I can’t thank @bookmarked enough for the advanced reading copy and to @netgalley for the advanced listening copy. Since I found out about this in April, it’s been one of my most anticipated books. I devoured this in 3 days and truly enjoyed the wild ride this book was. For starters, this is one of my favorite covers of the year. It's so ominous yet beautiful. The story centers around Anna Alcott, a celebrity dealing with infertility and IVF (trigger warnings). Then she gets pregnant. Unfortunately, Anna suffers a miscarriage yet is convinced she is still pregnant. What happens when no one around you listens to you? Including your husband. This book felt a lot deeper than just a thriller/horror novel. It feels real. And the author note at the end? Please read it. Because it gave me chills just like the rest of the novel.

I audibly gasped at the twists and turns this story took. The ending was incredible and in true AHS fashion, gives you a run for your money. BTW did you know this is the inspiration for American Horror Story Season 12: Delicate?! Such an incredible feat for Danielle and now that I’ve gotten the chance to read this, I can definitely see why! So, until we get an update on when season 12 comes out - you should DEFINITELY pick this book up when it publishes TOMORROW AUGUST 1ST!

@hillaryoutloud was the narrator of this audiobook and she did such a great job portraying Anna. Every emotion was felt, whether it was fear, anger, frustration, or exhaustion, I felt it all. When I wasn’t reading the physical copy, I was thinking about it and trying my hardest to listen to the audio. I just couldn’t put it down until I was done.

I went into this book not really sure what to expect and I can’t for sure say if that’s how it should be read or not. Admittedly I felt the beginning was a bit slow but that may come from the fact that I typically listen to murder mysteries where someone is dead within the first few chapters. I was not expecting the book to take such a body horror turn but that aspect definitely kept me listening so I could get some answers. Overall this was a great book and I could stop listening!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, and Dreamscape Media for gifting me an audio ARC of this amazing book by Danielle Valentine and wonderfully narrated by Hillary Huber - 5 stars!

Anna Alcott is an actress who wants desperately to be a mother. She's going through grueling IVF treatments, but it seems that someone doesn't want her to get pregnant. Appointments get switched and medicines left unrefrigerated - her husband blames her but Anna knows it's not her. Then she suffers a miscarriage but still believes she's pregnant. Then she believes she's being stalked. When things ratchet up even more, Anna and her husband head to a friend's house. But things just get weirder.

This is a tough book to classify and review - but it's just so good that you want to shout about it! It's about motherhood and being told my men to calm down instead of believed. It crosses genres from thriller to horror to social commentary. It's wonderfully written and the narration just made it that much better. A must read!

Thank you NetGalley for this audiobook.

I think the reason why pregnancy horror resonates so deeply is because anyone who experiences pregnancy deals with their fair share of anxiety, body horror, and general fear of the future (especially with a first pregnancy when the experience is so new). This story takes a modern, more woman centered spin on Rosemary’s Baby while we follow Anna who is in the throes of IVF which sounds like a nightmare unto itself. She’s being gaslit by her husband and her doctors, an experience so many of us have in relation to our health and our bodies.
Valentine’s writing is as accessible as it was in her YA horror How to Survive Your Murder but comes across a bit more mature here. But if you liked the last one there’s a good chance that you’ll like this one too.

Thank you, NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for this advance copy in exchange for my review.

This was a great thriller. It was creepy in the best possible way and had a great cast of characters.
The entire time reading I thought this would make an exceptional TV series only to find out that Ryan Murphy is using it for AHS. That is absolutely perfect because it 100% has AHS vibes.
I loved the twists and loved the ending even more.
Hillary Huber was fantastic as usual.

4.5 stars.

This book held my interest, it just got a bit.....weird. I think I thought it would be a thriller, but it aligns more with horror. Still, it was well written with an interesting story line. Good narration. 3.5 stars.

As a big fan of AHS and the knowledge Delicate Condition would be what the new season would be based on, I was very excited to receive both a physical and audio ARC of this novel. I did listen to exclusively on the audiobook and the narration was fantastic!

Delicate Condition is an immersive and completely unnerving thriller had me hooked from the start. Anna Alcott, an actress in her late thirties, would do anything to have a child. Her journey with IVF has been difficult, causing mounting frustration and anxiety that she and her husband won't be able to conceive. On top of this, her fame increases as Oscar buzz surrounds her latest movie, forcing her into the public eye and garnering negative attention on various social media platforms. Her husband and her doctors are quick to blame stress as the cause of her forgetfulness when she misses appointments or loses medications. Still, Anna, who begins to receive cryptic notes on her phone, is convinced someone is trying to sabotage her; when she finally becomes pregnant, a break-in at her home occurs and forces her to go into hiding. As her symptoms worsen and the messages she receives grow more threatening, Anna wonders: is her baby even human?

I was gasping at all the twists, turns and reveals, I truly did not see anything coming. If you love dark mystery thrillers I highly recommend this.

𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧
𝐁𝐲 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞 𝐕𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞
𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫: 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝟖.𝟏.𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑 𝒞𝑜𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒮𝑜𝑜𝓃!

Thank you @bookmarked for the gifted copy.

Thank you @dreamscape_media for the complimentary audiobook.

Okay, wow! This book did not go where I thought it would - but it was a wild read!

Anna Alcott is a successful actress with a loving husband, but now in her late thirties, she wants to be a mom. She and Dex have been going through the IVF and Anna starts to notice, well Dex first points out, that she is forgetful. Anna misses appointment dates and forgets medicines but swears she is not at fault.

When she finally conceives, Anna and Dex are ecstatic, only to be devastated when they lose the baby weeks later. But… Anna swears she feels something still stirring inside her, and strange symptoms are increasing. But the doctors tell her it's all hormones.

Then Anna starts having visions that something else is growing inside her… but what?

This started much like a thriller where you sensed someone might be messing around with Anna. You don’t know who to trust; I even started questioning Anna’s mental health. There is a lot of gaslighting, lies, and deceit. And then, as the story progressed, an element of horror/fantasy was mixed in! I don’t want to say too much because I don’t think you’ll guess the ending. I sure didn’t see that coming!

Besides being an edgy, twisted, and chilling thriller, this one speaks loudly to female reproductive rights and care. So if you are uncomfortable with descriptions of IVF, miscarriage & pregnancy, please be aware.

I absolutely loved this one. It was ridiculously creepy.

Anna and her husband had been trying to get pregnant for years. Now in her mid to late 30's, Anna is losing hope. When it finally happens, someone or something wants to see the pregnancy end. Is Anna a reliable narrator? Are the hallucinations in her head? Or is there something terribly inhuman about the baby growing inside of her.

I thought the narrator of this book did a fantastic job.

I typically don't like books that throw a miscarriage in there just for shock value when it adds nothing to the plot, but this book was entirely centered around something wrong with a pregnancy. The reader goes back and forth, wondering if there is a stalker messing with Anna, or if there is something demonic happening, or if it is all in Anna's head. It keeps you guessing until the end.

The only thing that kept me from 5 stars was the ending. I don't want to give anything away, but I felt the ending didn't quite fit the whole vibe of the book. It didn't keep me from loving this book. Apparently the next installment of American Horror Story will be based on this book, and I can see why.

Wow! I did not see those twists at the end coming! And of course, he was cheating on her the entire time, what a fucking douche nozzle. This was my 1st book by this author but it will certainly not be my last! I am adding all of their books to my TBR!

#DelicateCondition
#NetGalley.

Thoroughly creepy what some women will do to have a baby. The husband was trash. People she trusted were trash. The only trustworthy person was the damn security guy she hired. I normally dislike books that make it seem like the woman is hysterical or unreliable or losing her mind, but this one was different for me. Maybe because even through it all, she still wouldn't be fully tricked into believing she was crazy.

Wow! This kept twisting the angles and I didn’t know where this story was going to go, even at the end.
Delicate Condition follows a woman who believes others - possibly evil forces — are trying to make sure her pregnancy doesn’t happen. Anna Alcott has been through the hurdles of IVF and when she finally learns she’s pregnant, it seems they’re in the clear. But after a devastating miscarriage, she can still sense a baby growing inside, and it becomes apparent other forces are at work, especially as the hallucinations make it hard to tell what’s real and what isn’t.
This was a wonderful, intense thriller that constantly left me wondering what twist was around the corner. While giving some Rosemary’s Baby vibes, this story holds its own. And for American Horror Story fans, the new season is rumored to be based around this novel!
The narrators were dynamic and expressive, easy to follow which character’s story was being told on the moment.
Thank you to Dreamscape Media for the ARC! This comes out 8/1.

When I learned that the new season of AHS coming out is based on this novel, I knew I wanted to read it. Thank you @netgalley @dreamscape_media for an advance audio copy.

Anna has been a working actress for over two decades when her career starts really hitting its stride. She is happily married and anxiously going through IVF treatments when she learns it has worked and she’s pregnant. That’s when things start getting weird. She’s being followed, things are being stolen, the appointments on her calendar are getting moved and she has a creepy not-so-much-a-fan stalker. Sadly, she is told she has had a miscarriage. Or has she really? Best to dive into this one without anymore information than that.

I can certainly see that Delicate Condition will make a great season for AHS. There are lot of sensitive topics and many societal issues covered in the novel which seemed like too much in one story, but it is well done nonetheless and pace of the novel didn’t significantly suffer from the ambitious undertaking. The narration by Hillary Huber is very good as always. I’m looking forward to seeing this on FX!

Pub date: August 1, 2023
Pages: 320
My Goodreads rating: 3.5/5

‼️ trigger warning : pregnancy complications ‼️

•ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ•
This was a wild ride! I thought in the beginning I knew what was going on, but as things unfolded - I realized I had no clue. I felt anxiety through the entire book!!! I’ve never tried to get pregnant or been pregnant, but Anna’s IVF pregnancy journey throughout is fear inducing. That is why I put the trigger warning because if it affected me like that - I can only imagine how moms or soon to be moms out there would feel reading this. Danielle’s writing is brilliant! She makes you feel like you are living each and every moment her character’s endure and as a result - I stayed up way too late many nights as I was eager to figure things out!!!

Hillary’s narration is also beautifully done. The pace and tone of her voice added to the tension and suspense in this book. I definitely recommend the audiobook version, but be prepared for some crazy dreams if you listen before bed.

This is not my typical read and I definitely went out of my comfort zone by choosing this one. I am new to horror and this book was the creepiest and most suspenseful book I have ever read. It had the right amount of horror/thriller with so many twist I got whiplash. Definitely a must read.
The Netgalley fairies sprinkled their fairy dust and I was given the audio and the ebook so I switched between reading and listening. The narrator did an amazing job she gave this book a chilling listening experience I won't soon forget. Thank you Netgalley and Dreamscape Media, and SourceBooks Landmark for the ARC in exchange for my review.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. Anna is a famous actress struggling to have a baby and is going through the IVF process to see if she can finally get pregnant. Once she starts the process, she starts to forget things and mixes up appointments. Not only that she also feels that she is being followed and she keeps seeing a woman watching her. Is she losing her mind or is this really happening. This was a good book and I enjoyed it for the most part until it got a little bizarre and gave me the “Rosemary’s Baby” feels. However, I had to keep reading as I had to find out how this one would end. Enjoy!!!

Thank you, NetGalley!

I liked the narrator, she had a lot of emotions in her voice and it felt like the main character was telling me the story. Although sometimes it did seem like she talked kinda slow overall the narration was really good. I liked the overall story, it was very similar to Rosemary’s baby. It seemed at times a retelling not a new story.

Thank you Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the ALC.

Story: 🌟🌟🌟
Narration: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Overall: 🌟🌟🌟

Delicate Condition is a bonkers horror novel about Anna, an actress desperate to get pregnant. She is starting to believe someone does not want her to get pregnant. When the IVF finally succeed, she is told she has had a miscarriage. The problem is that Anna still feels pregnant. And something is desperately wrong.

I absolutely love this author and know that at any other time, I would have enjoyed this read. Sadly, I read this at the wrong time and it impacted my enjoyment level. However, I cannot wait to see what horrors Danielle Valentine comes up with next!

ALC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Delicate Condition by Danielle Valentine
Format: Audio
Release Date: 8/1/23
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I went into this audiobook blind after my husband told me the next season of American Horror Story will be based on this novel! I don’t even watch the show so I’m not sure why this was a selling point to me, but I’ll absolutely be checking out the season after listening to this creepy story!

First off, the narrator was phenomenal. She was perfectly cast for our main character and had a great way of portraying how unsettled and frustrated our main character was throughout the story. There is a lot of difficult content in this book too and she handled that with care as well.

I personally really enjoyed this book! It is a great mix of horror and thriller that really builds tension throughout while also discussing how hard it is to be taken seriously as a woman.

One of my favorite novels is Rosemary’s Baby and this book does remind me quite a bit of that book while still being it’s own thing. I will say, please look up content warnings if you have ever dealt with infertility or pregnancy issues and be kind to yourself if it feels like a difficult read to you! Big thanks to @netgalley for the advanced copy of the audiobook!

Anna is desperate to get pregnant. While juggling her taxing IVF journey and her public life she, she starts to get a feeling that someone is trying to prevent her from getting pregnant. When she finally gets pregnant, her husband doesn’t believe that someone’s playing with her. After lost medicine, moved appointments, and cryptic threats she leaves her home and goes into hiding. And then she’s told by her doctor that she’s had a miscarriage. But Anna is sure he must be mistaken, she can feel her baby moving. Is her mind playing tricks on her? As her symptoms increase and become well, odd, she can’t help but sense danger and feel like there is something terribly wrong.

I was not expecting what I just read/listened to. It’s absolutely superb. This went from a thriller to dabbling into horror? Don’t quote me on that but what I really want to say might be stepping into spoiler territory and I won’t do that to you. Delicate Condition does have its fair share of trigger warnings regarding infertility, miscarriage, + more but I think Danielle Valentine handled the topic delicately and for those who have been through a journey like this, I think they’d appreciate the way this was written. I loved the direction Delicate Condition went and I enjoyed it very much. This is my first Danielle Valentine book I’ve had the pleasure of reading and it definitely will not be my last. Delicate Condition is out August 1, 2023 and I will be getting myself a physical copy!

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ARC, and giving me the chance to listen and review it honestly.