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False Bodies
A genre-bending noir, and perhaps the squiddiest novel ever written, False Bodies creates a horror/thriller blend of the renowned Newfoundland culture seen in shows like Come From Away with the heart-pounding tension and creeping fear of Alien.
False Bodies follows monster hunter Eddie “The Yeti” Gesner to Newfoundland, to investigate a mass death on an offshore oil rig—which some say is the work of a kraken. A mysterious incident in Eddie’s life has made him obsessed with chasing unfathomable things, but when an antique diary plunges him into a watery world of squid cults, tentacled beasts and corporate greed, Eddie finds even his own fractured reality pushed to the brink, as he’s forced to confront an undersea power beyond human imagining.
False Bodies follows monster hunter Eddie “The Yeti” Gesner to Newfoundland, to investigate a mass death on an offshore oil rig—which some say is the work of a kraken. A mysterious incident in Eddie’s life has made him obsessed with chasing unfathomable things, but when an antique diary plunges him into a watery world of squid cults, tentacled beasts and corporate greed, Eddie finds even his own fractured reality pushed to the brink, as he’s forced to confront an undersea power beyond human imagining.
248 pages, Paperback
Published October 18, 2024
15 people are currently reading
202 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
January 1, 2025
this was good!! just something random i found at the book store. it’s a mixture of mystery with occult involvement, mainly from the sea. it was interesting with twists, the only thing is i found some of the writing super repetitive!! wish it had a bit more horror vibes tbh
June 7, 2024
*Huge thanks to Breakwater Books for sending me a digital ARC!*
Do you know the writer J.R. McConvey?
I feel like this is a name that not enough people know about, but that within a few short months that is going to really change.
First, let’s get something out of the way. I know J.R. McConvey. Cocky eh? Well, no, what I mean is, I actually know the guy, consider him to be a wonderful friend and at one point, we were even working on a screenplay for one of my novella’s together. J.R. is not only a fantastic human, but outside of the writing world, he’s a Gemini and Genie award-winning producer. In the writing world, his debut collection, ‘Different Beasts’ which was released in 2019 won the Kobo Rakuten Emerging Writer Prize in Speculative Fiction award. And that was where we connected. Well, not through that – but because of that win – his collection was sent over to Kendall Reviews for reviewing and I jumped on it for three reasons. One – it was titled ‘Different Beasts’ so I was stoked to read some Canadian beastly tales. Two – because he was Canadian. I’m always game to read new to me Canuck stuff. Three – not surprising, but Andrew Pyper had judged those awards and there was a blurb from what Andrew had noted about the book, and that really sold me. It was very similar in tone to Andrew’s blurb of Ian Rogers ‘Every House is Haunted’ collection and that collection is SO GOOD, so I was on board. And guess what? ‘Different Beasts’ was magical.
Not long after, J.R. and I began chatting and since then we’ve become solid buds. But don’t take that for nothing, if this book sucked, I’d tell you, because I know his beard could handle the truth.
Sometime in the last two or three years, McConvey asked me if I knew of any place he should send this novel for submission. I suggested a few spots, but nothing stuck (unintentional pun), but when he said it had been picked up, I was so excited.
Why?
Have you read the blurb.
Here’s a quick sentence to get you excited. ‘A cryptozoologist goes to Newfoundland to investigate a report of a Kraken attack.’ I mean COME ON. If you read that and your eye brows went up and your heart rate quickened, then not only are you and I now friends, but you can best bet you’re zipping to the bottom to hit the preorder link.
If you read that and were like ‘meh,’ I suggest you stop reading and question why you hate awesome fiction. You can marinate on that.
So, now, we arrive at McConvey’s debut. ‘False Bodies.’ Stunning cover art in tow, I bumped this way up my TBR, wondering just what craziness McConvey’s delivered and boy, does he deliver.
What I liked: The story follows Eddie Gesner, a cryptozoologist, who is trying to live his life with a few things hanging over his head. The first is that he’s seven-feet tall. Which makes him standout no matter where he goes. I’m not sure if this character was modeled after James “Bobo” Fay from Finding Bigfoot, but that’s kind of who I pictured while reading this. The second is that many people consider him a murderer. Why? After marrying the woman of his dreams, they went on a trip in Tibet. While there, his wife disappeared, never to be found. She was super rich. So, many presumed he killed her. While Eddie insists that a Yeti took her. This has now given him the moniker Eddie ‘The Yeti’ Gesner, which he detests.
The story picks up while he’s at a cryptozoology conference. His friend contacts him and tells him of a strange occurrence off the Newfoundland coast. Where a drilling rig was seemingly attacked by a Kraken. How do they know this? A tentacle was left behind.
Up until this point, McConvey delivers a very straight forward creature-feature. He’s setting the stage and you’d be forgiven if you believed that the rest of the story would go like this – Eddie goes there, investigates, discovers that a massive squid exists, battles it to avenge the deaths of those workers and the death of his wife, and once he successfully kills the creature, lives out the rest of his life.
Wrong.
No, what McConvey does from that point on is simply extraordinary. This novel is richly layered and as we move from chapter to chapter – and it’s very subtle at first – J.R. ramps up the tension and the pacing so that the final quarter feels like a full on sprint.
Once on the ground, he teams up with a local detective who wants to get to the bottom of what happened. We get more details. The crew change was scheduled to happen. The new crew arrived, only to find nobody onboard the drilling rig. Then they all mysteriously returned – dead – but with markings on their foreheads.
We then get a mysterious diary – from the 1800’s and a distant relative of the detective – that goes over a previous incident of a giant squid arriving at the shores, and soon Eddie understands someone is following him.
The introduction of the squid-cult was a fascinating plot point. I won’t go too far into that aspect as I’m now at the stage where I gotta walk the spoiler-free line carefully, but it not only opened up some supernatural elements I wasn’t expecting, but made for some cinematic scenes.
Throughout, the reader is pulled along by one simple aspect – is there really a giant squid. Once we get our answer, McConvey ramps things up and this is when we get the ‘corporate greed’ aspect that we are tipped off about in the synopsis. Yet another element that honestly wasn’t on my Bingo card for this novel, it added more depth, but also worked well when we consider the current Canadian environment and the ongoing boycott of Loblaws. My only gripe is that the head of the corporation wasn’t described more like slime ball Galen Weston.
McConvey wraps this up perfectly. The final fifty pages or so are pristine and harken back to the depth of storytelling he offered in ‘Different Beasts.’ This is a Canadian story at its heart and that really shines through this final quarter. Throughout we get that aspect well, the ‘everyone knows everyone’-ness of the location, the ‘everyone is friendly’ aspects, but McConvey injects the Canadian horror story element ten-fold to wrap this up and it really showcases how phenomenal of a writer he is.
What I didn’t like: Honestly only one main issue with this one and that involves somebody key to the cult. I can’t specifically say – spoilers and such – but Eddie invites them to meet up as he has questions but somebody kills them before he can meet them. The way it was laid out, I felt like I’d missed something, as I’d kind of assumed they had special powers, so when it was said they died, I wasn’t fully on board with the delivery. Minor, but was an odd choice at that particular juncture of the story.
Why you should buy this: Look, if you read my one-liner up top and pumped your first in the air and instantly smelled saltwater, then smash the preorder button and celebrate being awesome.
But, if you read all of this and you’re still on the fence, you should buy this because this novel takes the basic outline of a horror novel and wraps it within a 70’s detective novel. This is what a ‘James Bond Meets The Kraken’ movie would look like if filmed by the guys who made ‘Se7en.’ This novel delivers in spades with great set pieces, tons of action and a deeply flawed main character that you want to root for, even as the evidence stacks up against him, time and time again.
McConvey has delivered an immaculate debut novel and I can’t wait to see this one breach the surface and shred readers when it gets released.
Do you know the writer J.R. McConvey?
I feel like this is a name that not enough people know about, but that within a few short months that is going to really change.
