Small Town Monsters
by Diana Rodriguez WallachPublished by: Underlined on September 7, 2021
Genres: Young Adult, Horror, Paranormal
Pages: 336
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
Vera Martinez wants nothing more than to escape Roaring Creek and her parents' reputation as demonologists. Not to mention she's the family outcast, lacking her parents' innate abilities, and is terrified of the occult things lurking in their basement.
Maxwell Oliver is supposed to be enjoying the summer before his senior year, spending his days thinking about parties and friends. Instead he's taking care of his little sister while his mom slowly becomes someone he doesn't recognize. Soon he suspects that what he thought was grief over his father's death might be something more...sinister.
When Maxwell and Vera join forces, they come face to face with deeply disturbing true stories of cults, death worship, and the very nature that drives people to evil.
Content Tags:
Perfect for readers who want:
- Horror that’s not too gory but will still creep you out.
- Small town setting filled with a big mystery.
- Paranormal thriller that focuses on the unknown.
- A book that sets a tense, spooky atmosphere.
- Insta-love romance with an outsider protagonist.
- Conversations about religion, grief, and healing.
- Teen angst.
Many thanks to Underlined and TBR and Beyond for a copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review. Quotes taken from an unfinished version and may differ from the final product.
I was definitely here for all the dark, creepy vibes this blurb and cover gave me. How could I pass something like that up? Plus, this book is comped to The Conjuring and The Vow, so it sounded like the perfect fall read, and I can’t say I was at all disappointed on that aspect! What better to give you chills during the last heat of the summer than something a bit spooky?
Small Town Monsters is a creepy, atmospheric book sure to give you goosebumps. It’ll keep you hanging on the edge of your seat as you wonder what sinister forces have gripped this small town.
If you know me at all, you have to know what I’m about to say next: I didn’t love the insta-love romance. It’s just not a trope that I’m fond of, and that has everything to do with me and nothing to do with the book. For the most part, I was absolutely sucked into this novel! There were definitely times where it lagged a little bit and focused a little more on teen angst than I personally prefer (again, only because it’s not a trope I’m particularly a fan of). But all in all, I had a hard time putting this one down and just had to know how it was going to end!
Vera makes for a really interesting protagonist thanks to her unique position: a longer, outcast in a small town whose parents—oh yeah, by the way—just happen to vanish evil spirits for a living.
The inspiration for Vera’s parents definitely seems to be pulled from Ed and Lorraine Warren, and the author even mentions them in the notes at the end of the book. Even before reading that, though, there’s a definite Warren vibe about them. Which is exciting. Whether you happen to believe them or not, the Warren’s stories never fail to add a chill to the air, and Wallach does a fantastic job of capturing that atmosphere. There’s definitely something strange going on in Roaring Creek.
Thanks to her parents’ odd career choice, Vera herself is a bit of an outcast in town. Wallach maybe pushes this one a bit to the limit (to the point where adults are terrified of her and won’t even let their children around her, all because of her parents). However, it sets up a very relatable archetype for Vera: a loner outcast who has regular dreams (of being a doctor) and just wants to be seen. She’s someone I think a lot of people reading YA can relate to.
Wallach does a wonderful job of weaving in all these creepy, paranormal vibes that are definitely what attracted me to this book!
What’s a horror story if it doesn’t give you goosebumps, am I right? Wallach provides a thriller that does just that, while also maintaining a mystery that’ll keep you turning pages. I absolutely loved some of the scenes in this. Not gory, not enough to turn your stomach, but the mild sort of horror that has you seeing shadows in the night!
If you happen to think like me and believe that fall is the perfect time for horror (okay, honestly, any time is a good time to be creeped out, but fall just has the proper atmosphere for it) then you’re in for a treat. Small Town Monsters is a delightful fall read that’s just perfect for this time of year!
Only what she saw lacked life.
Hovering in the air a few feet ahead were the black-pitted holes of a skeleton, formed from a dewy cloud. The image was distinct—two hollow pits hung above the angular holes of its fleshless nose, black tears streaming toward the silent shriek of a gaping mouth. Behind the bony face, white wisps of fog formed long, feathery wings.
For everyone out there who believes they would never join a cult . . . Wallach sees your doubts and raises you one with super relatable characters who fall prey to their circumstances in ways that are uncomfortably relatable.
Sure, it’s easy to say that you wouldn’t join a cult or you wouldn’t welcome a demon in, right? I think most of us believe that. Wallach paints a narrative where it’s exceedingly easy to see why someone would. With not just one scenario, either, but a bunch of little scenarios that all add up to the disturbing, often uncomfortable fact that a lot of us would, in fact, unwittingly welcome a demon in. Because that’s how it works, right? They prey on our weakest points.
The biggest thing that struck me is that these people are neither good nor bad. They’re just . . . people.
That’s probably the scariest thing of all. I’d like to say that of course I’d never join a cult, that of course I’d see the warning signs and flee screaming with my arms flailing in the air. But Wallach weaves a very plausible story where I could easily see myself in some of these character’s shoes, and would I have made a different choice? Who’s to say. The scariest part of all (to me, at least) is in not knowing that you would’ve acted any differently than these characters!
Age is a cruel beast.
The wife slipped first—years ago, maybe even a decade, if he were being truly honest. And at a time like this, why not be honest?
The first time he noticed, she forgot her father’s name. Then she forgot what day it was. Then she forgot she had grandkids.
This book is filled with a lot of discussions about religion (as one might gather from the subject matter), but presented from a variety of viewpoints.
I think it’d be all too easy, in a book like this, to take one stance and leave it at that. That’s not what Wallach does, though. For Vera, religion is a tool to be wielded as necessary but not a cure-all by any means. She doesn’t share her aunts devotion to the saints, for example, nor understand her frequent need to pray. I appreciated the different angles and approaches to religion and the fact that Wallach never presents any of them as being the de facto “correct” perspective (other than the fact that something out there exists in the form of demons, and the idea of possession, of course). I like that it’s left open-ended in that respect for the readers to draw their own conclusions.
The ending was a bit rushed and a teensy deus ex machina, especially for the super tense build up for it.
I wish a little more time was spent in the actual delivery, because the build up is done so well, and it ends up so tense and high stakes. I wanted the actual last struggle to be a bit . . . more. Especially since what ends up being the actual conclusion sort of comes out of nowhere, is highly convenient, and there’s not really much foundation for it in the story.
Don’t get me wrong, I liked the ending and thought it was a great way to end things. I just thought it was a bit rushed and could’ve been slowed down and expanded on just a bit more.
About Diana Rodriguez Wallach
Diana Rodriguez Wallach is a multi-published author of young adult novels. Her most recent, Small Town Monsters, is a YA Latinx horror novel that will publish in Fall 2021 through Random House’s Underlined imprint. Additionally, Diana is the author of the Anastasia Phoenix Series (Entangled Publishing), a trilogy of young adult spy thrillers. The first book in the series, Proof of Lies, has been optioned for film and was chosen as a finalist for the 2018 International Thriller Awards for Best Young Adult Novel. Additionally, Bustle listed her as one of the “Top Nine Latinx Authors to Read for Women’s History Month 2017,” and Paste named Proof of Lies one of the “Top 10 Best Young Adult Books for March 2017.” Diana is also the author of three Latina young adult novels: Amor and Summer Secrets, Amigas and School Scandals, and Adios to All The Drama (Kensington Books). Amor and Summer Secrets placed second at the 2009 International Latino Book Awards for Best Young Adult Novel. Diana also penned a YA Greek-myth inspired short-story collection entitled Mirror, Mirror (Buzz Books).
In 2011, Diana published an essay in Dear Bully: 70 Authors Tell Their Stories (HarperCollins), which was the only essay from the anthology selected by Scholastic to be used in its classroom materials. Diana is also featured in the anthology, Latina Authors and Their Muses (Twilight Times Books, 2015).
Diana has taught as a Creative Writing Instructor for Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Talented Youth since 2015, and she has led Creative Writing Workshops in inner-city schools throughout the Philadelphia region for over ten years. She previously wrote as a blogger for Quirk Books, and she currently volunteers with the nonprofit organization Mighty Writers, which promotes writing in urban communities. Diana holds a B.S. in Journalism from Boston University, and currently lives in the Philadelphia area with her husband and two children.
One winner will receive a finished copy of Small Town Monsters.
September 6th – September 13th.
September 6th
Stuck in Fiction – Interview
Shelf Love – Review
Robinlea BookBird – Playlist, Favourite Quotes & Top 5 Reasons to Read Small Town Monsters
September 7th
The Bookwyrm’s Den – Review
The Lady With Books – Top 5 Reasons to Read Small Town Monsters
September 8th
Confessions of a YA Reader – Promo Post
Jena Brown Writes – Review & Top 5 Reasons to Read Small Town Monsters
September 9th
Sometimes Leelynn Reads – Review & Journal Spread
Infinite Pages – Review
Rajiv’s Reviews – Review
September 10th
The Book Dutchesses – Promo Post
Phannie the ginger bookworm – Review & Playlist
September 11th
Laura’s Bookish Corner – Review & Top 5 Reasons to Read Small Town Monsters
Popthebutterfly Reads – Review
September 12th
Andonshereads – Interview & Top 5 Reasons to Read Small Town Monsters
Nine Bookish Lives – Promo
Reading Stewardess – Review & Playlist
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I’ve had this book on my radar for the spooky vibes with that blurb and cover! Can’t wait to read it myself! And I feel so disconnected from the world that I had no idea about Ed and Lorraine Warren! I just read up on them when I read your reviews!
Hasini @ bibliosini recently posted…‘Incursion’ by Mitchell Hogan: Religion, Sorcery & Swords With a Hint of Demons!
Oooh, what do you think? Pretty cool and creepy, right? Seems like a lot of pop culture horror things were inspired by them. 🙂