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The Cove
Not yet published
Expected 5 May 26Midsommar meets Fear Street in this modern, sea-soaked folk horror debut about fighting to survive and fighting to be yourself.
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg has just been kicked out of yet another prep school and exiled to her uncle’s farm in the cold, isolated town of Marbury, Maine. But Uncle Levi is gone, leaving the farmhouse under the strict rule of his new zealously evangelical wife, who runs a reform camp for troubled teens. Up at dawn. Manual labor all day. No phones. No computers. No way out.
When Lindsay meets the twins, Phin and Cass, who live on a nearby island, everything changes. One reckless night, she convinces the others to sneak out for a party. The night is unforgettable—at least, the parts they can remember. The next morning, they wake in their own beds, clutching seashell tokens, hearts pounding, with no memory of how they got home. Except one camper never made it back.
As disappearances mount and dark secrets rise, Lindsay and her friends must unravel the mystery of the island—before The Cove claims them all.
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg has just been kicked out of yet another prep school and exiled to her uncle’s farm in the cold, isolated town of Marbury, Maine. But Uncle Levi is gone, leaving the farmhouse under the strict rule of his new zealously evangelical wife, who runs a reform camp for troubled teens. Up at dawn. Manual labor all day. No phones. No computers. No way out.
When Lindsay meets the twins, Phin and Cass, who live on a nearby island, everything changes. One reckless night, she convinces the others to sneak out for a party. The night is unforgettable—at least, the parts they can remember. The next morning, they wake in their own beds, clutching seashell tokens, hearts pounding, with no memory of how they got home. Except one camper never made it back.
As disappearances mount and dark secrets rise, Lindsay and her friends must unravel the mystery of the island—before The Cove claims them all.
336 pages, Paperback
Expected publication May 5, 2026
About the author
Claire Rose
1 book78 followersClaire Rose was born and raised in New Jersey but moved to the UK to study children's literature and fell in love with horror instead. She is a queer Jewish writer who works primarily in the intersection of fantasy, horror, and literary fiction, and can usually be found in the nearest bookstore or coffee shop. She also writes adult fiction as Claire Schultz. A PhD student by day, she lives in Edinburgh with her haunted cats.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 161 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
Wow! This definitely had some serious Stephen King vibes as well as some early 2000s style tean horror! I loved every minute of it.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Claire Rose delivers a killer YA debut, blending Nancy Drew with gothic/folk horror. The Cove will lure you in for a deadly good time.
February 1, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley for inviting me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This started off really well, I thought for sure I was really going to enjoy it. Once she left the boarding school though, it really went downhill.
It took way too long to get into the story. I know it needs some build up, but I was pretty bored in the beginning and it never found its footing as it went on.
The plot was just too all over the place. It was focusing on her being a bad student, then it was sending her to the reform camp, but then it’s switched over to the cult aspect of the Cove and it threw in romance throughout. There was also a mystical aspect to it that may or may not have actually been magic. Which I am never a fan of that when it comes to books. It just wasn’t cohesive.
I liked Lindsay as a main character. She was sassy and had a lot of funny lines and thoughts! I thought it was interesting that the fourth wall was broken throughout the story. Sometimes it fit really well, and other times it was very jarring and kind of sounded dumb. When Lindsay referenced us as readers it was a fun little twist, but sometimes it was like the author was shoving something down our throats by saying word for word what she was implying, and that was weird to me.
I like Dalton and Lindsay’s banter. They were cute together, but I wasn’t super invested in their relationship. I just knew the author wanted us to want them together, and it was kind of like, why not?
I liked that there was a found family aspect, but I also feel like we didn’t get to know the characters enough and see their relationship build to really actually care about them. It was a more so told they were a found family than actual found family. But I didn’t dislike any of the group so that is a plus at least.
There was a lot I didn’t like about this book. It touched on things that I don’t play around with, like tarot cards. But it also had a lot of animals being murdered which I do NOT want to read about. I know this was a horror/cult book, so it supposed to be a little disturbing, but I still am not okay with it by any means. It was in graphic detail too.
It threw me off that the twins were barely in it, especially for how quickly Lindsay trusted them. I know she doesn’t trust Irene so of course she would want to believe other people who are against her, but the twins were also complete strangers so why would you just take their word at face value. I wish we got more of who they are as characters, so we would maybe want to root for them. There was never a moment of us maybe thinking the cult was better for Lindsay than Irene. All of them were pretty bad. I can see where the novel pulls from “Midsommer” but it didn’t work in this book.
Her parents were horrible and neglectful, but at the end they were just better people at the flip of a switch with no real consequence which threw me off too. Everything just wrapped up so neatly and it was all super rushed.
It sounded very cool in theory, but was just did not work for me.
This started off really well, I thought for sure I was really going to enjoy it. Once she left the boarding school though, it really went downhill.
It took way too long to get into the story. I know it needs some build up, but I was pretty bored in the beginning and it never found its footing as it went on.
The plot was just too all over the place. It was focusing on her being a bad student, then it was sending her to the reform camp, but then it’s switched over to the cult aspect of the Cove and it threw in romance throughout. There was also a mystical aspect to it that may or may not have actually been magic. Which I am never a fan of that when it comes to books. It just wasn’t cohesive.
I liked Lindsay as a main character. She was sassy and had a lot of funny lines and thoughts! I thought it was interesting that the fourth wall was broken throughout the story. Sometimes it fit really well, and other times it was very jarring and kind of sounded dumb. When Lindsay referenced us as readers it was a fun little twist, but sometimes it was like the author was shoving something down our throats by saying word for word what she was implying, and that was weird to me.
I like Dalton and Lindsay’s banter. They were cute together, but I wasn’t super invested in their relationship. I just knew the author wanted us to want them together, and it was kind of like, why not?
I liked that there was a found family aspect, but I also feel like we didn’t get to know the characters enough and see their relationship build to really actually care about them. It was a more so told they were a found family than actual found family. But I didn’t dislike any of the group so that is a plus at least.
There was a lot I didn’t like about this book. It touched on things that I don’t play around with, like tarot cards. But it also had a lot of animals being murdered which I do NOT want to read about. I know this was a horror/cult book, so it supposed to be a little disturbing, but I still am not okay with it by any means. It was in graphic detail too.
It threw me off that the twins were barely in it, especially for how quickly Lindsay trusted them. I know she doesn’t trust Irene so of course she would want to believe other people who are against her, but the twins were also complete strangers so why would you just take their word at face value. I wish we got more of who they are as characters, so we would maybe want to root for them. There was never a moment of us maybe thinking the cult was better for Lindsay than Irene. All of them were pretty bad. I can see where the novel pulls from “Midsommer” but it didn’t work in this book.
Her parents were horrible and neglectful, but at the end they were just better people at the flip of a switch with no real consequence which threw me off too. Everything just wrapped up so neatly and it was all super rushed.
It sounded very cool in theory, but was just did not work for me.
March 30, 2026
Okay… this started out as a this might be a top read of the year situation—and while it didn’t fully stick the landing, I still had a really good time with it.
I ended up doing this as an immersion read because I held off starting it until I was in the mood for some lighter horror. By the time I picked it up, the audio was available—and honestly, this was such a great way to experience the story.
The immersion format really let me sink into the prose, while Jesse Vilinsky kept the vibes consistent the entire time. She’s a consummate professional and absolutely shines in YA—her voice feels age-appropriate, and her range across characters is seamless.
I loved the banter between the characters, especially paired with the FMC’s inner monologue. It leans a bit more toward “tell” than “show,” but somehow it balances the two in a way that still feels engaging and easy to digest.
This is definitely a slow burn with a lot of setup, but I didn’t mind that at all. I actually appreciated the FMC’s Jewish roots—it added meaningful depth to her character and brought in an educational layer that enriched the story.
Now, I did find parts of this predictable, but again, I didn’t really mind because I was enjoying the ride. That said, the first half had me convinced this was heading straight for a 5⭐️ read… and then it kind of hit a wall. Things became a bit more convoluted and scattered, and the pacing lost some of its momentum.
That’s another place where the immersion read really helped as it kept me grounded in the story and allowed me to stay engaged, especially as those creepy, almost Stephen King-like vibes carried through.
In the end, it didn’t quite live up to the potential I saw early on, but it was still an engaging, entertaining read, and I’d absolutely pick up another book from this author.
NetGalley Statement:
I am thankful to have received a complimentary eARC and ALC from Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio via NetGalley, which gave me the opportunity to share my voluntary thoughts.
I ended up doing this as an immersion read because I held off starting it until I was in the mood for some lighter horror. By the time I picked it up, the audio was available—and honestly, this was such a great way to experience the story.
The immersion format really let me sink into the prose, while Jesse Vilinsky kept the vibes consistent the entire time. She’s a consummate professional and absolutely shines in YA—her voice feels age-appropriate, and her range across characters is seamless.
I loved the banter between the characters, especially paired with the FMC’s inner monologue. It leans a bit more toward “tell” than “show,” but somehow it balances the two in a way that still feels engaging and easy to digest.
This is definitely a slow burn with a lot of setup, but I didn’t mind that at all. I actually appreciated the FMC’s Jewish roots—it added meaningful depth to her character and brought in an educational layer that enriched the story.
Now, I did find parts of this predictable, but again, I didn’t really mind because I was enjoying the ride. That said, the first half had me convinced this was heading straight for a 5⭐️ read… and then it kind of hit a wall. Things became a bit more convoluted and scattered, and the pacing lost some of its momentum.
That’s another place where the immersion read really helped as it kept me grounded in the story and allowed me to stay engaged, especially as those creepy, almost Stephen King-like vibes carried through.
In the end, it didn’t quite live up to the potential I saw early on, but it was still an engaging, entertaining read, and I’d absolutely pick up another book from this author.
NetGalley Statement:
I am thankful to have received a complimentary eARC and ALC from Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio via NetGalley, which gave me the opportunity to share my voluntary thoughts.
February 15, 2026
solid 3 ⭐️s! I loved the costal horror vibe of this book but some things threw me off. First starting with the negative take on christianity, this rubbed me the wrong way when I first read some of the one liners. Second thing was the ritualistic aspect. I know it’s a cult/horror book but I totally didn’t expect it going into to this. It made me uncomfortable and almost scared to keep reading. But if that is your vibe of book go for it. Luckily it doesn’t dwell in too much detail so I appreciate that. Another thing is the storyline. I had trouble following along the origin and backstory because it was a all over the place, first she’s a bad kid kicked out of boarding school, then there’s a cult island and mysterious blonde twins, then ritualistic sacrifices of random animals (which by the way we never learned what that was about), and a quirky save the world ending.
Other than the negative aspects of this book i’d like to mention the positives. I looooved the found family and and writing of characters. Even with this book being in first person you could still get a feel of how each character was. I loved the spooky Stephen King vibes of this book. The creepy forest fog coastal theme definitely caught my attention. Lindsay’s inner monologues kept me going she’s hilarious.
I think this book is perfect if you liked Midsommer and creepy cult vibes. Personally not my cup of tea but I did enjoy the thrilling adventure and survival horror story.
Other than the negative aspects of this book i’d like to mention the positives. I looooved the found family and and writing of characters. Even with this book being in first person you could still get a feel of how each character was. I loved the spooky Stephen King vibes of this book. The creepy forest fog coastal theme definitely caught my attention. Lindsay’s inner monologues kept me going she’s hilarious.
I think this book is perfect if you liked Midsommer and creepy cult vibes. Personally not my cup of tea but I did enjoy the thrilling adventure and survival horror story.
March 5, 2026
i really loved this book! as soon as i read the premise for the book, i knew i had to read this and it did not disappoint!
i specifically have to call out the pacing of this book because it was so perfect. i swear every single time i got even the tiniest bit bored or was pulling away, something new happened that hooked me right back in, in a way that i haven’t experienced in a book in years.
my one complaint (slight spoilers ahead) was i wish we got to see a bit more of cass and lindsay! as soon as dalton was introduced, i had a feeling it would probably end with him and lindsay getting together so i was really surprised when lindsay and cass had their moment and i do wish we got to explore that more. i also do just wish we got more of cass because she really did just seem to want friends and more than what she had in the cove.
thank you netgalley for the arc!
i specifically have to call out the pacing of this book because it was so perfect. i swear every single time i got even the tiniest bit bored or was pulling away, something new happened that hooked me right back in, in a way that i haven’t experienced in a book in years.
my one complaint (slight spoilers ahead) was i wish we got to see a bit more of cass and lindsay! as soon as dalton was introduced, i had a feeling it would probably end with him and lindsay getting together so i was really surprised when lindsay and cass had their moment and i do wish we got to explore that more. i also do just wish we got more of cass because she really did just seem to want friends and more than what she had in the cove.
thank you netgalley for the arc!
March 25, 2026
The Cove seemed like a very promising and intriguing YA thriller that I was excited to read.
Lindsay is a wealthy Jewish socialite who has been emotionally neglected by her politician mother and businessman father and has taken to acting out by getting herself kicked out of every boarding school on the east coast. She’s sent to her estranged uncle’s reform camp in rural Maine and meets a band of misfits she sort of surface level befriends. When rumors of a cult and murdered animals start showing up on the farm, Lindsay and crew are sucked into a mystery and they don’t know who they can trust.
The plot moved super slowly. I think it was about halfway through the book before anything actually happened. And I know it takes time to build up the suspense but it was painfully slow. The twins were just weird and wooden and didn’t feel like they had any sort of depth or point other than to appear and trigger an event. There were things that were tossed in that seemed very haphazard and poorly (if ever) explained, like the photo in Mateo’s flannel or the fact they managed to drag a body up from the beach and bury it with none the wiser. Then we get to the end and suddenly there’s a magical element and it was just too much. Towards the end, the story also shifted and from Lindsay in the present tense to talking about things currently happening in the past tense, which was a little odd.
The story had some great parts—the banter between Lindsay and Dalton, Lindsay’s self reflection, the friendships that came out in the end, but suffered from pacing, plot, and point of view issues, I feel like lovers of YA paranormal thrillers will enjoy this, but it was definitely not for me.
Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC of this book.
Lindsay is a wealthy Jewish socialite who has been emotionally neglected by her politician mother and businessman father and has taken to acting out by getting herself kicked out of every boarding school on the east coast. She’s sent to her estranged uncle’s reform camp in rural Maine and meets a band of misfits she sort of surface level befriends. When rumors of a cult and murdered animals start showing up on the farm, Lindsay and crew are sucked into a mystery and they don’t know who they can trust.
The plot moved super slowly. I think it was about halfway through the book before anything actually happened. And I know it takes time to build up the suspense but it was painfully slow. The twins were just weird and wooden and didn’t feel like they had any sort of depth or point other than to appear and trigger an event. There were things that were tossed in that seemed very haphazard and poorly (if ever) explained, like the photo in Mateo’s flannel or the fact they managed to drag a body up from the beach and bury it with none the wiser. Then we get to the end and suddenly there’s a magical element and it was just too much. Towards the end, the story also shifted and from Lindsay in the present tense to talking about things currently happening in the past tense, which was a little odd.
The story had some great parts—the banter between Lindsay and Dalton, Lindsay’s self reflection, the friendships that came out in the end, but suffered from pacing, plot, and point of view issues, I feel like lovers of YA paranormal thrillers will enjoy this, but it was definitely not for me.
Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC of this book.
March 25, 2026
Thank you to Netgalley, Claire Rose, Wednesday Books and MacMillan Audio for the ARC/ALC!
Lindsay has just been kicked out of another prep school and her well-to-do parents have finally had enough. They send her to live with her uncle in Maine, in hopes that farm lifestyle will help Lindsay straighten out her ways. But when she arrives, her uncle is nowhere to be found - only Irene, his evangelical wife who runs a work camp for troubled teens.
This story was fun to listen to on audio! It was a YA thriller so some parts of it were hard for me (an old lady) to relate to, but it was still very entertaining. The cult aspect was intriguing, as I was trying to figure out just who was “the bad guy” here. My favorite part was the eerie atmosphere - the woods, the cove, the isolation - it all played a big part in the creep factor in this story. Though it required a bit of suspension of belief, if you enjoy YA thrillers with a cult vibe this one may be for you.
“The Cove” releases May 5, 2026! This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)
Lindsay has just been kicked out of another prep school and her well-to-do parents have finally had enough. They send her to live with her uncle in Maine, in hopes that farm lifestyle will help Lindsay straighten out her ways. But when she arrives, her uncle is nowhere to be found - only Irene, his evangelical wife who runs a work camp for troubled teens.
This story was fun to listen to on audio! It was a YA thriller so some parts of it were hard for me (an old lady) to relate to, but it was still very entertaining. The cult aspect was intriguing, as I was trying to figure out just who was “the bad guy” here. My favorite part was the eerie atmosphere - the woods, the cove, the isolation - it all played a big part in the creep factor in this story. Though it required a bit of suspension of belief, if you enjoy YA thrillers with a cult vibe this one may be for you.
“The Cove” releases May 5, 2026! This review will be shared to my instagram blog (@books_by_the_bottle) shortly :)
December 12, 2025
Beware the siren call of the sea….
Teenage angst has nothing on Lindsey, daughter of an aspiring senator who has committed her last act of rebellion to get herself kicked out of her private school and sent to Haven House, a tiny home on the coast that promises to rehabilitate children to be perfect members of society and to her suprise it’s ran by her aunt and uncle. With the latter away on business, Aunt Irene welcomes Lindsey to join the other group of kids to work hard and avoid leaving the farm but when a beach party invite crosses their paths they sneak out and find themselves in the middle of something far bigger, and much older than anything they could have prepared for and if they’re not careful they may find themselves washed away with the tides.
I’m a big fan of the creepy small town legend like monsters and this book feeds into that pretty well. We have this beautiful landscape that is just begging to be explored but you soon realize the adventure is actually a hunt. There were a few moments where I got lost with everyone around and not sure who was friend or foe and I might have to go back to double check a few but overall it kept interest and maintained this unsettling atmosphere that kept you on edge to see what was happening and who, if anyone would survive.
The characters were fine, again I got lost in some parts keeping track of people who seemed to flip in and out of the plot when necessary. Lindsey is a strong character who is clearly hurting and trying to get any attention so her struggles and strive to be the one to be chosen for once seems to bite her later but she forms real connections with the group that really grounds her in a way she needed. I wish we got more of everyone else because some of the romance aspects felt a little out of left field because they didn’t have a lot of time to feel organic but that could also be because I was so focused on figuring out the plot, the other build up didn’t stick in my head.
Not a bad book but I’m not sure how long it will stick around in my mind but I hope other readers get caught in its net!
**special thanks to the publishers and netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**
Teenage angst has nothing on Lindsey, daughter of an aspiring senator who has committed her last act of rebellion to get herself kicked out of her private school and sent to Haven House, a tiny home on the coast that promises to rehabilitate children to be perfect members of society and to her suprise it’s ran by her aunt and uncle. With the latter away on business, Aunt Irene welcomes Lindsey to join the other group of kids to work hard and avoid leaving the farm but when a beach party invite crosses their paths they sneak out and find themselves in the middle of something far bigger, and much older than anything they could have prepared for and if they’re not careful they may find themselves washed away with the tides.
I’m a big fan of the creepy small town legend like monsters and this book feeds into that pretty well. We have this beautiful landscape that is just begging to be explored but you soon realize the adventure is actually a hunt. There were a few moments where I got lost with everyone around and not sure who was friend or foe and I might have to go back to double check a few but overall it kept interest and maintained this unsettling atmosphere that kept you on edge to see what was happening and who, if anyone would survive.
The characters were fine, again I got lost in some parts keeping track of people who seemed to flip in and out of the plot when necessary. Lindsey is a strong character who is clearly hurting and trying to get any attention so her struggles and strive to be the one to be chosen for once seems to bite her later but she forms real connections with the group that really grounds her in a way she needed. I wish we got more of everyone else because some of the romance aspects felt a little out of left field because they didn’t have a lot of time to feel organic but that could also be because I was so focused on figuring out the plot, the other build up didn’t stick in my head.
Not a bad book but I’m not sure how long it will stick around in my mind but I hope other readers get caught in its net!
**special thanks to the publishers and netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**
January 24, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
I really enjoyed this book! I was hooked about 15% in. It had a lot of great twists, and I loved the group of “troubled” teens the story centers around. There were a few moments where it felt like a bit of information overload, especially when it came to details about the island. Overall, I really enjoyed it and thought the ending was set up well for a sequel.
I really enjoyed this book! I was hooked about 15% in. It had a lot of great twists, and I loved the group of “troubled” teens the story centers around. There were a few moments where it felt like a bit of information overload, especially when it came to details about the island. Overall, I really enjoyed it and thought the ending was set up well for a sequel.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 10, 2026
Slow at first but then picked up. I’m glad I was able to get an advanced copy. Enjoyed this book and the characters.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
DNFd at 15%. The overly descriptive inner monologue was painful to read. Especially, given the pacing was so slow! I was almost twenty percent into the book and nothing had happened besides page after page of the FMC's whining. I tried to give it a chance, but I couldn't force myself to keep reading. Unfortunately this one wasn't for me.
Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.
Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Lindsay has been kicked out of her third private school in a row when her parents decide to send her to her uncle’s home for the summer. When she arrives, however, it’s not a family trip; her uncle is nowhere to be found, and his wife is running a troubled teen industry farm slash conversion therapy camp out of the farm. Hope seems to arrive in the form of a strange new religious movement that invites them to an island party, but the party has dangerous consequences and the teens must find a way to make sure they make it through.
If you’re looking for a thriller or horror with a troubled/unlikable, sarcastic female protagonist, this one is for you. Although Lindsay was kind of a brat at the beginning, you absolutely can understand where she’s coming from and she’s still amusing to read the inner monologue of. There are some fourth-wall breaking moments where she directly addresses the audience, which add to the horror elements of the book. Lindsay is also Jewish, so the commentary she has about her uncle’s wife being Christian in a very pushy way is amusing. If you can’t stand the word shiksa (a word for a non-Jewish woman who dates a Jewish man) and find it offensive or otherwise can’t stand Jewish characters who don’t like pushy Christians, don’t read this one because that is how Lindsay behaves. It’s reasonable, though, and I challenge you to name a Jewish teenager who wouldn’t be pissed if she got sent off to a Christian troubled teen industry farm.
I did find the depiction of the home to be a little unrealistic, though. One of the characters was theoretically sent there because his (FTM) parents didn’t approve of him being transgender, but Lindsay immediately clocks him as a boy. Either Lindsay assumes short hair = boy (kind of misogynistic, honestly) or his theoretically transphobic parents allowed him to do enough transition that he would look like a male at first sight, even if he had been sent somewhere for being transgender and was presumably being forcibly detransitioned by the bigoted woman in charge. The logic just kind of falls through there, since Irene, who runs everything with an iron fist and refuses to feed the teens enough food if one of them does an infraction, apparently isn’t punishing the trans guy character for being visibly masculine. He’s also somehow in a relationship with one of the girls living there, which Irene calls sinful but hasn’t done anything to stop? It doesn’t make sense and I struggled to believe that she was actually as dangerous of a queerphobic villain as the narrative wanted to present her as, because she really wasn’t doing anything other than rude comments even though she apparently was willing to be physically abusive for other “infractions”. She didn’t even use she/her pronouns for the FTM character, or anything like that. That, and the fact that every female character who was attracted to other female characters ended up either dead, evil or in a relationship with a guy by the end of the novel. It’s 2026, can we dispense with being Hays Code compliant?
I did find the spooky/paranormal elements of the book cool, and I liked the ending. It was reminiscent of the endings of some of the Goosebumps books I loved as a child, like Let’s Get Invisible. I think that The Cove could easily have a sequel based on the ending, but it’s also a good ending for a horror book on its own. If you like YA horror/thrillers that focus on cults, you’ll find plenty to enjoy about The Cove.
The Cove releases May 5 from Wednesday Books. Thank you to Netgalley, Claire Rose and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
If you’re looking for a thriller or horror with a troubled/unlikable, sarcastic female protagonist, this one is for you. Although Lindsay was kind of a brat at the beginning, you absolutely can understand where she’s coming from and she’s still amusing to read the inner monologue of. There are some fourth-wall breaking moments where she directly addresses the audience, which add to the horror elements of the book. Lindsay is also Jewish, so the commentary she has about her uncle’s wife being Christian in a very pushy way is amusing. If you can’t stand the word shiksa (a word for a non-Jewish woman who dates a Jewish man) and find it offensive or otherwise can’t stand Jewish characters who don’t like pushy Christians, don’t read this one because that is how Lindsay behaves. It’s reasonable, though, and I challenge you to name a Jewish teenager who wouldn’t be pissed if she got sent off to a Christian troubled teen industry farm.
I did find the depiction of the home to be a little unrealistic, though. One of the characters was theoretically sent there because his (FTM) parents didn’t approve of him being transgender, but Lindsay immediately clocks him as a boy. Either Lindsay assumes short hair = boy (kind of misogynistic, honestly) or his theoretically transphobic parents allowed him to do enough transition that he would look like a male at first sight, even if he had been sent somewhere for being transgender and was presumably being forcibly detransitioned by the bigoted woman in charge. The logic just kind of falls through there, since Irene, who runs everything with an iron fist and refuses to feed the teens enough food if one of them does an infraction, apparently isn’t punishing the trans guy character for being visibly masculine. He’s also somehow in a relationship with one of the girls living there, which Irene calls sinful but hasn’t done anything to stop? It doesn’t make sense and I struggled to believe that she was actually as dangerous of a queerphobic villain as the narrative wanted to present her as, because she really wasn’t doing anything other than rude comments even though she apparently was willing to be physically abusive for other “infractions”. She didn’t even use she/her pronouns for the FTM character, or anything like that. That, and the fact that every female character who was attracted to other female characters ended up either dead, evil or in a relationship with a guy by the end of the novel. It’s 2026, can we dispense with being Hays Code compliant?
I did find the spooky/paranormal elements of the book cool, and I liked the ending. It was reminiscent of the endings of some of the Goosebumps books I loved as a child, like Let’s Get Invisible. I think that The Cove could easily have a sequel based on the ending, but it’s also a good ending for a horror book on its own. If you like YA horror/thrillers that focus on cults, you’ll find plenty to enjoy about The Cove.
The Cove releases May 5 from Wednesday Books. Thank you to Netgalley, Claire Rose and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Any folk-horror friends? This one's for you! The Cove is a book that absolutely understood the assignment when it came to vibes, characters, and seaside dread!
The Setup (aka: Welcome To Your Worst Summer Ever)
We first meet Lindsay Weinberg, a seventeen-year-old who has been yeeted out of yet another prep school and shipped off to the isolated town of Marbury, Maine. Instead of the chill uncle she remembered from her childhood and some healing farm air, she lands in a nightmare scenario: a hyper-religious reform camp run by her uncle's zealously evangelical wife. Think: no phones, no freedom, dawn wakeups, 9 PM strict bedtime, and manual labor - because nothing says "troubled teen rehabilitation" like exhaustion and control.
Things shift when Lindsay meets Phin and Cass, twins who live on a nearby island and represent freedom, rebellion, and a crack in the rigid structure Lindsay's been trapped in. One impulsive night out leads to a party they can't fully remember - just seashell tokens in their hands and the terrifying realization that one Haven House resident never made it home.
Where the Story Really Shines: The Characters
While Cass & Phin help open the door to the island and its secrets, the emotional core of this story truly belongs to Dalton, Mateo and Tash - fellow Haven House residents whose lives are far more entangled with the farm's control and consequences. Dalton is gorgeous, caring, observant and constantly clocking the dangers long before anyone else does. Mateo wears his heart on his sleeve. He's empathetic and often acts as the emotional compass of the group. Lastly, Tash, who's sharp, skeptical, and openly resistant to the ways on the farm. Together, this group carries much of the story's weight & represents different ways of surviving a system designed to break them.
The Vibes & The Horror
The Midsommar meets Fear Street comparison is spot-on. The setting is cold, isolating, and steeped in folk horror, with an ever-present sense that the town knows more than it's letting on. The horror isn't just supernatural - it's institutional, rooted in control, silence, and tradition.
Also, small but important note: I wanted to punch Lindsay's wildly non-present parents straight in the face for most of this book. Repeatedly. Right up until the very end. (IYKYK.)
The Ending
The ending ties things up in a way that felt satisfying and earned, while still leaving the door cracked open just enough for more - should Claire Rose choose to return to this world. And honestly? I'd be there immediately.
Final Thoughts
The Cove is atmospheric, unsettling, and character-driven in the best way. While the plot itself didn't completely blow me away, the characters absolutely did, and that's what pushed this to a rounded up four stars for me. If you like strange horror, mythical creatures, found family, and stories where the real monsters aren't always supernatural-this one's worth the read.
*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Wednesday Books, for sharing this eARC with me in exchange for my honest opinion. This review is based off of an uncorrected proof which did not sway my opinion either way. This book comes out May 5th, 2026 just in time for those vacay reads so make sure to pre-order when you can!
The Setup (aka: Welcome To Your Worst Summer Ever)
We first meet Lindsay Weinberg, a seventeen-year-old who has been yeeted out of yet another prep school and shipped off to the isolated town of Marbury, Maine. Instead of the chill uncle she remembered from her childhood and some healing farm air, she lands in a nightmare scenario: a hyper-religious reform camp run by her uncle's zealously evangelical wife. Think: no phones, no freedom, dawn wakeups, 9 PM strict bedtime, and manual labor - because nothing says "troubled teen rehabilitation" like exhaustion and control.
Things shift when Lindsay meets Phin and Cass, twins who live on a nearby island and represent freedom, rebellion, and a crack in the rigid structure Lindsay's been trapped in. One impulsive night out leads to a party they can't fully remember - just seashell tokens in their hands and the terrifying realization that one Haven House resident never made it home.
Where the Story Really Shines: The Characters
While Cass & Phin help open the door to the island and its secrets, the emotional core of this story truly belongs to Dalton, Mateo and Tash - fellow Haven House residents whose lives are far more entangled with the farm's control and consequences. Dalton is gorgeous, caring, observant and constantly clocking the dangers long before anyone else does. Mateo wears his heart on his sleeve. He's empathetic and often acts as the emotional compass of the group. Lastly, Tash, who's sharp, skeptical, and openly resistant to the ways on the farm. Together, this group carries much of the story's weight & represents different ways of surviving a system designed to break them.
The Vibes & The Horror
The Midsommar meets Fear Street comparison is spot-on. The setting is cold, isolating, and steeped in folk horror, with an ever-present sense that the town knows more than it's letting on. The horror isn't just supernatural - it's institutional, rooted in control, silence, and tradition.
Also, small but important note: I wanted to punch Lindsay's wildly non-present parents straight in the face for most of this book. Repeatedly. Right up until the very end. (IYKYK.)
The Ending
The ending ties things up in a way that felt satisfying and earned, while still leaving the door cracked open just enough for more - should Claire Rose choose to return to this world. And honestly? I'd be there immediately.
Final Thoughts
The Cove is atmospheric, unsettling, and character-driven in the best way. While the plot itself didn't completely blow me away, the characters absolutely did, and that's what pushed this to a rounded up four stars for me. If you like strange horror, mythical creatures, found family, and stories where the real monsters aren't always supernatural-this one's worth the read.
*Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Wednesday Books, for sharing this eARC with me in exchange for my honest opinion. This review is based off of an uncorrected proof which did not sway my opinion either way. This book comes out May 5th, 2026 just in time for those vacay reads so make sure to pre-order when you can!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Claire Rose’s “The Cove” is a sea-soaked YA folk horror that traps its characters and readers in an atmosphere of isolation, paranoia, and creeping dread. Equal parts cult mystery and coming-of-age survival story, this debut lures you in with a gorgeous coastal setting before revealing just how hungry the town really is.
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg initially feels like a familiar archetype: the rich, emotionally neglected senator’s daughter who acts out at school just to be noticed. Her rebellion gets her shipped off to Haven House, an isolated “behavior rehabilitation” farm in coastal Maine, run by a step-aunt she’s never met. From the start, the rules are suffocating such as no phones, no contact with the outside world, and constant labor; the mood right from the very beginning is unmistakably off. Strange rituals, dead animals, and a sense of being watched establish an unease that never fully lets up.
When Lindsay and the other teens sneak out to attend a party at The Cove, everything shifts. They wake the next morning with no memory of how they got home; there are only seashell tokens and a growing sense of terror. One camper never returns, and soon teens begin dying one by one. What follows is a twisting mystery where no one is fully trustworthy: the aunt, the cult-like islanders, the townspeople, or possibly everyone working together in service of something far older and darker. Lies pile on lies, red herrings abound, and the truth feels deliberately just out of reach.
The horror leans visceral at times, with moments of gore that underline the brutality of what’s happening. While the main plot takes its time to ignite as some major events arrive later than expected, yet the tension steadily builds, fueled by confusion, fear, and the unsettling sense that the land itself is hunting the teens. An eldritch, god-worshipping cult lurks beneath the surface, giving the story a mythic, folkloric edge that pairs beautifully with the stormy coastal setting.
Lindsay herself grows significantly over the course of the novel. What begins as attention-seeking rebellion softens into something more vulnerable as she forms a found family among the other teens. Their bonds, often laced with dark humor, ground the story emotionally, even when the plot becomes dense with secrets. There’s a touch of romance and a mild love triangle, but it never fully overtakes the horror, even if some connections feel rushed due to the story’s relentless focus on survival.
The ending wraps up more neatly than expected, yet leaves just enough unresolved to deliver a final chill, which suggests that the horror of The Cove may not be finished after all.
Overall, “The Cove” is a modern folk horror that thrives on mistrust, isolation, and the desperate need to belong. Perfect for those who love eerie small towns, cult mysteries, and stories where the sea always takes its due.
Claire Rose’s “The Cove” is a sea-soaked YA folk horror that traps its characters and readers in an atmosphere of isolation, paranoia, and creeping dread. Equal parts cult mystery and coming-of-age survival story, this debut lures you in with a gorgeous coastal setting before revealing just how hungry the town really is.
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg initially feels like a familiar archetype: the rich, emotionally neglected senator’s daughter who acts out at school just to be noticed. Her rebellion gets her shipped off to Haven House, an isolated “behavior rehabilitation” farm in coastal Maine, run by a step-aunt she’s never met. From the start, the rules are suffocating such as no phones, no contact with the outside world, and constant labor; the mood right from the very beginning is unmistakably off. Strange rituals, dead animals, and a sense of being watched establish an unease that never fully lets up.
When Lindsay and the other teens sneak out to attend a party at The Cove, everything shifts. They wake the next morning with no memory of how they got home; there are only seashell tokens and a growing sense of terror. One camper never returns, and soon teens begin dying one by one. What follows is a twisting mystery where no one is fully trustworthy: the aunt, the cult-like islanders, the townspeople, or possibly everyone working together in service of something far older and darker. Lies pile on lies, red herrings abound, and the truth feels deliberately just out of reach.
The horror leans visceral at times, with moments of gore that underline the brutality of what’s happening. While the main plot takes its time to ignite as some major events arrive later than expected, yet the tension steadily builds, fueled by confusion, fear, and the unsettling sense that the land itself is hunting the teens. An eldritch, god-worshipping cult lurks beneath the surface, giving the story a mythic, folkloric edge that pairs beautifully with the stormy coastal setting.
Lindsay herself grows significantly over the course of the novel. What begins as attention-seeking rebellion softens into something more vulnerable as she forms a found family among the other teens. Their bonds, often laced with dark humor, ground the story emotionally, even when the plot becomes dense with secrets. There’s a touch of romance and a mild love triangle, but it never fully overtakes the horror, even if some connections feel rushed due to the story’s relentless focus on survival.
The ending wraps up more neatly than expected, yet leaves just enough unresolved to deliver a final chill, which suggests that the horror of The Cove may not be finished after all.
Overall, “The Cove” is a modern folk horror that thrives on mistrust, isolation, and the desperate need to belong. Perfect for those who love eerie small towns, cult mysteries, and stories where the sea always takes its due.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
The Cove by Claire Rose has protagonist Lindsay Weinberg being kicked out of yet another boarding school. She craves love, affection, and attention from her workaholic, wealthy parents, but after this latest mess-up, she’s shipped to stay with her Uncle Levi in a remote part of Maine. Levi is away on business, however, so his new wife Irene takes the lead. Lindsay finds she’s not the only kid on this farm at the edge of a cliff overlooking the ocean; Mateo, Dalton, Gwen, and Tash have also been sent there for varying reasons to work. But her aunt is acting weird, and after a death, the kids realise they are all in grave danger.
This is classic YA fare. Take a bunch of kids who have been thrown into a work program because they’re queer (that is the reason for almost all of them being there), let them band together, and set them up to face a threat that may or may not be supernatural in origin. That alone will appeal to a lot of people. My thoughts?
Positives:
+ The environment with the isolated woods, the sheer cliff, the island reachable with the tide out, and the rising, thick fog made for a very suitable Spooky Atmosphere.
+The book is really good on ending a chapter on a cliffhanger so that you just HAVE to keep reading and soon you find that you’ve ploughed through the whole thing. The climax, too, was really well done.
Mixed-bag:
~I’m not entirely sure why Lindsay immediately trusts Phin and Cass or at least isn’t terrified at the sight of them; if people were going missing and being killed, I would be frightened and completely against aligning with anyone. I’m also not sure why she’s shocked when told Irene isn’t who she says she is; she thought that from the jump, that something strange was going on and Irene was acting weird.
Negative:
-One negative is the constant, flippantly sarcastic tone permeating the story. Lindsay is always making jokes, whether voicing them aloud or merely thinking them, and I know she stressed it was how she coped, but you would think at a certain point she would turn serious.
-I think that the Dalton and Lindsay thing was a bit thin. Part of it was really down to Lindsay; she was so against letting people in, which is understandable given no one hangs around for long with her, but it made it hard to believe something could develop with them. She was always pushing him away, shrugging out from his arm or hand, putting distance between them, that I felt it was more tell than show in that I was TOLD that they’d developed something rather than felt it organically.
My final thoughts: if you want a standard trip into YA horror, this will fit the bill nicely. It will also appeal to people looking for a modern-setting and queer characters. I would give it 3.5 stars.
I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is classic YA fare. Take a bunch of kids who have been thrown into a work program because they’re queer (that is the reason for almost all of them being there), let them band together, and set them up to face a threat that may or may not be supernatural in origin. That alone will appeal to a lot of people. My thoughts?
Positives:
+ The environment with the isolated woods, the sheer cliff, the island reachable with the tide out, and the rising, thick fog made for a very suitable Spooky Atmosphere.
+The book is really good on ending a chapter on a cliffhanger so that you just HAVE to keep reading and soon you find that you’ve ploughed through the whole thing. The climax, too, was really well done.
Mixed-bag:
~I’m not entirely sure why Lindsay immediately trusts Phin and Cass or at least isn’t terrified at the sight of them; if people were going missing and being killed, I would be frightened and completely against aligning with anyone. I’m also not sure why she’s shocked when told Irene isn’t who she says she is; she thought that from the jump, that something strange was going on and Irene was acting weird.
Negative:
-One negative is the constant, flippantly sarcastic tone permeating the story. Lindsay is always making jokes, whether voicing them aloud or merely thinking them, and I know she stressed it was how she coped, but you would think at a certain point she would turn serious.
-I think that the Dalton and Lindsay thing was a bit thin. Part of it was really down to Lindsay; she was so against letting people in, which is understandable given no one hangs around for long with her, but it made it hard to believe something could develop with them. She was always pushing him away, shrugging out from his arm or hand, putting distance between them, that I felt it was more tell than show in that I was TOLD that they’d developed something rather than felt it organically.
My final thoughts: if you want a standard trip into YA horror, this will fit the bill nicely. It will also appeal to people looking for a modern-setting and queer characters. I would give it 3.5 stars.
I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: May 5, 2026
“The Cove” by Claire Rose is a haunting YA novel about cults, curses, and troubled teens, set on an isolated cove in Northern Maine.
After being kicked out of her third private school, Lindsay Weinberg is sent to live with her uncle, Levi, and his new wife on their farm in Maine. However, when she gets there, she discovers that her relatives have turned their home into a centre for troubled teens. With her uncle away on business, and her aunt relatively unknown to her, Lindsay only has the four other teenagers for company but Lindsay has learned throughout the years that it isn’t worth getting close to anyone, and she surely doesn’t trust them. But they are the only ones that can help her when she starts to uncover very strange events happening on the farm, the surrounding town and even the tiny community on an isolated cove and soon the teenagers have uncovered a secret that puts their lives at risk- and not all of them will survive.
Rose’s debut novel is an engaging page-turner which hooked me from the first page. Lindsay is the protagonist, the wealthy daughter of a politician who acts out for attention, but she is surprisingly likable. When she arrives at her uncle’s farm and strange things start to happen, there are so many possibilities that it’s hard to speculate who (or what) is behind the events, which makes for an addictive guessing game right up to the final pages. Like Lindsay herself, readers will not know who to trust.
“The Cove” has a supernatural component and a cult element, which pretty much checks all the boxes to pique my interest. The setting is creepy, the isolated farm in a small town of only two hundred people, not to mention the dilapidated farmhouse itself and the strange cult community on the shore. Rose’s novel is unique and creative, and it definitely made an imprint as a debut novel.
I would love to read more from Rose in the future, especially if Rose brings Lindsay back in some other way, as I felt a connection to her and was invested in her outcome. “The Cove” is a fast-paced, enticing YA read that will appeal to horror readers of all ages.
Expected publication date: May 5, 2026
“The Cove” by Claire Rose is a haunting YA novel about cults, curses, and troubled teens, set on an isolated cove in Northern Maine.
After being kicked out of her third private school, Lindsay Weinberg is sent to live with her uncle, Levi, and his new wife on their farm in Maine. However, when she gets there, she discovers that her relatives have turned their home into a centre for troubled teens. With her uncle away on business, and her aunt relatively unknown to her, Lindsay only has the four other teenagers for company but Lindsay has learned throughout the years that it isn’t worth getting close to anyone, and she surely doesn’t trust them. But they are the only ones that can help her when she starts to uncover very strange events happening on the farm, the surrounding town and even the tiny community on an isolated cove and soon the teenagers have uncovered a secret that puts their lives at risk- and not all of them will survive.
Rose’s debut novel is an engaging page-turner which hooked me from the first page. Lindsay is the protagonist, the wealthy daughter of a politician who acts out for attention, but she is surprisingly likable. When she arrives at her uncle’s farm and strange things start to happen, there are so many possibilities that it’s hard to speculate who (or what) is behind the events, which makes for an addictive guessing game right up to the final pages. Like Lindsay herself, readers will not know who to trust.
“The Cove” has a supernatural component and a cult element, which pretty much checks all the boxes to pique my interest. The setting is creepy, the isolated farm in a small town of only two hundred people, not to mention the dilapidated farmhouse itself and the strange cult community on the shore. Rose’s novel is unique and creative, and it definitely made an imprint as a debut novel.
I would love to read more from Rose in the future, especially if Rose brings Lindsay back in some other way, as I felt a connection to her and was invested in her outcome. “The Cove” is a fast-paced, enticing YA read that will appeal to horror readers of all ages.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg has just been expelled from the latest of a series of expensive boarding schools. Instead of taking her home to her parents' brownstone in Brooklyn, however, a driver drops her off at what she is told is her uncle's farm in a remote part of Maine. The house is old and decrepit; her uncle is said to be away on a business trip, and the strange woman she is instructed to call "Aunt Irene" is a Christian zealot running a work farm for teens whose parents have given up on them. There is no cell phone service, no Internet connection, no way for Lindsay to contact anyone she knows, and no way to escape.
After a few weeks of grueling labor, Lindsay finds evidence of a mysterious cult on a nearby island. Hoping that someone on the island will help her get home, she convinces her housemates to join her at one of the cult's festivals. The next morning, she wakes up hung over in her own bed with no real memory of what happened on the island and how she got back to the farm.
The Cove sounds like the kind of book I would enjoy very much but after a while, reading it became a chore. It is a grab bag of teen angst, religious extremism, graphic violence (WAY too many mutilated human and animal corpses for my taste!) and hints of supernatural horror that never really come together in a coherent way.
The worst problem with this book is the narrator. Lindsay is a whiner whose sole motivation in life seems to be acting out in the hope that her neglectful parents will finally pay some attention to her. Near the end of the story, she describes herself as a bisexual Jewish musician, but there is little evidence of either bisexuality (she spends most of the book mooning over a boy; there is a single mention of her having kissed another girl at a party, but the actual kiss is never shown or explained in any detail) or musicianship. (Like most teenagers, Lindsay spends lots of time listening to songs on her phone, but she never sings or shows any interest in playing an instrument.) An unpleasant main character needs to be, at least, interesting, but this one is not.
Pacing is also an issue as the final chapters seem to throw out a lot of stuff that doesn't really fit the rest of the book. Everything is crammed together to explain what has been happening and the ending seems stuck on to wind thing up. Lindsay's parents make no sense at all. The final scene appears to be suggesting a sequel that I will not be reading.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to access a free advance reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
After a few weeks of grueling labor, Lindsay finds evidence of a mysterious cult on a nearby island. Hoping that someone on the island will help her get home, she convinces her housemates to join her at one of the cult's festivals. The next morning, she wakes up hung over in her own bed with no real memory of what happened on the island and how she got back to the farm.
The Cove sounds like the kind of book I would enjoy very much but after a while, reading it became a chore. It is a grab bag of teen angst, religious extremism, graphic violence (WAY too many mutilated human and animal corpses for my taste!) and hints of supernatural horror that never really come together in a coherent way.
The worst problem with this book is the narrator. Lindsay is a whiner whose sole motivation in life seems to be acting out in the hope that her neglectful parents will finally pay some attention to her. Near the end of the story, she describes herself as a bisexual Jewish musician, but there is little evidence of either bisexuality (she spends most of the book mooning over a boy; there is a single mention of her having kissed another girl at a party, but the actual kiss is never shown or explained in any detail) or musicianship. (Like most teenagers, Lindsay spends lots of time listening to songs on her phone, but she never sings or shows any interest in playing an instrument.) An unpleasant main character needs to be, at least, interesting, but this one is not.
Pacing is also an issue as the final chapters seem to throw out a lot of stuff that doesn't really fit the rest of the book. Everything is crammed together to explain what has been happening and the ending seems stuck on to wind thing up. Lindsay's parents make no sense at all. The final scene appears to be suggesting a sequel that I will not be reading.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the opportunity to access a free advance reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
4.5 stars - rounded up
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC of The Cove by Claire Rose, narrated by Jesse Vilinsky.
I absolutely loved this book, but there are some things that readers may want to be aware of prior to deciding to pick up this book. It is considered young adult but uses the 4-letter F word, A LOT. There is also the mention of underage drinking in excess which plays a major part in the story and derogatory terms used towards those that are “overly enthusiastic” about Jesus Christ and the Bible. It is meant in jest, but I could understand how some people would want to refrain from this.
After being kicked out of boarding school after boarding school, Lindsay Weinberg’s parents didn’t even bother to pick her up from school, instead they had a driver take her to her Uncle Levi’s farm to spend some time in hopes that should could get her act together. This farm is miles from civilization, in the coastal town of Marbury, Maine. Once she arrives she finds out that her uncle isn’t even there, in his place is her new “Aunt” Irene. Lindsay has never met her before and this first meeting isn’t exactly going as planned.
Lindsay soon realizes that she is not alone at the farm and finds a several kids (her age) living and working on the farm as part of the Haven House Reform School. When two weirdly dressed and acting twins show up and invite her to a party, she figures she has nothing to lose. Oh, she would be so very wrong.
The audiobook was incredible. The narrator’s timing and speech pattern led to me laughing out loud at some parts. The could really get a sense of the absurdity Lindsay felt toward certain actions and behaviors as well as her frustration and other emotions throughout the book. This is not an easy feat and goes on to reiterate the narrator’s skillset.
This book was so good that I didn’t want to stop listening. I just kept trying to figure out what was going on, who was good versus who wasn’t. I loved how the pacing and suspense kept me addicted to the story. I finished the audiobook in 2 days, probably would have been one if it weren’t for adult responsibilities. Highly recommend the book and audiobook!
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC of The Cove by Claire Rose, narrated by Jesse Vilinsky.
I absolutely loved this book, but there are some things that readers may want to be aware of prior to deciding to pick up this book. It is considered young adult but uses the 4-letter F word, A LOT. There is also the mention of underage drinking in excess which plays a major part in the story and derogatory terms used towards those that are “overly enthusiastic” about Jesus Christ and the Bible. It is meant in jest, but I could understand how some people would want to refrain from this.
After being kicked out of boarding school after boarding school, Lindsay Weinberg’s parents didn’t even bother to pick her up from school, instead they had a driver take her to her Uncle Levi’s farm to spend some time in hopes that should could get her act together. This farm is miles from civilization, in the coastal town of Marbury, Maine. Once she arrives she finds out that her uncle isn’t even there, in his place is her new “Aunt” Irene. Lindsay has never met her before and this first meeting isn’t exactly going as planned.
Lindsay soon realizes that she is not alone at the farm and finds a several kids (her age) living and working on the farm as part of the Haven House Reform School. When two weirdly dressed and acting twins show up and invite her to a party, she figures she has nothing to lose. Oh, she would be so very wrong.
The audiobook was incredible. The narrator’s timing and speech pattern led to me laughing out loud at some parts. The could really get a sense of the absurdity Lindsay felt toward certain actions and behaviors as well as her frustration and other emotions throughout the book. This is not an easy feat and goes on to reiterate the narrator’s skillset.
This book was so good that I didn’t want to stop listening. I just kept trying to figure out what was going on, who was good versus who wasn’t. I loved how the pacing and suspense kept me addicted to the story. I finished the audiobook in 2 days, probably would have been one if it weren’t for adult responsibilities. Highly recommend the book and audiobook!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This is a 5, I can't change the stars because it is an early addition.
Thank you to NetGalley, and Macmillian Audio for providing an early audiobook edition of “The Cove” by Claire Rose, narrated by Jesse Vilinsky, in exchange for an honest review. Jesse did a good job narrating the story.
The Cove is the story of Lindsay, who is a rich kid wanting attention from her very busy, very vacant parents. As such, Lindsay acts out and has been kicked out of her 3rd boarding school. When her driver picks her up from the boarding school, rather than returning to NYC, he drives north to her Uncle Levi’s home, who lives on the family's ancestral land.
When she arrives, she is greeted by her Aunt Irene, Levi’s wife, but no Levi. In addition, there are four other teenagers in the house. It turns out Uncle Levi runs a home for wayward children to get rehabilitated, by disconnecting the teenagers from electronics and working them all day on the farm. But something isn’t right, and Lindsay is desperate to get away.
When Irene brings Lindsay to town to get groceries, Lindsay meets Phin and Cas, who are twins that live in the cove just past her uncle’s farm. They invite her to a party at the Cove. The teenagers leave the farm and go to the party. They have a fabulous time, but they wake up the next morning in their beds, with wicked hangovers, and a trinket from the party, but one of them is missing. And from there the mystery begins.
The characters are well developed. There is not a lot of the characters explaining what they are feeling; the author did a good job of letting the situation and the reader interpret what the characters are thinking. The story progressed slowly at the beginning, while she was developing the characters, but ramped up about ½ through the book, and was an unputdownable story. At the beginning, I was thinking it was a great book to recommend to my students, as many of them could use some farm time reformation. The book then takes some rollercoaster twists and turns into a good story. So I will still recommend to my students, but not just for the farm reformation, but also for being a good psychological thriller.
Thank you to NetGalley, and Macmillian Audio for providing an early audiobook edition of “The Cove” by Claire Rose, narrated by Jesse Vilinsky, in exchange for an honest review. Jesse did a good job narrating the story.
The Cove is the story of Lindsay, who is a rich kid wanting attention from her very busy, very vacant parents. As such, Lindsay acts out and has been kicked out of her 3rd boarding school. When her driver picks her up from the boarding school, rather than returning to NYC, he drives north to her Uncle Levi’s home, who lives on the family's ancestral land.
When she arrives, she is greeted by her Aunt Irene, Levi’s wife, but no Levi. In addition, there are four other teenagers in the house. It turns out Uncle Levi runs a home for wayward children to get rehabilitated, by disconnecting the teenagers from electronics and working them all day on the farm. But something isn’t right, and Lindsay is desperate to get away.
When Irene brings Lindsay to town to get groceries, Lindsay meets Phin and Cas, who are twins that live in the cove just past her uncle’s farm. They invite her to a party at the Cove. The teenagers leave the farm and go to the party. They have a fabulous time, but they wake up the next morning in their beds, with wicked hangovers, and a trinket from the party, but one of them is missing. And from there the mystery begins.
The characters are well developed. There is not a lot of the characters explaining what they are feeling; the author did a good job of letting the situation and the reader interpret what the characters are thinking. The story progressed slowly at the beginning, while she was developing the characters, but ramped up about ½ through the book, and was an unputdownable story. At the beginning, I was thinking it was a great book to recommend to my students, as many of them could use some farm time reformation. The book then takes some rollercoaster twists and turns into a good story. So I will still recommend to my students, but not just for the farm reformation, but also for being a good psychological thriller.
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
I received this book as a promotional copy for free. All opinions are my own and have not been influenced.
Let me start by saying I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this book. The premise follows a young woman who is sent to her uncle’s house in Maine after being kicked out of yet another school—her third. When she arrives, she quickly realizes things are not what she expected. Her uncle is nowhere to be found, but his wife—whom she has never met—is there, along with several other kids. The house itself feels unsettling, filled with Bible quotes covering the walls, hinting at something deeper going on.
At first, I was concerned the story might lean too heavily into a specific message and feel preachy. However, I was genuinely surprised—and relieved—that it didn’t. The inclusion of LGBTQ+ characters felt natural to the story rather than forced, and their experiences were woven in a way that added depth without overtaking the narrative. Readers who identify with those experiences may find the characters especially relatable, while others can still appreciate the story as a whole. The author did a great job keeping the focus on storytelling rather than delivering a message.
The story itself is imaginative and creative, with a strong supernatural mystery element. The main character isn’t always easy to like, but as the story unfolds, you begin to understand her better and develop empathy for her situation. Her strained relationship with her parents and the instability in her life add meaningful layers to her character. There’s clear growth throughout the book, which makes her journey feel worthwhile.
The ending had me on the edge of my seat. While I was able to guess a few elements, there were still twists that caught me off guard and kept things exciting.
Overall, I would recommend this book to fans of young adult fiction, especially those who enjoy supernatural and mystery elements. It’s an engaging, character-driven story with enough surprises to keep you hooked.
Let me start by saying I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked this book. The premise follows a young woman who is sent to her uncle’s house in Maine after being kicked out of yet another school—her third. When she arrives, she quickly realizes things are not what she expected. Her uncle is nowhere to be found, but his wife—whom she has never met—is there, along with several other kids. The house itself feels unsettling, filled with Bible quotes covering the walls, hinting at something deeper going on.
At first, I was concerned the story might lean too heavily into a specific message and feel preachy. However, I was genuinely surprised—and relieved—that it didn’t. The inclusion of LGBTQ+ characters felt natural to the story rather than forced, and their experiences were woven in a way that added depth without overtaking the narrative. Readers who identify with those experiences may find the characters especially relatable, while others can still appreciate the story as a whole. The author did a great job keeping the focus on storytelling rather than delivering a message.
The story itself is imaginative and creative, with a strong supernatural mystery element. The main character isn’t always easy to like, but as the story unfolds, you begin to understand her better and develop empathy for her situation. Her strained relationship with her parents and the instability in her life add meaningful layers to her character. There’s clear growth throughout the book, which makes her journey feel worthwhile.
The ending had me on the edge of my seat. While I was able to guess a few elements, there were still twists that caught me off guard and kept things exciting.
Overall, I would recommend this book to fans of young adult fiction, especially those who enjoy supernatural and mystery elements. It’s an engaging, character-driven story with enough surprises to keep you hooked.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
3.5 stars
I think the _Fear Street_ / _Midsommar_ suggestion is actually pretty accurate here, though this doesn't get quite as dark as either of these references (especially the latter). This is definitely audience aware horror.
Lindsay is at prep school, but it's clear she won't be there for long and that this isn't her first experience running up against authority figures. An interesting twist occurs when she learns she's being sent away and assumes that her parents will be picking her up to shepherd her to her next locale, only to learn that she is on her own - again. Whatever readers may think about Lindsay's rebellious tendencies, like most teens, she's participating in this behavior for more than just the sport of being different. Rose does a great job of establishing Lindsay as a more complicated character with challenging relationships and a little too much freedom/not enough caring oversight right from the jump.
Lindsay's next stop is, uh, different. She's now shipped off to her long estranged uncle who lives on a creepy island. When she gets there, though, he's nowhere to be found. In his place? Some truly unusual and sus individuals. Lindsay spends the rest of the novel navigating this new, always sinister and at times terrifying, landscape.
Though there are times on the island when the pacing slows a bit, the overall flow of the story helps readers build uncertainty, suspense, and all the chills one hopes for from this subgenre. We are reminded that often the scariest call is coming from inside the house, so to speak. I enjoyed this read and recommend the audio version when and where available. I'll also be on the lookout for more from this author, who is new to me.
*Special thanks to NetGalley, Wednesday Books, and Macmillan Audio for this arc and alc, which I received in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I think the _Fear Street_ / _Midsommar_ suggestion is actually pretty accurate here, though this doesn't get quite as dark as either of these references (especially the latter). This is definitely audience aware horror.
Lindsay is at prep school, but it's clear she won't be there for long and that this isn't her first experience running up against authority figures. An interesting twist occurs when she learns she's being sent away and assumes that her parents will be picking her up to shepherd her to her next locale, only to learn that she is on her own - again. Whatever readers may think about Lindsay's rebellious tendencies, like most teens, she's participating in this behavior for more than just the sport of being different. Rose does a great job of establishing Lindsay as a more complicated character with challenging relationships and a little too much freedom/not enough caring oversight right from the jump.
Lindsay's next stop is, uh, different. She's now shipped off to her long estranged uncle who lives on a creepy island. When she gets there, though, he's nowhere to be found. In his place? Some truly unusual and sus individuals. Lindsay spends the rest of the novel navigating this new, always sinister and at times terrifying, landscape.
Though there are times on the island when the pacing slows a bit, the overall flow of the story helps readers build uncertainty, suspense, and all the chills one hopes for from this subgenre. We are reminded that often the scariest call is coming from inside the house, so to speak. I enjoyed this read and recommend the audio version when and where available. I'll also be on the lookout for more from this author, who is new to me.
*Special thanks to NetGalley, Wednesday Books, and Macmillan Audio for this arc and alc, which I received in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc of The Cove!
I'm afraid I'm DNFing at the 55% mark. I normally adore queer folk horror, and I was excited for a coastal theme. But, I'm afraid I found the characters too 2D, the horror elements too cliché, and in general, everything too stereotypical. I was bored the whole way up until I gave in and DNF'd.
Our POV character Lindsay is emotionally neglected by her rich parents. She attempts to hide how much it hurts her by rebelling and pushing everyone away — right until she gets carted off to a Christian corrective facility for troubled teens in rural Maine. She has a strong and consistent voice throughout the novel. However, I would have liked her more had there been more depth or complexity to her character.
There's some great LGBTQ+ rep among the other teens (and with Lindsay herself, who's bi), but that aside, they're a bunch of stereotypes with limited personalities. And so, too, is everyone and everything else in the novel, from the pervy gas station attendant who Lindsay asks for help to the creepy twins in old-fashioned clothing and the order in which characters die.
While shouting at characters not to do something is a staple of the horror genre, I also found some of the characters' actions to be so illogical that it broke my immersion. For example, why did they decide not to report a murder or get help, and instead drive back to the house where they'll be locked in while someone keeps killing people and they have zero phones?
It's also worth bearing in mind that the novel starts slowly, with the plot starting to pick up at the 40% mark. However, this time is used to create atmosphere. I think had I not found the book too stereotypical to be scary or interesting, this would have worked well for me.
I'm afraid I'm DNFing at the 55% mark. I normally adore queer folk horror, and I was excited for a coastal theme. But, I'm afraid I found the characters too 2D, the horror elements too cliché, and in general, everything too stereotypical. I was bored the whole way up until I gave in and DNF'd.
Our POV character Lindsay is emotionally neglected by her rich parents. She attempts to hide how much it hurts her by rebelling and pushing everyone away — right until she gets carted off to a Christian corrective facility for troubled teens in rural Maine. She has a strong and consistent voice throughout the novel. However, I would have liked her more had there been more depth or complexity to her character.
There's some great LGBTQ+ rep among the other teens (and with Lindsay herself, who's bi), but that aside, they're a bunch of stereotypes with limited personalities. And so, too, is everyone and everything else in the novel, from the pervy gas station attendant who Lindsay asks for help to the creepy twins in old-fashioned clothing and the order in which characters die.
While shouting at characters not to do something is a staple of the horror genre, I also found some of the characters' actions to be so illogical that it broke my immersion. For example, why did they decide not to report a murder or get help, and instead drive back to the house where they'll be locked in while someone keeps killing people and they have zero phones?
It's also worth bearing in mind that the novel starts slowly, with the plot starting to pick up at the 40% mark. However, this time is used to create atmosphere. I think had I not found the book too stereotypical to be scary or interesting, this would have worked well for me.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
BOOK REPORT
Received a complimentary copy of The Cove, by Claire Rose, from St. Martin’s Press | Wednesday Books/NetGalley, for which I am appreciative, in exchange for a fair and honest review. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.
⭐ 2.3 ⭐
I requested an ARC of this book because the description of it led with a reference to Misdommar, which is one of the single-most disturbing folk horror films I have ever watched on my almost 60 years on this particular planet (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8772262/).
And, yeah, I got where some of the stuff about The Cove (the place in the book) felt like that.
But, reader? Midsommar is most very definitely a movie for adults, not anybody who’s 13. (Even Precocious Teenage Kristi.) Which is relevant, because when I started looking at reviews on Goodreads, I saw that this was classified as a Teen/YA book.
Nothing in the NetGalley description said that directly, so we can't blame me for reading too quickly this time. I had already aged out of the genre by the time R.L. Stine hit the scene with a vengeance, so the mention of Fear Street went -whooshing- right past me.
Point being, I probably wouldn’t have requested this one had I realized how targeted at a juvenile audience it was. Please note that that statement is in no way meant to diss either the Teen or YA genre; I’ve read lots of books classified as such as an adult and loved them and rated them highly.
But this book was only OK. It had continuity issues, some of the characters weren’t believable at all, and it got kinda boring in parts. Of course I had to wonder if I would’ve enjoyed it as a currently modern-day teenager with the attention span of a rat on speed and parents who weren’t present and loving in my life.
We’ll never know.
Next, please.
DESCRIPTION
Midsommar meets Fear Street in this modern, sea-soaked folk horror debut about fighting to survive, and fighting to be yourself.
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg has just gotten kicked out of another prep school, and has consequently found herself shipped to her Uncle Levi's farm in the cold, isolated town of Marbury, Maine.
When Lindsay arrives at a big, old farmhouse miles from civilization, she is greeted by her uncle’s new wife, a goy with a little too much Jesus decor for Lindsay’s taste—with Uncle Levi mysteriously away on a business trip. Not only that, but Lindsay isn’t the only teen staying there. In fact, there is a small group of teens going through some kind of reform program. Up at dawn. Manual labor all day. No phones, computers or tablets.
Things start to feel hopeless until Lindsay meets the twins, Phin and Cass. They live on an island off the Peninsula’s coast—and they have internet. Lindsay convinces the others at Haven House to sneak out for a party on the island, and the night is incredible. At least…what they can remember of it. All of them wake up in their beds with sea-shell mementos, no memory of how they got home, and wicked hangovers. All of them except one. And as the disappearances and mysteries pile up, Lindsay and the others realize that they have become involved in a terrifying fight to survive, before the Cove claims them all.
Received a complimentary copy of The Cove, by Claire Rose, from St. Martin’s Press | Wednesday Books/NetGalley, for which I am appreciative, in exchange for a fair and honest review. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.
⭐ 2.3 ⭐
I requested an ARC of this book because the description of it led with a reference to Misdommar, which is one of the single-most disturbing folk horror films I have ever watched on my almost 60 years on this particular planet (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt8772262/).
And, yeah, I got where some of the stuff about The Cove (the place in the book) felt like that.
But, reader? Midsommar is most very definitely a movie for adults, not anybody who’s 13. (Even Precocious Teenage Kristi.) Which is relevant, because when I started looking at reviews on Goodreads, I saw that this was classified as a Teen/YA book.
Nothing in the NetGalley description said that directly, so we can't blame me for reading too quickly this time. I had already aged out of the genre by the time R.L. Stine hit the scene with a vengeance, so the mention of Fear Street went -whooshing- right past me.
Point being, I probably wouldn’t have requested this one had I realized how targeted at a juvenile audience it was. Please note that that statement is in no way meant to diss either the Teen or YA genre; I’ve read lots of books classified as such as an adult and loved them and rated them highly.
But this book was only OK. It had continuity issues, some of the characters weren’t believable at all, and it got kinda boring in parts. Of course I had to wonder if I would’ve enjoyed it as a currently modern-day teenager with the attention span of a rat on speed and parents who weren’t present and loving in my life.
We’ll never know.
Next, please.
DESCRIPTION
Midsommar meets Fear Street in this modern, sea-soaked folk horror debut about fighting to survive, and fighting to be yourself.
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg has just gotten kicked out of another prep school, and has consequently found herself shipped to her Uncle Levi's farm in the cold, isolated town of Marbury, Maine.
When Lindsay arrives at a big, old farmhouse miles from civilization, she is greeted by her uncle’s new wife, a goy with a little too much Jesus decor for Lindsay’s taste—with Uncle Levi mysteriously away on a business trip. Not only that, but Lindsay isn’t the only teen staying there. In fact, there is a small group of teens going through some kind of reform program. Up at dawn. Manual labor all day. No phones, computers or tablets.
Things start to feel hopeless until Lindsay meets the twins, Phin and Cass. They live on an island off the Peninsula’s coast—and they have internet. Lindsay convinces the others at Haven House to sneak out for a party on the island, and the night is incredible. At least…what they can remember of it. All of them wake up in their beds with sea-shell mementos, no memory of how they got home, and wicked hangovers. All of them except one. And as the disappearances and mysteries pile up, Lindsay and the others realize that they have become involved in a terrifying fight to survive, before the Cove claims them all.
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
The Cove by Claire Rose
3.1⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 0.1/5
Cursing: min+
Format/Source: paperback from Goodreads and St Martin's Publishing Group
Genres/Tropes: folk horror
Audience: YA
Setting: Maine
Characters: Lindsay, Phin, Cass, Dalton, Irene, Levi, Mateo, Gwen, Tash
👍 short chapters, storyline, setting, ending, unique story
👎 cursing, very race/religion/sexuality focused/prejudiced
Description:
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg has just been kicked out of yet another prep school and exiled to her uncle’s farm in the cold, isolated town of Marbury, Maine. But Uncle Levi is gone, leaving the farmhouse under the strict rule of his new zealously evangelical wife, who runs a reform camp for troubled teens. Up at dawn. Manual labor all day. No phones. No computers. No way out.
When Lindsay meets the twins, Phin and Cass, who live on a nearby island, everything changes. One reckless night, she convinces the others to sneak out for a party. The night is unforgettable—at least, the parts they can remember. The next morning, they wake in their own beds, clutching seashell tokens, hearts pounding, with no memory of how they got home. Except one camper never made it back.
As disappearances mount and dark secrets rise, Lindsay and her friends must unravel the mystery of the island—before The Cove claims them all.
I enjoyed this novel, especially the unusualness of the storyline and setting. However, I did not care for how much it focused on race, religion, money, politics, and sexuality. I felt the book to be more worried about pushing all of those agendas instead of about the horror story itself. It would have been a high 4 star rating if that was not the case.
#bookstagram #booklovers #horrorbooks #seamonster #cult
3.1⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 0.1/5
Cursing: min+
Format/Source: paperback from Goodreads and St Martin's Publishing Group
Genres/Tropes: folk horror
Audience: YA
Setting: Maine
Characters: Lindsay, Phin, Cass, Dalton, Irene, Levi, Mateo, Gwen, Tash
👍 short chapters, storyline, setting, ending, unique story
👎 cursing, very race/religion/sexuality focused/prejudiced
Description:
Seventeen-year-old Lindsay Weinberg has just been kicked out of yet another prep school and exiled to her uncle’s farm in the cold, isolated town of Marbury, Maine. But Uncle Levi is gone, leaving the farmhouse under the strict rule of his new zealously evangelical wife, who runs a reform camp for troubled teens. Up at dawn. Manual labor all day. No phones. No computers. No way out.
When Lindsay meets the twins, Phin and Cass, who live on a nearby island, everything changes. One reckless night, she convinces the others to sneak out for a party. The night is unforgettable—at least, the parts they can remember. The next morning, they wake in their own beds, clutching seashell tokens, hearts pounding, with no memory of how they got home. Except one camper never made it back.
As disappearances mount and dark secrets rise, Lindsay and her friends must unravel the mystery of the island—before The Cove claims them all.
I enjoyed this novel, especially the unusualness of the storyline and setting. However, I did not care for how much it focused on race, religion, money, politics, and sexuality. I felt the book to be more worried about pushing all of those agendas instead of about the horror story itself. It would have been a high 4 star rating if that was not the case.
#bookstagram #booklovers #horrorbooks #seamonster #cult
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The Cove is a YA folk horror book which I found to be an enjoyable atmospheric, creepy, and interesting read. As I mentioned, the atmosphere was fantastic as was the setting of coastal Maine. Lindsay Weinberg, a seventeen-year-old high school student, has been kicked out of school again. Yet again, her parents fail to show up but instead send an assistant who takes her to her new 'school' which is a reform school for troubled teens run by her uncle, Levi and his wife, Irene. But shockingly her uncle Levi is nowhere to be seen......
This book has strong cult vibes and unease and dread seep from the pages. Lindsay, who obviously is seeking attention from her parents with all of her school expulsions, is very out of her element at the labor-intensive reform school she finds herself attending. One might say she really steps in it when she convinces the others to sneak out one night after meeting twins from a nearby island....
I found this book to be a fast read, and I was intrigued by the reform school, some behaviors being displayed, the setting, and the tension. This had a very nice eerie vibe with the location, the town, the townspeople, and the nearby island. This book has a bit of romance, horror, horrific happenings, cult behavior, absentee parents, and a teenager wanting attention. I enjoyed the author's writing but found I wanted more of some aspects of the book such as the backstory of the town, the people, the nearby island, etc.
Overall, an enjoyable YA fold horror book that kept me engaged and turning the pages.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press | Wednesday Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com 📖
This book has strong cult vibes and unease and dread seep from the pages. Lindsay, who obviously is seeking attention from her parents with all of her school expulsions, is very out of her element at the labor-intensive reform school she finds herself attending. One might say she really steps in it when she convinces the others to sneak out one night after meeting twins from a nearby island....
I found this book to be a fast read, and I was intrigued by the reform school, some behaviors being displayed, the setting, and the tension. This had a very nice eerie vibe with the location, the town, the townspeople, and the nearby island. This book has a bit of romance, horror, horrific happenings, cult behavior, absentee parents, and a teenager wanting attention. I enjoyed the author's writing but found I wanted more of some aspects of the book such as the backstory of the town, the people, the nearby island, etc.
Overall, an enjoyable YA fold horror book that kept me engaged and turning the pages.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press | Wednesday Books and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions are my own.
Read more of my reviews at www.openbookposts.com 📖
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Terrifying enough to not want to read right before bed!
When Lindsay is sent to rural Maine to live with her uncle, she’s stuck between two unsettling worlds: a rigid reform school on his farm and a strange, flower-child cult living on a nearby island. As she begins to bond with the other troubled teens at the school, Lindsay has to decide where the real danger lies: under the watchful eye of her scripture-quoting, rule-obsessed aunt, or with the eerie twins who invite her to a mysterious island festival.
When the teens wake up the next morning, they can't remember how they got home into their beds. Even worse, one is missing. When the dead body is discovered on the beach, Lindsay discovers what mortal danger they are in.
Lindsay is a compelling protagonist as a teen so numb and disengaged that she struggles to care about anything, until looming danger jolts her out of her emotional fog. In a way, her parents sending her off to the farm works, but not in the way they intend. The cult’s twins are unsettling and possessive, while the other teens are present but only lightly developed.
The farm provides the perfect setting as a place that should be pastoral but instead, feels isolated and dangerous, especially when a menacing fog settles in. A tall fence and cameras keep the teens in on three sides, while a cliff to the ocean blocks the fourth side, at least until the teens discover steps to the beach and a land bridge to the cult island.
With vibes reminiscent of Midsommar, this eerie tale will keep you breathlessly turning pages until the very end.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance review copy of this book!
When Lindsay is sent to rural Maine to live with her uncle, she’s stuck between two unsettling worlds: a rigid reform school on his farm and a strange, flower-child cult living on a nearby island. As she begins to bond with the other troubled teens at the school, Lindsay has to decide where the real danger lies: under the watchful eye of her scripture-quoting, rule-obsessed aunt, or with the eerie twins who invite her to a mysterious island festival.
When the teens wake up the next morning, they can't remember how they got home into their beds. Even worse, one is missing. When the dead body is discovered on the beach, Lindsay discovers what mortal danger they are in.
Lindsay is a compelling protagonist as a teen so numb and disengaged that she struggles to care about anything, until looming danger jolts her out of her emotional fog. In a way, her parents sending her off to the farm works, but not in the way they intend. The cult’s twins are unsettling and possessive, while the other teens are present but only lightly developed.
The farm provides the perfect setting as a place that should be pastoral but instead, feels isolated and dangerous, especially when a menacing fog settles in. A tall fence and cameras keep the teens in on three sides, while a cliff to the ocean blocks the fourth side, at least until the teens discover steps to the beach and a land bridge to the cult island.
With vibes reminiscent of Midsommar, this eerie tale will keep you breathlessly turning pages until the very end.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance review copy of this book!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
You should pick up 'The Cove' if you want to read a YA horror with some eerie folklore mixed with very real horrors of being sent to a reform camp.
Lindsay just got kicked out of school again, and her parents can't be bothered to even pick her up. They decide to ship her off to her estranged Uncle Levi's farm in Maine. Things get weird from there, not only are there a bunch of other teens present, but Uncle Levi isn't. The wife she's never met, Irene is there to greet her. Things go from bad to worse and with a teen dead and no phone service and no way to get help Lindsay doesn't know who to trust.
This horror/mystery/thriller will keep you turning pages and saying one more chapter until the end. I found the story compelling and engaging and wanted to find out more about each character as I listened and turned pages. Each character felt like they had a back story I wanted to uncover and like Lindsay I didn't know who to trust.
The audio narration does an amazing job capturing just how eerie this story is, and the descriptions are breathtaking at times. I feel like I can see the fog and feel it pressing into my skin. The narrator does a good job not only capturing Lindsay's fear, but also her humor and her wit.
I enjoyed this story, I really liked how it weaved folklore and current horrors and touched on so many different things at once. I feel like many readers will enjoy this one, particularly if you enjoy books like 'What the Woods Took' by Courtney Gould. Thank you to the publisher for providing an eARC and ALC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Lindsay just got kicked out of school again, and her parents can't be bothered to even pick her up. They decide to ship her off to her estranged Uncle Levi's farm in Maine. Things get weird from there, not only are there a bunch of other teens present, but Uncle Levi isn't. The wife she's never met, Irene is there to greet her. Things go from bad to worse and with a teen dead and no phone service and no way to get help Lindsay doesn't know who to trust.
This horror/mystery/thriller will keep you turning pages and saying one more chapter until the end. I found the story compelling and engaging and wanted to find out more about each character as I listened and turned pages. Each character felt like they had a back story I wanted to uncover and like Lindsay I didn't know who to trust.
The audio narration does an amazing job capturing just how eerie this story is, and the descriptions are breathtaking at times. I feel like I can see the fog and feel it pressing into my skin. The narrator does a good job not only capturing Lindsay's fear, but also her humor and her wit.
I enjoyed this story, I really liked how it weaved folklore and current horrors and touched on so many different things at once. I feel like many readers will enjoy this one, particularly if you enjoy books like 'What the Woods Took' by Courtney Gould. Thank you to the publisher for providing an eARC and ALC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
The Cove
by Claire Rose
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC.
The Cove has an attention grabbing setup that blends teen exile, a rigid reform camp, and coastal folk horror into a premise that should work on paper. There are flashes of real strength here, especially in the setting. Marbury, Maine feels cold, isolated, and uneasy, and the island lore has the kind of creeping small town menace that can make a book hard to put down.
Lindsay is also a solid lead. She is sharp, defensive, and often funny, and her voice feels believable for a seventeen year old who has been written off repeatedly. The occasional fourth wall breaks are a creative touch. When they land, they add personality and tension. When they do not, they can feel a little forced and pull you out of the moment.
Where the book struggled for me was cohesion. The story moves from boarding school trouble, to the reform camp dynamic, to the island mystery, to romance, to supernatural ambiguity, and it does not always feel like those pieces lock together cleanly. I wanted a steadier build and a clearer sense of what rules the story was operating under.
Content wise, readers should know this leans into darker horror elements, including graphic animal harm. That was a hard line for me, and it significantly affected my overall experience.
There are readers who will enjoy the uneasy atmosphere and the uncertainty of who to trust, but between the uneven focus and the content choices, this one did not fully come together for me.
2.5 stars.
by Claire Rose
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC.
The Cove has an attention grabbing setup that blends teen exile, a rigid reform camp, and coastal folk horror into a premise that should work on paper. There are flashes of real strength here, especially in the setting. Marbury, Maine feels cold, isolated, and uneasy, and the island lore has the kind of creeping small town menace that can make a book hard to put down.
Lindsay is also a solid lead. She is sharp, defensive, and often funny, and her voice feels believable for a seventeen year old who has been written off repeatedly. The occasional fourth wall breaks are a creative touch. When they land, they add personality and tension. When they do not, they can feel a little forced and pull you out of the moment.
Where the book struggled for me was cohesion. The story moves from boarding school trouble, to the reform camp dynamic, to the island mystery, to romance, to supernatural ambiguity, and it does not always feel like those pieces lock together cleanly. I wanted a steadier build and a clearer sense of what rules the story was operating under.
Content wise, readers should know this leans into darker horror elements, including graphic animal harm. That was a hard line for me, and it significantly affected my overall experience.
There are readers who will enjoy the uneasy atmosphere and the uncertainty of who to trust, but between the uneven focus and the content choices, this one did not fully come together for me.
2.5 stars.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
*4.5 stars* Lindsay, the product of two very absent parents and boarding schools is sent to Maine for the summer after her latest bid for attention lands her in hot water. But when she arrives to this reform house for wayward teens, her uncle who owns the place is missing, and everything else feels eerie. From the extreme Christian beliefs of her aunt to the unsettling atmosphere of the house and the town. When a late night trip to a disappearing island goes sideways, Lindsey and her new friends are forced to investigate while the clock ticks away to their demise.
****
What a wonderful literary introduction from Claire Rose. The author mentions in her acknowledgements that her background is a mix between horror and literary fiction and you can just feel it in the pace, language, and suspense in this book. I loved the inclusion of multiple literary references and found myself searching for answers whenever they popped up.
Lindsay is also one of my favorite characters, even with her high school angst and mistakes, ever in a horror novel.
It was such a fun ride and I was guessing through most of it. Highly recommend to anyone who loves suspense and batshit crazy remote places in the world. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and this brand new author for my ARC in exchange for this honest review. Cannot wait for my hard copy to arrive once it is officially released.
****
What a wonderful literary introduction from Claire Rose. The author mentions in her acknowledgements that her background is a mix between horror and literary fiction and you can just feel it in the pace, language, and suspense in this book. I loved the inclusion of multiple literary references and found myself searching for answers whenever they popped up.
Lindsay is also one of my favorite characters, even with her high school angst and mistakes, ever in a horror novel.
It was such a fun ride and I was guessing through most of it. Highly recommend to anyone who loves suspense and batshit crazy remote places in the world. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and this brand new author for my ARC in exchange for this honest review. Cannot wait for my hard copy to arrive once it is officially released.
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