What do you think?
Rate this book
The Set Up
Carl Edward Jackson, a Black gay man, grew up in the South where it was morally unacceptable to be gay. He attended church with his divorced mother several times per week when he was a teenager, but often felt ostracized, as the pastor of the church regularly rejected homosexuality, and insisted that gay people would be sent to hell for eternity. This belief made it hard for Carl to "come out" and to love himself. He had no one to talk to about his sexuality and often felt lonely and depressed. So, consider Carl and his inspired story, The Set Up? In his early twenties, Carl relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, where his life was affected by his sexuality, HIV/AIDS, racial discrimination, sexual assault, incarceration and mental illness. After having a vision in which he was imbued to write a book, and through life altering circumstances, Carl manages to tell a riveting story that is certain to magnetize and inspirit the reader, as you live each moment with him. "Everyone has a testimony and I must tell the story," Carl expresses with conviction... "Are you ready for The Judgment?"
188 pages, Hardcover
Published June 6, 2025
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
January 9, 2026
Monsterland Below takes the ferocious momentum of the original Monsterland and detonates it into something bigger, darker, and far more unhinged. Michael Okon doesn’t simply raise the stakes he expands the battlefield, pushing the story underground and westward into a nightmarish collision of science, myth, and unchecked ambition.
What works so well here is the sense of scale. This is no longer survival horror confined to a single location; it’s a monster infested road trip where every mile reveals something more grotesque and dangerous than the last. From the buried giants of Death Valley to the sadistic chaos overtaking Los Angeles, the novel never lets up. Each threat feels distinct, imaginative, and genuinely unsettling.
Wyatt Baldwin remains a compelling anchor in the madness, carrying the weight of survival while facing the horrifying realization that Monsterland was only the beginning. Okon’s pacing is relentless, balancing action, dread, and escalating mystery with a cinematic confidence that makes the book feel primed for adaptation.
Monsterland Below is brutal, inventive, and unapologetically fun a sequel that understands exactly what readers want and then gives them more monsters, more mythology, and far more terror. Horror fans looking for momentum, scale, and imagination will tear through this.
What works so well here is the sense of scale. This is no longer survival horror confined to a single location; it’s a monster infested road trip where every mile reveals something more grotesque and dangerous than the last. From the buried giants of Death Valley to the sadistic chaos overtaking Los Angeles, the novel never lets up. Each threat feels distinct, imaginative, and genuinely unsettling.
Wyatt Baldwin remains a compelling anchor in the madness, carrying the weight of survival while facing the horrifying realization that Monsterland was only the beginning. Okon’s pacing is relentless, balancing action, dread, and escalating mystery with a cinematic confidence that makes the book feel primed for adaptation.
Monsterland Below is brutal, inventive, and unapologetically fun a sequel that understands exactly what readers want and then gives them more monsters, more mythology, and far more terror. Horror fans looking for momentum, scale, and imagination will tear through this.
Displaying 1 of 1 review