The Swarm

by Andy Marino

From the bizarre and audacious imagination of horror author Andy Marino comes a harrowing tale of the insect that will herald the apocalypse…

It begins with cicadas. It will end with the swarm. 

When millions of insects appear unexpectedly, off the rhythm of their 17-year cycle, Detective Vicky Paterson is investigating a bizarre killing in her sleepy hometown. At the same time, a pair of hired guns work to free their client’s daughter from a shadowy cult.

As these events intertwine, things begin to spiral out of control. When Vicky’s young daughter, Sadie, is attacked by the insects, it’s clear that the once-harmless creatures have invaded with a malevolent purpose.

But this is only the first wave. Soon, the infestation is impossible to contain.

As the world desperately works to unravel the mysteries of the swarm, and humanity rests on the knife’s edge of extinction, Vicky and a group of strangers will fight to uncover the shocking origins of the attack—and the terrible purpose behind it.

This panoramic novel of insect apocalypse reaches back into the darkest recesses of the twentieth century and unleashes its horrors on our modern, interconnected world.  

Genres: Horror, Thriller, Fiction, Science Fiction, Audiobook, Animals, Adult

497 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 5, 2024

About the author

Andy Marino was born in upstate New York, spent half his life in New York City, and now lives in the Hudson Valley. He is the author of seven novels for young readers, most recently THE PLOT TO KILL HITLER trilogy.

THE SEVEN VISITATIONS OF SYDNEY BURGESS is his first novel for adults.

Reviews

[Brandon Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well paced creature feature that ultimately was a bit disappointing. I LOVE Seven Visitations Of Sydney Burgess and really liked It Rides A Pale Horse, and I was expecting this to blow me away like those did, but I thought it was pretty straight forward (there were a few surprises but nothing like I was expecting).

Features some absolutely DISGUSTING imagery though, a few parts kinda made me nauseous 😅

[Rachel (TheShadesofOrange) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.0 Stars
This was a fast paced apocalyptic novel involving insects. I liked the prospect but the narrative was a bit too fast paced for my personal tastes. Personally, when it comes to horror, I prefer suspense over action. This felt more like an action movie, which is fine but simply not the kind of story that my personal favourite. As is often the case with these pageturners, the characters felt underdeveloped. I didn't care for them as much as I wanted and so I found myself less engaged in the plot.

Even though it wasn't a personal favourite, I would still recommend it to readers who like action adventures more than I do.

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

[Stitching Ghost · Rating 3 out of 5]

First off, the imagery in this book was amazing and it started super strong with a scene that captured the oppressive and ominous nature of the situation and environment in a very poignant way. There were a few moments like that peppered throughout the book. If you like an author who can bring the scenery to life, you'll probably vibe with Marino's style.

My problem with this book is that not all POVs had the same polished feeling and therefore I enjoyed certain POVs A LOT more than others. There's one POV which I think would have made the whole story better (by way of improved pacing) if it had been removed entirely. Also, the way cult stuff was handled really wasn't it for me and every time it came up, I threw me off and I had to get back into it which got harder and harder every time.

The idea for the story, the evolving menace, the teeth (so many teeth), and the perfect ending (again with Marino's magnificent ability to set the stage) there's still a lot to enjoy in there just could have used a little trimming in my opinion.

Disclosure: I received an eARC from Redhook Books through Netgalley (many thanks to both for the opportunity to read and review this title).

[Stacy (Gotham City Librarian) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of Andy Marino’s other two books, “It Rides a Pale Horse” and “The Seven Visitations of Sydney Burgess.” I’m a huge fan of Marino’s writing in general. He’s one of those authors who writes stories you’ve never read before. Imaginative and strange and at times absolutely horrifying experiences. I was very excited to get my hands on this ARC.

I’ll start by saying this book did not disappoint, but it is VERY different from Marino’s other two novels. While there are certainly things I wasn’t expecting and elements very unique to this world, this novel is still a pretty standard fare creature feature.

If you are even a little bit iffy about bugs, DO NOT READ THIS. I have a fairly strong stomach and there was a scene about 15% in that almost had me gagging. Some of the body horror in this is next level disgusting. (And very creative!)

My favorite characters were def Rebecca and Vicky. They were both interesting and strong women who had flaws and made mistakes. Plus, I love a good police procedural in the middle of a horror book when it’s done well. I also liked Alicia quite a bit, even if her and Will’s chapters bordered on over-the-top ridiculous at times. All of the ladies in this were great. Marino is very good at writing women across the board in his novels.

I didn’t really care for Anton’s sections. (Until the end, when they became everything I was hoping for!) There are quite a few different characters to keep up with in this book, and for a lot of it his part of the saga just didn’t grab me like the others.

Marino is great at describing the wild, disgusting terror of the cicadas blanketing entire areas of a city and attacking people in droves. The only big issue with this is that there are only so many ways to talk about it before it begins to get repetitive. He does find new avenues for the bug horror to take, though. The cicadas aren’t just plentiful: they are organized and they are hyper-intelligent. (And this is only scratching the surface of the visceral terror of this book.)

Funny how so many things remind me of the “Alan Wake” and “Control” games now. (No spoilers, but scientists and spirals.)

There was one very shocking and upsetting moment that I’m still thinking about.

Overall, definitely not for the faint-hearted, or anyone with a fear of insects. Things get violent, gross, and weird in all the most interesting ways. 4.5 stars.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and to the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions are my own.

TW: Child harm, Suicidal Ideation, Torture

[Billie's Not So Secret Diary · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Swarm
by Andy Marino
Sci-Fi
NetGalley eARC
Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
Redhook Books
Ages: 16+

Vicky Paterson and her partner find themselves investigating a disturbing murder. Then after being out all night investigating the murder, Vicky heads home to relieve the babysitter but before the pancakes are done, her partner calls telling her that there's another murder. But outside she hears a scream and running she finds her daughter swarmed by cicadas, them suffocating her. Freeing her daughter and rushing her to the hospital, Vicky finds that her daughter isn't the only person swarmed by the cicadas.

In an investigation of their own, private investigators Will and Alicia are looking for a missing girl, and tips lead them to a warehouse where they witness a bizarre ritual, Will becoming entranced.


With the blurb sounding like this would be a creepy crawly tale, I had high hopes, and when I started to read, I was drawn right into the story.

But... that was only during the first quarter; then it started to ramble and drag on and on. It didn't help when suddenly two more characters were introduced. At first, one of those added characters didn't seem as if they had any reason to be included, then, with an eye roll, I guessed, and was right. The second character was a given, but why they weren't introduced earlier I don't know, it would've made more sense, but at the same time the reasoning why they were needed wasn't really used.

At just a little over halfway, I stopped caring and started to skim. The story was going at a good pace, but it started to drag on and on and on and started to be more telling than showing. And some of the reasons were so far-fetched.

Along with cutting out at least a hundred pages of some of the inner dialogue, exchanging those far-fetched reasons with more depth to the characters and the cicadas would give the story more substance.

Sure, there were some WTH moments, but nothing that gave me the crawlies.

Because there is violence, and some tad gory descriptions, I feel that it's only suitable for readers over sixteen.

2 Stars

[Krystle Rouse · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was just really sluggish and hard to get through. There was a lot of descriptions of the bugs and other things but there just wasn’t enough dialogue to keep me interested in reading this book. Disappointed.☹️

I want to thank NetGalley for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

[spicykatzreads · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 - we’ll that ending was disappointing…more time should have been spent setting up this cosmic horror vibe instead of spending so much time on character work but amazing bug horror for sure

[OutlawPoet · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Swarm is full of ick and ew and SO MANY CICADAS!

I live in a part of the country with no cicadas. I’ve always been happy about that but, after reading this book, I’m now ecstatic. Even now I can feel them crawling and clicking and burrowing and NO!

The scope of the book is definitely epic and there’s something not quite right (of course) about our buggy beasties.

Now, while I like epic, I did find the book just a touch longer than it needed to be. I found myself ready for the story to end quite a bit before the author ended it. But aside from that, it was definitely a good read and I’d recommend it to anyone who is not squeamish!

• ARC via Publisher

[JasonA · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a bit of a mixed bag. The writing was really good, much better than I expected from a killer bug story. I liked the plot, other than some of the parts that felt more like magic than science. A couple of the points of view characters didn't really add much to the story and could have been cut entirely. Whatever important narrative parts they contained could easily have been stuck elsewhere in another pov. Cutting those povs would also get rid of the parts that drag and trim the story to a better length.

Overall, I liked it. It was almost 4 stars for me, but just wasn't quite there.

[Mai H.]

Halloween TBR

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Redhook

[Tanja · Rating 2 out of 5]

just went on an on that book had no buisness being that long, especially since it was underwhelming. loved the premise and some of the execution but man that was a mess

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The nitty-gritty: The Birds and Alien but with giant cicadas, The Swarm is not for the faint of heart and should be read indoors with all the windows firmly closed.

If you’re not a bug person, you might want to think twice before picking up The Swarm. On the other hand, if you’re a fan of scary, end-of-the-world stories and you can handle some very graphic, bug/body horror scenarios, then you’re probably the right reader for this book. I’m terrified by most bugs, although since I’ve never encountered a cicada, I wasn’t bothered by the premise of a cicada uprising—at first. But wow, this book ended up scaring me to death! Andy Marino knows how to bring the tension to his bug apocalypse horror story, and I guarantee you’ll think twice about getting anywhere near a swarm of flying insects after reading it.

We follow several groups of characters in alternating chapters. First we meet Detectives Vicky Paterson and Kenny Grimes, who are investigating the odd case of a dead woman with her fingernails, hair and teeth removed. Vicky is puzzled by the lack of insect activity at the crime scene. The body should be crawling with maggots and flies, but there isn’t a single insect anywhere near the body. Although there is a very loud humming sound that seems out of place…

Will and Alicia are private investigators who have been hired to find a young woman named Violet, who supposedly ran off to join a cult. They have tracked her to a secluded warehouse, where Will witnesses a strange scene that appears to be ritualistic. Afterwards, Alicia notices Will is acting strange, muttering things about “the true bug” and “the Order of Hemiptera.”

Anton Hajek owns a company called Lacuna which boasts a revolutionary way of communicating and transferring information, but when his New York City highrise building is attacked by swarms of giant cicadas, he realizes his life is about to change.

Finally, we meet Rebecca Perez, a forensic entomologist who is teaching a college course when her building is attacked by the swarm.

All over the world, swarms of cicadas are emerging from the ground, even in places where they don’t usually live. The cicadas are larger than normal, and they’re attacking humans. As people start to die, panic sets in. Vicky’s daughter was attacked, and Vicky will do anything to save her. Will seems to have a connection to the swarm, but what does that mean for Alicia? Rebecca is a scientist and only believes in facts, but she’s never seen anything like this before. And Anton is afraid he may have set the apocalypse in motion.

The horror in The Swarm is on point. Andy Marino has tapped into a fear that many people have—bugs—and turned it into the worst apocalypse ever. I won’t go into too much detail, but let’s just say there are parts in the story that reminded me of Alien and leave it at that. I loved his descriptions of people being trapped in buildings as the swarms of giant cicadas try to get in. And yes, they do indeed manage to find their way inside through vents and cracks. And heaven forbid you’re outside when the swarm emerges, because there's nowhere to go that’s safe.

I was also surprised by the way the author developed the lifecycle of this horrible cicada. If I counted right, there were three main stages of growth, and in each one the bugs get bigger. I was especially horrified by the “nymph” stage (and I googled “cicada nymph” and I sort of wish I hadn’t!). Take a look at a photo of a nymph and imagine it the size of cat, and you’ll get an idea of what everyone is up against. Yuck!

This is an ambitious story that mostly works, but I do have a couple of issues. First, it’s just too long. With so many point of view characters, and very long chapters between each one, it was easy to forget what a particular group was doing before the story switched to another POV. Marino spends a lot of time on character development and backstory, which is fine, but some of it could have been trimmed for a more streamlined reading experience.

There are several theories about why the cicadas are acting the way they are, which sort of muddied the waters for me. One storyline involves a cult of worshippers who “become one” with the bugs (icky and gross), and the author goes back eighty years or so to try to explain it. I honestly could have done without the whole cult angle, since the killer cicadas themselves were scary enough. The other idea involves Anton—who had the least page time of any of the characters—and while it was an interesting theory, it didn’t make that much sense.

My favorite character was Rebecca, not only because she is a scientist and sees the swarm from a different perspective, but I loved that her dead sister Mari “talks” to her as she’s trying to figure out how to save herself and her students. I kind of wish the author would write a book about Rebecca and Mari, I really loved their dynamic.

So how does one end a story about a cicada apocalypse? Marino does it perfectly with an epilogue that takes place several months after the explosive conclusion and explains what happened to the cicadas and those characters who survived. I thought it was the perfect ending, with a dash of hope after a rather bloody and (at times) depressing saga.

Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy.

[myreadingescapism · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kind of funny, I read two books so close together about bugs. THIS was how you do it! Despite the long listen, I was interested the whole way through. Multiple POVs, all of which were interesting, slightly confusing bouncing between them but still worth it.

[Norrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this boring with too many tiny and unnecessary details, like the biology lesson about cicadas that went on for long pages. But at the same time we found out almost nothing about the interesting bits like the cult, or the reason why stuff happened.

[Becky Spratford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review in the October 2024 issue of Library Journal

Three Words That Describe This Book: Bugs, multiple pov, band of survivors

This is everything you would want from bug apocalypse horror-- based in reality (cicada's coming out every 17 years en mass), a little bit of science fiction, great characters with shifting pov, multiple locations but all comes together.

Draft Review: Detective Vicky Paterson, single mom and daughter of the former police chief in Fort Halcott, NY, is called to what she thinks will be a normal death investigation at the home of a hoarder; however, she quickly realizes something is off. The house is a festering mess but the area around the body is completely clear of debris, not a single bug feeding on the dead corpse (as she would have expected), and the body itself has weird markings. And why are the cicadas so loud outside? When Vicky returns home in the morning and witnesses her daughter being engulfed and incapacitated by a swarm of cicadas, the implications of what is happening begin to sink in. Set in three locations from Fort Halcott to a tech CEO’s office in a NYC high rise to a forensic, entomology body farm in Louisiana, and following four well developed and intriguing narrators as they figure out their place in this apocalyptic landscape, fighting to save themselves and others, Marino provides a high stakes, action packed, and compelling band of survivors tale that not only wrings the most out of the readers’ discomfort with bugs but also, takes the time to center a tough look at how the choices humanity has made in order to live their convenient and comfortable lives have played a large part in the swarm’s attempt to annihilate us all.

Verdict: While this book will sell itself as a solid example of Bug Horror, much like The Hatching series by Eziekiel Boone (spiders), or The Colony by A.J. Colucci (ants), it will also appeal greatly to those who were chilled by the character centered, social commentary horror of Wanderers by Chuck Wendig.


For fans of The Colony by A.J. Colucci (ants but NYC), The Hatching by Boone (spiders-- trilogy), Paraitology series by Mira Grant (tape worms/zombie).

But also, a lot of the vibes of Wanderers without any of the politics parts. Those politics parts are key to Wanderers as a story but for people who loved the storytelling and discovery of what was happening and don't need the politics/governing parts-- who are okay with a slightly smaller scope-- they will enjoy this too.

[RaChelle Holmberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Downloaded from my public library, OMG what did i just read? A real page turner, kept me up all night!

[Shannon Miz · Rating 4 out of 5]

No one likes bugs. Maybe entomologists I guess, but not you or me. And you'll hate them even more after reading The Swarm! Without giving too much away, there is an invasion of cicadas, and again, no one likes them. Because cicadas. Except they are not just a minor annoyance, they are legit killing people. And if they don't die, they're left in some kind of coma-like state, and no one knows what is happening. The only thing they do know is that there seems to be no end in sight, and the world is losing its collective mind.

There are several POV characters who come from very different walks of life, but they'll all soon find their lives upended by the cicadas. And as you can imagine, their stories are likely to converge in one way or another. I was very invested in this story from the start, because what the heck are these bugs doing!? And then I was also quite invested in most of the characters, too. It was clear that no one was safe, and the stakes were insanely high, so that added to the excitement of the story.

Now, I will say that it did drag a bit in the middle. Not an unbearable amount, but it could have been pared down a tad. I also have to say that the epilogue made my day. The story as a whole, despite the slower bits, really kept my interest. The vibes were fully on point and certainly desperate, and I was very eager to know what the heck caused this particularly hellish apocalypse, so definitely recommend!

Bottom Line: The cicada apocalypse is not one you'd want to be in. Ever.

You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight

[Dan (ThatBookIsOnFiyah) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story overall. Well-crafted ideas, taken from a possibly true historic beginning, give this story a dramatic flair with a ‘good vs evil’ central point. Marino writes wonderful prose with a nostalgic feeling of small town life and close families, even if they do have their issues. The tempo of the story slowly builds up the horrific events that are central to the story’s plot and the descriptions of the creatures and their activities (not to spoil anything) are wonderfully imagined. The reader is placed right in the action!

However, although the characters are well fleshed out and have full backstories, I did not believe one subplot stayed true to the character and that moment almost ruined the entire story for me. Luckily, I was able to move past that and really enjoyed the middle and ending of the book, with some very nice twists and turns.

Recommended for horror and thriller fans.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

So long. Too long for an apocolyptic bug book. But readable.
3.5

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audiobook

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

When is the sequel??? I need it NOW.

[Kira Hutchinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh I looooved it. Sure there was a lot going on and maybe some plot issues but it was fast paced and got going real quick. The ending was maybe a bit rushed, which is crazy for how long it is, but I still had a great time 🦟

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars
I bought this book because 1. it was in the horror section, 2. there was a cicada on the cover, and 3. the title intrigued me. I would not consider this horror, more action/adventure. I didn't care about one person in this book nor what happened. I can't even tell you why the swarm happened because I just skimmed the last 40 pages just to be done with it.

[BiblioPeeks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Folks start to notice unusual bug activity and realize it’s cicadas, but they’re a year early. Cicadas rise from the ground every 17 years. Okay, no big deal at first...but WOW do things escalate QUICKLY! The story follows several different groups of people, a detective and her partner investigating a gruesome murder, two ‘fixers’ who were hired to rescue a woman from a cult, the owner of a tech startup, and an entomologist who teaches at a body farm. When the cicadas begin to swarm and attack people, things go from bad to worse in an instant, and it’s apocalyptical proportions!

Okay, this is FULL of BUGS and vivid gross and icky imagery, but I loved it! Just imagine being attacked by mutated cicadas, who seem intelligent and are trying to invade your body. If you’re okay with that, and enjoy small bands of people joining together to fight an overwhelming enemy, then you will enjoy THE SWARM! It’s like watching an 'X-Files' episode in the best way possible! The characters were so diverse and compelling, but my favorite was definitely Rebecca the entomologist. She has a unique “supernatural” ability which I normally don’t like, but here it worked well. Yes, there’s bug observation on a dead body and a clinical discussion, which I thought was fascinating. I DID have an unsettling dream regarding the particular way the cicadas attack people, but I won’t spoil that special horrificness for you!

Some POVs were easier to read than others, but I never had a hard time distinguishing them. It’s immediately clear that the swarming of the cicadas is a before and after event that will forever change the WORLD. What isn’t clear is how things will end or how they began in the first place. Some shocking things happen along the way and the ending was satisfying on multiple levels. Definitely grab this one if you like apocalyptic creature feature horror!
____

Thank you to Novel Suspects & Red Hook Books for the gifted copy. All opinions are mine.
____

Potential spoiler content warnings below.





























⚠️Content warnings: self harm, bugs, foul language, torture, addiction, gore, violence, gun violence, death

[Han · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Swarm" by Andy Marino is a thrilling tale of an insect infestation that heralds the apocalypse. Detective Vicky Paterson investigates a strange killing in her town while hired guns work to free a client's daughter from a cult. As these events intertwine, the insects attack Vicky's daughter, Sadie, revealing their sinister purpose. The infestation spreads uncontrollably, pushing humanity to the brink of extinction. Vicky and a group of strangers fight to uncover the attack's origins and purpose. This panoramic novel delves into the darkest parts of the 20th century, unleashing its horrors on the modern world.

This was the first book I’ve read by Andy Marino, and it did not disappoint! For me, this book took me a while to read (not because it wasn’t good, I was busy). Once the plot picked up and you had a sense of the severity these villainous cicadas were causing, you couldn’t put down the book! I will say now, if you don’t like bugs, you probably shouldn’t read this! Marino excels at depicting the chilling terror of cicadas blanketing entire urban areas and swarming people in droves. However, the challenge lies in finding new and varied ways to describe this terrifying phenomenon without becoming repetitive. Things get violent, gross, and weird in all the most interesting ways. In the most captivating manner, events become intense, disturbing, and peculiar.

[Amanda Benson · Rating 3 out of 5]

"This is parenting: the ever-present fear that some ingrained action on your part has triggered something deep down in your kid, planted the seed of a compulsion--or, worse, an addiction--they will never understand, bequeathed to them through some means she herself doesn't understand either."

"There was a charm to those early days, during which the growth of the Internet held such guileless promise--a notion that the world's entire population would be instantly elevated to pen-pal status, that sharing and community world become a sort of mass-consciousness event."

"How shallow and shortsighted are humanity's overtures toward self-knowledge... Thousands of years of scientific and technological advancement, millions of great minds toiling, all to maintain this frenzy of progress... I was part of this well-intentioned but ultimately meaningless endeavor... my own role, however small, was furthering some small corner of understanding our condition."

"Mercifully, most of us are granted ignorance--we live our entire lives not knowing anything beyond what our eyesight shows us. Even our wildest speculations, which may manifest as the most creative theorizing, are bound by the rules of our caged world."

[Martina · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would not recommend this book if you are squeamish or have a dislike of the creepy crawlies. The beginning really caught my attention but as I got deeper into the book, it started to feel unreasonably long and drawn out. At the 30% mark, the book goes from 2 POVs to 2 completely different POVs. Then it merges and you are left with 4 separate POVs, which felt unnecessary to me. Some of the characters were less interesting and confused me more than anything. Once I got pass the halfway mark, I felt like the story should have been wrapping up and instead had 250+ more pages to go. There was just too much going on, between the cicada apocalypse, murder investigation, and cult involvement. The author does do a good job at making your skin crawl and the book is pretty gruesome and full of gore. The vivid imagery and audio saved me from DNF'ing the book but overall, I just wasn't a huge fan of this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and Redhook Books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Lilibet Bombshell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun Fact: Since I live in California and have lived here my entire life, I’ve never seen or heard a cicada unless it was through a speaker of some kind. Which also means I’ve never has to go through what it sounds like to have that pervasive drone outside my house night after night when I’m trying to sleep or have them flying around when I’m just trying to do something outdoors. Heck, I don’t know anything about cicadas except they’re supposed to come around about every seventeen years. They’re just not an insect/bug we learn about over here in California.

I’m ready to scapegoat my complete ignorance and connection to cicadas as to why I didn’t enjoy this book. It would be easy to let it go at that. The thing is, I know that’s only a part of why this book and I didn’t vibe.

To be honest, I had a hard time connecting to most of the characters because I either found them to be superficial (the “cop mom”) or a little too Hollywood-esque (the “fixers” and “the tech mogul”). The only character I found had any interesting complexities was “the scientist”. Even looking at this list it looks like the casting call roll sheet for a cable or streaming drama show.

Give it a decent digital effects budget and it could be coming to a streaming device near you, because the story was interesting but, in my opinion, lacked any substantial depth. I like my horror to be a distorted looking glass peering back at the dark and disturbed side of humanity. I want my horror to peel back the surface and show me the bloody side of human nature. While The Swarm is bloody and horrible, it wasn’t giving me anything to react to. It was just giving me a lot of bugs and guts.

I was provided a copy of this title by the publisher and author via Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, views, and ideas expressed herein are mine and mine alone. All reviews rated three stars and under will not appear on my social media. Thank you.

[Megan C. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 starts -- I am totally conflicted about this. Cicadas? Really? But man, for whatever reason, I randomly picked this up and read a few pages.....and then I literally couldn't stop. This was weird and warped and spooky and I wasn't able to look away. I never liked those dang bugs, but this made them terrifying. Had I read this a couple of years ago when that huge cicada/Brood X hatched and you couldn't have a normal conversation in your backyard over the sound of their screaming, I would have had nightmares for WEEKS.

[Mattie B. · Rating 2 out of 5]

The writing was fantastic and the concept was interesting. However, the execution wasn’t there. It started out so promising and then continued to drag for most of the book. There were a lot of gruesome, body horror scenes that made my stomach turn, but overall, I wasn’t really creeped out. As a southerner, I really enjoyed how the song of the cicadas was used as a horror element in this. But as an apocalyptic horror story, this was entirely too long and I was very much confused for a lot of this. I’m disappointed that I didn’t enjoy this more. 🥲⭐️ ⭐️