Don't Eat the Pie

I really enjoyed the Gothic horror element to this book, it had a strong feel and I was hooked from the first page. The characters were what I was looking for and enjoyed the overall feel of the story. I was intrigued from the cover and so glad I was able to read this. Monique Asher does a great job writing this and leaving me wanting more.

This was a WILD ride!! Very quickly, we can see things just aren’t adding up and are too good to be true. I loved the dual POV between mother and daughter, as they really balanced each other out. Monique had a unique way of pushing the plot along with the help of Emma, who was questioning everything and was unafraid to dive in to the mystery. I really liked how she handled the duality of the characters and what drove them. It was a dynamic that l’ve never experienced and it really made this gothic horror plot line feel fresh and well done.

There were many twists and turns that had me confused and shocked. I was HOOKED and had to find out all the secrets and what was really going on! I thought the ending was well done and really exciting. That said, I wish we had just a bit more information and maybe an epilogue to see how things turned out a bit further into the future.
Basically, I loved it so much and I wanted more. The tension was incredible!

This was insanely well done for a gothic horror debut novel and it kept me captivated.

I had so many things to do today, like packing for a trip. Instead, I opened this book and burritoed on the couch for six hours until I finished.

So, here we are 🤷🏻‍♀️

Was it a bit predictable? Yeah. I'm not even mad about it because there are enough twists and turns to make it feel fresh. It's basically like a Rosemary's Baby retelling with extra helpings of gaslighting and coated with generational trauma.

Emma, Sam, and Becca end up in a coastal Carolina town to care for Ben's mom—who seems to recover pretty damn quick—and then I guess they just decide to chill on this retirement island and party like it's 1699. There's some pie, a demon orgy, a secret garden, a sapphic road trip, a Narnia wardrobe, and, oh yeah, Ben's dead ex-wife. All adds up to a super fun and fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat horror read.

https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/4662c620-89bb-45c5-afb2-f2cda11bb835

This is a gothic horror story that reminds me of Rosemary's Baby with the creepy happenings, strange people, and a woman becoming pregnant after a "party" gets bizarre.

It's set on an island that appears idyllic at first. Colorful flowers everywhere, friendly people, and beautiful homes. But it's almost TOO perfect for our protagonist and her family. She's getting married to a great guy and they're going to live on the island with his mother. Right next door is his former home. A home he abandoned when his last wife died.

Yeah, things start getting freaky almost right away. There are shadows seen in the windows. People start behaving oddly. And nobody is willing to answer questions about the island and residents. This place has some very dark dreadful secrets but they get pushed aside as superstition.

Samantha already has a teen daughter and she doesn't want to have any more children. Their past is filled with trauma as well. But after a strange pie party one night, she finds herself pregnant.

And things are going to go off the rails from here. This is a very atmospheric creepy novel and it will have you looking over your shoulder! I highly recommend it.

Sam and second husband Ben are so in love, she will happily move with him and her daughter Emma to his childhood home in Camilia Island when his mother becomes ill.

The atmosphere is tense from the beginning, and Emma doesn't pretend everything is normal as Sam does - there is something very wrong here, with strange things appearing, people being secretive, and also, you know, living next door to where Ben's first wife died.

Sam is torn between Ben and Emma - does she give up on the man she loves and the "normal" life she's always wanted, or does she ignore her daughter's pleas to believe her when she shares what is happening in Camilia. But Sam doesn't have long to make a decision - the island, and the people in it, are coming for her.

Sam's wavering was frustrating but Monique Asher makes a compelling case for her reasons, Emma is a wonderful, brave character, determined not to fade into the horrors of the island. The tension is present from beginning to end, and this gothic horror book was a rollercoaster I was happy to ride.