This was a super fun ride. A cult classic horror star who has fallen out of the limelight, pulled back in by an unseen/unknown villain. I loved that there was both reality based and supernatural horror throughout the book. It bends into many current societal elements like the additional anxiety caused by incessant filming of others and internet backlash. While the story is squarely current, it also does a lot of leaning into the classic horror vibes from 80s and 90s horrors.

This book keeps you guessing until the last second!

In her early twenties, Jorie and her two best friends formed the October Film Haunt, an online blog, where each October they set out to explore the set of an indie horror film. Under unfortunate circumstances the group falls apart and Jorie gives up the entire horror genre for ten years, until she is forced back into participation as a sequel of her last blog location is announced.

This novel includes a ton of different POVs but Jorie is heard the most. There are also blog posts included as chapters which I always enjoy! Social media is mentioned a lot which I don't mind, I found the jokes about them included super funny. Covid is mentioned as well, as the book is set in current day.

I'm not a horror movie buff by any means but read this book instead because I love horror literature. I was able to pick up on most of the references to movies just from common knowledge and didn't feel confused at all. The amount of explanation behind the structure of movie development world gave me a great grasp on what the characters were responsible for. I was honestly quaking in my boots reading this one, it gave me quite the scare. It had me looking behind my kindle to make sure a creature wasn't crouching there. It would be a great spooky Cctober read.

I would say that the first half of the book felt a lot quicker paced than the last half. The build up to the final scene had me expecting a little bit more. I also would have liked to see more from/about Agatha.

Thank you netgalley and publisher for letting me read this ARC!

This book has a creepy, dark undertone that is prominent throughout. However - I struggled very hard to get into it. I found myself wandering off thinking about other things while I was reading and then had to force myself to re-read what I had already read and, realizing I started doing this myself more and more, I finally had to admit defeat and give up this book.

The idea behind this is that it gives VHS / Blair Witch / Slenderman unsettling kind of vibe. Which I get, and I love because those movies are super creepy in their own right. But the story line just wasn’t grasping my attention. Thank you for the ability to review this book.

This was a delicious horror read. Chilling down to the marrow. It gave me Blair Witch vibes. And then the ending--BOOM! Masterful. Unsettling in the best way.

I was giving it 4 stars and then that ending 🤯. I am going to be mind blown for a few days. And i am thoroughly freaked the eff out.

Wehunt is notorious for writing ridiculously scary books, and he did not let me down with The October Film Haunt. You’ll be in a constant “what the hell am I reading?” state — but in the best way possible. It’s like The Ring meets The Blair Witch Project, and I am 100% here for it. I totally related to Jorie, the main character, whose love of scary movies and chasing that feeling of dread ends up pulling her into her own personal horror film. Creepy, smart, and unsettling in all the right ways.

The October Film Haunt by Michael Wehunt is a masterfully layered horror novel that blurs the line between obsession and reality, dragging readers into a chilling world where cult cinema and real-life terror collide. Jorie Stroud’s journey from beloved horror blogger to reluctant “final girl” is both emotionally compelling and deeply unsettling, as past sins and supernatural forces resurface with terrifying intensity. The atmosphere is thick with dread, and the eerie presence of the elusive director Hélène Enriquez adds an extra layer of menace. This book is a haunting meditation on fandom, fear, and the stories we choose to believe. Creepy, smart, and surprisingly moving, it delivers a slow-burn terror that lingers long after the final page.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC. I was excited for this book. It had such potential but unfortunately it just fell short for me. I’m a ferocious reader and can normally fly through books but it literally took me over a month to get through this one. I almost DNF’d it. I was intrigued at first but then it just hit a wall. It felt so long and drawn out. I wanted it to be over. I couldn’t connect with the characters. I still don’t even really know what I read. I get that it was a novel built off of a short story, so maybe the short story would do it more justice. It definitely did have some eerie tension filled moments but just not enough to salvage this book for me.

3 ⭐️

The premise of this book was SO intriguing, but unfortunately fell flat for me. The author, Michael Wehunt, writes beautifully descriptive narratives however the horror of the story didn’t hit for me like I hoped it would. There were a lot of filler chapters that didn’t seem to progress the plot, and a lot of POV switches that I had a hard time keeping up with. I felt like I couldn’t truly attach myself to any character. The ending of the book though was super creepy and pulled everything together, but wasn’t satisfying as it left me speculating about what could’ve happened next. It definitely didn’t need to be as long as it was either, the last 20-30% of the book things ramped up significantly. The build up was just a bit slow for me.

Thank you so much NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for sending me this e-ARC to review!

It took me longer to read this book than what I expected. I kept having to put it down...it was so disturbingly creepy! I loved it! Great take on the haunted/cursed film horror sub-genre.

I think the concepts in this book were really interesting and presented in a unique way, combining online lore and urban legends, cults, and the supernatural in a refreshing way. The cast of characters gets a little bloated in the middle of the book and the pacing does get a bit slow. I think I would have enjoyed this one more if it had been just a touch shorter/edited down, but it was still a good read.

Definitely a recommend for folks (like me) who consume horror in any medium they come across. This is a love letter for the horror community with scattered references only we understand. Anyone looking to dip their toe in the genre might not enjoy this book as much as people firmly entrenched in the existing lore.

I absolutely love cursed film and found footage and this book uses both to really great effect. The first half of the book is an absolute masterclass in dread and slowly revealed clues. The film featured in this book, Proof of Demons, sounds absolutely terrifying and the scenes describing it are incredibly unnerving. There are scenes in the second half as well that are undeniably terrifying as well. It’s one of those books that just gets underneath your skin and stays there for days after you finish.

I wanted to like this book. I really wanted to be enthralled in this story and feel the fear with Jorie. Instead, I felt like this script went unedited. We’re introduced to Jorie Stroud, a former horror film enthusiast, years after an experience changed her and her friends’ lives. The story jumped between characters, and it felt incredibly jilted. It was too long, and the pacing was agonizing. Even in the last 10% of the book, I was not sure how the story would end. I enjoy thrillers and mysteries, but October Film Haunt was not the thriller for me.

I grabbed this up, because the cover caught my eye originally, but the synopsis was just as good.

We start off with Jorie, who created The October Film Haunt, and its great, until its not.
Tragedy strikes and completely destroys the group and ended fatally.
Not able to recover from something like that everyone splits off to live their life, until 10 years later.

Fast forward to a new life, and no contact with the old, but the past, just like a bad penny, always wants to pop back up, and she starts getting weird messages, and basically being stalked.

This book was dark and twisty, I really enjoyed it, I kept trying to decide who was the actual bad guy in all of this, is Jorie being tormented, or could she be the tormentor?

When you have to fight the paranormal, and the evil of humanity willing to do anything to destroy others, how can Jorie hope to survive with her son, she already lost almost everyone to this once..

Truly enjoyed this book! There was a lot going on and I had to take some breaks but ultimately it was a super interesting and creepy story that i absolutely loved!

This was an interesting read. I really thought the premise was really intriguing. However, I found it to be a pretty slow read for the majority of it. It is very description- heavy and has some complex ideas. This is not a casual quick read and actually may require multiple readings to absorb it all.

It was definitely creepy and I loved that it asked the question of which is scarier - a supernatural creature willed into creation, or the cultish humans who are willing to do anything, even murder, to bring the creature to life.

I would not recommend this to a casual horror fan, but if you are willing to dedicate some time to really absorb this, it is rewarding.

I was super excited to read this book! It has online lore mixed with horror. I was confused in some parts, but overall I couldn’t stop reading. Definitely has a fantastic publishing date for this horror story.

The October Film Haunt by Michael Wehunt is a chilling and atmospheric story that expertly blends suspense with unsettling horror. Wehunt’s evocative writing draws readers in, creating a tense and immersive experience.

I have mixed feelings about this book. It is exactly the type of book I like to read, I liked the overall plot and found footage aspect, but I couldn't connect with parts of it. I found myself getting impatient with the characters and some of the decisions they made, which were obviously plot devices to move the story. I wish the author had approached it a different way so I didn't want to yell at the characters so much. I skimmed part of the book to get past some slow parts and back to the action and that was a "me" problem. It could be that it wasn't the right time to read this particular book....maybe it's best read in the fall rather than spring. I will try more of this author's work because the overall plot was interesting. Three stars because it's not a bad book. For me, it needed a faster pace and smarter characters.

Wow! This book was good but very trippy. I loved the tribute to the original film and even the fact that Trevor Henderson was referenced in this book.

Reading this book reminded me so much of found footage style horror films. I would love to see this book become a film. It is so original and the writing style is just unique.

I really loved how ambiguous it was at the end. It made it feel like the ending had so many possibilities of what could have possibly happened.

Definitely recommending this book to my friends.

DNF.
I’m not sure what the issue was with this, but I found myself skimming pretty early on. I wasn’t hooked within the first 100 pages and felt myself not excited to pick it up.