading it. Delicate Condition takes that and ups the level of paranoia to a high I wasn’t expecting.

Our narrator, Anna, is vulnerable, emotional, and incredibly real. The reader can feel her slipping into a state of questioning not only herself, but everything and everyone around her. Valentine writes her as an unreliable narrator, but the reader knows that Anna’s not altogether wrong that something is happening to her. I loved the care that Valentine took with Anna and her struggles. I could tell that she had truly done her research not only into IVF, but the medical treatment of pregnant women as a whole. This is such a compelling and extremely personal topic to cover, and Valentine’s effort was certainly not lost on me as a reader. Her author’s note at the end is a definite must read.

If all of that isn’t enough to convince you to pick this one up, then perhaps the pacing and suspense will lure you in. There are quite a few twists throughout the story that will leave you on the edge of your seat and flipping pages. Just wait until you get to the end because…GASP! It was so good!

Fun Fact: Delicate Condition is the source material for the upcoming new season of American Horror Story! Now is the perfect time to snag your copy and read it before the series starts airing!

A huge thank you to Sourcebooks for my gifted copy!

This one really didn’t hit the spot for me. It seemed like it tried really hard to mix a bunch of genres, but in this case, it didn’t work well. The writing was good, and the story was creepy and atmospheric at first, which kept my attention, but then it got a bit repetitive.

There were so many characters in the story, yet it seemed that Anna's character was the only one that had depth and complexity.

The ending was rather anticlimactic, and it didn't really fit the overall narrative of the story.

I was hoping for a truly spine-chilling blend of thriller and horror, with some mind-blowing plot twists, but it didn't live up to my expectations.

Thank you, NetGalley, the publisher Sourcebooks, and author Danielle Valentine for the ARC copy! I received a free copy of this book, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I heard that the next season of American Horror Story will be based on this book. And, as someone whose never watched a single episode of AHS, I had to read it right away! (Also, that book cover)
We follow Anna as she learns that she is pregnant after a round of IVF. Anna quickly begins having some weird and unexplainable experiences. As her experiences intensify, her paranoia grows and she begins suspecting everyone around her should not be trusted.
This story had some creepy elements and Anna's mental state was a bit unsettling at times. With that said, it wasn't scary (in fact, I thought it could go darker); and I think that a lot of readers - not just horror readers - would enjoy this one. It was strange and weird in all the right ways that kept me fully engaged.
Now I need to look into AHS so that I'm ready for next season.

Thank you to @netgalley @bookmarked and @dreamscape_media for the gifted copy of this book.

When I heard someone say that this book is going to be what the next season of American Horror Story is based off of, I knew I had to read it! I cannot wait to see how this is adapted to TV because if it is even half as good as the book was, it is going to be my favorite season yet.

I went in to this very blind, and I’m glad I did. The twists and turns were unexpected and I definitely didn’t see the ending coming.

There are trigger warnings for miscarriage and infertility, so make sure to look those up if that’s something that affects you.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Delicate Condition is a story about a woman nearing the age of 40, desperate to have a baby. She’s gone through multiple rounds of IVF, pushed herself physically and mentally trying to get pregnant. When finally, the two little pink lines appear.

Anna suffers so much throughout this book.. what I had thought was a “remake” of Rosemary’s Baby- a modern take on the horror classic- turned into something much more. I felt like I actually learned a lot, never have being pregnant myself, but planning on it. This is about woman being heard, being trusted to understand their symptoms, this is about the need to learn more about WHY things happen to pregnant women.

After Anna discovers she is pregnant, strange things start happening… A woman in a blue baseball cap seems to be following her. Disfigured dolls with her likeness start appearing in random places, and the hallucinations. Something is wrong with her baby. And no one, not her husband, nor her doctors will listen.

I think I loved this book. Some things I could not guess, some were obvious, but it certainly didn’t take the route o had hoped it would but still a very satisfying conclusion.

A great stand-alone horror novel, just be prepared to feel more than scared.

5⭐️

Thank you Netgalley, Sourcebooks, and Danielle Valentine for the ARC

Every woman who has been pregnant will see herself in this book.

