A thrilling story with great characters and a bone chilling plot. This reminded me of The Purge movies, which I loved. It started out fast paced and carried on like that all the way until the end. A real page turner, this was such an enjoyable read! I need to know more of these creatures and what it all means. I want to know how it started and how the go through the next 20 years. I really hope there is a sequel.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Two words. Avoid this. I was irritated from the jump. I hate when Dad characters call their son “son” in every single piece of dialogue, like every single sentence. And that was just the prologue. Story wise, there was no tension, which is ridiculous for a survival horror. Justin pissed me off from the second he was introduced. The women? Terrible. I need men to stop writing women, especially in horror when their only artistic use is to be sexualized. Women belong in horror, and I’m tired of them being one dimensional sex kittens in the middle of what should be a nightmare. This had a creative and unique premise, but the execution was awful.

This what such a cool book! I loved the premise and the drama surrounding the coming of the cleanse. There definitely could’ve been some more world building. For instance, does this happen globally? Shouldn’t there be more of an impact on society than just a local armory that will reinforce your house and provide you with weapons? Has there been no research done on the creatures? Is there no photo/video evidence left behind? I also just may have missed where some of this was explained, but I didn’t see them. Regardless, these potential plot holes did not affect the enjoyment I got reading this book. It reminded me of the first Purge movie at times, and I really liked the fact that it swapped between multiple viewpoints and for a large portion of the book treated The Cleanse as the context, and not necessarily the whole point of the story.

4/5 stars, thank you to Net Galley for the advanced reader copy!

Fine. Decided to leave some interesting ideas murky and fully develop quite a lot that I did not care about. Wish I’d been able to root for literally any perspective character, but they all sucked.

Action packed. Loaded with violence. Psychological nightmare! Pretty decent read. I was a little skeptical by the concept at first but it surprised me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC copy of "The Cleanse". This has not affected my review at all, which are my own thoughts.

Every twenty years, the Cleanse takes place, with all type of demonic (or alien?) creatures coming out the night and taking out the people. It's coming again in a few days, and they'd like to think that they're ready, but life is never that easy. So, we have various protagonists in a little town: Justin Adams, with his wife Hannah and their two kids; Tommy Johnson, local mafia guy; and Rupert Bainbridge with wife Nikita and a daughter.
Justin thought he had a plan, he's had twenty years to prepare for the upcoming Cleanse, but one bad gamble makes him loose almost all their money, and now his family’s survival rests on a small metal box and a few borrowed guns. His best friend Chris will be there to help him as much as possible.
On the other side of town, millionaire Rupert watches from his mansion, assured in his survival, for money can buy him the best security system on market, but even steel walls can’t keep out guilt, nor the religious cult gathering at his gates and ready to give themselves to the Cleanse.
When night arrives, is time for them to brace themselves for bloodbath and some unsavory truths about the Cleanse, but mostly about themselves.

So, this one was too much preparation for the bloodbath and survival and too little fighting for their lives, for my liking. And this is completely personal and I will *not* base my liking or disliking of the book on it, though I'll make some comment on why I felt like this so y'all have a reference. The book is short, yet it stretched the "preparation" part for most of it. Sure, it added tension for when the night of the cleanse came, and it showed us the different chess pieces. Yet, for me, some of this moments, which were barely breathed through, weren't as necessary, because, to me, they didn't add substance to the story, plot or characters; they were too short for it. Not sure if I'm making sense, but I would have liked to use some pages better and give more depth to it all.

On the other hand, the characters were interesting enough to carry the plot and the story to the end, with my favorite being Justin. Relatable, complex, flawed, a family man... Justin was an amazing character, yet the rest didn't live up to it, I wished I would have known them better to suffer with them trough it all, or been able to see them as complex as Justin. Meaning, most of them were lacking depth, and, as I said, I fear this might be due to the rushing through some scenes, or having so many characters showing their points of view, with gave little room for exploration and fulfilling characters' arcs, in my opinion.

Ultimately, though there were some aspects of The Cleanse that didn't make me love it, I had a good time reading it, I got entertained and got a few laughs and good action moments. And, in the end, I even got what I expected of it: having some fun reading a short book with this premise of humanity fighting something they barely understand, adding some secrets, rituals of preparation and, mostly, anticipation. These creatures are coming, whether they like it or not, and everybody is on their nerves. So, I came for the fun, stayed for Justin's characters and the final fight. And...some final things that shone a light on to other aspects that left me gasping. So, now that I think about it, this was definitely a rising curve in interest for what was going on for me😂

Even though it seems like I'm hating on it, I liked The Cleanse and i do recommend it. A fast read for fans of science fiction, fighting inhuman creatures for your loved ones and making do in a world that seems to be against you every passing second.

