A quirky, atmospheric book about a malevolent plant in a mall in Ireland, on the brink of closing for good. Add in a sordid workplace romance, dark humor, and an unforgettably atmospheric setting. This story follows our FMC Shell, a struggling graphic design artist who lost her fiancé and lucrative job in quick succession, forced to move home with her parents. When she sees a 'HELP NEEDED' sign in the window of a flower shop in the run-down local mall, she figures it could be a nice change of pace and maybe even spark her creativity. It doesn't hurt that the florist, Neve, is stunning and sparks an instant attraction between them. Little does Shell know, Neve may be beyond the help she so desperately needed.

I listened to this on audio and it was truly a joy. It changes POV's between Shell and Baby (the bloodthirsty orchid) and BOTH narrators were incredible!

Such a strange, imaginative book. This is that well-balanced combination of horror, literary, and fantasy/sci-fi that I absolutely ADORE. The writing style for Shell's POV was relatable and deadpan, a lot of focus the struggles of finding friend groups as an adult. I felt like this depicted work friendships in retail in a really fun, realistic way. This was mostly sapphic but it's worth noting that Shell is either bi or pan and does have a fling with a guy as well. When we pivot to Baby's POV it gets much more ominous as the plant gives major stalker vibes. Loved the scenes where Shell was exploring the seedy back halls of the mall, I do find myself wishing there was MORE gory plant action. Overall this was very enjoyable and I think audio is the perfect format for this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Sarah Maria Griffin for the audio ARC of this book.

Feral, creeping, penetrating and dreadful. I could listen to this narration/read this over again everyday. The setting was perfect: a hopeless liminal space that felt endless and rotten, and a plant with similar vibes to Little Shop of Horrors mixed with You. The writing was absolutely captivating, the characters felt real, and I was able to envision every aspect of this story in astonishing detail. One of my favorite reads of 2025, I will be recommending this to everyone I can for a fantastic creeping garden horror. And the accents in the audiobook version were so soothing! The characters being Irish and this being read with Irish accents was another greatly appreciated aspect of this audiobook.

Engaging and immersive. A recommended purchase for collections where cozy horror is popular. (Pair with Delilah Dawson's Bloom)

A perfect blend of queer romance and Little Shop of Horrors. While the writing was strong, it never overshadowed the plot. The characters were well-developed and interesting. I loved this one and have been recommending it to everyone.

✧ ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ ꜰᴏʀ ᴛʜᴇ ꜰʀᴇᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋ, @MacMillanaudio

➤ 𝚂𝚈𝙽𝙾𝙿𝚂𝙸𝚂

Shell Pine is having a rough go of it. Freshly single, unemployed, and back living with her parents, she stumbles into a flower shop at the mall and lands a job with Neve, a gorgeous florist who might be exactly what she needs. But Neve has bigger problems than store displays or bad exes, like the man eating orchid growing in the back room. His name is Baby, and he is deeply obsessed with Neve. He wants to grow, he wants to feed, and more than anything, he wants to devour the woman he loves.

This is a twisted little tale of toxic love, retail nightmares, and what happens when desire turns carnivorous. It is about hunger, obsession, and the terrible things that bloom when no one is looking.

➤ 𝚃𝙷𝙾𝚄𝙶𝙷𝚃𝚂

This one had all the ingredients I usually go for, and somehow still left me feeling like I ordered a spicy dish and got mild salsa. The setup is fantastic. A rundown mall, a lovestruck florist, and a man eating plant named Baby quietly plotting murder from the food court? Sign me up. There are clear Little Shop of Horrors vibes, a healthy dose of body horror, and a solid nod to the strange intimacy of retail work. Shell and Neve have some interesting chemistry that keeps things moving, and the nostalgia baked into the mall setting hits in all the right ways. And honestly, Baby steals the show. I could have read the whole book from that carnivorous creep’s point of view and been happier for it.

But here’s the thing. For a horror story about obsessive love and flesh eating flora, this felt surprisingly safe. The tone bounced around, the multiple perspectives diluted the tension, and I kept waiting for the horror to actually sink its teeth in. Instead, it mostly hovered around weird and slightly unsettling. The audiobook helped amp up the mood, but the story itself never fully committed to the scare. It is not bad, it just never quite bloomed the way I hoped. Creepy, clever, and occasionally fun, but I was expecting to be devoured and instead got nibbled.

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the complimentary audiobook for review!
Two excellent narrators for this thrilling and chilling tale! Both narrators are Irish and/or from the UK/London; they do such a great job bringing this book to life that I must recommend the audiobook over reading the physical/ebook.

If you want to experience this spine-tingling story of Baby, a not-so-nice man-eating plant, I highly suggest the audiobook! If you are a fan of the US play, Little Shop of Horrors, this book is for you! If you want an engaging audiobook, with a character that will make you laugh and cringe all at the same time, then grab and listen to the story that Baby wants to tell you!

Shell isn't having a great time in life. She lost her job and has to move in with her parents. But when she sees a help wanted sign for a local florist, and is greeted by the beautiful shop owner, Neve, things may be looking up! Well, maybe, if you ask Baby, a cheeky and moody plant, he may have another view.

The story is well paced, with elements of love and friendship. Very enjoyable, and the audiobook is very well done.

Audiobook/Narration: 4/5
Book/Overall Story: 3/5

Oddly enough, I don’t have too much to say about this read… And I think that’s kind of disappointing. I mean, this book had such a fun concept. Who wouldn’t love an Eco horror with its own Little Shop of Horror vibe? An unsettling and jealous plant with a thirst for life! Sign me up! Plus it gave us a really nostalgic and relatable setting to hold on to. I enjoyed the rundown mall scene, the fear of constantly rotating stores, and the strange sense of home you build at the very place you can’t wait to clock out of. In addition, I can see plenty of readers relating to this cast of characters and exploring that sense of camaraderie that so often occurs when working in a customer service role, specifically retail.

That being said, I’m grateful I had the ALC for this read. The audiobook definitely elevated the reading experience. It lured me deeper into the story and amplified the tension and eerie elements that were lacking from the physical book by itself.

Which brings me to the exact reason this book was not a winner for me….It needed more.

More horror. More tension. More fear. It just lacked that ooomph for me. That doesn’t mean it’s a terrible read, just a little boring for what I expected. It was an interesting expression on obsession, sapphic love, and possession. Though with its multiple POVs, and shifts in tone, I wondered if I should DNF it. I became less interested in the other characters and was drawn to the perspective of Baby, the plant. I felt it would’ve been more captivating told entirely from its perspective, even though it read as darkly comedic more so than terrifying.

Regardless I gave it three stars. I would recommend this to people wanting to try a different take on horror on someone looking to get into horror without feeling overwhelmed.

Thanks to NetGalley, Tor books, and Macmillan Audio for this ALC.

With hints of Little Shop of Horrors, Eat the Ones You Love gets off to a strong start. It’s bizarre and unsettling and kept me reading eagerly, but somewhere along the way, it started unravel, and in the end left me wanting less rather than more.

Barry McStay and Lauren O’Leary do a good job narrating the audiobook.

Thank you Sarah Maria Griffin, Tor Books, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC Audio Copy!

I knew nothing about his book going into it, but I was completely captivated by the cover, and I love plants, so the idea seemed really intriguing for me. It took me a bit to get into this book, and I was a little confused with some of the POV switches, at no fault of the book, I blame it on me just being a little distracted, so I ended up restarting the book in a different headspace and I am really glad that I did. It helped me to really get invested in the story and then I was completely obsessed with the plants POV chapters. Such a quirky and fun read.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for the ALC, all opinions are my own.

The summary of this book really excited me, but once I started it I am just hating the main character. I also didn't expect to have the book from the POV of the plant, which I also do not love. DNF at 20%

This was quirky and dark. I really enjoyed listening to the narration on the audiobook. I’m not sure I would have enjoyed it as much reading it. The book reminds me of Little Treeshop of Horrors, which I love.

Gleefully creepy!!

This book is for those who yearn for third spaces, making friends in your thirties, and needing a restart.

We start out from the POV of Chelle, while she is recently broken up and starting a new job at a flower shop. But she is by no means the main character of this story. That title belongs to Baby, the carnivourous venus fly trap that is utterly in obesession with Nieve, who also happens to be into Chelle. (a truly messy love triangle).

This book is poetically written, but that doesn't mean it's not wonderfully gory.

Nobody puts Baby in a corner.

Thanks to NetGalley, the Publisher and Author for an eAudio ARC of this work in exchange for my review.

"Eat the Ones You Love" is about a rundown mall in Ireland with a florist shop and is primarily told from the perspective of a sentient and quite obsessive plant. The book doesn't really get gruesome as much eerie and creepy with the narration building tension. The characters are full of real flaws and quirks and the location of the story was described very well.

The narrators of the audiobook and the performance made the story pop. In fact I can't imagine reading without it and feeling the same vibe.

I really quite enjoyed the experience and was immersed from beginning to end.

SO good…SO good. Lush, mysterious, twisty. But also, friendship! Gays! Loved everything. I listened to this on my ways to and from work which is an hour commute each way and I kid you not I’d sit in the parking lot when I got home just to keep listening.

*4.5 Stars*

This was one twisty story, in the best way. I expected none of it, I kept being surprised at every turn. I can't even compute now and I've finished it! It was all so weird and strange, in the best way. A true Sarah Maria Griffin story. I was truly enthralled from beginning to end. What a story. I can't wait to see what Sarah Maria Griffin comes up with next!