Anna Alcott is an actress who has just found real commercial success in a movie called The Auteur. She also is a married woman who wants to have a baby more than anything. She is doing IVF, and hoping this time there is a viable embryo. But weird things are happening. Her calendar has the wrong time for appointments, she is leaving medicines out of the fridge, and is almost late for her shot more than once.

But the procedure is finally successful. Anna is pregnant, but she is also in contention for an Oscar. She feels pulled in two directions. When she has a miscarriage, she is devastated and tells her friend Siobhan she was desperate and would do anything.

Then, she feels the baby move. How could that be? The doctor decides it was vanishing twin syndrome and that there must have been two embryos to begin with. Anna feels that isn't right, but she doesn't have an answer of what happened. Al she knows is that this pregnancy is strange. She hears strange sounds, has hallucinations, and keeps finding strange dolls of her around her friend's house, where they are staying.

This book isn't scary, per se, but it is creepy. It also really hits a chord as a woman who has been pregnant. Even if you aren't seeing things and being stalked as a celebrity, pregnancy can be stressful, painful, and give you the feeling that an alien is inside you!

Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book!

Once I heard associations with Rosemary Baby and also the new season of AHS, I knew that I had to read this! It’s different from what I normally read and sometimes you need that. It was tense, creepy, unsettling, depraved at times.

Delicate Condition was a suspenseful story about Anna Alcott who will do anything to have a baby. Anna and her husband are going thru IVF. The pregnancy that she dreamed of has become a nightmare. There were some rosemarys baby vibes going on here in this story. There are some triggers with infertility, miscarriages and animal cruelty. This will make a great movie!

Engrossing might be the best word to describe this read! I stayed up far into the small hours wanting (needing) to know where this narrative was headed. There is no way I could have guessed the ending, though! This enthralling read details one woman's single-minded determination to get (and stay) pregnant even as she feels sinister forces conspiring against her and her fetus. Our protagonist is fully-fleshed out (something I need for a read to be good) and even some the more outlandish scenes feel plausible. A welcomed surprise were flashbacks to others eras, and other pregnant women - while a touch confusing at first, at the end it all came together more than nicely. Valentine has a gift and she has fully realized it with this book!

If you are looking for a layered and thrilling page turning horror book, this is the one for you. I had fun and laughed but also stayed on the edge of my seat throughout it

Beware anyone who is thinking of becoming pregnant - you might want to rethink that decision. Or not. Excellent characters, disturbingly real plot. While Delicate Condition is Danielle Valentine's first adult novel, she obviously has plotting and character development chops. I'd like to see what her YA fiction is like.

Recently, I checked out the first episode of the podcast The Retrievals. It uses the story of the Yale fertility clinic, where a nurse tampered with fentanyl vials, stealing the drug and replacing it with saline, to tell a larger story about women's pain. I ended up not continuing with it because I don't think I'm the target audience.

I've been fortunate enough to have had my medical concerns heard, but I know all too well the history of the medical neglect of women. For one thing, the doctor referred to in this book, the one who experimented on Black women with no regard for their comfort or agency, is almost certainly J. Marion Sims, who's from my home state. My own alma mater, as recently as this century, had an endowed chair in his name.

And all that, to me, is actually what this book is about. I went into it thinking it was obviously going to be a take on Rosemary's Baby. There is that vibe, but this book isn't simply a retelling. It reminds me more of some of Freida McFadden's work, wherein she takes a story that we think we know, like the movie Psycho and then puts her own delicious spin on it. That's what's happening here. There is the Rosemary's Baby vibe, but the actual story unfolds into a bigger, more engaging one about what's it like to have a baby-producing body and how someone's entire personhood can be whittled down to being considered only that--a broodmare and nothing more.

Delicate Condition Review

Delicate Condition is the harrowing story of actress Anna Alcott, who is desperate to have a baby. She and her husband Dex are going through IVF, and after many disappointments, Anna finds she is pregnant. Her story from this point is anything but the idyllic pregnancy - and Anna is gripped by terror after terror that no one else seems to believe.

This story is dark, gory, and tense in the best way. The descriptions of Anna’s mental state throughout are just terrifying, but connected enough to reality that you really question what could be real. I was completely gripped.

The conclusion was dramatic, but completely satisfying and did such a great job of tying everything together. I enjoyed this one from start to finish.

5 stars from me! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️