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For Human Use
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An unforgettable debut, For Human Use is a twisted tale of modern love that bends every genre, sears itself into your brain, and presents a horrific romantic comedy unlike anything you’ve ever read before.
★ “An utterly ingenious horror-romcom, darkly zeitgeisty, and unnervingly plausible—funny as hell, too. You will not forget this book.” ―Heather Aimee O’Neill, author of Read With Jenna book club pick The Irish Goodbye
Modern dating is dead.
Finding a human connection online has become impossible. Enter Liv: a dating app that matches people with dead bodies. Somehow, it has taken the world by storm. Millions of users are convinced that life with a corpse presents a better alternative to conventional relationships.
Flailing against Liv’s popularity, venture capital superstar Tom Williamson—whose company is funding Liv—isn’t buying it. Mostly because dating an embalmed cadaver, let alone monetizing it, is obscene.
Believing that Liv is the future, Auden White, the insufferable “visionary” behind the app begins demanding more and more funding, quickly making enemies with Tom.
It’s no secret that Tom struggles with people, dead or alive, but when he has a chance meeting with the woman who knows Auden (and his secrets) best, Mara Reed, he realizes everything is about to change for all three of them.
With Liv’s userbase growing by the day, the need for cadavers rapidly increases. Humanity might not want to connect with other living, breathing people anymore, but they do want to connect with something. What could go wrong?
★ “A wildly entertaining debut. Sarah G. Pierce cleverly skewers our modern era of disconnection and corporate overreach. But amid the horror and humor there is a deeply human love story at the heart of this book.” ―E.K Sathue, author of Youthjuice
★ “From Guillermo del Toro’s film adaptation of Frankenstein to Ryan Murphy’s Netflix reimagining of Ed Gein’s killing spree, romantic affairs with reanimated corpses seem to be all the rage among storytellers these days. Told through the lens of a venture capital superstar whose company is funding a dating app that encourages lonely, living singles to embrace the dead as a reasonable alternative to an otherwise grim dating pool, this debut lives at the intersection of corporate satire (which was very trendy in 2025) and an absurdist modern dating story (the most cathartic micro-genre for any listeners in their single era). After digging into an advanced reader’s copy, I have no doubt that the matter-of-fact, macabre humor at the heart of this novel will come to life in audio.” ―Audible, Most Anticipated Audiobooks of 2026
★ “With the rhythm of a sitcom, this book also has a similar feel to Mira Grant’s Newsflesh trilogy. Pierce manages to deliver genuine horror while also exploring questions about intimacy and relationships even as Liv increasingly takes over its users’ lives.” ―Booklist
★ “A razor-sharp satire of venture capitalism, online influence culture, and The Discourse, Pierce holds a mirror to an all-too familiar reality where the unthinkable becomes thinkable if there’s profit to be made and prestige to be gained. A human romance in a world gasping for human connection, this one goes places!” ―Bitter Karella, author of Moonflow
★ “An utterly ingenious horror-romcom, darkly zeitgeisty, and unnervingly plausible—funny as hell, too. You will not forget this book.” ―Heather Aimee O’Neill, author of Read With Jenna book club pick The Irish Goodbye
Modern dating is dead.
Finding a human connection online has become impossible. Enter Liv: a dating app that matches people with dead bodies. Somehow, it has taken the world by storm. Millions of users are convinced that life with a corpse presents a better alternative to conventional relationships.
Flailing against Liv’s popularity, venture capital superstar Tom Williamson—whose company is funding Liv—isn’t buying it. Mostly because dating an embalmed cadaver, let alone monetizing it, is obscene.
Believing that Liv is the future, Auden White, the insufferable “visionary” behind the app begins demanding more and more funding, quickly making enemies with Tom.
It’s no secret that Tom struggles with people, dead or alive, but when he has a chance meeting with the woman who knows Auden (and his secrets) best, Mara Reed, he realizes everything is about to change for all three of them.
With Liv’s userbase growing by the day, the need for cadavers rapidly increases. Humanity might not want to connect with other living, breathing people anymore, but they do want to connect with something. What could go wrong?
★ “A wildly entertaining debut. Sarah G. Pierce cleverly skewers our modern era of disconnection and corporate overreach. But amid the horror and humor there is a deeply human love story at the heart of this book.” ―E.K Sathue, author of Youthjuice
★ “From Guillermo del Toro’s film adaptation of Frankenstein to Ryan Murphy’s Netflix reimagining of Ed Gein’s killing spree, romantic affairs with reanimated corpses seem to be all the rage among storytellers these days. Told through the lens of a venture capital superstar whose company is funding a dating app that encourages lonely, living singles to embrace the dead as a reasonable alternative to an otherwise grim dating pool, this debut lives at the intersection of corporate satire (which was very trendy in 2025) and an absurdist modern dating story (the most cathartic micro-genre for any listeners in their single era). After digging into an advanced reader’s copy, I have no doubt that the matter-of-fact, macabre humor at the heart of this novel will come to life in audio.” ―Audible, Most Anticipated Audiobooks of 2026
★ “With the rhythm of a sitcom, this book also has a similar feel to Mira Grant’s Newsflesh trilogy. Pierce manages to deliver genuine horror while also exploring questions about intimacy and relationships even as Liv increasingly takes over its users’ lives.” ―Booklist
★ “A razor-sharp satire of venture capitalism, online influence culture, and The Discourse, Pierce holds a mirror to an all-too familiar reality where the unthinkable becomes thinkable if there’s profit to be made and prestige to be gained. A human romance in a world gasping for human connection, this one goes places!” ―Bitter Karella, author of Moonflow
448 pages, Paperback
Expected publication February 10, 2026
15998 people want to read
About the author
Sarah G. Pierce
1 book50 followersHailing from California, Sarah moved to New York to study photography at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, and later, earn a master’s degree from NYU’s Institute of Fine Arts, where she specialized in minimalist painters. An avid 49ers fan, she lives in Manhattan with her poker-playing husband, whom she met on a dating app, and their two sons. For Human Use is her first novel.
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August 30, 2025what in the ever-loving fuck? i must read it
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I got the audiobook for review.
The premise with a tinder like app for getting matched with a corpse was way to intruiging not to request. As odd of a book that I expected. I enjoyed the way it discussed trends and hype on social media and how easily and strongly people got obsessed with corpses, death and owning corpses. Its a story about love and the thin line to madness. So many things to pick a part of the story not just a weird and disturbing read. I enjoyed how we got to know three characters slowly and throughly and look closely in their mind and actions.
The premise with a tinder like app for getting matched with a corpse was way to intruiging not to request. As odd of a book that I expected. I enjoyed the way it discussed trends and hype on social media and how easily and strongly people got obsessed with corpses, death and owning corpses. Its a story about love and the thin line to madness. So many things to pick a part of the story not just a weird and disturbing read. I enjoyed how we got to know three characters slowly and throughly and look closely in their mind and actions.
November 24, 2025
Tinder for corpses. That is indeed the premise of Sarah G. Pierce‘s upcoming debut novel, For Human Use.
Online dating is rough, a fact we know all too well in the year 2025. But what if, instead of sorting through the social muck of the living, we turn to the dead for company? A corpse that doesn’t talk back, doesn’t have strong opinions, or doesn’t ghost. That’s entrepreneur Auden White’s vision, a service called Liv where the living match with the dead. It sounds absolutely audacious, especially to Tom Williamson, a venture capitalist who is (unfortunately) tied to this app/service through his employer’s investments. As the money begins to flow, Tom realizes things are even more dire than previously thought. Perhaps the only silver lining is meeting Mara Reed, a woman in Auden’s circle who may just see things the way Tom does. What starts out as a weird social practice snowballs into a monstrous shift in public attitudes, habits, and rhetoric, affecting Tom, Auden, and Mara in unthinkable ways.
I’ll be the first in line to admit the premise of this novel seems rather open and shut, a plot without much room to run. Matching with corpses? Creating space for necrophilia? Hard no. No way that could work. But, I’ll also be the first to loudly admit my wrongness in this presumption as Pierce expertly crafts a social situation of horrifically believable proportions. What makes this seemingly outlandish set-up even more plausible is the darkly comedic moments of stark realization, the political interests that reveal themselves in true dramatic fashion, and the interpersonal drama bubbling beneath all of this. Mara, Tom, and Auden are written with an easy relatability, a familiarity that makes reader investment paramount. All of this is just bloody brilliant.
Even more stunning is Pierce’s unspoken dialogue with all advancements, social, technological, or other, that have emerged in recent years without guardrails. While For Human Use may use the shock factor of dead bodies to usher a response of disgust, the same arguments being made in this text can be applied to the out-of-control growth of AI, the unchecked landscape of the internet, autonomy, and so much more. For Human Use is a smart book, one that combines comedy and shock to oh-so-frighteningly point out that we aren’t so removed from this fictional reality as we think.
Audacious, darkly satirical, and absolutely gripping, For Human Use feels like the most entertaining social study of our current culture, a sandbox where gruesome castles are built under Sarah G. Pierce’s masterful hand. This is a debut novel that feels timely, deeply original, and oh so, captivating through a culmination of real-world anxieties, romantic dramas, and macabre social alternatives. Utterly enthralling and a true achievement, For Human Use is the exact kind of horror we should be reading in 2026, a shining beacon in daring, modern fiction.
Online dating is rough, a fact we know all too well in the year 2025. But what if, instead of sorting through the social muck of the living, we turn to the dead for company? A corpse that doesn’t talk back, doesn’t have strong opinions, or doesn’t ghost. That’s entrepreneur Auden White’s vision, a service called Liv where the living match with the dead. It sounds absolutely audacious, especially to Tom Williamson, a venture capitalist who is (unfortunately) tied to this app/service through his employer’s investments. As the money begins to flow, Tom realizes things are even more dire than previously thought. Perhaps the only silver lining is meeting Mara Reed, a woman in Auden’s circle who may just see things the way Tom does. What starts out as a weird social practice snowballs into a monstrous shift in public attitudes, habits, and rhetoric, affecting Tom, Auden, and Mara in unthinkable ways.
I’ll be the first in line to admit the premise of this novel seems rather open and shut, a plot without much room to run. Matching with corpses? Creating space for necrophilia? Hard no. No way that could work. But, I’ll also be the first to loudly admit my wrongness in this presumption as Pierce expertly crafts a social situation of horrifically believable proportions. What makes this seemingly outlandish set-up even more plausible is the darkly comedic moments of stark realization, the political interests that reveal themselves in true dramatic fashion, and the interpersonal drama bubbling beneath all of this. Mara, Tom, and Auden are written with an easy relatability, a familiarity that makes reader investment paramount. All of this is just bloody brilliant.
Even more stunning is Pierce’s unspoken dialogue with all advancements, social, technological, or other, that have emerged in recent years without guardrails. While For Human Use may use the shock factor of dead bodies to usher a response of disgust, the same arguments being made in this text can be applied to the out-of-control growth of AI, the unchecked landscape of the internet, autonomy, and so much more. For Human Use is a smart book, one that combines comedy and shock to oh-so-frighteningly point out that we aren’t so removed from this fictional reality as we think.
Audacious, darkly satirical, and absolutely gripping, For Human Use feels like the most entertaining social study of our current culture, a sandbox where gruesome castles are built under Sarah G. Pierce’s masterful hand. This is a debut novel that feels timely, deeply original, and oh so, captivating through a culmination of real-world anxieties, romantic dramas, and macabre social alternatives. Utterly enthralling and a true achievement, For Human Use is the exact kind of horror we should be reading in 2026, a shining beacon in daring, modern fiction.
December 20, 2025
3.25 ⭐️
When I saw the absolutely unhinged premise for this book, I knew I had to pick it up. In For Human Use we follow Tom, a venture capitalist whose company has been approached to fund a new dating app. The twist? The app — called Liv — matches users with corpses, touting the psychological benefits of spending time with the dead.
Tom is a great main character and acts as the straight man in this satirical horror comedy. He is one of the only people in the narrative that is (rightfully) horrified by the concept of hanging out with a corpse. We follow the anxious and stressed out Tom as he tries to draw attention to the flaws in this concept, and along the way, meets a kindred spirit in Mara.
I enjoyed the premise of this a lot as a thought experiment— it was a unique critique of how capitalist interests can shift the Overton window. It also had a lot of commentary on culture wars and social media behaviour (including corpse influencers) that was fascinating to read about.
The connection between Mara and Tom was another element that worked well for me. I found myself caring deeply about them both and rooting for them against all odds. The scenes when they were together or interacting were noticeably engrossing. Other characters were less interesting, and Auden in particular is someone whose motivations confused me and were never fully explained.
There were other things that didn’t work well for me — I felt like overall, this novel could have used a more critical editor. The writing style felt overwrought at times, yet stilted at others, and there were many sentences that either didn’t quite make sense or devolved into word salad. I think cutting 50 or 100 pages from this would have improved it a lot. There were also a number of time jumps that left me confused about how much time had passed; it would have been helpful to get some sense of timeframe throughout the novel. Finally, there was a LOT of finance terminology that wasn’t really explained and I expect that many readers (including me) will be a bit lost when reading because of that.
I would describe this as a mix between Emily St. John Mandel’s The Glass Hotel and John Marrs’ The One — it was wide-ranging, complex, but still quite silly. Overall, I enjoyed it and would pick up future books by this author.
*DISCLAIMER: Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book for the purposes of providing an unbiased review.*
When I saw the absolutely unhinged premise for this book, I knew I had to pick it up. In For Human Use we follow Tom, a venture capitalist whose company has been approached to fund a new dating app. The twist? The app — called Liv — matches users with corpses, touting the psychological benefits of spending time with the dead.
Tom is a great main character and acts as the straight man in this satirical horror comedy. He is one of the only people in the narrative that is (rightfully) horrified by the concept of hanging out with a corpse. We follow the anxious and stressed out Tom as he tries to draw attention to the flaws in this concept, and along the way, meets a kindred spirit in Mara.
I enjoyed the premise of this a lot as a thought experiment— it was a unique critique of how capitalist interests can shift the Overton window. It also had a lot of commentary on culture wars and social media behaviour (including corpse influencers) that was fascinating to read about.
The connection between Mara and Tom was another element that worked well for me. I found myself caring deeply about them both and rooting for them against all odds. The scenes when they were together or interacting were noticeably engrossing. Other characters were less interesting, and Auden in particular is someone whose motivations confused me and were never fully explained.
There were other things that didn’t work well for me — I felt like overall, this novel could have used a more critical editor. The writing style felt overwrought at times, yet stilted at others, and there were many sentences that either didn’t quite make sense or devolved into word salad. I think cutting 50 or 100 pages from this would have improved it a lot. There were also a number of time jumps that left me confused about how much time had passed; it would have been helpful to get some sense of timeframe throughout the novel. Finally, there was a LOT of finance terminology that wasn’t really explained and I expect that many readers (including me) will be a bit lost when reading because of that.
I would describe this as a mix between Emily St. John Mandel’s The Glass Hotel and John Marrs’ The One — it was wide-ranging, complex, but still quite silly. Overall, I enjoyed it and would pick up future books by this author.
*DISCLAIMER: Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book for the purposes of providing an unbiased review.*
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Imagine an app where you match online with a literal dead body, the body gets shipped to you and then you get to hang out with the body. People are preferring this over real human interaction/relationships where it can even be looked down on if you're not using the app.
Going into this, I had a different idea of what the book was about and where it would go. The premise is unique and it’s a very interesting take on social media, the dating scene, and capitalism. Unfortunately, the book focuses on a love triangle and the business financials instead. This made me lose interest pretty quickly and we didn’t get too much of the weirdness that I expected.
I had both the e-book and the audiobook. Without the audiobook, I probably would've taken an extremely long time to get through this.
Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book!
Going into this, I had a different idea of what the book was about and where it would go. The premise is unique and it’s a very interesting take on social media, the dating scene, and capitalism. Unfortunately, the book focuses on a love triangle and the business financials instead. This made me lose interest pretty quickly and we didn’t get too much of the weirdness that I expected.
I had both the e-book and the audiobook. Without the audiobook, I probably would've taken an extremely long time to get through this.
Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book!
November 25, 2025
This is...not what I thought it was going to be. The blurb describes it like a funny horror satirical romcom about this insane app, but the focus of the book doesn't seem to be the app at all. I would describe it more as a business/legal drama.
It's mainly focused on the interpersonal relationships of the three main characters, where both of the guys (Tom and Auden) have dated this girl, Mara. Also Mara is Auden's stepsister?? I think this could've been an interesting thing cuz there's a lot more to the relationships than that, but I feel like we didn't get enough time building up their relationships to begin with.
I really wish we got more insight into the app itself. Things are just kind of mentioned as facts here, without ever explaining how society actually got to that point. I don't understand how the app itself works, why people were okay with this to begin with, what people do with the bodies, etc.... I understand that it's satirical, but I feel like there needs to be at least a little more information about the app as a whole.
I also felt like there was some interesting commentary sprinkled throughout the book, but a lot of it was bogged down by financial/legal gibberish. If I ever read another monologue about hedge funds, IPOs, stock market attacks, profit valuations, or investment trading, it'll be too soon. I feel like that just distracted me so much, and those spaces could've been used for relationship building and app dealings. But I'm not a finance person, so I could see other people finding those parts more interesting than I did.
I just really thought this book was going to go in a different direction, and unfortunately the direction it did go in, was not for me at all. Though, I could see where people might find it more enjoyable for sure.
It's mainly focused on the interpersonal relationships of the three main characters, where both of the guys (Tom and Auden) have dated this girl, Mara. Also Mara is Auden's stepsister?? I think this could've been an interesting thing cuz there's a lot more to the relationships than that, but I feel like we didn't get enough time building up their relationships to begin with.
I really wish we got more insight into the app itself. Things are just kind of mentioned as facts here, without ever explaining how society actually got to that point. I don't understand how the app itself works, why people were okay with this to begin with, what people do with the bodies, etc.... I understand that it's satirical, but I feel like there needs to be at least a little more information about the app as a whole.
I also felt like there was some interesting commentary sprinkled throughout the book, but a lot of it was bogged down by financial/legal gibberish. If I ever read another monologue about hedge funds, IPOs, stock market attacks, profit valuations, or investment trading, it'll be too soon. I feel like that just distracted me so much, and those spaces could've been used for relationship building and app dealings. But I'm not a finance person, so I could see other people finding those parts more interesting than I did.
I just really thought this book was going to go in a different direction, and unfortunately the direction it did go in, was not for me at all. Though, I could see where people might find it more enjoyable for sure.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 6, 2025
Thank you to edelweiss and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!!
So I was obsessed with the premise of this book from the beginning. Like it gives you such a wtf feeling and I love that when reading.
I don’t even know what to say about the main parts of this story. Like the concept of a dating app to match you with corpses might sound ridiculous but is it really? Like how far along are the weirdest men you know from doing this? There is so much moral dilemma here and it was interesting to see the different perspectives. This mostly divides into 3 POVs. Tom who is a main member of the corporation funding Liv, Auden who is the founder of Liv, and Mara who is Auden’s stepsister. The drama between these 3 was even more interesting to read. Like I was eating up this drama. You come for the bonkers premise and stay for the people in their 30s and 40s acting like idiots. While this is pitched as a horror book I don’t think it’s scary. More like revolting how some people can believe certain things. I was trying my hardest not to scream through so much of this. The frustration was real.
So I was obsessed with the premise of this book from the beginning. Like it gives you such a wtf feeling and I love that when reading.
I don’t even know what to say about the main parts of this story. Like the concept of a dating app to match you with corpses might sound ridiculous but is it really? Like how far along are the weirdest men you know from doing this? There is so much moral dilemma here and it was interesting to see the different perspectives. This mostly divides into 3 POVs. Tom who is a main member of the corporation funding Liv, Auden who is the founder of Liv, and Mara who is Auden’s stepsister. The drama between these 3 was even more interesting to read. Like I was eating up this drama. You come for the bonkers premise and stay for the people in their 30s and 40s acting like idiots. While this is pitched as a horror book I don’t think it’s scary. More like revolting how some people can believe certain things. I was trying my hardest not to scream through so much of this. The frustration was real.
November 11, 2025
This book was lovely and fresh. A disturbing take on what companionship is and how loneliness can pervade who someone is. A wild ride from start to finish and I enjoyed every second of it. The story comments on our society’s acceptance and at times, resistance of values important to some and reviled by others. I really enjoyed the premise and I also look forward to more from this author!
2026
September 24, 2025📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Run For It
January 31, 2026
This book was such an insane concept and it’s actually left me speechless😭 the behaviors of all parties were wild and outrageous, but underneath all of that was a plot line that really kind of struggled to remain relevant with Mara and Auden’s history. The narrators did a great job though and the audiobook was really well done!
October 29, 2025
The cover of this book drew me in, the premise made me stay. It's difficult to even summarize this book. The fact this is a debut is extremely impressive. I found myself constantly thinking about the questions this book poses both when I was reading and when I was just going about my day to day life. The way in which humans interact with corpses in the book is spookily analogous to humans current relationship with AI. I hope this book will be a breakout when it's published because it deserves it. Singular, engaging, and scary as hell. Thank you to Goodreads for providing me an ARC for my review.
February 5, 2026
⭐️⭐️⭐️½
WHAT DID I JUST LISTEN TO?
This felt like Succession energy smashed into taboo romance chaos, with a WHACKY tenderness lurking underneath… I know people don’t like comparisons but to best sum it up, think Credence by way of We Are Always Tender with Our Dead. It’s loud, provocative, TABOO, and VERY aware of how far it’s pushing things.
TBH I don’t think I would’ve finished this if I’d been reading it in print because I don’t think it would’ve landed the same. The audiobook was solid, and that lone is what made this work for me.
The narration was golden, and the decision to use separate narrators (one for Mara and another for Tom, Auden, and the surrounding cast) was a smart call. I enjoyed the format of chapters being told by different POVS/characters, and that split gave the story structure and momentum when the plot and character dynamics were threatening to spiral into full absurdity (which it did quite often).
This book is extremely over the top, by design of course, but the dialogue kept pulling me forward. It knows it’s chaotic and leans all the way in, talking about swiping right to match with corpses, humanity normalizing the fact that living with a corpse is “normal”, etc. For me, it was so over-the-top at parts that I didn’t connect emotionally with every choice, but I stayed engaged because I genuinely wanted to see how far it would go.
Without spoilers, this quote perfectly captures the tone and unhinged energy of the story:
“Not knowing if he was the Pomeranian, the mouse, or the glue trap, he decided the toxic ex-boyfriend/manipulative step-sibling/controversial billionaire could no longer be ignored.”
Overall, this was a format-dependent experience for me. It was a fun listen, which sometimes is just what you need. Just be sure to check your trigger warnings because there’s A LOT!
Thank you to NetGalley, Hachette Audio / Run For It, author Sarah G. Pierce, and narrators Marie Hawkins and Eric Burgher for giving me the chance to listen to this ahead of publication. All thoughts and opinions are solely my own.
WHAT DID I JUST LISTEN TO?
This felt like Succession energy smashed into taboo romance chaos, with a WHACKY tenderness lurking underneath… I know people don’t like comparisons but to best sum it up, think Credence by way of We Are Always Tender with Our Dead. It’s loud, provocative, TABOO, and VERY aware of how far it’s pushing things.
TBH I don’t think I would’ve finished this if I’d been reading it in print because I don’t think it would’ve landed the same. The audiobook was solid, and that lone is what made this work for me.
The narration was golden, and the decision to use separate narrators (one for Mara and another for Tom, Auden, and the surrounding cast) was a smart call. I enjoyed the format of chapters being told by different POVS/characters, and that split gave the story structure and momentum when the plot and character dynamics were threatening to spiral into full absurdity (which it did quite often).
This book is extremely over the top, by design of course, but the dialogue kept pulling me forward. It knows it’s chaotic and leans all the way in, talking about swiping right to match with corpses, humanity normalizing the fact that living with a corpse is “normal”, etc. For me, it was so over-the-top at parts that I didn’t connect emotionally with every choice, but I stayed engaged because I genuinely wanted to see how far it would go.
Without spoilers, this quote perfectly captures the tone and unhinged energy of the story:
“Not knowing if he was the Pomeranian, the mouse, or the glue trap, he decided the toxic ex-boyfriend/manipulative step-sibling/controversial billionaire could no longer be ignored.”
Overall, this was a format-dependent experience for me. It was a fun listen, which sometimes is just what you need. Just be sure to check your trigger warnings because there’s A LOT!
Thank you to NetGalley, Hachette Audio / Run For It, author Sarah G. Pierce, and narrators Marie Hawkins and Eric Burgher for giving me the chance to listen to this ahead of publication. All thoughts and opinions are solely my own.
January 12, 2026
Thank you so much Orbit & Netgalley for this eARC!!
Ended up rating this a 3.
So here's the thing, I didn't really find this funny or a "horror romcom", like at all. It was marketed as this darkly funny thing and I really didn't see that come through; in all honesty I was profoundly horrified by most of this book, as I think it's intended to be.
I would not, I repeat, WOULD NOT recommend this as a horror romcom.
I have seen other reviews denote this as a "satire of venture capitalism and online influence culture" and HIGHLY resonate with that depiction.
I had a hard time connecting with our MC Tom, as he was very sterile. I related to his abhorrence of a dating app for corpses and living with corpses, but that was about it. When it came to him thinking about his ex-wife and his thoughts about the stillbirth and his child (that he refused to accept as a child??) I was lost. Tom's panic attacks were written very well, but the overall prose was stagnant and sort of all over the place.
I almost DNF'd at 25%, but then Tom & Mara started having interest in each other and I was FINALLY given something other than Tom's indifferent hatred for Auden and everything he stood for.
While I was absolutely rooting for Tom & Mara, at the same time I hated that we didn't get any Mara POVs especially towards the end. I think the whole novel would've made way more sense had we seen into her POV more. I was honestly under the impression that she might've been killed off for effect.
This is definitely a book you need to pay attention to while reading, it's not one you can just skim.
Ended up rating this a 3.
So here's the thing, I didn't really find this funny or a "horror romcom", like at all. It was marketed as this darkly funny thing and I really didn't see that come through; in all honesty I was profoundly horrified by most of this book, as I think it's intended to be.
I would not, I repeat, WOULD NOT recommend this as a horror romcom.
I have seen other reviews denote this as a "satire of venture capitalism and online influence culture" and HIGHLY resonate with that depiction.
I had a hard time connecting with our MC Tom, as he was very sterile. I related to his abhorrence of a dating app for corpses and living with corpses, but that was about it. When it came to him thinking about his ex-wife and his thoughts about the stillbirth and his child (that he refused to accept as a child??) I was lost. Tom's panic attacks were written very well, but the overall prose was stagnant and sort of all over the place.
I almost DNF'd at 25%, but then Tom & Mara started having interest in each other and I was FINALLY given something other than Tom's indifferent hatred for Auden and everything he stood for.
While I was absolutely rooting for Tom & Mara, at the same time I hated that we didn't get any Mara POVs especially towards the end. I think the whole novel would've made way more sense had we seen into her POV more. I was honestly under the impression that she might've been killed off for effect.
This is definitely a book you need to pay attention to while reading, it's not one you can just skim.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 4, 2026
Imagine one day being able to download an app called Liv, an app similar in a way to dating apps. But instead of matching with other living humans you match with a corpse. Directly shipped to your doorstep. All yours, and you’re free to use it for whatever you like.
That on its own isn’t even the craziest part. What makes it even more unsettling is that the app changes the world forever, because suddenly everyone feels the need to own a corpse.
The premise is so outlandish and absurd that at first it seemed completely unlikely to ever become a reality. Whilst I still think that, I slowly started to imagine how something like this could be appealing to a certain group of people.
For example, sex dolls are (for a particular group) extremely popular. So why not get a corpse instead? You can do whatever you want with it. On top of that, it’s even more real.
This realization made the story feel much more realistic and disgusting.
What I found unfortunate is that the story started to focus too much on the love triangle and the business aspect of it all instead of the moral consequences. I felt like it was trying to incorporate too many different storylines. It definitely could’ve left some out and cut at least a hundred pages, if you ask me.
The book also didn’t feel like a horror book, which it’s marketed as. If anything, it felt dystopian.
Overall, it was interesting to read, simply because I haven’t read anything even remotely similar to this, but beyond that, it didn’t leave a lasting impression.
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for the arc
That on its own isn’t even the craziest part. What makes it even more unsettling is that the app changes the world forever, because suddenly everyone feels the need to own a corpse.
The premise is so outlandish and absurd that at first it seemed completely unlikely to ever become a reality. Whilst I still think that, I slowly started to imagine how something like this could be appealing to a certain group of people.
For example, sex dolls are (for a particular group) extremely popular. So why not get a corpse instead? You can do whatever you want with it. On top of that, it’s even more real.
This realization made the story feel much more realistic and disgusting.
What I found unfortunate is that the story started to focus too much on the love triangle and the business aspect of it all instead of the moral consequences. I felt like it was trying to incorporate too many different storylines. It definitely could’ve left some out and cut at least a hundred pages, if you ask me.
The book also didn’t feel like a horror book, which it’s marketed as. If anything, it felt dystopian.
Overall, it was interesting to read, simply because I haven’t read anything even remotely similar to this, but beyond that, it didn’t leave a lasting impression.
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for the arc
January 25, 2026
For Human Use by Sarah G Pierce has a very interesting concept. There is an app that is like Tinder but instead of matching you with a local person, it matches you to a dead body. I knew I immediately needed to read this based on that premise.
Unfortunately, the stuff to do with dead bodies and the app feels like it is such a small part of this story. This story mostly focuses on three people in sort of a love triangle. I feel like I went into this book thinking it would be more of a sci-fi horror when it is actually more of a general fiction with some romance and a small slice of sci fi. There is also a ton of finance talk in this book which I wasn’t expecting and kind of made parts drag.
I do think the characters were well written and they were really brought to life by the audiobook narrators. I think there is a lot of satire in this book that I can appreciate and some social commentary that feels really relevant. I just feel like that was such a small part of the book and I wanted more of that based on the hook in the premise.
So this book wasn’t really what I thought it would be but I think it will find the right readers. This is much more for people who read general fiction and like book that focus on the characters.
Unfortunately, the stuff to do with dead bodies and the app feels like it is such a small part of this story. This story mostly focuses on three people in sort of a love triangle. I feel like I went into this book thinking it would be more of a sci-fi horror when it is actually more of a general fiction with some romance and a small slice of sci fi. There is also a ton of finance talk in this book which I wasn’t expecting and kind of made parts drag.
I do think the characters were well written and they were really brought to life by the audiobook narrators. I think there is a lot of satire in this book that I can appreciate and some social commentary that feels really relevant. I just feel like that was such a small part of the book and I wanted more of that based on the hook in the premise.
So this book wasn’t really what I thought it would be but I think it will find the right readers. This is much more for people who read general fiction and like book that focus on the characters.
October 29, 2025
Thank you to the publish and NetGalley for the eARC!
I really loved this. Its so weird but not in a gross way. I love the cover, the whole premise of this, the pacing, the writing. I'm so glad I got to read this already. I don't even know how to concisely sum up my thoughts on this, but I linked my full review below. I loved it.
I will say, if you can't just suspend your belief and accept that most people are just OK with corpse companionship, I wouldn't read this.
Full review here: https://heyimreading.com/2025/10/28/r...
I really loved this. Its so weird but not in a gross way. I love the cover, the whole premise of this, the pacing, the writing. I'm so glad I got to read this already. I don't even know how to concisely sum up my thoughts on this, but I linked my full review below. I loved it.
I will say, if you can't just suspend your belief and accept that most people are just OK with corpse companionship, I wouldn't read this.
Full review here: https://heyimreading.com/2025/10/28/r...
February 1, 2026
For Human Use by Sarah G Pierce. Thanks to the author for the gifted Arc ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A new dating app goes big, where you can match and order a dead body. The need grows big and the humans involved with the endeavor have their own things going on.
This was such a wild plot line. I found the plot funny but in a horrible, why has it come to this, way. This book is quite long. It’s not only about the bodies and relationships with them, but also about the start-up and drama that goes with it. It spirals as it goes on and just gets worse, in a good way.
Read if you like:
-Speculative fiction
-Unusual plot lines and romances
-The future of dating
For Human Use comes out 2/10.
A new dating app goes big, where you can match and order a dead body. The need grows big and the humans involved with the endeavor have their own things going on.
This was such a wild plot line. I found the plot funny but in a horrible, why has it come to this, way. This book is quite long. It’s not only about the bodies and relationships with them, but also about the start-up and drama that goes with it. It spirals as it goes on and just gets worse, in a good way.
Read if you like:
-Speculative fiction
-Unusual plot lines and romances
-The future of dating
For Human Use comes out 2/10.
November 23, 2025
Truly bizarre concept, but I could not put it down! A lot of great parallels were made; people IRL sometimes just want a "body" and not have to put effort into a relationship. I do think the ending was a bit unclear, but maybe it was a set up for a sequel?
Definitely recommending to friends when this comes out!
Definitely recommending to friends when this comes out!
January 13, 2026
I ate this UP. I loved the theoretical exploration of the impacts that an experiment like this would cause on society. Not to mention how capitalism and consumption on any front can lead to mass psychological chaos. I enjoyed the characters and the differentiating viewpoints and devoured the ending quickly especially as it got more twisty and unexpected. 10/10.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
A big thank you to NetGalley and Orbit books/ Run for It for the eARC in exchange for an honest review 💚
The premise of this book is insane.
The delivery of this book is right on par with the premise.
This is a world where there's an app to rent corpses and you follow the apps inventor, his immediate family and his financial team.
As a business major, this scratched an itch I didn't know I needed scratching.
The amount of amazing quotes is astronomical.
This is deadpan hilarious.
The book is marketed as a romcom and I disagree, although there is a romance plotline, that's not what this book is about at all.
This is horror-ish, definitely a comedy and definitely business talk heavy, in the easiest way to make if fun to follow along.
I never knew where the story was going and was always eager to pick the book up.
I can't recommend this enough for the weird besties out there.
The premise of this book is insane.
The delivery of this book is right on par with the premise.
This is a world where there's an app to rent corpses and you follow the apps inventor, his immediate family and his financial team.
As a business major, this scratched an itch I didn't know I needed scratching.
The amount of amazing quotes is astronomical.
This is deadpan hilarious.
The book is marketed as a romcom and I disagree, although there is a romance plotline, that's not what this book is about at all.
This is horror-ish, definitely a comedy and definitely business talk heavy, in the easiest way to make if fun to follow along.
I never knew where the story was going and was always eager to pick the book up.
I can't recommend this enough for the weird besties out there.
November 28, 2025
For Human Use — 4.5 ⭐️
This book was fun, weird, and truly original, though the worldbuilding occasionally reminded me of Tender Is the Flesh—just a much lighter, more satirical version of that kind of ethical nightmare!
An app called “Liv” where you swipe left or right on dead bodies and if you swipe right…an actual corpse gets delivered to your doorstep. 👁️👄👁️
I was in shock from page one — just like the main character, Tom, a boardmember who works on funding this app and is desperately trying to figure out how any of this is ethical or even remotely legal. The more we learn through field studies, user data, focus groups, and internal reports, the more unhinged (and fascinating) the whole operation becomes.
Meanwhile, society is suddenly expected to talk about dead people the way we talk about any marginalized group: respectfully, conscientiously, and without “necroshaming.”
The entire premise circles around legalizing necrophilia… except supposedly “no one has ever gone that far.” Which only raises the obvious question: So what ARE people doing with these bodies? It becomes the giant dead elephant in the room — one that the app’s creator, Auden, hilariously talks around in inflated, corporate nonsense without ever once giving a real answer for us.
The drama is top-tier juicy as well. The satire is relentless. “Necrophobia.” “Temperature masking” (using heating pads to warm corpses to 97–99 degrees). “Necro-flexing” (pretending you’re comfortable with the dead when you absolutely aren’t).
Critique: It could’ve shaved about 50 pages — 400 is my personal comfort ceiling for a book — but that’s my only real complaint! I thought the story was fast-paced enough!
Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for providing my first ARC. I cannot wait to buy a physical copy for my shelf and force this fever dream on others. I’ve been trying to explain this book to my friends and coworkers and it’s nearly impossible without sounding deeply unwell (not entirely inaccurate).
Edit: This story is told from the perspective of the business/legal side of the app developer team’s POV rather than getting to experience the app from a user’s POV (which would make an excellent sequel, following alongside this story’s POV!)
This book was fun, weird, and truly original, though the worldbuilding occasionally reminded me of Tender Is the Flesh—just a much lighter, more satirical version of that kind of ethical nightmare!
An app called “Liv” where you swipe left or right on dead bodies and if you swipe right…an actual corpse gets delivered to your doorstep. 👁️👄👁️
I was in shock from page one — just like the main character, Tom, a boardmember who works on funding this app and is desperately trying to figure out how any of this is ethical or even remotely legal. The more we learn through field studies, user data, focus groups, and internal reports, the more unhinged (and fascinating) the whole operation becomes.
Meanwhile, society is suddenly expected to talk about dead people the way we talk about any marginalized group: respectfully, conscientiously, and without “necroshaming.”
The entire premise circles around legalizing necrophilia… except supposedly “no one has ever gone that far.” Which only raises the obvious question: So what ARE people doing with these bodies? It becomes the giant dead elephant in the room — one that the app’s creator, Auden, hilariously talks around in inflated, corporate nonsense without ever once giving a real answer for us.
The drama is top-tier juicy as well. The satire is relentless. “Necrophobia.” “Temperature masking” (using heating pads to warm corpses to 97–99 degrees). “Necro-flexing” (pretending you’re comfortable with the dead when you absolutely aren’t).
Critique: It could’ve shaved about 50 pages — 400 is my personal comfort ceiling for a book — but that’s my only real complaint! I thought the story was fast-paced enough!
Thank you to Orbit Books and NetGalley for providing my first ARC. I cannot wait to buy a physical copy for my shelf and force this fever dream on others. I’ve been trying to explain this book to my friends and coworkers and it’s nearly impossible without sounding deeply unwell (not entirely inaccurate).
Edit: This story is told from the perspective of the business/legal side of the app developer team’s POV rather than getting to experience the app from a user’s POV (which would make an excellent sequel, following alongside this story’s POV!)
November 27, 2025
Review to come. 3.5 ⭐️
ARC read from NetGalley. This book is a wild ride. Necrophilia-horror, satirical comedy? It’s creative and weird AF.
Review:
I really enjoyed this unusual and original book. It’s an unhinged blend of necrophilia-horror and satirical. (I’m honestly shocked that it’s a debut.) As for the main characters: Tom is a mess, Mara is a mess, Auden is an even bigger mess, and the chaos they all create is both disturbing and entertaining. It’s satire about how far people will take things no matter the damage. For Human Use by Sarah G Pierce is disturbingly fun, and I kept wondering, how someone even come up with this?
ARC read from NetGalley. This book is a wild ride. Necrophilia-horror, satirical comedy? It’s creative and weird AF.
Review:
I really enjoyed this unusual and original book. It’s an unhinged blend of necrophilia-horror and satirical. (I’m honestly shocked that it’s a debut.) As for the main characters: Tom is a mess, Mara is a mess, Auden is an even bigger mess, and the chaos they all create is both disturbing and entertaining. It’s satire about how far people will take things no matter the damage. For Human Use by Sarah G Pierce is disturbingly fun, and I kept wondering, how someone even come up with this?
2026-new-releases
November 5, 2025a book about… dating corpses? what the hell, sure
November 12, 2025
My Kindle version of this advanced reader copy was provided to me via #NetGalley by Orbit Books.
Let’s talk about the loneliness epidemic. Because that’s what this novel is about.
Well, that and a cadaver dating app.
As a lifelong mortuary science student I was really excited about this book because it tells an interesting story about the dead in ways that haven’t been told before. Liv is an app that matches living human beings to dead ones to live together. And it has TAKEN OFF in ways that it shouldn’t have. Tom Williamson works for the original venture capital firm that decided to back Liv. The story takes place over 18 months and as readers, we’re randomly dropped into moments where it matters, meaning we aren’t subjected to pages of unneeded exposition while the author (Sarah G Pierce) tries to fill the space between the scenes that matter to us. It’s a technique that Pierce does well, when we have seen it not do well so many times in the past.
I also thoroughly enjoyed the way the book is narrated with a lot of epistolary elements like social media comments, emails, and text messages. I do think the book could have included more of those because the way they broke up the text was a fun way to read the story.
Liv’s creator, Elon Musk, I mean Auden White, hates Tom. Tom questions the bloated and fictional numbers that Auden keeps providing to prove Liv is profitable (it isn’t, from what I can tell Auden provides bodies for free) and Auden hates anyone who doesn’t believe him.
They have a back and forth which only gets more chaotic when we meet Mara, Auden’s stepsister/ex-girlfriend who later becomes Tom’s girlfriend. Also Tom has a lot of issues with people having sex with/living with dead bodies, but is totally chill with dating a girl who was equally as chill with having sex with her stepbrother. Other characters are not as chill with it and they let you know.
Anyway. This whole book is an excellent metaphor for the loneliness epidemic that has plagued our current way of living. People feel more alone now than they ever have before, it’s even been considered a public health risk like smoking. Auden’s app addresses that, it’s dating without the small talk, it’s someone who exists in your house without having to worry about fights or other conflict. There is one person in the book who uses the app so there is ‘someone’ there with her dog everyday while she’s at work.
But, like with all things, the app quickly becomes an issues and the descent into madness is swift and bloody. I think Pierce does well to capture the obsession and addiction to entitlement that people feel when using an app.
Overall though, I will say the book is just good. It’s been hard to figure out what to write about it over the last couple of days because it’s good, but it doesn’t resonate with me like other books have. When I was done with it, I was just done with it. I didn’t have any strong opinions or theories or any real commentary on it. I don’t want to be misconstrued either, Pierce tells the story very well. According to the acknowledgements page this was an 8 year project, which is an incredible amount of time to spend on anything. But, at the same time, that might have been too much time to work on it.
I see it with ‘forever projects’ a lot. The story is good. Why wouldn’t it be? So much time has been spent on this project, the story is well founded. However, that means that so much of the story exists in the author’s head, that there are certain parts of the book that feel like we, as readers, aren’t really given context for. It’s not that the context doens’t exist, it does, but only in Pierce’s head and in the writing group that the book was born in. All of the people involved have the context we don’t. Which again, the story is good, there’s just a missing ‘wow’ factor (to sound like a bad fashion editor/Tyra Banks on ANTM).
I also feel that this book relies to much on bombastic emotions. Tom is an angry angry dude. Mara is seemingly in a constant state of anxiety where she’s pretty sure Tom hates her (relatable, but too much on the page). Auden is just a neurotic mess with a daddy complex. There is so much of this book that wouldn’t have been conflict has people just talked to and/or trusted each other and it did feel like a miss on occasion where, instead of the story moving forward, we’re stuck as someone obsesses over their thoughts about someone else.
I will also say, and acknowledging the disclaimer at the beginning that this isn’t the final version, some weird formatting where I’m exposed to text conversation between Tom and another character, Lorraine, basically explaining what Liv is before I even get to the table of contents. I thought my copy was glitched originally, and then even more so because that complete conversation is later in the book.
Let’s talk about the loneliness epidemic. Because that’s what this novel is about.
Well, that and a cadaver dating app.
As a lifelong mortuary science student I was really excited about this book because it tells an interesting story about the dead in ways that haven’t been told before. Liv is an app that matches living human beings to dead ones to live together. And it has TAKEN OFF in ways that it shouldn’t have. Tom Williamson works for the original venture capital firm that decided to back Liv. The story takes place over 18 months and as readers, we’re randomly dropped into moments where it matters, meaning we aren’t subjected to pages of unneeded exposition while the author (Sarah G Pierce) tries to fill the space between the scenes that matter to us. It’s a technique that Pierce does well, when we have seen it not do well so many times in the past.
I also thoroughly enjoyed the way the book is narrated with a lot of epistolary elements like social media comments, emails, and text messages. I do think the book could have included more of those because the way they broke up the text was a fun way to read the story.
Liv’s creator, Elon Musk, I mean Auden White, hates Tom. Tom questions the bloated and fictional numbers that Auden keeps providing to prove Liv is profitable (it isn’t, from what I can tell Auden provides bodies for free) and Auden hates anyone who doesn’t believe him.
They have a back and forth which only gets more chaotic when we meet Mara, Auden’s stepsister/ex-girlfriend who later becomes Tom’s girlfriend. Also Tom has a lot of issues with people having sex with/living with dead bodies, but is totally chill with dating a girl who was equally as chill with having sex with her stepbrother. Other characters are not as chill with it and they let you know.
Anyway. This whole book is an excellent metaphor for the loneliness epidemic that has plagued our current way of living. People feel more alone now than they ever have before, it’s even been considered a public health risk like smoking. Auden’s app addresses that, it’s dating without the small talk, it’s someone who exists in your house without having to worry about fights or other conflict. There is one person in the book who uses the app so there is ‘someone’ there with her dog everyday while she’s at work.
But, like with all things, the app quickly becomes an issues and the descent into madness is swift and bloody. I think Pierce does well to capture the obsession and addiction to entitlement that people feel when using an app.
Overall though, I will say the book is just good. It’s been hard to figure out what to write about it over the last couple of days because it’s good, but it doesn’t resonate with me like other books have. When I was done with it, I was just done with it. I didn’t have any strong opinions or theories or any real commentary on it. I don’t want to be misconstrued either, Pierce tells the story very well. According to the acknowledgements page this was an 8 year project, which is an incredible amount of time to spend on anything. But, at the same time, that might have been too much time to work on it.
I see it with ‘forever projects’ a lot. The story is good. Why wouldn’t it be? So much time has been spent on this project, the story is well founded. However, that means that so much of the story exists in the author’s head, that there are certain parts of the book that feel like we, as readers, aren’t really given context for. It’s not that the context doens’t exist, it does, but only in Pierce’s head and in the writing group that the book was born in. All of the people involved have the context we don’t. Which again, the story is good, there’s just a missing ‘wow’ factor (to sound like a bad fashion editor/Tyra Banks on ANTM).
I also feel that this book relies to much on bombastic emotions. Tom is an angry angry dude. Mara is seemingly in a constant state of anxiety where she’s pretty sure Tom hates her (relatable, but too much on the page). Auden is just a neurotic mess with a daddy complex. There is so much of this book that wouldn’t have been conflict has people just talked to and/or trusted each other and it did feel like a miss on occasion where, instead of the story moving forward, we’re stuck as someone obsesses over their thoughts about someone else.
I will also say, and acknowledging the disclaimer at the beginning that this isn’t the final version, some weird formatting where I’m exposed to text conversation between Tom and another character, Lorraine, basically explaining what Liv is before I even get to the table of contents. I thought my copy was glitched originally, and then even more so because that complete conversation is later in the book.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Dark satire delivering a send-up of our chronically online, hyper-filtered, overly-anxious, terrified-of-offending, lonely af technocentric culture.
Premise - Online dating sucks, so how do you make it better? Add the dead (literally corpses - not zombies, not the undead, just dead). Liv, a dating app that matches people with dead bodies, takes the world by storm and shifts the Overton Window radically.
Tom Williamson, venture capital superstar, is behind the company funding Liv, but he's (understandably) skeptical. When Auden White, Liv's founder, begins demanding more and more funding, Tom and Auden quickly come into crosshairs. And then Tom meets Mara Reed, Auden's stepsister-girlfriend (straight out of porn!), and immediately falls in love, because of course he does.
I spent this *whole* book waiting for (a) a public health catastrophe as the corpses start decomposing en masse, as even embalming is only a *slowing* of decomposition and not a true halt, and (b) a cadaver black market giving rise to mass murder sprees. I'd have traded 100% of the weird incestuous love triangle (disjointed, all three points don't connect) for a little anticipated and earned body horror.
Here's what did really work for me:
~ how it really immersed me into the startup/venture capital madness
~ the character development
~ the writing itself (flowed so nicely)
~ the premise! Golden, even if I feel there was a lot more the author could have wrung out of it.
FOR HUMAN USE satirizes our modern culture of hyperfixation on comfort (there's a moment where a main character is on the edge of death and a woman opts out of helping because it makes her uncomfortable, in focus groups young men say they prefer hanging out with corpses because they're afraid of making a real woman uncomfortable, etc. etc.).
FOR HUMAN USE posits that cancel culture has made us so afraid of coming off as bigoted that we don't push back against harmful behaviors and unhealthy new norms. It suggests we're all incompetent negotiators, but takes it a step further - we've lost our ability to engage in thoughtful discourse and express respectful disagreement. These themes are embedded into the narrative all the way through, making it great fodder for book club discussion.
For readers of:
💄 Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang (startup cult insanity, crazy founders)
💼 Severance by Ling Ma (corporate nihilism)
🍴 Girl Dinner by Olivie Blake ("genius" founders, fake it 'til you make it SV culture)
🎧 Who Knows You By Heart by CJ Farley (startup cult insanity)
I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Marie Hawkins and Eric Burgher. They delivered super grounded, real reads, which is essential for a story with as extreme a premise as this one. I highly recommend! But, um, definitely make sure you're listening on headphones because this isn't the kind of story you want people catching random snippets of here and there... you'll have a lot to explain.
Thanks, NetGalley and Hachette Audio, for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Premise - Online dating sucks, so how do you make it better? Add the dead (literally corpses - not zombies, not the undead, just dead). Liv, a dating app that matches people with dead bodies, takes the world by storm and shifts the Overton Window radically.
Tom Williamson, venture capital superstar, is behind the company funding Liv, but he's (understandably) skeptical. When Auden White, Liv's founder, begins demanding more and more funding, Tom and Auden quickly come into crosshairs. And then Tom meets Mara Reed, Auden's stepsister-girlfriend (straight out of porn!), and immediately falls in love, because of course he does.
I spent this *whole* book waiting for (a) a public health catastrophe as the corpses start decomposing en masse, as even embalming is only a *slowing* of decomposition and not a true halt, and (b) a cadaver black market giving rise to mass murder sprees. I'd have traded 100% of the weird incestuous love triangle (disjointed, all three points don't connect) for a little anticipated and earned body horror.
Here's what did really work for me:
~ how it really immersed me into the startup/venture capital madness
~ the character development
~ the writing itself (flowed so nicely)
~ the premise! Golden, even if I feel there was a lot more the author could have wrung out of it.
FOR HUMAN USE satirizes our modern culture of hyperfixation on comfort (there's a moment where a main character is on the edge of death and a woman opts out of helping because it makes her uncomfortable, in focus groups young men say they prefer hanging out with corpses because they're afraid of making a real woman uncomfortable, etc. etc.).
FOR HUMAN USE posits that cancel culture has made us so afraid of coming off as bigoted that we don't push back against harmful behaviors and unhealthy new norms. It suggests we're all incompetent negotiators, but takes it a step further - we've lost our ability to engage in thoughtful discourse and express respectful disagreement. These themes are embedded into the narrative all the way through, making it great fodder for book club discussion.
For readers of:
💄 Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang (startup cult insanity, crazy founders)
💼 Severance by Ling Ma (corporate nihilism)
🍴 Girl Dinner by Olivie Blake ("genius" founders, fake it 'til you make it SV culture)
🎧 Who Knows You By Heart by CJ Farley (startup cult insanity)
I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Marie Hawkins and Eric Burgher. They delivered super grounded, real reads, which is essential for a story with as extreme a premise as this one. I highly recommend! But, um, definitely make sure you're listening on headphones because this isn't the kind of story you want people catching random snippets of here and there... you'll have a lot to explain.
Thanks, NetGalley and Hachette Audio, for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Sarah G. Pierce For Human Use is the book that made me stare at my wall afterward and whisper, “Well. That escalated.”
Orbit Books, thank you so much for my gifted copy, which I read with fascination, horror, laughter, and a creeping realization that modern dating has not only hit rock bottom but brought a shovel, a business plan, and a pitch deck.
Let’s be clear: this book does not ease you in. It kicks the door down, dumps a dating app for corpses at your feet, and asks why you’re being so judgmental about it. I was hooked almost instantly, partly because the premise is absolutely unhinged and partly because Pierce commits to it with a straight face and a very sharp pen. There is no winking apology here. The satire is biting, the discomfort is intentional, and the humor sneaks up on you in a way that makes you laugh and then immediately pause to reassess your morals.
What really surprised me is how oddly cozy this book felt despite the subject matter. Not cozy like soft blankets and herbal tea, but cozy like sitting in a dim kitchen at midnight listening to a friend rant brilliantly about capitalism, loneliness, and terrible men while you nod aggressively and refill your glass. The corporate nonsense is infuriating in the most realistic way possible, the characters are deeply flawed in ways that feel painfully human, and the social commentary lands a little too close to home. I didn’t always like where the story went, but I was always interested, which feels like the highest compliment I can give a book this strange.
This is not a traditional romcom, and thank god for that. The romance is messy, anxious, and riddled with miscommunication in a way that feels depressingly familiar rather than cute. The horror isn’t about gore so much as it is about normalization. Watching the world of this book slowly adjust its language, values, and ethics to accommodate something that should never be normal is genuinely chilling. The dead bodies aren’t even the most disturbing part. The way everyone talks themselves into being okay with them is.
There are sections that linger longer than expected, conversations that spiral, and moments where the business and financial jargon made my eyes glaze just a bit. But even then, I couldn’t look away. Pierce is clearly less interested in neat resolutions than in asking uncomfortable questions and letting them sit there, buzzing. This book understands that horror doesn’t always scream. Sometimes it calmly explains itself in a press release.
By the time I reached the end, I felt unsettled in the way good speculative fiction should unsettle you. Not shocked for shock’s sake, but quietly rattled, left to think about how close this fictional world feels to our own and how easily we’d probably justify it, too.
“There are worse things than being alone, and we keep inventing them.”
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5 stars
#ForHumanUse #SarahGPierce #HorrorSatire #DarkFiction #WeirdBooks #BookReview #NetGalley
Orbit Books, thank you so much for my gifted copy, which I read with fascination, horror, laughter, and a creeping realization that modern dating has not only hit rock bottom but brought a shovel, a business plan, and a pitch deck.
Let’s be clear: this book does not ease you in. It kicks the door down, dumps a dating app for corpses at your feet, and asks why you’re being so judgmental about it. I was hooked almost instantly, partly because the premise is absolutely unhinged and partly because Pierce commits to it with a straight face and a very sharp pen. There is no winking apology here. The satire is biting, the discomfort is intentional, and the humor sneaks up on you in a way that makes you laugh and then immediately pause to reassess your morals.
What really surprised me is how oddly cozy this book felt despite the subject matter. Not cozy like soft blankets and herbal tea, but cozy like sitting in a dim kitchen at midnight listening to a friend rant brilliantly about capitalism, loneliness, and terrible men while you nod aggressively and refill your glass. The corporate nonsense is infuriating in the most realistic way possible, the characters are deeply flawed in ways that feel painfully human, and the social commentary lands a little too close to home. I didn’t always like where the story went, but I was always interested, which feels like the highest compliment I can give a book this strange.
This is not a traditional romcom, and thank god for that. The romance is messy, anxious, and riddled with miscommunication in a way that feels depressingly familiar rather than cute. The horror isn’t about gore so much as it is about normalization. Watching the world of this book slowly adjust its language, values, and ethics to accommodate something that should never be normal is genuinely chilling. The dead bodies aren’t even the most disturbing part. The way everyone talks themselves into being okay with them is.
There are sections that linger longer than expected, conversations that spiral, and moments where the business and financial jargon made my eyes glaze just a bit. But even then, I couldn’t look away. Pierce is clearly less interested in neat resolutions than in asking uncomfortable questions and letting them sit there, buzzing. This book understands that horror doesn’t always scream. Sometimes it calmly explains itself in a press release.
By the time I reached the end, I felt unsettled in the way good speculative fiction should unsettle you. Not shocked for shock’s sake, but quietly rattled, left to think about how close this fictional world feels to our own and how easily we’d probably justify it, too.
“There are worse things than being alone, and we keep inventing them.”
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5 stars
#ForHumanUse #SarahGPierce #HorrorSatire #DarkFiction #WeirdBooks #BookReview #NetGalley
February 3, 2026
For Human Use by Sarah G. Pierce completely subverted my expectations in a good way. Going in, I assumed this would lean heavily into horror or thriller territory, maybe even into outright necrophilia given the premise. Instead, it turned out to be something much stranger and more interesting: a book about capitalism, business, and social systems, with an extremely disturbing product at its center.
The idea of people living with corpses is what kicks everything off, but that’s not really what the book is about. That concept is more of a catalyst than a focus, and I loved that choice. Rather than sensationalizing the shock factor, the story becomes a piece of social commentary about how society organizes itself, how extreme belief groups form, and how capitalism absorbs and monetizes even the most morally questionable ideas. The parallels to modern “corpses are people too”–style movements felt uncomfortably plausible, which made the book more unsettling than outright scary.
This wasn’t a rom-com at all, despite some of the marketing language. It wasn’t really a comedy, and it wasn’t particularly thrilling or frightening either. It felt more like “horror with the lights on,” eerie, strange, and compelling without trying to shock you at every turn. Everyone in the book is a little weird, and that added to the charm rather than detracting from it.
Structurally, the book surprised me more than once. Around the halfway point, I genuinely thought the story had reached its conclusion and was shocked to realize I wasn’t even close to done. While I’m not entirely sure what the intended takeaway was, I didn’t mind that ambiguity. Sometimes books this strange don’t need a clear moral…they just need to make you think, and this one absolutely did. The ending wrapped up more neatly than I expected and even managed to feel oddly heartwarming.
One minor frustration was the repeated sense that many conflicts could have been resolved if the characters simply talked to each other, which felt a bit heavy-handed at times. Still, the creativity, ambition, and sheer originality of the book outweighed that annoyance for me. I was genuinely impressed by the depth of thought put into the business, market, and corporate elements of the story.
I listened to the audiobook, which had both a male and female narrator. While both did a solid job, the dual narration didn’t feel particularly necessary given how rarely the perspective shifted in a way that required it. It worked fine, but a single narrator would have been sufficient.
Overall, this was a weird, compelling, hard-to-categorize book that I really enjoyed. It won’t be for everyone, but if you like books that are unapologetically strange and push into uncomfortable territory without relying on cheap shock value, it’s absolutely worth picking up.
The idea of people living with corpses is what kicks everything off, but that’s not really what the book is about. That concept is more of a catalyst than a focus, and I loved that choice. Rather than sensationalizing the shock factor, the story becomes a piece of social commentary about how society organizes itself, how extreme belief groups form, and how capitalism absorbs and monetizes even the most morally questionable ideas. The parallels to modern “corpses are people too”–style movements felt uncomfortably plausible, which made the book more unsettling than outright scary.
This wasn’t a rom-com at all, despite some of the marketing language. It wasn’t really a comedy, and it wasn’t particularly thrilling or frightening either. It felt more like “horror with the lights on,” eerie, strange, and compelling without trying to shock you at every turn. Everyone in the book is a little weird, and that added to the charm rather than detracting from it.
Structurally, the book surprised me more than once. Around the halfway point, I genuinely thought the story had reached its conclusion and was shocked to realize I wasn’t even close to done. While I’m not entirely sure what the intended takeaway was, I didn’t mind that ambiguity. Sometimes books this strange don’t need a clear moral…they just need to make you think, and this one absolutely did. The ending wrapped up more neatly than I expected and even managed to feel oddly heartwarming.
One minor frustration was the repeated sense that many conflicts could have been resolved if the characters simply talked to each other, which felt a bit heavy-handed at times. Still, the creativity, ambition, and sheer originality of the book outweighed that annoyance for me. I was genuinely impressed by the depth of thought put into the business, market, and corporate elements of the story.
I listened to the audiobook, which had both a male and female narrator. While both did a solid job, the dual narration didn’t feel particularly necessary given how rarely the perspective shifted in a way that required it. It worked fine, but a single narrator would have been sufficient.
Overall, this was a weird, compelling, hard-to-categorize book that I really enjoyed. It won’t be for everyone, but if you like books that are unapologetically strange and push into uncomfortable territory without relying on cheap shock value, it’s absolutely worth picking up.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
3.5/5 ⭐Please check your trigger warnings. Your mental health matters. 🖤
Disclaimer: I read this book as an eARC from NetGalley. All opinions are my own. This is my honest and voluntary review.
Oh boy howdy where do I even start? Reading the synopsis that is presented for this book I went in thinking this story is going to be ridiculous and gross because, well, dating app for corpses. That’s weird and uncomfortable because it’s relatable. A lot of people have experienced dating apps. I met my fiancé on a dating app. The juxtaposition is going to be awkward due to similarities the author is going to make between the two.
And then I read the book and the entire time Sarah G. Pierce laughed at my naivety of thinking this is going to be a silly little story that is a commentary on dating apps. No, no. It is so very much more than that.
This book presses the gas pedal and just doesn't let up on its social commentary about the world we live in today, relations to social media, press coverage and political stances. This novel is incredibly satirical and dark throughout. It presents this seemingly outlandish idea and holds a mirror up to the world we live in and very quickly shows you how easy this idea could be a reality. And it is terrifying.
This feels like the novel equivalent to the movie Idiocracy , but with the added pressure of social media and advocacy groups for the rights of human cadavers, corpses, or The Dead.
This book gives you whiplash with how vehemently the MMC disagrees with what is going on while others in the novel argue about a corpse's ability to consent while blurring the edges of the definition of necrophilia. Focus groups are formed and the conclusion to them is that people would rather pursue necrophilia than risk an unpleasant or non consensual encounter with the living. (Possibly commentary on people being chronically online or seeing the world through their phone or a social media lens, but that’s just my two cents that no one asked for, just like this review.)
For me personally, this novel stumbles a bit due to the length of it; I don’t feel like it needs to be over 400 pages. I feel like the same points, accusations and comparisons could have been made in a more reasonable page count. After a while it did feel like a bit of a slog to get through. I do understand the length helps to emphasize the empire rising and falling and the characters in the book having time to watch the world around them burn, literally and metaphorically. Personally, I feel like it took away from the experience a bit and will be a barrier to the idea of me ever re-reading this book.
Disclaimer: I read this book as an eARC from NetGalley. All opinions are my own. This is my honest and voluntary review.
Oh boy howdy where do I even start? Reading the synopsis that is presented for this book I went in thinking this story is going to be ridiculous and gross because, well, dating app for corpses. That’s weird and uncomfortable because it’s relatable. A lot of people have experienced dating apps. I met my fiancé on a dating app. The juxtaposition is going to be awkward due to similarities the author is going to make between the two.
And then I read the book and the entire time Sarah G. Pierce laughed at my naivety of thinking this is going to be a silly little story that is a commentary on dating apps. No, no. It is so very much more than that.
This book presses the gas pedal and just doesn't let up on its social commentary about the world we live in today, relations to social media, press coverage and political stances. This novel is incredibly satirical and dark throughout. It presents this seemingly outlandish idea and holds a mirror up to the world we live in and very quickly shows you how easy this idea could be a reality. And it is terrifying.
This feels like the novel equivalent to the movie Idiocracy , but with the added pressure of social media and advocacy groups for the rights of human cadavers, corpses, or The Dead.
This book gives you whiplash with how vehemently the MMC disagrees with what is going on while others in the novel argue about a corpse's ability to consent while blurring the edges of the definition of necrophilia. Focus groups are formed and the conclusion to them is that people would rather pursue necrophilia than risk an unpleasant or non consensual encounter with the living. (Possibly commentary on people being chronically online or seeing the world through their phone or a social media lens, but that’s just my two cents that no one asked for, just like this review.)
For me personally, this novel stumbles a bit due to the length of it; I don’t feel like it needs to be over 400 pages. I feel like the same points, accusations and comparisons could have been made in a more reasonable page count. After a while it did feel like a bit of a slog to get through. I do understand the length helps to emphasize the empire rising and falling and the characters in the book having time to watch the world around them burn, literally and metaphorically. Personally, I feel like it took away from the experience a bit and will be a barrier to the idea of me ever re-reading this book.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Modern dating is Dead in this bizarre little rom-com horror novel. People are struggling to connect with other living humans so when a new app, Liv, is introduced, it takes the world by storm. Instead of being matched with living breathing human beings, the app matches living people to the dead! Tom is a pro when it comes to financing businesses and the company he works for is wanting to fund Liv, which Tom is completely against. From there, a whirlwind of events happens and he meets the one woman who knows the secrets to the founder of Liv. What could go wrong?
This was such a unique and strange book to read. It’s so over the top. It’s completely absurd yet it works? I kinda loved it?? Tom is a bit of an awkward guy, I can totally relate, and it was so comical when he’d question all these parts of having dead bodies be a new trend. His questions were so completely valid and in response people say the most word vomit BS ever! It genuinely made me feel like I was reading an actual online forum or interacting with actual people who are so far removed from reality. It really helped get me into the novel. The scary part is I can totally see people acting like this in real life over something insane like being okay with corpses and necrophilia.
Another part I found enjoyable was the uncertainty that is constantly swirling in the thoughts of Tom and Mara. Overthinking every little thing, immediately getting embarrassed thinking the other person doesn’t like them or whatever. It felt super realistic to what makes connecting with other people so difficult. Miscommunication is a trope for a reason! Although I did want to throttle them at times and just yell at them to talk to each other haha.
I did struggle to understand some of the financial and market stuff constantly mentioned throughout the book. It definitely went over my head a little bit but I think I overall got the gist so I don’t think it ruined the story for me, just something to be aware of going in!
Overall, a 4/5. This was a silly and unique book that’s horrifying, funny, and even a little romantic at times. I would recommend to whoever likes strange books and can stomach reading about cadavers.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review!
This was such a unique and strange book to read. It’s so over the top. It’s completely absurd yet it works? I kinda loved it?? Tom is a bit of an awkward guy, I can totally relate, and it was so comical when he’d question all these parts of having dead bodies be a new trend. His questions were so completely valid and in response people say the most word vomit BS ever! It genuinely made me feel like I was reading an actual online forum or interacting with actual people who are so far removed from reality. It really helped get me into the novel. The scary part is I can totally see people acting like this in real life over something insane like being okay with corpses and necrophilia.
Another part I found enjoyable was the uncertainty that is constantly swirling in the thoughts of Tom and Mara. Overthinking every little thing, immediately getting embarrassed thinking the other person doesn’t like them or whatever. It felt super realistic to what makes connecting with other people so difficult. Miscommunication is a trope for a reason! Although I did want to throttle them at times and just yell at them to talk to each other haha.
I did struggle to understand some of the financial and market stuff constantly mentioned throughout the book. It definitely went over my head a little bit but I think I overall got the gist so I don’t think it ruined the story for me, just something to be aware of going in!
Overall, a 4/5. This was a silly and unique book that’s horrifying, funny, and even a little romantic at times. I would recommend to whoever likes strange books and can stomach reading about cadavers.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review!
January 18, 2026
For Human Use follows Tom, a corporate employee whose company is investing in an app pitched as Tinder, but with the dead. While everyone else is blinded by the potential profit, Tom is the only one willing to ask the uncomfortable questions: ethics, consent, and isn’t this… weird? Meanwhile, the founder, Auden, starts making increasingly outrageous claims regarding the profitability of his company.
The story unfolds through three main points of view: Tom, Auden, and Auden’s stepsister/girlfriend (?!?!) Mara. What stood out to me the most was the writing. Despite knowing very little about business, I found the story very digestible and engaging. Based on the premise, I expected this would be more of a fun, wacky horror. Instead, this was very much a character-driven, literary novel. It was kind of reminiscent of 500 Days of Summer or even Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, just with dead people instead of video games.
I absolutely loved the satirical elements of this book, which were mostly focused on the younger generation buying into Liv (the company), exploring how this new societal ideation impacts language, politics, and culture. Watching a new social norm form so quickly was really intriguing and made the world feel uncomfortably realistic.
That said, the pacing wasn’t perfect. A large portion of the book focuses on the relationship between Tom and Mara (the drama), two awkward people so deeply obsessed with each other. At first it was really sweet, but then became a repetitive loop of miscommunication after miscommunication. I love a romance, but due to the back and forth I found it a lot less interesting than the larger ethical and societal impact of Liv. Even with these flaws, I really enjoyed this book. The writing felt very intentional and thoughtful, the premise was super fun and creative, and these characters will definitely stick with me! Thank you Orbit Books for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
The story unfolds through three main points of view: Tom, Auden, and Auden’s stepsister/girlfriend (?!?!) Mara. What stood out to me the most was the writing. Despite knowing very little about business, I found the story very digestible and engaging. Based on the premise, I expected this would be more of a fun, wacky horror. Instead, this was very much a character-driven, literary novel. It was kind of reminiscent of 500 Days of Summer or even Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, just with dead people instead of video games.
I absolutely loved the satirical elements of this book, which were mostly focused on the younger generation buying into Liv (the company), exploring how this new societal ideation impacts language, politics, and culture. Watching a new social norm form so quickly was really intriguing and made the world feel uncomfortably realistic.
That said, the pacing wasn’t perfect. A large portion of the book focuses on the relationship between Tom and Mara (the drama), two awkward people so deeply obsessed with each other. At first it was really sweet, but then became a repetitive loop of miscommunication after miscommunication. I love a romance, but due to the back and forth I found it a lot less interesting than the larger ethical and societal impact of Liv. Even with these flaws, I really enjoyed this book. The writing felt very intentional and thoughtful, the premise was super fun and creative, and these characters will definitely stick with me! Thank you Orbit Books for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
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