For you cosmic horror lovers, this short but good book is a must-read this season. I love how we receive all the information right from the beginning as we follow the two main characters on their journey with the wheel. Their dynamic as friends and their thoughts on what they’re doing and what they want are compelling. Although it’s a ridiculously short book, I felt we gained valuable insight into the characters, their families, and their significant others. While the wheel loomed in the background of their lives, the main focus was on their actions, the behavior they exhibited over the years, and how they coped with the consequences of those actions. It was a great way to illustrate how things can go off track; once you fall into this cycle, it’s hard to break free, especially when burdened by other people’s expectations. Even though it took a long time, Caleb ultimately took a stand, broke the cycle, and realized how he had been manipulated.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dead Sky Publishing, I received an ARC for an honest review!

Michael Boulerice's Feeding The Wheel was such an incredible read!
When Marley and Caleb, the main characters are young, they stumble upon an old grinding wheel in a forest near their home. Curious, they watch as a group of children gather in a circle. Suddenly, a strange, otherworldly eldritch creature named Old Friend appears. He plucks out one of the children and places them on the grinding wheel as a sacrifice. Both Marley and Caleb are frozen in shock. They are unsure if what they’re witnessing is real or just a figment of their imagination.

They begin to notice that good things keep happening to them, almost as if luck is on their side. They soon realize that their fortunes are tied to sacrifices made at the wheel. To continue their boon, they'll need to visit the wheel regularly. But, at what cost?

I absolutely love the unique plot and how the story unfolds. I am looking forward to the next book from Michael Boulerice!

Thank you to Netgalley, Michael Boulerice, and Dead Sky Publishing for this ARC.

Publishing date: 22.07.2025 (DD/MM/YYYY)
Thank you to NetGalley and Dead Sky Publishing for the ARC. My opinions are my own.

TLDR: Two young boys discover something in the woods they might never have been meant to see. This will impact their lives for many years and hold grave consequences.

My positives:
- Eldritch / Cosmic horror (both are bangin)
- Oh no consequences
- A good "spiral into madness" arc

My negatives:
- Pacing? Never heard of it
- Characters felt a little flat
- Felt rushed the first 50% and then it got good a little after that
- Ending didn't do much for me

This book is an okay horror novelette. It told a story, was just grotesque and eerie enough, and had the bones of something greater poking through. The final product was just a little ... eh? I don't feel any particular way about it.

I think I would recommend this to those who enjoy "the forest is dangerous" and typical eldritch horrors.

Giving this 3 stars. It was fine, nothing too memorable, but not bad either. Will be selectively recommending this.

At the start I wasn't so sure what to expect, but this book surely delivered a fun and delightfully gorey story! It is a pretty quick read, and I think you can finish it in a single afternoon or evening. The characters are just deep enough to keep it interesting, and the flashback scenes definitely did lots of good in terms of understanding what was happening.

The only vice that I have with this book is that the ending felt rushed, and I didn't really feel the way that they tied it all up.

Overall a very creepy and effective story, with rich storytelling and a casual easy to read writing style. Definitely looking forward to more work from this author!

An interesting read that didn't overstay its welcome! 3.5 ⭐ rounded up.

I enjoyed how we don't get answers to everything regarding the nature of The Wheel, as the characters we follow don't have that knowledge. The MCs Caleb (our narrator) and Marley are not likeable characters, and I don't always enjoy being in a first person perspective when teen boys (in flashbacks) are involved, but overall the writing worked for me. The gory descriptions were graphic and painted quite the visual.

My main criticism is that there are some contradictions and inconsistencies within the story, Like the author started with a plot point, changed their mind as they were writing, but forgot to go back to edit for continuity.

I would like to see Michael Boulerice publishes in the future, he has intriguing sci-fi ideas!

"Feeding the Wheel" was an ARC that took me a hot minute to finish. A really rough beginning, followed by a gripping middle, and a...surprising ending. I struggled with the lack of awareness of the "show don't tell" rule of writing, and just how rushed this whole book felt. At times I wondered if it would have just been better as a short story. But somewhere around the 50% mark I was hooked snd needed to kniw how it eould end. This cosmic horror about two best friends reminded me of "The Craft", but with two straight dudes and a horrific evil deity. A bit rough, but good fun.

3.5 🌟

Calling all cosmic horror fans! You’ll want to add this one to your reading lists!

Follow two kids as they find a hovering wheel in the middle of the forest one night. It changes the trajectory of their lives for good and bad.