First, let’s get something out of the way. I know J.R. McConvey. Cocky eh? Well, no, what I mean is, I actually know the guy, consider him to be a wonderful friend and at one point, we were even working on a screenplay for one of my novella’s together. J.R. is not only a fantastic human, but outside of the writing world, he’s a Gemini and Genie award-winning producer. In the writing world, his debut collection, ‘Different Beasts’ which was released in 2019 won the Kobo Rakuten Emerging Writer Prize in Speculative Fiction award. And that was where we connected. Well, not through that – but because of that win – his collection was sent over to Kendall Reviews for reviewing and I jumped on it for three reasons. One – it was titled ‘Different Beasts’ so I was stoked to read some Canadian beastly tales. Two – because he was Canadian. I’m always game to read new to me Canuck stuff. Three – not surprising, but Andrew Pyper had judged those awards and there was a blurb from what Andrew had noted about the book, and that really sold me. It was very similar in tone to Andrew’s blurb of Ian Rogers ‘Every House is Haunted’ collection and that collection is SO GOOD, so I was on board. And guess what? ‘Different Beasts’ was magical.
Not long after, J.R. and I began chatting and since then we’ve become solid buds. But don’t take that for nothing, if this book sucked, I’d tell you, because I know his beard could handle the truth.
Sometime in the last two or three years, McConvey asked me if I knew of any place he should send this novel for submission. I suggested a few spots, but nothing stuck (unintentional pun), but when he said it had been picked up, I was so excited.
Why?
Have you read the blurb.
Here’s a quick sentence to get you excited. ‘A cryptozoologist goes to Newfoundland to investigate a report of a Kraken attack.’ I mean COME ON. If you read that and your eye brows went up and your heart rate quickened, then not only are you and I now friends, but you can best bet you’re zipping to the bottom to hit the preorder link.
If you read that and were like ‘meh,’ I suggest you stop reading and question why you hate awesome fiction. You can marinate on that.
So, now, we arrive at McConvey’s debut. ‘False Bodies.’ Stunning cover art in tow, I bumped this way up my TBR, wondering just what craziness McConvey’s delivered and boy, does he deliver.
What I liked: The story follows Eddie Gesner, a cryptozoologist, who is trying to live his life with a few things hanging over his head. The first is that he’s seven-feet tall. Which makes him standout no matter where he goes. I’m not sure if this character was modeled after James “Bobo” Fay from Finding Bigfoot, but that’s kind of who I pictured while reading this. The second is that many people consider him a murderer. Why? After marrying the woman of his dreams, they went on a trip in Tibet. While there, his wife disappeared, never to be found. She was super rich. So, many presumed he killed her. While Eddie insists that a Yeti took her. This has now given him the moniker Eddie ‘The Yeti’ Gesner, which he detests.
The story picks up while he’s at a cryptozoology conference. His friend contacts him and tells him of a strange occurrence off the Newfoundland coast. Where a drilling rig was seemingly attacked by a Kraken. How do they know this? A tentacle was left behind.
Up until this point, McConvey delivers a very straight forward creature-feature. He’s setting the stage and you’d be forgiven if you believed that the rest of the story would go like this – Eddie goes there, investigates, discovers that a massive squid exists, battles it to avenge the deaths of those workers and the death of his wife, and once he successfully kills the creature, lives out the rest of his life.
Wrong.
No, what McConvey does from that point on is simply extraordinary. This novel is richly layered and as we move from chapter to chapter – and it’s very subtle at first – J.R. ramps up the tension and the pacing so that the final quarter feels like a full on sprint.
Once on the ground, he teams up with a local detective who wants to get to the bottom of what happened. We get more details. The crew change was scheduled to happen. The new crew arrived, only to find nobody onboard the drilling rig. Then they all mysteriously returned – dead – but with markings on their foreheads.
We then get a mysterious diary – from the 1800’s and a distant relative of the detective – that goes over a previous incident of a giant squid arriving at the shores, and soon Eddie understands someone is following him.
The introduction of the squid-cult was a fascinating plot point. I won’t go too far into that aspect as I’m now at the stage where I gotta walk the spoiler-free line carefully, but it not only opened up some supernatural elements I wasn’t expecting, but made for some cinematic scenes.
Throughout, the reader is pulled along by one simple aspect – is there really a giant squid. Once we get our answer, McConvey ramps things up and this is when we get the ‘corporate greed’ aspect that we are tipped off about in the synopsis. Yet another element that honestly wasn’t on my Bingo card for this novel, it added more depth, but also worked well when we consider the current Canadian environment and the ongoing boycott of Loblaws. My only gripe is that the head of the corporation wasn’t described more like slime ball Galen Weston.
