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Reality: A Reality TV Horror Novel
There is no winning. Only what you become.
America's sweetheart. The bad boy. The icon. The jock. The nerd. The doctor.
A year after a drunk-driving accident destroys her career, former child star Sydney Monroe is desperate for one thing: redemption. Shut In might be her last chance to get it.
Six contestants. Six weeks. One isolated mansion. Cameras watching twenty-four hours a day. Each contestant is assigned a horror-movie archetype and challenged to live it, from midnight rituals to punishments designed to push them past their breaking point.
Sydney gets the role everyone is supposed to root for: The Final Girl.
At first, the blood is fake. The scares are staged. The cameras are always watching. Then the challenges become dangerous. The crew stops appearing. The exits won't open. And the contestants begin to realize the show isn't just asking them to play their roles anymore.
Something inside the mansion wants a real horror story. And a Final Girl can only earn her title if everyone else dies.
For readers who miss the insane, voyeuristic reality TV of the 2000s but always thought it could use a little more... reality.
America's sweetheart. The bad boy. The icon. The jock. The nerd. The doctor.
A year after a drunk-driving accident destroys her career, former child star Sydney Monroe is desperate for one thing: redemption. Shut In might be her last chance to get it.
Six contestants. Six weeks. One isolated mansion. Cameras watching twenty-four hours a day. Each contestant is assigned a horror-movie archetype and challenged to live it, from midnight rituals to punishments designed to push them past their breaking point.
Sydney gets the role everyone is supposed to root for: The Final Girl.
At first, the blood is fake. The scares are staged. The cameras are always watching. Then the challenges become dangerous. The crew stops appearing. The exits won't open. And the contestants begin to realize the show isn't just asking them to play their roles anymore.
Something inside the mansion wants a real horror story. And a Final Girl can only earn her title if everyone else dies.
For readers who miss the insane, voyeuristic reality TV of the 2000s but always thought it could use a little more... reality.
312 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 16, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
September 15, 2026
The author pulls you into a crazy game where you don't know who will survive. At first they just believed they were participating in a reality show until it gets too real. Pun intended.
September 20, 2026
Not the Ending I Wanted...
This story was intriguing enough to keep my interest from late in the night to early in the morning, with a slight interlude for sleep. Then I had to complete it the next day. I skipped over reading some ritualistic parts, refusing to read words that seemed to invite anything truly evil.
I learned about a movie I'd never heard of prior and the storyline of one I'd never attempted to watch, in the process. It touched on multiple themes of survival and self discovery. I wish we'd had more back story revealed about the characters involved.
However, there are enough details to build from for almost all of the lives leading to the morbid "choice" to partake in the reality horror show. It is curious to think how differently things may have gone with different choices, or whether once those gates closed if anything could have been changed afterward.
The movies are more important than they seem at the time with clues to how it all had to end. It isn't the ending I wanted; but it is the befitting ending to the story as written. An afterward would have been more closure. Especially regarding certain elements introduced along the way.
This story was intriguing enough to keep my interest from late in the night to early in the morning, with a slight interlude for sleep. Then I had to complete it the next day. I skipped over reading some ritualistic parts, refusing to read words that seemed to invite anything truly evil.
I learned about a movie I'd never heard of prior and the storyline of one I'd never attempted to watch, in the process. It touched on multiple themes of survival and self discovery. I wish we'd had more back story revealed about the characters involved.
However, there are enough details to build from for almost all of the lives leading to the morbid "choice" to partake in the reality horror show. It is curious to think how differently things may have gone with different choices, or whether once those gates closed if anything could have been changed afterward.
The movies are more important than they seem at the time with clues to how it all had to end. It isn't the ending I wanted; but it is the befitting ending to the story as written. An afterward would have been more closure. Especially regarding certain elements introduced along the way.
October 6, 2026
With the season of my favorite reality game show Big Brother ending and the Halloween season beginning, this book is the perfect bridge between the two.
