I was completely captivated by this! It was thrilling, disturbing and difficult to put down. The twists kept the surprises coming right up to the end, leaving just enough unsaid to keep you unsettled - highly recommended!

The tight focus on the residents of a single street over a couple of days and viewing events from different perspectives really worked for me, with each neighbour having their own voice and struggles

This is a short book, but there are several main characters introduced. The books jumps around to each person. I found myself confused on the individual details of each character. Then, the story jumps between police, news, and Vlogs, and that adds to the confusion. I would have liked this book to focus on one or two characters instead of shallow versions of many.

The main event, which was the snowstorm, is completely in the background. The snowstorm happens, but then the scenes go to snow cleanup. There could have been more done to build tension in this snowstorm including more disasters, being in a cold house with no electricity.

I had a huge problem with the degrading portrayal of women in the is book. The portrayals were very old-fashioned. One of the female characters states that she doesn’t work out, because a woman is supposed to be weak, and only does yoga, because she is supposed to be flexible. This may alienate some female audience members.

3.25/5 stars

Eminence Front by Rebecca Rowland (to be published January 20, 2026) is a psychological horror novel set in winter in Massachusetts, in which the inhabitants of a street are haunted by the noise of snow, which has released an unknown power that takes over people’s minds and drives them to murder.

This short novel focuses on all characters more or less evenly, so it is hard to point at a specific protagonist. All characters are middle-aged adults in the suburbs, either single or married with or without kids. Winter plays a big role in this story and is almost a character in itself, as it envelops both the landscape and mental state of the street and the characters. The story takes place in the dead of winter when the snow has piled to over a foot and a half and everyone is busy clearing it from their driveways. The strange entity/energy takes over people’s minds one by one, leading them to murder. The next person who is targeted by the energy has an encounter with last person to have died under its influence, whom they believe to be alive. The dead person finds a manner in which to kill the new person, and so on. The deaths are gruesome and unpredictable.

This book is slow-paced and has too many characters. At first it is hard to keep track of who everyone is, and a good third of the book is spent on introducing new characters. At one point it is very similar to Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1954). Rowland’s writing is fluid and engaging, and although the story seems underdeveloped her writing is captivating enough to partly make up for this fault. The horror in this story is hard to pin down in descriptive terms, as the horror element takes the shape of an unknown force that strikes at random times. The story is atmospheric in its winter element, but horror does not permeate the entire plot, only at certain points. There are bits of news clippings interspersed throughout the story; they illustrate historical events in the same region in which mysterious deaths have taken place during harsh winters, and within cattle as well, which asserts the mysterious supernatural power of winter as a force that has always existed.

This novel is an atmospheric winter horror story that is extremely well-written but needs more development in its plot and in the construction of its horror. This is recommended to readers who like psychological stories, winter tales, literary fiction, and slow horror.

Imagine that you’re snowed in your house. Looking outside you only see white snow and not a sign of the snow fall slowing down. That’s scary enough as it is, being trapped in your house, hopefully with electricity and enough water and food to survive some days. Add on top of this snow storm an entity that wants to consume your soul and is very hard to get away from. That’s when everything gets actually scary!

This book is so creepy. I love the vibes, and the writing is perfect for the plot. I read this in the summer (highly recommend waiting to read it when it’s cold and maybe even snowing) but it still chilled me. Someone else described this book to creep under your skin and I whole-heartedly agree. I think I’ve found myself a new favorite horror author in Rebecca Rowland.

Thanks to NetGalley and CLASH Books for the eARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

As a fellow New Englander who has survived her fair share of horrible Nor’Easters, I had to get my hands on this read.

There is something unsettling about being stuck in the house while the world is washed out white around you, but it’s not a lightness that allows you to see. Rowland does an amazing job bringing that isolation and dread to life in this book. During these types of storms, often times yer neighbors are the only other living souls you see for days at a time. Whether that’s a good or a bad thing, I’ll leave for you to decide.

A motley cast of characters brings this story to life and I believe allows the reader to connect to at least one, if not several, of them. But don’t get too attached bc no one is safe.

This read was a fun one during the heat of the summer to chill me to my core, but reading this during a storm would be next level…just make sure to keep yer earmuffs on.

Thank you to the author & publisher for the eARC!

One of my favorite old movies is Alfred Hitchcock's 'Rear Window'. This book gave me the same feeling as that movie. I always connect with Rebecca Rowland's writing. All of her previous books have been hits for me and Eminence Front was no exception. Her books immediately suck me in, trapping me happily within her creepy worlds. The characters are all gritty and realistic. From the preface forward the ominous mood takes over and with every chapter it gets a little darker. I loved the way Rowland inserted various documents and excerpts in between chapters. It further cranked the suspense, as well as the slow unfolding plot seen from various shifting points of view. The blizzard hung in the background like a "white shroud" of impending doom, speaking to and steadily burying the neighborhood. Seriously I have yet to read a bad Rebecca Rowland story and this STILL exceeded my expectations. It gave Stephen King, 'Storm of the Century' vibes as well. Great read.
TW: Drug use
Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Prose: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Pacing: mid
Scary: creepy
Gore: yes
Character Development:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Atmosphere: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A snowstorm in New England traps the residents on a single street and bad things come out in the storm. This was a super quick read and not particularly creepy. The plot could have answered a few more questions and the ending left me feeling shortchanged.