Have you ever listened to an audiobook so good you immediately wanted to buy the book just so you can see the actual written prose…? This was that…

Shell finds a new start in a decaying mall set to close sometime soon where something is growing. Shell and Neve, the flower shop owner and parent?/owner? of baby, find themselves entangled. Blending body horror, social media commentary, and the aching intimacy of weird girl lit fic, this story is as mesmerizing as it is grotesque.

This is weird. This is uncomfortable. This literally made my palms itchy. This is beautifully narrated and it’s so so good.

I’ve fallen in love with weird girl lit fic all over again. Every character is likeable (kinda) and well written—hell, I even liked the creepy plant thing growing in the dying mall.

This was such a fun book and took me right back to my obsession with Little Shop of Horrors (but add lesbians).

The idea of a book switching points of view with a sentient plant that has yet to introduce itself to one of the primary characters was so entertaining. Getting the 'orchid's' perspective like it was a surveillance camera created an eerie atmosphere but also allowed us to see just how someone could be seduced by a dangerous, and murderous, being that wants to possess you.

While this sits within the horror genre, I think it may being a bit mis-marketed. This is a humorous book full of pulp like story and campy concepts that happens to have murder in it by a monster. The characters and their relationship and the added slice-of-life elements were really what drove the story with horror taking a bit of a back seat until the very end. Even then, the ending wasn't frightening.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

Eat the Ones You Love gives total little shop of horror vibes, workplace romance gone wrong?, and social circle evolution in adulthood vibes and it was scarily relatable.

Baby is a man-eating plant who has big plans for the flower shop owner Neve, and her new employee Shell. Shell has just had a broken engagement and is realizing that her social circle wasn’t really full of people she truly wanted to be friends with. When she passes a “Help Needed” sign in the window of a local florists shop, she has a feeling it’s exactly what she needed.

Well friends, it all goes downhill from there! I love the flower “Baby” and all the crazy unhinged chaos that ensues with his appetite and nefarious plans. I didn’t love Neve, and could relate to something with Shell enough to be invested in the story til the very deranged end. The last 20% is my favorite and I wish the entire book was as unhinged as the ending, but we get what we get and overall it was fun!

If you’ve ever worked retail and thought, “This job is slowly consuming my soul,” this book says: what if that was literally true?

This was a dark, strange, and totally gripping story about love, control, and one very hungry plant. Shell Pine is newly single, unemployed, and living with her parents when she stumbles into a flower shop inside a slowly dying mall. There, she meets Neve—the beautiful florist with a secret. The real star of the story though? Baby. A carnivorous orchid with a voice, a hunger for power, and a disturbing obsession with Neve.

At first, I didn’t know where the story was going. But like a vine creeping through cracks, it grows until you can’t look away. This isn’t your average love story. It’s creepy, clever, and kind of beautiful in a twisted way. Baby’s monologues are everything—haunting, poetic, and full of twisted longing and concealed cleverness. I was shocked by how much emotion the apt narration pulled out of me, especially coming from a literal houseplant. The sound design blew me away too, especially in the final scenes. Voices merge. Reality crumbles. It’s chaotic and eerie in all the best ways. The ending was wild but felt right—satisfying and dark with just enough hope.

If you like botanical horror, sapphic slow burns, and the fading eeriness of shopping malls, I highly recommend this one. And if you’re listening to the audiobook? Even better. The voice acting adds an extra layer of tension that sticks with you long after it’s over.

Big yes from me. Just…maybe don’t listen to it near your houseplants.

Thanks to @netgallery and @mac.millian.audio for the advanced listening copy!
An odd book, for odd people this one is!

Basically, we have a dark and twisted tale, with a little magic and horror thrown in about a woman named Neve, another woman, called Shell, and a sentient, murderous orchid named Baby. Shell gets a new job as assistant at Neve's flower shop, just in the nick of time, as she is recently separated from her fiancé and feeling very lost. The flower shop is located in a dying shopping mall and hosts a real crew of characters, including the murderous and hungry 'Baby', who is obsessed with Neve.

This story is a trip! It is sometimes very darkly funny, a sort of commentary on the millennial urge to hold onto shopping malls, roaring 80's number one singles, pointless group chats and dying things. It is about feeling lost in the change, left behind, watching your friendships become irrelevant and die as you go in different directions.

Sure, it has a murdering plant, but it is more campy than gory.
The audio production is lovely, our main narrator has a beautiful and calming lilt, and is a pleasure to listen to. Sometimes the audio sort of does an echo thing between Neve and Baby and it is creepy and super cool.
Overall, the pacing was a bit off for me, and I was left a bit lacking in the ending, but overall an interesting tale.
3.5