This 'game' is titled 'Shut In.' Six houseguests (made up of 3 celebrities, a pro football player, a doctor, and a shy college girl that saw a flyer for the show in a coffee house) will be locked in this mansion for six weeks completing tasks and challenges made to recreate scenes in horror movies. Complete the challenge successfully for a reward but refuse or fail and you will be punished. Like Big Brother, cameras are everywhere filming 24/7 and there is also live feeds people can watch online.
Soon things get too real - or unreal - or both - very quickly. What is part of the game, part of reality, or part of this creepy mansion? It's hard to tell.
This is an incredibly crazy read. I couldn't put it down! Perfect for the Halloween season! I highly recommend it for fans of Big Brother!
This 'game' is titled 'Shut In.' Six houseguests (made up of 3 celebrities, a pro football player, a doctor, and a shy college girl that saw a flyer for the show in a coffee house) will be locked in this mansion for six weeks completing tasks and challenges made to recreate scenes in horror movies. Complete the challenge successfully for a reward but refuse or fail and you will be punished. Like Big Brother, cameras are everywhere filming 24/7 and there is also live feeds people can watch online.
Soon things get too real - or unreal - or both - very quickly. What is part of the game, part of reality, or part of this creepy mansion? It's hard to tell.
This is an incredibly crazy read. I couldn't put it down! Perfect for the Halloween season! I highly recommend it for fans of Big Brother!
October 11, 2026
What an absolutely crazy ride this book was!
I loved how it threw me straight into the action from the very beginning. No endless build-up or unnecessary backstory, just straight into the madness!
The drama, chaos and constant twists and turns had me completely hooked. Every time I thought I knew where things were heading, something else happened and changed everything.
There was never a dull moment. It was unpredictable, dramatic and absolutely mental in the best possible way!
The ending was bittersweet, which I actually appreciated. It also felt like there was potential for a sequel, and I would absolutely love to see where the story could go next!
My only real criticism was the spelling and grammar mistakes throughout the book. They were noticeable enough to occasionally distract me from an otherwise brilliant story, which was a shame.
I loved how it threw me straight into the action from the very beginning. No endless build-up or unnecessary backstory, just straight into the madness!
The drama, chaos and constant twists and turns had me completely hooked. Every time I thought I knew where things were heading, something else happened and changed everything.
There was never a dull moment. It was unpredictable, dramatic and absolutely mental in the best possible way!
The ending was bittersweet, which I actually appreciated. It also felt like there was potential for a sequel, and I would absolutely love to see where the story could go next!
My only real criticism was the spelling and grammar mistakes throughout the book. They were noticeable enough to occasionally distract me from an otherwise brilliant story, which was a shame.
June 16, 2026
Okay wow! I love reality tv shows and this book made me feel like i was watching big brother....but with a dark twist! The twist and turns had my jaw on the FLOOR!! I loved the fmc! Think horror reality tv shows where most of the characters have a past! And most are celebrities!! The plot to the story was amazing! The twist and turns had me HOOKED! There were chapters in the book that were from a chat room about the show and it felt like I was watching people argue on twitter! I highly recommend this book to reality tv lovers and horror movie lovers!! I'm not too big on scary movies but I loved it!! If I got scared i could just close the book!
There were little details throughout the book that I so appreciated! Go read to find out!!
There were little details throughout the book that I so appreciated! Go read to find out!!
June 23, 2026
I received this book as an ARC for my honest review!
I want to start out by saying I can usually call the plot of a horror novel from the first ten pages but this book did not at all go where I thought it would! I devoured this book in less than 24 hours because it was so well paced and entertaining from the jump. I loved the inserts of the message boards and confessionals that made it really feel like you were engaging with a reality show.
If I *had* to come up with a critique I’d say that I wish we had learned a little more at the end about the supernatural mechanisms behind the house and why it was created, but also part of the fun of books like this is the theorizing after you finish!
I want to start out by saying I can usually call the plot of a horror novel from the first ten pages but this book did not at all go where I thought it would! I devoured this book in less than 24 hours because it was so well paced and entertaining from the jump. I loved the inserts of the message boards and confessionals that made it really feel like you were engaging with a reality show.
If I *had* to come up with a critique I’d say that I wish we had learned a little more at the end about the supernatural mechanisms behind the house and why it was created, but also part of the fun of books like this is the theorizing after you finish!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 24, 2026
I picked up Reality expecting creepy reality TV vibes and instead found a slow descent into absolute chaos. This book feels claustrophobic, like watching a train wreck through a security camera while screaming at everyone to leave.
What I loved most was how unsettling everything felt. The horror isn't just about what lurks in the house; it's the paranoia, the shifting alliances, and the creeping realization that nobody is really safe. The tension keeps building until you're questioning everything right alongside the characters.
If you like horror that mixes found footage energy, messy human relationships, and that "something is terribly wrong here" feeling that sticks with you after you finish, this one is worth checking out.
What I loved most was how unsettling everything felt. The horror isn't just about what lurks in the house; it's the paranoia, the shifting alliances, and the creeping realization that nobody is really safe. The tension keeps building until you're questioning everything right alongside the characters.
If you like horror that mixes found footage energy, messy human relationships, and that "something is terribly wrong here" feeling that sticks with you after you finish, this one is worth checking out.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I was a beta reader for this book and as a lover of both reality TV and horror I genuinely could not put it down. Out of all the books I’ve read this year I definitely burned through this one the fastest and read most of it in a day. I found myself really liking all of the characters and was super invested in the plot from start to finish! I usually have a hard time with the pacing of books but this was great and I was locked in the entire time and super invested in the development of the main characters. The end definitely surprised me as well. I loved it overall!
August 4, 2026
such an entertaining read
I don’t usually read horror but I ate this one up. The characters were executed flawlessly, which made the book even better. The rewards and punishments were a little repetitive, would have loved to see some switch ups there but it didn’t take away from the overall vibes of this book, would still definitely recommend. Would be a great, easy, fast paced book to get you out of a reading slump!
I don’t usually read horror but I ate this one up. The characters were executed flawlessly, which made the book even better. The rewards and punishments were a little repetitive, would have loved to see some switch ups there but it didn’t take away from the overall vibes of this book, would still definitely recommend. Would be a great, easy, fast paced book to get you out of a reading slump!
October 6, 2026
This book definitely kept my interest, but really needs some sort of backstory or explanation. I can live with an obscure ending, but none of this made sense. Add to it, pretty lazy editing, and you get two stars. I was briefly tempted to get the short story “prequel”, but decided it wasn’t worth giving my info. If anyone else read this and can explain it to my addled brain, go for it, I’m listening.
June 21, 2026
A good yet creepy read that is similar to Big Brother as six people enter a house to complete tasks. It is not all it seems in the house and things start to go wrong. Be prepared to jump as dark things begin to happen. A great creepy read
I received an advance copy from hidden gems and will make you jump in shock
I received an advance copy from hidden gems and will make you jump in shock
October 14, 2026
I was pleasantly enthralled by this. I had hoped with the whole mansion vibe and six "players" that this was gonna turn into a little Betrayal at House on the Hill. And by the end it had. Especially with only one able to make it out at the end. But I was rooting for everyone at one point or another in the book.
September 23, 2026
I am really sad to have to give this 3* - I did read it in a day and it was going to be a 5* but the ending let it down so much. I was expecting something completely different - like why this was happening and who was behind it but the ending was just strange and blunt. Disappointing 😔
September 20, 2026
Seat of your pants book!
Excellent read... couldn't put it down. Haven't read a book this engrossing in years. Better then Hell House. Plot, characters, scenes, drama all spot on.
Excellent read... couldn't put it down. Haven't read a book this engrossing in years. Better then Hell House. Plot, characters, scenes, drama all spot on.
October 7, 2026
Pretty basic but not bad
Not bad but not great just something i read as i had absolutely nothing else to read lol might read more of this author has potential
Not bad but not great just something i read as i had absolutely nothing else to read lol might read more of this author has potential
October 16, 2026
I disliked the main character and didn’t find any of the other characters relatable. The story relied on too many cliches.
Just a tale of narcissism.
Just a tale of narcissism.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews