So good! Not usually a fan of slasher horror, but this had the right mix of isolation and friendship drama, plus mystery to keep me intrigued.

Hannah is running from trauma from her past. When her best friend suggests a spiritual retreat, she doesn’t want to go, but life decides otherwise. With her group of college friends, Hannah finds herself with Pax, the spiritual guru. At first all seems well, but Hannah begins to see through the retreat, Is she actually seeing the truth? Or is she losing her mind?

At one point I thought to myself, how were these people actual friends? They seem to hate each other. But I loved the drama, the trauma and the twist at the end.

I could have finished this book in a day, but I had no motivation to pick it up. While this was a simple slasher book, I felt no connection to anything in this story. Maybe that was the point though. I guess there doesn’t need to be any connection in a slasher, just some gory kills, but even those weren’t that great.

Hannah escapes to a spiritual retreat to find release after a traumatic event leaves her lost and engaging in bad coping strategies for the better part of a year. She escapes to this retreat with a group of friends. What starts off as a journey of self-discovery quickly turns into a fight for survival.

If you want to read a quick, semi-entertaining slasher to end summerween, then I would say go for it, but don’t expect much, and maybe expect to be a little disappointed.

Breathe In, Bleed Out completely grabbed me from start to finish. I was hooked by the intensity and raw emotion that pulse through every scene, and the characters felt real and unforgettable. The tension never let up, keeping me on edge while also rooting deeply for the people at the center of the story. I loved how seamlessly the suspense and character moments intertwined, making it a gripping, unputdownable read.

This was a total genre switch-up for me, and what a wild ride it was! From the very beginning, I was hooked by the premise and the characters. It's a fresh, clever twist on the classic slasher formula, blending the eerie, suspenseful vibe with a layered mystery that had me second-guessing every theory I had.
Without spoiling anything, lets just say the misdirection was chef's kiss...I was kept guessing right until the very end. If you're a fan of slashers OR just love a good whodunit that knows how to play with your expectations, this one needs to be on your ist.
Highly recommend, even if it's outside your usual genre!

Breathe In, Bleed Out is a great book for those that love slashers and horror genres! It wasn't overly gory or grotesque, but still had all the elements of fear and suspense. If it were a movie, I would equate it with "Scream". I was surprised by the ending, but necessarily shocked. I would definitely recommend it to someone who is looking for a horror book with a fear element but not super intense.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. I want to lift this book up to the mountains and shout about it to everyone that will listen... but I know there are people who won't get it. They don't know the slasher like I do. They don't understand the genius that is this novel! The red herrings alone make this novel brilliant. From the very beginning, McAuley is planting all of these different seeds that could turn out and blossom into the slasher itself. Naturally, I did not guess the twist. I never guess the twist in any slasher film, so it only feels right that I didn't guess it here either. And I was convinced I knew about halfway through where the story was going. I was wrong! I'm really not sure how comprehensive this is as a review, but I am trying to contain my emotions surrounding slashers (particularly the late 90s-early 00s ones). The pacing is quick and the kills are phenomenal even if predictable. Hannah is a phenomenal main character and the supporting cast is exactly what she needed to be surrounded by to make her story blossom. This is definitely a must-read for any slasher fans out there.

Breathe In, Bleed Out is a slasher and among other hard rules, the first is that they are a blast. I’m sure you can google it.

Hannah comes back from her wilderness trip minus her fiancé Ben — RIP and also sorry to this man. Unfortunately, visions of Ben continue to haunt her, making her day to day as a medical intern a bit difficult. After some coaxing, Hannah agrees to join her friend group on a spiritual wellness retreat in Joshua Tree, which to be honest classifies the book as a horror right there. Like what do you mean this is my friends’ idea of helping my mental state?

The group heads to Avidya — a wellness retreat led by Guru Pax, a white man who is culturally appropriating whatever he can get his hands on. Avidya is also the kind of place that’s already unsettling even before people begin getting picked off one by one.

Breathe In, Bleed Out plays out just like you’re watching a movie and had, if I may say, just the right amount of grisly violence. Lots of psychological tension with a main character who can’t distinguish delusions from reality, combined with gore and a whodunnit made this such a fun read.

The Author’s Note at the end made me smile because Brian McAuley clearly LOVES slashers and the history of the genre. And give it up for the cover! Breathe In, Bleed Out is in bookstores September 2nd.

I had such a good time with this book! The writing felt so cinematic and just like a pulpy slasher movie in the best way possible. I feel like this was simultaneously so fresh and so familiar, with fun characters, real scares, and a really fun concept!

I wanted to like this so much, but man, there are literally no redeeming qualities. The characters are shallow caricatures, the writing is bland and simplistic, the “plot twists” are just stupid, but worst of all is the attempted social critique. It’s giving reposting an instagram infographic but in book format.

The only good thing about this one is a cool cover, and what a waste for it to go to this book.

This book hooked me from the first page as Hannah tries to sort out her life after the traumatic death of her fiance. It's quite awhile before we get the true story there.
We follow Hannah and her friends off on a wellness spiritual retreat in the desert, when slowly but surely they all start getting picked off one by one. This book is written in a way that you consider every single character a suspect. The action keeps the story moving, the deaths are descriptive.
I felt a little Scooby-doo'd at the end but overall it was a quick fun slasher read. I would have appreciated an epilogue after the finale.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this ARC!

Breathe In, Bleed Out is a bloody good time! One thing about Brian’s books, they are going to have some great kills and a killer plot. This was a fun read and super fast paced!

A perfect read for the upcoming spooky szn!

Out of 5: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Before you judge me for rating a slasher novel five stars, I need you to know something. I don’t like the slasher genre, AT ALL. So if I loved it, you need to read it RIGHT NOW.

PLOT
I couldn’t put this novel down, and it always kept me guessing. Was it a psycho serial killer? A ghost? Witchiness? Plus, the chapters were the right length to keep you reading without getting bored.

CHARACTERS
I loved all the charcters I should, and hated all the characters I should. No notes here.

EDITORIAL
I don’t really know what this section means anymore when I do reviews. I might remove it.

COVER
Love the cover. It’s eye-catching and gives you great insight into the story.

OVERALL 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟/5

3.75/5 stars rounded up.

This was a pretty solid, entertaining read! This reminded me of a few slasher films that I've watched (and enjoyed).

This was my second read by this author and I've noticed that I thoroughly appreciate his writing. The humor in this book was right up my alley. To me, that was the best part and it gripped me immediately at the start. The banter had me chuckling and solidified my interest in this author's future works. The gore and slashing was also a fun time and I liked the setting of this book. I'll say, this book had some interesting deaths.

The only things that brought this rating down a little bit for me were the characters and plot. I didn't think the characters were as developed as I would've hoped before they started dropping off. I also wasn't the biggest fan of the flashbacks with Ben and his ghost.

Huge bummer that this book featured 2 of my ex's names (completely joking). He did make up for it though by managing to kill both of them off. Thanks for the therapy!! I feel like I came out of this restorative retreat, healed.

I appreciated not being able to guess the reveal ahead of time. At one point, I thought I had it figured out but I ended up being wrong. This always ends up making a book more thrilling to me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

Hannah is a woman who has been through a lot. She witnessed her boyfriend die while on a winter hike and she is carrying that with her. She is struggling with work and friendships and she is seeing her dead boyfriend. When her best friend invites her to a retreat, she thinks that maybe this is what she needs to get back to normal.

This book started out with a bang and I really liked how it hit the ground running. The pacing was quick and it was an easy read. I kept reading to figure out what was going on.

Our main character Hannah is an open book, we get her unfiltered thoughts and I enjoy that. I liked how we were inside her head. The POV changed a few times and I also liked that because it mixed things up a bit.

The idea of a desert retreat gone wrong is right up my alley and I really enjoyed this one. I also love slashers. This book was a great blend between slasher and horror. There was a paranormal (or is it?) aspect as well that I enjoyed.

My only complaint is that there were a few cliches in here and I didn't find the end to be as satisfying as I wanted it to be. I would definitely still recommend this one!

This book did something very few horror books can do nowadays. It scared me! I don't easily scare but this made me feel dread and spooked out. I loved it, of course!


Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this free eARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

“I know the difference between dreams and real life”

For starters I would like to thank netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC! I most certainly did not disappoint. That being said, it took me a little longer than I would’ve liked with it being such an easy read. Realistically could finish in a day or two, but your girl is prone to night terrors, and the visuals of death in this book really did a number on my sleep schedule. But horror is gonna horror and who am I to turn down a slasher?

Synopsis:
Breathe In, Bleed Out revolves around the main character, Hannah. While it’s been a year since the tragic death of her fiancé, she’s still regularly haunted by nightmares of his death, inevitably causing issues in her day to day life. She ends up going on a wellness retreat with friends in hopes to gain control of her life and mental health. Enter the creepy, off the grid “retreat” you can only get reservations via letter. “Avidya” which apparently stands for “ignorance, lack of self knowledge, in particular is the root cause of human suffering.” Things start going wrong, people start dying, and the entire time you’re lead by a somewhat unreliable narrator.

I’ll start I’m usually pretty reluctant to read a book written by a man from a woman’s POV, but Brian /killed/ it (pun absolutely intended). By the time I hit chapter 6, I already got that overwhelming sense of dread and adrenaline that comes with reading a novel like this. I really enjoyed his ability to follow typical slasher outline and tropes. It felt like I was reading through a modern day Scream, set in a creepy meditative retreat. That being said, in typical slasher fashion, the deaths were painfully predictable. The foreshadowing was less shadow and more screaming in your face “this is how they die.”

Overall 4/5 and I would read it again as well as more of Brian McAuley’s work.

What a trip. This story just shows how strong and how powerful your mind is. How it can be your worst enemy or your best asset. A women is trying to find herself and healing when she reconnects with old friends and heads to a spiritual retreat after tragically loosing her fiancé. As her friends get picked off one by one she questions…is it her mind? Is it a spirit of her dead fiancé? Or someone out to get her? Such a great story, it had me on my toes till the end. I really didn’t see it coming.✨

This is a really fun little slasher story. Bonus points for the desert setting, which I find endlessly fascinating. Definitely one of the best settings for a horror story, in my opinion.

It moves lightning quick, and never lets off the gas. The kills are violent & creative, and it has twists that make you constantly question who is doing the slashing - is it something supernatural or just a crazy person? All the things you need in a good horror story. In the note at the end, the author talks about his love of horror movies, and slashers like Scream specifically. The love & appreciation of the genre definitely shows in his work. 👏🏻

It’s a solid 4 out of 5 ⭐️ for me.

ARC Review****
Thank you NetGalley for this advance reader copy!
I really enjoyed this campy slasher book.
It reminded me of my favorite slasher films like Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer.
Was really funny and a good time

Brian McAuley's new novel, Breathe In, Bleed Out, is a bloody, snickering romp that affectionately spoofs the slasher genre without ever discovering new ways of making you cringe. It is the perfect escape, a fast-moving, bloody thriller that has the look and feel of an old '80s horror flick you'd stumble upon late one night channel surfing. It's not set to reinvent the wheel, and truthfully, that's half the charm.

Hannah, a disturbed woman, flees to a remote wellness retreat in the desert. The retreat, with its "Midsommar" vibe and New Age pretension, quickly escalates from an oasis of spiritual healing to a slaughterhouse. McAuley establishes an atmosphere that's both eerily beautiful and fantastically desolate. The compound, complete with ominous wind chimes and sage incense, is a character in and of itself, increasing the tension with every turn of the page.

Where the book excels is in its handling of the slasher conventions. McAuley is aware of what succeeds in the genre—a rising body count, inventive killings, and a pace that won't let up. The killings are creative and gruesome, with dark humor that will leave you wincing with shame even as you are cheering along. Final girl Hannah is a more nuanced heroine than usual, with a sad history of her own, making her a less cartoonish and more sympathetic heroine than typical slasher babes. The supporting cast, while resorting to some familiar stereotypes, are nonetheless fun and handy to this game of cat and mouse, high danger.

The plot twists can be telegraphed to some, but this is better the virtue of a novel that knows itself exactly and less the flaw. Breathe In, Bleed Out is a campy, clever thriller that operates within the conventions of its genre but within them, too. It's an addictive, quick read that you'll devour in one sitting. If you like horror but want a blood-soaked good time with loads of misdirection and fright-tastic moments, this book is a gem.