I found this book to be a lot of fun, easy to read with a fast pace and generous helpings of dark, British humour – which I enjoy. I really liked it.

It opens 20 years earlier with a scene of an onslaught of monsters and familial tragedy.

Next, in present day, the world is preparing for what has become a 20-year cycle of alien monsters descending upon us to rampage and kill humans.

The main protagonist is flawed (I always like that) and has gambled away most of the money that would ensure the safety of his family with the varying levels of money grabbing safety solutions against The Cleanse. His mate runs the place that sells that and rents out the guns that are allowed in the one situation.

With a smattering of gangsters and wrongdoing, in all the right ways this is like a Lock Stock / The Purge mash up. Great reading and very British in its vernacular.

Thank you to NetGalley and J Yates Publishing for the ARC!

A man-centric survival story, at least it was for the first 20% of the story I got though. Every single male character was lacking and pathetic in some way.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the digital ARC!

If you mixed together The Purge and A Quiet Place, then I feel you'd get The Cleanse. This is one of those books I can see working really well as an indie horror film, as it's pretty short but packed with characters and story. Despite the shorter length, we get a pretty good understanding of these characters, their histories and their motives. Some are set up to be more important than they end up being (someone you meet pretty early on ends up being pretty much a nothing burger, to be honest).

The premise here is that every 20 years, a horde of unearthly creatures appears and kills anyone they find. Those who survive spend the next twenty years saving to invest in better protections; those who can afford it are able to buy an Arma Box or completely shutter their home for protection. Of course, this means that the rich get to survive and the poor are left to fend for themselves. After this single night, the creatures disappear for another 20 years. What are they? Where are they from? Why do they do this? Some characters query this, and you don't really get to see these creatures properly until the book's last quarter.

Our main characters are Jamie and Richard, with other secondary characters getting occasional POV's. Jamie has a gambling addiction, and he gambles away most of his savings in an attempt to get more money for a better security system. Richard is a rich guy who has everything, but is increasingly paranoid about the growing religious cult that wants to sacrifice themselves for the Cleanse, and his irritation at losing power over his wife and daughter. Other influential characters include Hannah, Jamie's wife, Chris, Jamie's best friend and the intro's POV, a few religious people, and Tommy, the local gangster.

The horror here doesn't really kick in until the end of the book, and most of it is just preparing for this event. When it does happen, though, everything goes down very quickly! The ending was both surprising and not, but it left me wanting more information.

I was also curious about the rest of the world; does everyone else experience this? How do they all cope knowing they have twenty years before they might get killed in a horrific way? There were many more questions I would've liked answering, but overall this was a quick and enjoyable read.

It's like Groundhog Day, but horror. No, I take that back.
Groundhog Year, but horror, if that exists.
Something happens every 20 years. There. How about that?
The concept has been done before. But the delivery is engaging.
Always a sucker for Demonic Creatures.

An action packed prologue kicks off this tale of "Things". Things that go bump in the night, (and day), things that are terrifying, hellish, remorseless, and that aren't too keen on the human race! But only for 24 hours and only once every 20 years…. thankfully!

Preparation for The Cleanse is on, where all rules are out the window and the only goal is to survive. In amongst the preparations, people are taking full advantage and turning things to their own sinister gains. And this is what takes up most of the narrative for this book, it's all about the build up to the big day.

What's really behind The Cleanse? The truth is more terrifying than the creatures themselves. Gambling on human lives, a crazy cult, underhand tactics, dodgy deals, and true nightmare creatures.

The narrative is clear, slick and captivating. Yates keeps up the intrigue and mystery, and constantly teases you along with the proverbial carrot. I was dying to know what was going on, which is a great ploy to get the reader flying through those pages.

Hopefully we will get a sequel as I'd have liked more about, and of, the creatures. Such a big build up, it seemed like it was all over far too quickly.
And also….WHAT WAS IN THE CASE? 😲

The Cleanse was a fast, intense read with a great survival horror concept. I liked the multi-POV style and the slow build to chaos—it definitely kept me hooked. Some characters felt a bit flat, and parts could’ve used more creature action, but overall it was a solid, fun horror ride. A strong 3 stars.

I want to start by saying that I loved the concept of this book. It’s very much “The Purge” but taken to the extreme and with monsters. And religious cult!
The story was fast-paced and easy to read. I especially enjoyed getting different POVs throughout.
My biggest issue with this book was the representation of female characters. I didn’t like how they were all portrayed in a stereotypical and overly sexualized way as soon as they were introduced.
Overall it was a quick and fun read, I finished it in one evening.

Thank you NetGalley and J.Yates publishing for the eARC!

Every twenty years, they come back and this time, everyone is running out of time.

The Cleanse is one of those books that crawls under your skin and stays there. It’s brutal. Tense. Quietly unhinged. A little bit The Purge, a little bit The Mist, with a twist of cult horror and creeping dread.

We follow two very different men trying to survive:
🔧 Justin scrappy, desperate, trying to protect his family with nothing but a steel box and shaky promises
🏰 Rupert a rich man locked in his fortress, haunted by guilt, cultists at his gates, and the realization that money can’t save your soul

This book doesn’t just show you an apocalypse it makes you feel it. In every flickering light. Every rustle in the dark. Every “what the hell are those things?” moment. And just when you think you know what’s going on? Yeah, no. You don’t.

Perfect for fans of:
💀 survival horror
🔥 cult paranoia
📦 claustrophobic settings
😱 morally gray characters making impossible choices

If you’re in the mood for something chilling but thought-provoking equal parts bloodbath and breakdown The Cleanse is your next nightmare read. You won’t want to put it down… but you will want to lock your doors.

This books follows multiple characters on a day that occurs every 20 years. All these characters are all interconnected. So we follow each of them learning their relationships and what each of them are most afraid to lose. You see how they prepare for this purge like day.

This book kept me wanting to read because I needed the answers and things happened that I did not expect all the way until the end.

The Cleanse is sharp, disorienting, and quietly devastating—a slow-burning descent into obsession, shame, and the impossible pursuit of purity. James Yates has written the kind of story that lingers like a bruise, subtle at first but impossible to ignore once it’s there.

From the beginning, there’s this creeping sense that something isn’t quite right—beneath the surface of clean lines, clean eating, clean living, there’s rot. The protagonist’s unraveling is so well-paced, so painfully honest, that I found myself wincing in recognition more than once. It’s not just about food or control—it’s about how easily self-improvement becomes self-erasure.

Yates’s prose is precise and piercing. Every sentence feels like it’s been carved out carefully, mirroring the rigid, anxious world his characters inhabit. There’s something beautifully brutal about the way he captures bodily discomfort, social performance, and the desperate hunger (literal and emotional) that simmers underneath it all.

If you’re drawn to psychological fiction that explores body image, queer identity, and the terrifying quiet of obsession, The Cleanse is a must-read. It’s intimate. It’s unnerving. And it left me thinking long after I finished the final page.

Thank you NetGalley and James Yates for an ARC of this book! Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It is an other-worldly version of the Purge. I have always loved the Purge so it was really fun to see this perspective on that concept. The only things I would change are 1) I wish there had been more gore. For this to be a 'horror' book it was pretty PG, IMO. 2) I wish the ending was more flushed out and there was more explanation in the epilogue--that would have been SUPER interesting. Not sure if the prologue was setting up for a second book or not... this was a fun, quick read and I give it 3.5 stars overall!

Thank you to NetGalley and J.Y publishing for allowing me to read this. I personally liked the concept of the story, similar to the purge but with otherworldly beings. However, I feel it was slightly rushed and there could have been more to the story. The writing was basic and easy to follow. I really liked the Justin and Tommy characters, childhood friends and how their relationship had changed, Tommy becoming a top gangster and Justin a gambling addict.
Sadly, I felt the story starting off with Chis as a child was somewhat pointless because we hardly saw him in the rest of the book. It would have been nice to have followed him more, maybe alongside Justin. I really liked prologue, finding out who ‘Gabriel’ really was and the government being involved. You can kind of guess the cleanse has government involvement from the ‘mist’ forming, however it does leave off for the story to continue, I think it definitely has potential.

loved the concept and nonstop pacing, and the cult subplot added an eerie layer. Some of the characters felt underdeveloped, and the writing style was a little uneven in places.
A quick, violent, and gripping read—perfect for horror fans who want a punchy survival story with a dark edge.

This story isn't what I was expecting. That is, until the last 25% percent. The first 75% is basically character building. Not a lot of action woth the monsters. The last 25% finally got to the creatures. At that point, I loved it!

Needs more action and creatures!

#Netgalley #TheCleanse