McConvey wraps this up perfectly. The final fifty pages or so are pristine and harken back to the depth of storytelling he offered in ‘Different Beasts.’ This is a Canadian story at its heart and that really shines through this final quarter. Throughout we get that aspect well, the ‘everyone knows everyone’-ness of the location, the ‘everyone is friendly’ aspects, but McConvey injects the Canadian horror story element ten-fold to wrap this up and it really showcases how phenomenal of a writer he is.
What I didn’t like: Honestly only one main issue with this one and that involves somebody key to the cult. I can’t specifically say – spoilers and such – but Eddie invites them to meet up as he has questions but somebody kills them before he can meet them. The way it was laid out, I felt like I’d missed something, as I’d kind of assumed they had special powers, so when it was said they died, I wasn’t fully on board with the delivery. Minor, but was an odd choice at that particular juncture of the story.
Why you should buy this: Look, if you read my one-liner up top and pumped your first in the air and instantly smelled saltwater, then smash the preorder button and celebrate being awesome.
But, if you read all of this and you’re still on the fence, you should buy this because this novel takes the basic outline of a horror novel and wraps it within a 70’s detective novel. This is what a ‘James Bond Meets The Kraken’ movie would look like if filmed by the guys who made ‘Se7en.’ This novel delivers in spades with great set pieces, tons of action and a deeply flawed main character that you want to root for, even as the evidence stacks up against him, time and time again.
McConvey has delivered an immaculate debut novel and I can’t wait to see this one breach the surface and shred readers when it gets released.
April 5, 2025
BOOK #19, 2025
FALSE BODIES, J.R McConvey (2024)
Enormously fun Newfoundland-set fantasy/mystery/horror. A salty fusion of hardboiled tropes, cryptids, cosmic horror, supervillainry, and squids galore, resulting in an inky brine that delights the pleasure centre of my brain. A sea monster-mash worthy of encore.
FALSE BODIES, J.R McConvey (2024)
Enormously fun Newfoundland-set fantasy/mystery/horror. A salty fusion of hardboiled tropes, cryptids, cosmic horror, supervillainry, and squids galore, resulting in an inky brine that delights the pleasure centre of my brain. A sea monster-mash worthy of encore.
December 25, 2025
4.5! It’s giving X-files meets ‘Still Wakes the Deep’, set in Canada. Pleasantly spooky, ethereal and weird! Throughly enjoyed the writing style.
Looking forward to clubbing it with Hubby.
Looking forward to clubbing it with Hubby.
September 17, 2024
J.R. McConvey is a writer new to me. Apparently, that’s my shortcoming, definitely not his. A consummate communicator, he’s been involved in copywriting, creating content for publications, organization and institutions, as well as writing and producing award-winning documentaries.
McConvey’s forthcoming novel, False Bodies, is an accomplished, entertaining, layered and often nuanced story defying genre, and at its core simply a good read.
The marketing blurb:
A genre-bending noir, and perhaps the squiddiest novel ever written, False Bodies creates a horror/thriller blend of the renowned Newfoundland culture seen in shows like Come From Away with the heart-pounding tension and creeping fear of Alien.
False Bodies follows monster hunter Eddie “The Yeti” Gesner to Newfoundland, to investigate a mass death on an offshore oil rig—which some say is the work of a kraken. A mysterious incident in Eddie’s life has made him obsessed with chasing unfathomable things, but when an antique diary plunges him into a watery world of squid cults, tentacled beasts and corporate greed, Eddie finds even his own fractured reality pushed to the brink, as he’s forced to confront an undersea power beyond human imagining.
What McConvey reveals is a strong, believable, character-driven narrative which is tense, saturated with environmental detail, and credible research. The feeling of Newfoundland lives throughout the story, in both the people and the geography. The voices of both Eddie, and the author of the diary ring true. Even when Eddie is faced with situations which should stretch the limits of believability, there are almost no moments of disbelief, even when the reader is presented with a telepathic, giant cephalopod which, of course, communicates in understandable English. My only quibble, and it is minor and truly in the realm of nit-picking, is the villain, who tended toward predictable, block-buster megalomania. It might have fit with McConvey’s more nuanced approach to have presented the villain more in the vane of Andrew Scott’s interpretation of Moriarity, than Samuel L. Jackson’s in-your-face Valentine. But, as I said, this is my own aesthetic rather than the vision of the author.
There was, as well, a sense of an homage, whether intentional or not, to Lovecraft and Jules Verne, and there were moments I was minded of Chris Carter’s now legendary The X-Files.
What is an even greater treat is the gorgeous layout Breakwater Books has presented in both print and digital. Such a joy to be immersed in that vision and dedication to art.
Overall, yes, this is a novel you will enjoy if you’re a lover of dark, quintessentially Canadian fantastika.
McConvey’s forthcoming novel, False Bodies, is an accomplished, entertaining, layered and often nuanced story defying genre, and at its core simply a good read.
The marketing blurb:
A genre-bending noir, and perhaps the squiddiest novel ever written, False Bodies creates a horror/thriller blend of the renowned Newfoundland culture seen in shows like Come From Away with the heart-pounding tension and creeping fear of Alien.
False Bodies follows monster hunter Eddie “The Yeti” Gesner to Newfoundland, to investigate a mass death on an offshore oil rig—which some say is the work of a kraken. A mysterious incident in Eddie’s life has made him obsessed with chasing unfathomable things, but when an antique diary plunges him into a watery world of squid cults, tentacled beasts and corporate greed, Eddie finds even his own fractured reality pushed to the brink, as he’s forced to confront an undersea power beyond human imagining.
What McConvey reveals is a strong, believable, character-driven narrative which is tense, saturated with environmental detail, and credible research. The feeling of Newfoundland lives throughout the story, in both the people and the geography. The voices of both Eddie, and the author of the diary ring true. Even when Eddie is faced with situations which should stretch the limits of believability, there are almost no moments of disbelief, even when the reader is presented with a telepathic, giant cephalopod which, of course, communicates in understandable English. My only quibble, and it is minor and truly in the realm of nit-picking, is the villain, who tended toward predictable, block-buster megalomania. It might have fit with McConvey’s more nuanced approach to have presented the villain more in the vane of Andrew Scott’s interpretation of Moriarity, than Samuel L. Jackson’s in-your-face Valentine. But, as I said, this is my own aesthetic rather than the vision of the author.
There was, as well, a sense of an homage, whether intentional or not, to Lovecraft and Jules Verne, and there were moments I was minded of Chris Carter’s now legendary The X-Files.
What is an even greater treat is the gorgeous layout Breakwater Books has presented in both print and digital. Such a joy to be immersed in that vision and dedication to art.
Overall, yes, this is a novel you will enjoy if you’re a lover of dark, quintessentially Canadian fantastika.
March 15, 2025
PREFACE: I’m not the reader for this title - but I started out really liking it.
I thought that maybe this one be one of these genre titles that would work for me. It did - until it didn’t.
It just got too weird and impenetrable for me… I started losing interest about halfway through... and in the last sections of the book the author didn’t trust the story… he started explaining everything for the reader.
This reminds me of The Deep by Nick Cutter (as in Craig Davidson) which I quite enjoyed. It also reminds me of something else that I am having trouble putting my finger on… there were a few moments while reading where I almost had the title, but each time the moment passed…
I can see this working better as a visual experience - a movie or something. My advice would be, if you’re into this kind of story, to wait for the movie to come out if this gets optioned.
The best thing about this is that it is a love letter to Newfoundland - read it for that if no other reason.
I thought that maybe this one be one of these genre titles that would work for me. It did - until it didn’t.
It just got too weird and impenetrable for me… I started losing interest about halfway through... and in the last sections of the book the author didn’t trust the story… he started explaining everything for the reader.
This reminds me of The Deep by Nick Cutter (as in Craig Davidson) which I quite enjoyed. It also reminds me of something else that I am having trouble putting my finger on… there were a few moments while reading where I almost had the title, but each time the moment passed…
I can see this working better as a visual experience - a movie or something. My advice would be, if you’re into this kind of story, to wait for the movie to come out if this gets optioned.
The best thing about this is that it is a love letter to Newfoundland - read it for that if no other reason.
July 10, 2025
3.5/5 Stars
Found this randomly at the book store and gravitated strongly towards the initial premise I read. Cryptids and Atlantic Canada (shout out to the Canadian Horror writers out there), how could I not give this a go?
