Review: The God in the Shed

Book: The God in the Shed 

Author: J-F. Dubeau

I picked this book up because I liked the cover. Plain and simple. 

I knew nothing of the story line; but key words like 'ancient evil' intrigued me enough to snag it. Ancient evil and lore is kind of my jam.

Much to my surprise I wound up enjoying this one. It was a quick read - only took me about 4 days, on top of my work schedule; otherwise I think I could have easily read it in two sittings. 

For me, the writing was somewhat juvenile; putting this somewhere closer to YA than an adult horror - which is fine by me. YA is a guilty pleasure, so I wasn't upset by this.

Let me say, though, that I have never been so enraptured by and mad at a book in my entire reading life. The plot held my interest and the characters were believable enough that I could look past the occasional hole in the story. Unfortunately, I didn't get to learn about any of the characters intimately enough yo really connect to them or feel for their story.

The story line held many of the themes that I regularly sink my teeth into: occult, ancient religions, superstitions and paranormal. It just tickled my fancy the entire time.

So, that brings me to why I was also mad; first reason being the characters themselves. 

I saw almost no development in the main character Venus and her friend Penny, or at least, not the kind of development I would expect given their unique situation. They just...adapted in a way that was almost unnatural for my tastes. It was hard to get a grasp on who was the most stable character. Also, the interpersonal relationships between some of the characters just wasn't convincing at all. Some were just cringy. Like Venus and Daniel's odd, I know we just met but let's just start sharing all our darkest secrets to each other thing since we're battling fate was just...wrong. 

What got me the most, though, was the ending. I was left with more questions than answers.

As with any good thriller, the main parts of the story build the suspense for some great climactic ending or turn of events. In this case, I felt as though the author maybe just didn't know how he wanted the story to end so he rushed through it; making the last 10 pages the climax we were waiting for. I won't lie, it was disappointing. Literally, the last ten pages.

There were just so many loose ends that didn't end up resolved that I'm almost hoping he's intending for a sequel...just so I can get that closure. 

Being a story about gods and ancient evil, I just didn't get the horror elements that I was really hoping for. The gore factor was on point, I must applaud him for that; but I feel as though he could have incorporated so much more of that cult/occult element to give it that pure hauntingly creepy vibe that I think he was going for. 

I just wanted so much more. Of what, I don't know, but more.

If Dubeau does write a sequel, I will definitely pick it up because the overall concept was enjoyable enough for me to not give it another shot. This book will also be staying in my collection; mainly because it fits my aesthetic, and because down the road I wouldn't mind a fun reread. 

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars.