Thank you to the publishers and to Netgalley for this ARC.

The novel has themes of mental illness issues, drug abuse, murder and gore. The FMC goes through a journey of heartbreak, mourning & self realisation.
I loved the imaginative ways the friendship group is eventually offed! I found the scenes really descriptive and easy to imagine. I also got a real sense of justice served with some of the characters which is nice.
A great addition to summerween!

Hannah is struggling with her life after she returns alone from a wilderness excursion without her boyfriend. No one knows exactly what happened out there, just that he died, and she wants to keep it that way. When a slip up at her job at the hospital leaves her suspended, her friends convince her to go with them to a healing spiritual retreat in the desert. Hannah soon feels the benefits of the retreat, until things devolve into a fight for survival.

This was super fun. The set up of the characters was done really well and it felt like they weren't just cookie cutter bland characters. We got a lot of personality from all of them and it made the story so much more immersive. The setting was unique and while I'm unsure how I felt about the big reveal, I appreciated that I didn't see it coming.
A super well done slasher perfect for the upcoming spooky season or whenever you want a bloody good time!

I rated this 4/5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC!

If you love cheesy 80’s horror films, this is for you! Such a fun read. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Holy crap i loved this book! It has all the things you would want in a slasher film in it and its a book.. so even better..

Excuse me as i got find this authors other books...

This book namaste’d me right in the trauma. What starts as a crystal-charged healing retreat in the middle of the desert quickly spirals into a blood-slicked nightmare where yoga isn’t the only thing that will leave you breathless. Think Midsommar meets Friday the 13th, but everyone’s hot, haunted, or hiding something.

The vibes are immaculate, the kills are creatively unhinged, and the tension stretches tighter than a hamstring in downward dog. Hannah’s guilt, ghosts, and grit drive the story with raw, chaotic momentum, making her the kind of messy protagonist you can’t help but root for….. even as the body count climbs.

It’s woo-woo wellness cult meets Final Girl fever dream, and honestly? I loved every moment of its spiraling descent into beautifully brutal madness.

🔪 Bookish vibes:
• Slasher in the sand
• Desert-core horror
• Culty wellness satire
• Hot mess main character energy
• Is that blood or kombucha?

Would I survive this retreat? Absolutely not. But I’d still pack my cutest yoga pants and die trying.

3.5/5

This was a well-executed slasher— full of LA stereotypes, comical, over-the-top, and each character dies poetically doing what they love.

That said, the psychiatrist doing weekly talk therapy with the main character threw me off from the very introduction of his character, since psychiatrists traditionally just prescribe meds, which is all she wanted. Their retreat was supposed to be a weekend, but they spent more than two nights there, so that was inconsistent.

I also found all the constant descriptions of LA in the first few chapters superfluous. A riveting horror story though!

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the eARC!

Easy, quick and fun read. Gave me Scream/Friday the 13th vibes. Hated all the characters, especially Hannah! Really didn't mind their deaths either.
It's super cliche but I was entertained the entire time. It became a little lame towards the end, but still fun. Would definitely check out other books by Brian McAuley.

I'm usually more of a psychological thriller/mystery reader. I do enjoy watching some horror movies. The Camp NetGalley challenge offered me the opportunity to read a horror novel. I was excited to try it.
I'm a big Scream fan, so Breathe In, Bleed Out feels very contemporary and much in the spirit of Scream. I really enjoyed this one considering I don't read a lot of gory horror.
Hannah is trying to recover from the tragic death of her fiance in a mysterious accident. She is suffering from panic attacks and taking Xanax to numb the pain. A work mishap leads her joining her friends at a desert getaway to escape it all. Pax, a yogi, is mysterious and seems to have ulterior motives. Then the disappearances and deaths start. Hannah starts hallucinating about a murderous miner or is he real? Who will survive the relaxing getaway alive!

4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I kind of loved this book. Breath In, Bleed Out delivers a fast-paced, pulp-soaked slasher that manages to feel both familiar and fresh. Sure, it follows the classic slasher blueprint, but there’s something uniquely compelling in how Brian McAuley executes it, like he knows the rules and is having a damn good time bending them just enough.

The twist? Solid. The death scenes? Bloody fun. And that author’s note at the end? It pulled the whole story into sharper, more personal focus in a way I didn’t expect.

I’m also a sucker for an unreliable narrator, especially in horror, it amps up the surreal, disorienting tone I crave in the genre. McAuley leans into that beautifully, keeping you on edge and unsure of what’s real right up until the final gasp.

Highly recommended for fans of gritty, psychological slashers with a heart (and a blade). 4.5/5 stars!

Out September 2nd, 2025
Breathe In, Bleed Out by Brian McAuley is a slasher thrill ride that grabs you by the throat and doesn’t let go. Set in a remote wellness retreat in Joshua Tree, this blood-soaked whodunnit blends Scream-style meta horror with Final Destination-level kills—and it’s absolutely relentless.

Hannah, our haunted heroine, is trying to escape the trauma of her fiancé’s mysterious death. But instead of healing through yoga and sound baths, she’s dodging a pickaxe-wielding killer who’s turning self-care into carnage. The retreat’s serene vibe clashes brilliantly with the chaos, making every chapter feel like a ticking time bomb.

McAuley nails the slasher formula: flawed characters, brutal deaths (yes, there’s a healing crystal kill), and a twisty mystery that keeps you guessing until the final gasp. The pacing is razor-sharp—short chapters, snappy dialogue, and zero filler. You’ll fly through it in one sitting, heart pounding and eyes wide.

If you love horror that’s smart, savage, and just a little satirical, Breathe In, Bleed Out is your next obsession. McAuley’s slasher crown? Securely fastened.

Breathe In, Bleed Out tells the story of Hannah, who agrees to attend a technology free healing retreat with her friends in an effort to recover from past trauma over her boyfriend's death. When they get to the retreat things start going sideways and her friends are picked off one by one by a masked killer.

This book had a great premise and the writing was decent, but I had a hard time with how much I disliked all of the characters, including Hannah. It really brought my enjoyment of the book down over all - though this is likely a personal taste issue more than anything. I thought that it was tedious that Hannah kept making the same mistakes over and over again and how mean she could be to the people she was supposed to consider friends. It really felt like she never learned from the bad choices she made when she ended up making them again and again.

The rest of the side characters all felt like they were two dimensional and fit into a trope for the purposes of the plot only. There wasn't a lot of exploration of those characters or how they had grown and so I was also struggling to really care about what happened to any of them. The stakes of the novel were low when I didn't care who lived or died.

That said, the pacing of this novel was good and it moved fast - which kept it from being a slog for me to get through. Each chapter felt just as long as it needed to be and they often ended with a reason to keep me turning the pages. The writing was also good. Overall those two things are enough for me to check out more of Brian's work because I think if I found the right set of characters I might enjoy the stuff he's doing more.

This book was very readable and worth it for fans of slashers. It has a little bit of a White Lotus meets I Know What You Did Last Summer sort of vibe.

Thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for sending this my way on NetGalley.

This was such a fun slasher-style read! It had that old-school horror movie vibe I love. It was fast-paced, suspenseful, and mysterious. The story is packed with terrifying moments and creepy/gory imagery, and I enjoyed watching it all unfold like a movie in my head.

It’s a dark, twisty story with a fun cast of characters, some likable, some not so much. I appreciated that the ending didn’t drag and wrapped things up quickly and effectively. The book doesn’t take itself too seriously, and if you embrace the slasher energy, you’re in for a good time. This was my first book by Brian McAuley, and I’ll definitely be reading more.

Love the cover art for this novel!

This was a fun, spooky, gory, and a finish-in-one-setting type of a thriller! Packed with suspense, gore, and drama, it keeps you entertained and hooked till the last page. However, the storyline is very simple and might not be interesting for everyone. Character and plot development could have been better, and the supernatural part of the story also felt a bit out of place and forced. However, it was a fun read nevertheless!

If you're into:
🚩binge-worthy, popcorn thrillers
🚩stories packed with suspense, gore, and blood-soaked moments
🚩short chapters and unreliable narratives
-then this book is just for you!

TW ⚠️ violence, anxiety, panic attacks, gore

Loved this book. It was creepy, mysterious, and scary along with psychological suspense. I don’t know how all four of those elements were smoothly blended in by this author but they did it and I’m so glad they did. The storyline was creative and well written. The characters had multifaceted personalities that at times were harmonious and blended well together. At other points those same individuals were completely antagonistic toward each other. Amazing read!

Boring. Cliche. Campy in a bad way.
Slashers can be done so incredibly well, this was not one of them. Which is a huge shame since the opening chapter was amazing. Everything was just downhill from there. The writing was surface level at best and too "explainy". I like when I'm shown the plot, not really told. Everyone sucks in this book. The one upside was the red herring thrown in for the killer but other than that I was bored. I cared for no one and the rating lost an entire star when apparently Elk grow horns now. So either the original animal changed species and they didn't change it to antlers or they don't know the appendages of Elk.


Sure if you want a cookie cutter, cultish, insecure crazy men plot then read it. But if you're a huge horror fan who loves when they are actually scary and you feel the thrill, hard pass

This book came to me at the right time and I simply devoured it.

It really felt like I was watching a movie instead of just reading as I tried to remember any subtle hints and telltale signs that will lead to killer’s identity.

I loved every page of it and I will definitely read other books from this author.

Many thanks to Poisoned Pen Press for the ARC through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC.

Breathe In, Bleed Out was a wild ride and I enjoyed every minute of it. Hannah is struggling through her trauma and grief even after a year which is very realistic and that has affected her mentally where she becomes our unreliable narrator. Mix in some strained friendships and murders and we have an interesting whodunit in the spiritual desert retreat. The characters were all very believable and very flawed. Though what was kind of odd to me was that we got more character development with two of the friends that I didn’t really care about than the other two that were closer to Hannah. They had more complexity that we learned about than the other two.

What I appreciated in this book was some of the history facts and the callout for appropriation. Though the book lacked diversity. We got one token Native American and the way she truly talked was very cringy and almost offensive like the author was stereotyping, which is completely counterproductive to being woke about being harmful to other cultures and people.

Even though I can’t watch gore, I can certainly read it and it was actually really good! The final act kept me on my toes but then it kinda got convoluted. And it definitely left off unfinished. We don’t get the aftermath of everything and from what happened at her work. It just ends with her freeing herself from her grief which would be all in good if the other stuff was addressed too. It just wasn’t as satisfying. I did enjoy the full circle analogy and other analogies throughout the book I feel like the structure with those connections were well done.

Overall, solid murder mystery.

Brian McAuley knows exactly how to deliver what horror and thriller fans crave in Breathe In, Bleed Out. This final girl slasher ticks all the right boxes, serving up inventive, fast-paced, and satisfyingly gory kills that never feel recycled. At the heart of the story is Hannah—a grieving woman struggling with vivid hallucinations and a borderline addiction after losing her fiancé. When her college friends take her to a remote wellness retreat near Joshua Tree, the lines between healing and horror quickly blur. Is this a sanctuary, or a cult with something far more sinister lurking beneath the surface?

Set in a tech-free, isolated desert, the story turns isolation into pure dread—no help, no signal, and no one you can truly trust. Hannah’s trauma becomes a living nightmare, as her emotional unraveling and ghostly visions make her a classic unreliable narrator. Perfectly placed red herrings keep readers guessing, while the deaths—tied chillingly to hot springs, yoga studios, and spiritual rituals—stay true to slasher roots but feel fresh and brutal. Hannah’s Final Girl status is far from typical; she’s flawed, vulnerable, and deeply human. Her survival isn’t about perfection, but resilience in the face of grief, fear, and disbelief. Breathe In, Bleed Out is a tense, twisted ride that cuts deep and refuses to let go.

Did I judge this book by its cover? Yes, and it paid off in spades. Not only does Breathe In, Bleed Out have an enticing cover, but the story satisfies my need for 80’s slashers while finding spiritual fulfillment.

Breathe In, Bleed Out follows Hannah, a woman grieving the loss of her fiancé after a tragic accident in the snowy mountains. She’s trying to auto-pilot through life with the help of Xanax, which really isn’t cutting it. Hannah’s friend group decides what she needs is a spiritual retreat out in Joshua Tree to help her reset and get back on track. Maybe some yoga, meditation, and the desert will help her stop having terrible hallucinations of her dead fiancé.

McAuley knocks it out of the park. How he manages to poetically and beautifully write about a gory kill (final Corpse Pose may be my favorite like in the entire book) I’ll never know, but it’s a talent I’m envious of. The kills were spaced well in the story, each one making me question more and more if I had correctly figured out the killer (I did not). You can feel McAuley’s love of slashers in his writing, and I’m looking forward to his next release.

You’ll like this book if you love:
-The movie Scream (1996)
-Books set at private and secluded retreats
-LA and fake spirituality
-Doing hallucinogens in the desert
-Slasher movies with creative kills

Thank you to NetGalley and Poisoned Pen Press for this e-ARC

Plot: The overall plot line screamed old school teen horror, with a build up to various deaths of characters and even a return to life character. The end provided an unexpected surprise as well, really giving life to the whodunit theme. My favorite part of the plot was the double story line that kept you hooked to see what happened to Hannah’s fiance. I give it an 7 out of 10 for plot.

Characters: Hannah made a fantastic main character. She is relatable, full of flaws, and insightful. I love a protagonist that you sometimes want to reach in and shake by the shoulders. The group of friends were related in a way that made it easy to imagine their comradery and various relationships. Every character had both negative and positive aspects to them that came out in their actions and words. This can be difficult to accomplish in only 350 pages. The therapist lacked in character buildup, which would have made the surprise antagonist more exciting. I give characters 8 out of 10.

Writing: The overall writing skills are certainly there. The word choice was sometimes a little strange but the chapter endings were fantastic. There is foreshadowing, metaphors, and character contrasts. Up until about the last third of the book the story line moved at a good pace. The last third seemed rushed, like more time could have been spent on the various murders to really cement in that slasher feel. I give writing 6 out of 10.

I will for sure be looking out for more novels by this author, especially in the slasher genre. We need more of these in the horror section.