Karma Is a Beast

Namaste and Slay #2

by Jennifer Brody

In this suspenseful sequel, from the NYT–bestselling author that blends Ready or Not with You, he hunted her for leaving―now she’s hunting him right back.

Morgan Steele came to the snowy Berkshires with her two best friends for a stay at the Namaste Center, a luxury wellness retreat for elite women, to get away from her cheating ex, Noah Barron. But one week later, her friends are dead, and she’s on the run from a gang of patriarchal killers called Sanctum Victus. Because the Namaste Center was no wellness retreat . . .

No, it was a trap set to punish Morgan for breaking up with Noah. Noah who’s been stalking her since the day she left. Noah whose family trained him to kill but who’d never managed to follow through before. Noah who can’t decide if he wants his target dead or just completely under his thumb.

Now, Morgan is stranded in the freezing woods, haunted by the father she left behind long ago and hunted by men who believe her independence is a crime. But she’s fighting for more than her own she’s pregnant with Noah’s baby. And with her friends already gone, she’s next in line to be eliminated.

Morgan’s far from a helpless victim though. In fact, before she was Morgan, she was swamp-raised survivor Tammy Lou. She’s been hunted before. She’s killed before. And this time, she’s going to make Sanctum Victus pay.

Tropes betrayal, isolation, secret society, hidden identity, and stalker romance.

240 pages, Paperback

Published May 19, 2026

About the author

Jennifer Brody is a New York Times bestselling author, Scribe Award winner, and Stoker Award finalist who also writes as Vera Strange. Her books include Stranger Things: Starcourt Mall Escape (Netflix/Penguin Random House), the Disney Chills series, the Continuum trilogy, the Sacrifice of Blood and Stars series, and Namaste and Slay. She is a co-author of All Is Found: A Frozen Anthology and Star Wars: Stories of Jedi and Sith. A fan of all things dark, weird, and wonderful, she lives and writes in Austin, Texas.

Reviews

[The Book Ssirren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved! This was intense, wild, and everything in between those twists and turns. Just the fact that Noah is this bad…but hey, Tammy Lou isn’t no fool. This girl knows what she’s doing. The hunter is now the hunter. This was just so wild. I loved the darkness in this. I was so obsessed. This was a thrilling ride to say the least.

[SatyJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Algorithm in My Brain Started Playing Circus Music 🤡

ARC Review: Thank you to the author/publisher for the advance copy. All opinions are my own, including the unhinged ones.

Karma Is a Beast felt like being dragged through the snow by obsession itself while someone whispered, “this is love” right into my ear. ❄️🔪 Despite all the warning signs flashing in bright red neon, I couldn’t get enough of it!

The book’s atmosphere is its biggest weapon. The snowy wilderness feels hostile, isolating, and alive in every dangerous way. Add in the luxury-retreat setting hiding layers of psychological chaos beneath, and you get a constant buzz of unease that never fully lets up. I was suspicious of everyone almost immediately—and honestly, the story rewarded that paranoia. 😭

Morgan carried this story for me. She’s exhausted, traumatized, angry, and fighting to survive without losing herself. Her internal struggle adds real emotional weight. And Noah? 🚩 Not just a “book boyfriend” type. More like “someone check his search history immediately” unwell. His obsession is deeply unsettling because affection and control are dangerously tangled. Their chemistry is intense, toxic, and impossible to ignore. Every conversation feels one step away from a confession, a threat, or even attempted murder. Sometimes all three. 💀

The psychological tension totally delivers. Nobody feels trustworthy, vulnerability is a weapon, and even the quiet moments carry an undercurrent of danger. I kept waiting for a breather, and the story kept saying, “Nope.” The pacing moves fast, especially as the danger escalates, which made the survival-thriller elements hit even harder.

My only small critique? The emotional chaos sometimes piles up so quickly that a little breathing room would’ve helped. But honestly, this story isn’t aiming for calm, polished suspense. It’s aiming for panic, obsession, survival, and emotional destruction. And it absolutely succeeds. 🔥

This is dark romance at its most raw. Obsession, manipulation, control, violence, trauma, revenge, and morally gray relationships aren’t just background—they’re the entire foundation. If you want healthy, safe romance, forget it—this book has disappeared into the woods laughing. 😭

What impressed me most is how fully the story commits to its darkness. It never softens or tries to be more marketable. The paranoia is relentless. The chemistry is emotionally unsafe. The tension is phenomenal. There was one scene that had me staring at a wall afterward—my nervous system needed a moment.

I saw the red flags. I acknowledged them. And then I climbed right into the burning building anyway because the tension in this book is pure adrenaline. 🚩🤡

This story is feral, sharp-edged, and emotionally volatile. It’s all about making you uncomfortable, anxious, and questioning where obsession ends and love begins. Mission accomplished. ❄️🔥

The romance in this book is so emotionally unsafe it should come with a restraining order attached to the trigger warnings. 🚩

⭐️Star Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🫠Emotional Damage Level: 🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠 I Need Therapy
🔥Chaos Level: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 Unhinged Masterpiece
🔪Tension Level: 🔴 Heart Racing
🌶️ Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Explicit/Erotic-Level
⚠️Toxicity:  ❌ Problematic… And Yet
🌀Twist Impact: 🌀🌀🌀 That’s Rude
😱 Fear Factor: 🟠 Disturbing
‼️ Content Intensity: 🟣 Check Yourself First

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

[Kamryn Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well it’s a good thing I didn’t get too attached to most of the characters!

I just wish I could have liked the FMC more. The idea of her recreating herself and striving for a better life was fine, but the added internal dialogue that shows her manipulations and how disingenuous she was made me not like her or root for her. I liked her better when she was more Tammy Lou using her swamp instincts to survive than her carefully curated seductions and social climbing as Morgan Steele.

Noah was insufferable and arrogant. The double standard of his cheating being a simple mistake/something she should live with while her just flirting with the bartender sent him off the deep end - infuriating.

And the ending felt rushed. For how much happens in just a couple days at the retreat, plus the “before” sequence, the zip forward threw me off.

Interesting this is branded as a dark romance. Perhaps we need some commas and a switch in sequence. There had been romance, then it got dark.

All that said - I read both books in the duet, so it pulled me in and I was invested enough to see how it would all wrap up.

[Charlene (pageandplace) · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story kicks off fast and strong right where we left off in book 1, Namaste and Slay. The Namaste Center was no wellness retreat- it was a trap. Now get ready to find out the truth and to fight your way out!

Can we just say I was hooked and devoured this on one sitting because I needed to know what happened to Morgan!!! As soon as I saw this as option on BookSprout, I jumped and immediately requested. I thoroughly enjoyed book 1 and have been waiting for book 2 to find out the conclusion. Did not disappoint- well it did bc it’s over. Can we gray this out a bit more??? Upcoming retreat dates?!?! There’s always more trash to take out 😉

Don’t just jump in book 2, yes there is enough backstory to get you through but it’s not the full gory, wild ride that you need to experience in full force! While I did not get this on audio, I am sure the Podium experience will be very much worth the listen!

Thank you to the author, Jennifer Brody, Podium Publishing and BookSprout, for the opportunity to read this book. I received a gifted copy and am leaving my review voluntarily.

[Carmen M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to @PodiumAudio for this ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Karma is a Beast by Jennifer Brody hooked me from the very first chapter. Imagine thinking you're heading to a luxury wellness retreat in the Berkshires with your friends to recover from a bad breakup, only for it to be a literal trap. A trap set by your psycho, stalker ex and his creepy patriarchal cult. It goes from 0 to 100 so fast. Morgan is on the run in the freezing woods, pregnant, and her friends are dead, but plot twist, Morgan isn't actually a helpless victim. She’s secretly Tammy Lou, a swamp raised survivor who has killed before. Hearing her flip the switch from running to hunting her hunters was so satisfying. The narrator did a fantastic job building the tension. It balances tropes like hidden identity, secret societies, and a super dark stalker romance perfectly. If you want a fast paced, crazy thriller with an FMC who absolutely refuses to back down, this is the audiobook for you.

4 Stars!

#KarmaisaBeast #JenniferBrody #DarkRomance #StalkerRomance #PodiumAudio

[Jennifer Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you loved the first book, buckle up because Karma Is a Beast somehow manages to raise the stakes even higher. This series is absolutely wild in the best way possible. Every time I thought I knew where the story was going, it took another sharp turn. The suspense never lets up, and the pacing kept me turning pages way too late into the night.

Morgan continues to be such a compelling character. Watching her fight back instead of giving up made this such a satisfying read. Jennifer Brody does an incredible job balancing intense thriller moments with emotional depth, and the villains are genuinely unsettling.

Without giving anything away, the ending was exactly what I was hoping for. It was incredibly satisfying and wrapped up the story in a way that felt earned. If you enjoy dark romantic thrillers that are fast-paced, suspenseful, completely unhinged, and impossible to put down, this series is a must-read. I can't recommend it enough.

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Namaste and Slay: Morgan & Noah(ish)

Noah is hunting her, all her friends are dead, and she’s ready to watch their world burn.
I didn’t read the first book, yet I don’t really feel like I missed too much, because this gave quite a bit of history as it moved along.
The dual timeline showed the choices made, and the ones that could have completely altered their course. It’s just a pity that Noah took the easy way.

This is dark…. So, so dark… and delicious.
It’s a pulse-pounding read, and I suggest checking your blood pressure, because oh my lord, was the anxiety high.

Twists and turns galore, and that ending…. WOW!

Thanks, Jennifer, for the advance copy.

[SJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been waiting for the continuation/conclusion of this insane/wild ride, and it did not disappoint one bit. We picked up where we left off in book one, and I was hooked from beginning to end. There was never a dull moment, and it was so easy and fun to devour. The plot twist and tension were absolutely phenomenal.

[R.S · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first one, this one not at all, really made no sense on the bases it was going ahead.
Dissapointed

[iris muller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing book!!!! 🖤🥰🖤🥰🖤🥰🥰I loved how it continued !!!! Just amazing!!!

[Nicole M · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. Was not expecting the ending at all. Also what a weird and wild ride this duology has taken.

[Marissa Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as good as the first book