Wow! Another great entry in the Alyssa Cole Universe. If you are a fan of When No One is Watching, It Takes A Village serves as an unofficial sequel, but also a standalone novel. Cole has the uncanny ability to write a story so timely and horrifying that it's hard to call it fiction. I expect It Takes A Village to be one of the most talked-about horror books of 2027.

I loved this book once again this author does not miss. This is a forever auto buy author for me and everyone raved about this book.

Okayyy this one was FUN. 😂 It had mystery, humor, a little chaos, and that slightly offbeat energy that kept me wanting to know what the heck was actually going on. I loved how the story played with the idea of community and just how much can be hiding beneath the surface of a seemingly normal place. Definitely different from what I usually reach for, but I had such a good time with it!
Thank you to the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Alyssa Cole for the opportunity to read this book, and thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Alyssa Cole has created a story that pulled me in from the beginning. It Takes a Village is smart, layered, and full of complicated characters, relationships, secrets, and tension.

I really enjoyed the way the story explores community and the dynamics between people while keeping me curious about what was coming next. The characters felt authentic and flawed in a way that made them easy to become invested in, and there were definitely moments that had me questioning who I could trust.

The pacing kept me engaged, and I loved watching everything unfold. Alyssa Cole knows how to give you just enough to keep turning those pages!

Okay, this one had me STRESSED because the second someone says “this seems too good to be true,” you KNOW some shady shit is about to happen. 👀😂

Eboni finally gets the opportunity she’s been waiting for—running an experimental tiny-home village designed to help people experiencing homelessness get a fresh start. She’s excited, determined, and genuinely wants to make a difference. Except the surrounding town wants absolutely NOTHING to do with the village…and then strange things start happening inside it too.

Enter Michael—the broody security guard with ties to the town. 👀 And obviously I was here for that little bit of tension too because apparently I cannot read a thriller without immediately wondering “okay…but are they gonna hook up?” 😂

The deeper Eboni digs, the more she realizes that the organization behind the village might not be nearly as charitable as it claims. Between protests, accidents, buried history, secrets, and a whole lot of WHAT THE HELL IS ACTUALLY GOING ON HERE?!, I needed answers.

What I really liked was that underneath the suspense, there’s so much more going on. It tackles homelessness, community, racism, second chances, who actually gets to decide what “help” looks like, and the difference between helping people because you genuinely care versus helping because it makes you look good.

It was creepy, uncomfortable, thought-provoking, and twisty enough to keep me suspicious of basically EVERYONE. 😂

If you like social thrillers, small-town secrets, shady organizations, buried history, a little romance mixed into your suspense, and books that actually make you THINK while trying to figure out WTF is happening, add this one to your TBR! 👀🖤