I enjoyed seeing Marley & Caleb grow up, deeply influenced and bound to an object beyond their comprehension. It was a quick story, almost a bit too short, but I really, really enjoyed reading it. The author has a wonderful imagination.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Dead Sky Publishing/ Death’s Head Press for a copy!

This was a dope read! Boulerice is a completely new to me author. I haven’t heard this book mentioned in any of my circles, but I’m confident we’ll be hearing more from him soon. The novella, Feeding the Wheel, was great. It’s the story of two middle school friends, Caleb and Marley, who stumble upon a colossal, murderous stone wheel in the woods. The wheel is suspended a few feet above the ground and appears to eat willing child sacrifices. The boys flee but quickly discover temporarily enhanced capabilities which pulls them into a lifelong cycle of visiting this wheel to sustain their boon.

The cosmic horror was great in this one. The vibes were dope and the imagery goes hard. I struggled to connect with the characters as neither are good dudes, but it aligns with the events of the story and it’s a full circle tale. The only thing I wished is that we got more of that ending. I would love to have learned more about other potential dimensions, but maybe we’ll get more from Boulerice on that in the future.

Boulerice has included the short story, Lord of Doors with this book. I hoped it was going to be related to the events of Feeding the Wheel, but it wasn’t. I *loved* the short story at the end. It was perfect imo. Cyclical, creepy and it hits the mark all the way through. It’s short but packs a wallop in its few pages. I definitely feel like Boulerice is on the horizon for indie horror so don’t sleep on this one. Great read.

Feeding the Wheel was a weird, fun, horrifying ride. The story went in a direction I didn't expect, and it really kept me interested.

I have to say though, my favorite part of the book was the bonus story Lord of Doors! I wanted to scream at the ending and the visuals were just as rich as the novella which preceded it.

I will definitely be checking out some of Mr. Boulerice's future endeavors.

A narcissistic best friend. A window to another dimension. A being made of the forest’s discarded things. A circle of children in white, singing to an unknown god. And a system in which the being made of discarded things grinds the singing children into a paste to feed the god sitting on the other side of the interdimensional window.

Oh—and the narcissistic best friend absolutely, positively does not exploit the fact that these sacrifices give him the power of superhuman manipulation.

Part cosmic horror, part folk horror, and all too real for anyone who’s had a manipulative best friend. It’s a quick, entertaining read with vivid imagery and believable characters. Strong 5/5 from me.

I received an e-ARC and am giving my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this opportunity!

I love fast paced, quick horror reads and this was just that. Completely sucked me in (pun intended) and I couldn't look away. Each page brought more horror, whether literal horror or whatever Marley was saying and doing. I was completely enthralled for the entire book, and it was the perfect pace for me. Non-stop continuation of the horror with not a ton of scenes with nothing going on, in a good way. It was a perfect quick read, and the bonus short story at the end was so interesting (thought I have to admit, I wish it was a bit longer because I'm desperate to know what happens past the end). I really enjoyed this, a great read for fans of Chuck Wendig or Lovecraftian horror

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

This was pretty much my first touch with Cosmic Horror as a genre and I had such a good time with it, got approved for the ARC a few days ago and decided to “give it a go” one evening, fully intending to only read for about half an hour and then go to bed.. and somehow I devoured the entire thing in one sitting.

The dynamic between Caleb and Marley was really interesting to me, as well as the premise of seeing them grow up throughout the book, that was pretty cool! The way the author describes the wheel and the children felt very eerie to me and got me immersed in the story really quick. Only thing I don’t know how I feel about is the ending, like, it makes sense but it left me wanting a bit More idk.

Overall I did really enjoy myself, loved the bonus story Lord of Doors, would absolutely read more by this author in the future!

This book has the bones of a good story, but it fell flat for me personally. The characterization was a bit ham fisted and the pacing was rushed. I did love the imagery presented, and enjoyed the short story at the end more than the feature.

Would recommend for fans of “The Twisted Ones”

5 stars and a girl hungry for more from this author. An excellent shorter story about corruption and those who turn a blind eye.

Caleb and Marley are going into the seventh grade. Puberty, girls, and school loom over them with an unsure feeling. However, the night before school begins they take a walk through the forest behind their houses and find a group of children dressed in valiant white, standing in a circle around an enormous and floating stone wheel, waiting for something. Enter an Eldritch looking forest beasty named Old Friend who emerges from the trees and plucks a child up, gives it a hug, and grinds it into the spinning wheel. At first, Marley and Caleb chalk it up to hallucination, but when everything begins to go their way they question what the Wheel really does. Visit after visit to the wheel brings more food fortune, but when is enough truly enough? And what other sacrifices must Caleb and Marley make to keep the lives they've built?

I read this so fast! It was shorter but held my attention in a vice, my fingers turning the page in almost a trance-like state as I devoured words like the wheel ground children. I really felt for Caleb by the end whereas I vibed more with Marley in the beginning. Marley was unashamed with the offerings to the wheel, which was such a redeeming quality for me. So many times we get people doing terrible things with such guilt I find myself disconnecting from them. I'm sitting there screaming at the page "THEN JUST STOP", which would have been reasonably easy to do for Marley and Caleb. That quality that I really admired in the beginning morphed over my journey with them, making me even take a look inward to think would I be a Marley or a Caleb? And honestly.....Marley's fate would probably become my own. I am not noble or really regretful in my life, but I see how unchecked it will fester and rot. The ending was a bit rushed, but honestly it fit the story...had it been drawn out more I think some of the magic would have been lost. Also, sign me up for a tattoo of dear Old Friend. What a cool character they were!

Other than the rushed ending this is easily a 5 star read, the characters alone plus the mysteries of the wheel, children, and realms beyond make this a top read of the year for me. Thank you so so much to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

Cosmic horror is a very difficult beast to wrangle, and even more difficult to wrangle with any level of success. There’s a certain level of complexity in handling eldritch terror, especially when balancing it with the mundane.

I felt like the characters in this were a little underbaked, and that the dialogue was a little stilted in places too, but I could understand the urgency in getting to the cosmic horror parts of this book. It felt like the ‘normal life’ facets of this were the ones that the author wanted to get out of the way to get to the good stuff.

There were some definite parts of this that definitely fitted the ‘good stuff’ brief. The focus on knowledge being powerful but also dangerous (and, more often than not, fatal) was wonderful, and I feel like the curtain got peeled back just that bit more on the Old Gods.

It was definitely brought forward with a real creeping sense of dread, which was delicious. I’m keen to see more of where this author’s work goes- but for now, this is a lovely first romp for me!

3.75 rounded up to 4

A love letter to cosmic horror, this novella has enough human sacrifice and creepy cults to keep you entertained for a whole afternoon. Fans of cosmic horror will definitely want to check this one out.

This one is short but it really packs a punch. The story gets into the thick of it almost immediately and provides some excellent creature designs and gore along with it. The concept of the "Wheel" itself was interesting as well with it drawing the main characters into a dependency that was interesting to read. The illustrations provided in the book also gave it a very nostalgic sort of Creepypasta feel.

However, outside of the Wheel and the rituals I thought the story was quite lacking and held back by the writing. Some of the dialogue felt stilted and some of the characters (especially Caleb's family) felt underdeveloped.

A cosmic mind bending horror that makes the reader question themselves and what they would do, it's pacy and packs a punch, the writing is captivating and I throughly enjoyed my time with this!

I am a huge fan of genre-bending horror, and this story did a good job of blending horror and sci-fi together to create an intriguing plot that makes the reader ask themselves, "Would I have done the same in these circumstances? What would I do if I got a cheat code to life at the expense of my morals? And what if I had a friend who was a little too good at convincing me I deserved what we got out of it?" I read it in one afternoon, needing to know what would happen next!

Caleb and Marley are your average slackers in middle school. Not great at school, athletic or anything that would get the praise of their teachers or parents. This changes after finding The Wheel, a cosmic entity hidden in the woods. After they witness a horrific ritualistic sacrifice, their entire world will change forever when they become imbued with strange power. However they realize all too late that with this power comes dire consequences.

The best way to summarize The Wheel is the movie Chronicle/The Covenant with a cosmic horror twist. Two boys wander into the woods to find a strange entity that grants them powers and abilities at a horrific cost, both in the immediate and the long term. Boulerice not only captures cosmic horror perfectly but also the conflict that arise when people acquire pow). My only criticism would be the length. The story is a novella, but there are definitely parts of the story (mainly the second half) that could have been more fleshed out. The pacing of the second half of the book tends to be very quick and I would have loved to see more of a slow burn that leads to the epic conclusion. Overall I loved reading FEEDING THE WHEEL and Boulerice’s take on cosmic horror. It was a quick but highly enjoyable read. Thank you to NetGalley and Dead Head Press for giving me an ARC copy of the book in exchange for an honest review!

This haunting story can easily be consumed in one sitting. It feels perfectly crafted: No paragraph feels unnecessary and nothing's missing. The wheel is strange at first, but just as Caleb, the reader get's to accept the wheel's existence very fast.
The bonus story was an interesting read as well. I'll keep an eye out for this author in the future.