Moments of haunting beauty combined with some pretty insane stuff. I felt it almost went a bit too far regarding the silly factor, but not enough to ruin the story for me. It's hard for me not to love a good B-movie approach, but I felt it did clash heavily with the poetic horror aspect also being established.
Definitely want to explore more by this author though. Solid read overall and a decent first impression!
Found this randomly at the book store and gravitated strongly towards the initial premise I read. Cryptids and Atlantic Canada (shout out to the Canadian Horror writers out there), how could I not give this a go?
Moments of haunting beauty combined with some pretty insane stuff. I felt it almost went a bit too far regarding the silly factor, but not enough to ruin the story for me. It's hard for me not to love a good B-movie approach, but I felt it did clash heavily with the poetic horror aspect also being established.
Definitely want to explore more by this author though. Solid read overall and a decent first impression!
January 22, 2025
This was a pleasant surprise! J.R. McConvey writes with a pleasant, descriptive flow and paints a picture of the Newfoundland environment beautifully. I will say that the first half of the book was exceptional, but it became more outlandish (and dare I say, lost some of its steam) in the second half. I am always willing to suspend my disbelief, but I felt the book may have been more successful if it remained more enigmatic in nature. The first half oozed atmosphere and, like others here, gave me those classic X-Files vibes.
All that to be said, this was very enjoyable and I look forward to reading more from McConvey in the future!
All that to be said, this was very enjoyable and I look forward to reading more from McConvey in the future!
October 28, 2025
Not many books have had such a strong effect on me as this one. I was so invested and leaned on every page to shed light on what could possibly be going on in this grey, cold Newfoundland setting.
Every chapter proved I didnt truly know where this book was headed and I loved that honestly!
I know to some the ending wasn't what they had hoped for after such a thrilling read but i think it suited the story regardless as it made the reader feel how Eddie is feeling.....that the story isn't done yet and that there is more we want to know....more we YEARN to know!
So in conclusion, I hope this isn't the last adventure where I get to join Eddie "The Yeti" Gesner as he tries to unravel what lays just beyond our understanding.
wish I could rate this higher than 5 stars 🌟
Every chapter proved I didnt truly know where this book was headed and I loved that honestly!
I know to some the ending wasn't what they had hoped for after such a thrilling read but i think it suited the story regardless as it made the reader feel how Eddie is feeling.....that the story isn't done yet and that there is more we want to know....more we YEARN to know!
So in conclusion, I hope this isn't the last adventure where I get to join Eddie "The Yeti" Gesner as he tries to unravel what lays just beyond our understanding.
wish I could rate this higher than 5 stars 🌟
Read
December 28, 2024DNF
January 14, 2025
Did not expect that ending nonetheless really interesting book
January 19, 2025
Had a lot of fun w this book! The pacing was a smidge off for me and it took a while for things to get going, but once they did, this was so great!
And Mother :(
And Mother :(
June 10, 2025
This almost got to three stars for me by the end. There's much to enjoy, particularly if you enjoy campy B-horror (I could imagine this as a movie) but the writing style just wasn't to my taste.
July 12, 2025
This was a fun read!
It starts off as an interesting cryptozoology mystery but ends in a wild place.
Worth getting through the 200 pages.
It starts off as an interesting cryptozoology mystery but ends in a wild place.
Worth getting through the 200 pages.
August 6, 2025
I want more adventures of Eddie “The Yeti” Gesner.
October 19, 2025
Detective noir and cryptid hunting. Love it
December 30, 2025
So much fun! as a lover of squids and horror, I absolutely adored this book!
January 10, 2026
More please :)
December 2, 2025
3.5 ⭐ - Now that was a deeply Canadian story (inspired by the life of Moses Harvey) both in setting and political / social commentary. The horror elements were very cosmic, with lovecraftian dread and incomprehensible beings (totally my jam). It’s definitely campy, a bit over the top at times, and slow to start. Once the pace picked up and I embraced the b-movie vibes though I was hooked on the mystery.
January 26, 2025
Why is no one talking about this book?! It was like a season of The X-files with some cheesiness reminding me of Cabin In the Woods. I throughly enjoy reading it! As someone who studies invertebrate zoology I appreciated all the descriptors that reference sea creatures. Most importantly, is captured the essence of Newfoundland and made me want to visit.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews