New Haven

by René Rehn

Tragedy strikes in the small, religious town of New Haven, Minnesota when the pastor’s daughter, Claire Owens, is found dead. Ethan Miller, the town’s only self-proclaimed atheist, enlists the help of sheltered Christian boy David Sullivan to unravel the secrets hidden beneath the town’s picture-perfect facade. As they dig deeper, doubts and dark truths emerge. Can they expose New Haven’s secrets, and if so, at what cost?New Haven is a slow-burn horror mystery novel about faith, deception, and the dangerous secrets within the heart of small, isolated communities. And we soon learn that some secrets are best left buried, or they might consume you.

317 pages, Paperback

Published March 1, 2024

About the author

René Rehn is a writer of horror fiction. His stories have appeared on the Nosleep Podcast.

Reviews

[Goblintzu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Things get weird in an idyllic small town well known for the church at the center of it all…

This one really surprised me! It was so much better than I even expected. A super creepy story about a creepy religious town, it goes places I wasn’t expecting and pulls off scares effectively. I’m hard to scare but it definitely had my heart pumping at times!

I would recommend New Haven to anyone who likes religious horror, cult vibes, and creepy little small towns.

[Momma Says: To Read or Not to Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one creepy little town! I wasn't sure quite what to expect with New Haven, and to be honest, I often shy away from religious horror for personal reasons, but this one caught my eye and piqued my interest. I feel like that element was handled very well, and I didn't find anything particularly offensive about that part of the story. That said, I did find it pretty darn chilling. And it's not just the town! There were several characters with a sinister vibe, so it's pretty much a guessing game as to which characters can be trusted and which can't. Right here is where I admit that I was wrong about more than one of them. My advice would be to go into this one with an open mind and suspect everyone.
The only drawback for me is that the story lagged a bit at times. I know it can’t be full bore all the time, but I’d have preferred a little less slowdown. That aside, the book is well written with lots of twists and turns and a shocker at the end, at least for me. Well, maybe a couple of shockers. René Rehn is quite talented, and I enjoyed the descriptive writing. I found myself easily picturing this small town with the big dramatic church at its center. I pictured a dark Gothic-style church, which only enhanced the creep factor for me.
I could go on about the well-timed twists and the number of times I white-knuckled my Kindle while I tried to warn young David that he was getting into hot water, but I don’t want to get into spoiler territory. So, I’ll let the book keep its secrets and let each new reader discover them for themselves. New Haven is one of those books that give you chills and make you look over your shoulder, and I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoys the genre.

[Ariana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book as it was reccomended by The No Sleep Podcast. I am familiar with the author since I'm a big fan of the podcast. However there are far too many typos to ignore. It is distracting and disappointing. It's not a non-native English type of situation, more like an unfortunate victim of auto correct that was never edited. Examples include 'lock' instead of 'look', 'shocker' instead of 'shook her', and 'spend' instead of 'sped'. There are MANY others. While reading I was convinced it was a two star book, however the ending merited another star on its own. The book does get a bit repetitive and drag a little I'middle, but maybe that was intentional to demonstrate the descent into madness. The story it's self was pretty good, and the ending I felt was excellent.

[Sean Northage · Rating 5 out of 5]

New Haven seems perfect but when does perfect become not so perfect. Is the black sheep of the community really in the wrong.

Rene has written a fantastic suspense filled horror. As someone whose childhood was around religion and the obsession around it. I really resonated with David and Ethan.

Once again this novel is tremendous highly recommended

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kylee Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have never read a religious horror before this, but I think it is a new favorite sub-genre. This story was anxiety inducing! The last act of the book had my stomach churning with fear and stress. The religious imagery was very vibrant and creepy. I will definitely be looking to read more books from this author.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Wren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was good but the ending was a let down. Also there were many spelling and grammar errors throughout. Not sure if I had an old version on Kindle.