I appreciated the creativity in the plot, but as someone unfamiliar with this genre and author, I had a bit of trouble keeping track of the storyline

THIS IS PURE STEPHEN KING, and I loved it!!!! The entire aesthetic and theme of the book, while I was reading it, reminded me of Stephen King's short story "The Mist." I liked how the author built a wonderful idea on top of several others—and I thought she managed to be incredibly original. I felt for the characters, I cared about what was happening, and I will, yes, read more of her work, as much as I have before.
Thank you NetGalley and the author for the eARC.

It started off promising, but fell a little flat for me. I like the use of mixed media to move a story along, but the bouncing between characters left me without feeling a connection to any of them. There is good suspense, but no real payoff for said suspense.

This book is a pretty solid thriller/horror- a perfect mix of weird, unexplained weather and mysterious deaths happening along a single street. This book was reminiscent of The Outsider by Stephen King, and those who like horror where the scare comes from outside forces other than humans will likely enjoy it.

Unfortunately to me the story fell flat. There wasn't quite enough of the 'unexplained' for me to understand what was happening to our cast, even with the intermissions of media/newspaper articles/etc between chapters. And despite switching perspectives throughout the book, I never really got a good feel of any of the characters. I wish I had felt a little more scared alongside them, but there was a pattern that I picked up on throughout that made it hard for me to get invested in any of them.

The writing style made it a quick read for me. It will be a perfect story for someone to hunker down with when it comes out in January 2026.

Thank you to NetGalley and Edelweiss for my eARC of this book!

Rebecca Rowland’s Eminence Front is an cold, unnerving dive into how secrets, remorse, and supernatural forces intertwine beneath a winter storm. It is a story that lingers quiet but insistent, claustrophobic yet expansive.

For those who prefer horror that sits under the skin, rather than leaps out of the dark, this is a icey, unforgettable ride.

Privileged to have been given the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

Thank you Rebecca.

Throughout the book I was really confused, I never truly understood what was happening and which character we were on and what was happening. Thank you so much for letting me read it but I didn't really enjoy it!

I had a hard time getting through this one. I was confused throughout the entire story. The story kept jumping from one character to another, I felt disconnected from the characters. Thank you NetGalley and Clash books for the Arc.

There’s something especially terrifying about snow and how it muffles sound, isolates you, hides things beneath. *Eminence Front* takes that quiet dread and turns it into something cosmic, unrelenting, and deeply personal. This isn’t just a storm. It’s a reckoning. Set in a sleepy New England neighborhood, the novella begins with gray skies and familiar suburban tension, but once the storm rolls in, things shift from mundane to malevolent. Neighbors hear whispers. Shadows linger too long. Sins, regrets, and buried guilt start bubbling up through the ice. The horror here isn’t loud or gory; it’s insidious. A voice you almost recognize. A wrong you never made right. A curse that isn’t just ancient but intimate. Rowland handles a sprawling cast with sharp efficiency. Each resident has their own demons, and while some of their stories feel more fleshed out than others, every chapter tightens the grip. No one here is fully innocent. But the real terror lies in how the storm seems to know that—and demands something in return. The atmosphere is the standout. The blizzard is more than weather; it’s a character. A force. A quiet observer turned executioner. It creeps, presses in, cuts off exits both physical and emotional. You can practically hear the snow fall and feel your fingers going numb. The themes of facades, regret, the things we bury in ourselves and in our yards, echo long after the final page. The title is a nod to appearances, and Rowland doesn’t let any of her characters keep theirs intact. The storm sees through all of it.

A perfect chiller to read with warm socks and locked doors. Just don’t listen too closely to the wind.

i definitely didn't dislike this book, but i'm not totally sure i can say i liked it either. it has a really strong premise and a really good gradual creeping climb in suspense and mystery.... but there is absolutely no pay off. you never find out about a curse, you never find out why this is happening, you never find out how it started or if it'll stop... nothing. it feels very much like a set piece or like the start of a further story, v which isn't good deal at all for a standalone. it made the ending feel very weak and the reading experience a little pointless - even tho i enjoyed the journey, the lack of any conclusion made it feel a bit pointless.

Eminence Front is a deeply unsettling story set amid a blizzard that spans days. With it come unexplained events, violent acts and horrors set amid an icy background. We follow a cast of characters from the same neighborhood, seemingly experiencing isolated incidents but perhaps are more related than they realize. What is causing this phenomenon? Some parts of this book are truly disturbing and I loved it. Thank you so much to CLASH Books & NetGalley for the ARC. You can pick this book up when it publishes January 20, 2026.

I really struggled to get through this one. At times it felt hard to follow without much of a pulse driving the plot forward. Thank you to NetGalley for the arc.

Eminence Front definition from Google’s AI
“The idea of presenting a false, superior image or facade to the world, often to mask emptiness or lack of substance behind it.”

In this superbly scary novella a blizzard blows to town and whispers wickedness to a flawed and ill-fated group of New England neighbors. Quite the cast of characters here, each one an antihero, not quite deserving of what lies ahead, but not necessarily undeserving either.

I love snow as the antagonist of the story … a voiceless villain, sinister, unstoppable and as old as time. Cold, quiet and unrelenting.

This could definitely be a one sitting read, but save it for summer, especially if snow gives you cabin fever!

Thank you so much to Clash Books and author Rebecca Rowland for allowing me to read an advanced copy.
Terribly enjoyable!!!

Set in a quiet New England neighborhood during a relentless snowstorm, this eerie and atmospheric novel explores how a strange sound carried by the snow begins to unravel the lives of its residents. With a chilling mix of suburban secrets, slow burning dread, and an eerie supernatural presence, the story shows how quickly order collapses when fear takes root. The shifting perspectives, unsettling details, and creeping sense of doom make this a haunting and unforgettable read.