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Warm Bodies
Win a free kindle copy of this book!
14 days and 12:16:58
100 copies available
U.S. only
From the multimillion-copy bestselling author comes a chilling tale about Brenda: they watched her, judged her, and talked. They should have left her alone.
Brenda lives quietly in a picture-perfect English village. She looks after her grandchildren, restores old furniture, and keeps herself to herself. She’s the sort of neighbour people feel comfortable judging.
And judge they do. Because villages notice everything. The shopping. The visitors. The hours kept behind closed doors. And when the local WhatsApp group begins to turn its attention to Brenda, curiosity hardens into suspicion, and gossip becomes a sport.
As scrutiny tightens, Brenda finds herself navigating busybodies, moral crusaders and a community that believes it knows best. What they don’t know is that Brenda has spent a lifetime solving problems discreetly.
Methodically. Permanently.
And she is very good at it.
The village may come to regret not minding its own business.
Brenda lives quietly in a picture-perfect English village. She looks after her grandchildren, restores old furniture, and keeps herself to herself. She’s the sort of neighbour people feel comfortable judging.
And judge they do. Because villages notice everything. The shopping. The visitors. The hours kept behind closed doors. And when the local WhatsApp group begins to turn its attention to Brenda, curiosity hardens into suspicion, and gossip becomes a sport.
As scrutiny tightens, Brenda finds herself navigating busybodies, moral crusaders and a community that believes it knows best. What they don’t know is that Brenda has spent a lifetime solving problems discreetly.
Methodically. Permanently.
And she is very good at it.
The village may come to regret not minding its own business.
Audible Audio
First published November 1, 2026
About the author
John Marrs
71 books31.9k followersJohn Marrs is an internationally bestselling author of psychological thrillers and speculative fiction. Before becoming a full‑time writer, he spent more than two decades as a freelance journalist interviewing celebrities for national publications.
He self‑published his early novels while commuting to work, building a passionate readership through social media that helped attract Amazon Publishing and Penguin Random House.
His breakout book, The One, became a No. 1 Netflix series, has sold over a million copies, and is published in 35 languages. His other bestselling titles include The Good Samaritan, What Lies Between Us, The Passengers, The Marriage Act, and The Stranger in Her House.
John continues to explore the darker sides of human nature across both genres. His next thriller, Dead In The Water, publishes in January 2026.
You can subscribe to his newsletter at JohnMarrsAuthor.com.
He self‑published his early novels while commuting to work, building a passionate readership through social media that helped attract Amazon Publishing and Penguin Random House.
His breakout book, The One, became a No. 1 Netflix series, has sold over a million copies, and is published in 35 languages. His other bestselling titles include The Good Samaritan, What Lies Between Us, The Passengers, The Marriage Act, and The Stranger in Her House.
John continues to explore the darker sides of human nature across both genres. His next thriller, Dead In The Water, publishes in January 2026.
You can subscribe to his newsletter at JohnMarrsAuthor.com.
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October 8, 2026my october amazon first reads pick! this is a short story so no rating & pretty graphic and gory at times, just fyi! but the perfect book to kick off spooky season
Review of advance copy
WARM bodies, COLD Hearts
The 20 CATTY women on the Village Vibes WHATSAPP group, have a lot to say about their new neighbor, Brenda. Led by their manipulative ringleader, Beth, NOTHING is off limits.
They really are COLD-hearted.
Brenda doesn’t know WHY they have taken an instant dislike to her. After all, she is just a doting grandmother living with her daughter and her three grandchildren, and restoring old furniture at night to help make ends meet.
Isn’t she?
She keeps to herself except when she is watching her grandson, Noah at his sporting events or taking her youngest granddaughter, Esme to the farm nearby. Esme loves to feed parsnips to the pigs who live there, even the parsnips that look like fingers….
Have you figured out what else Brenda might be doing to help her daughter pay the bills?
You are getting WARMER…
This was John Marrs first novella and it was just as good as I expected it to be!
It reminded me of a DARKER, BLOODIER, GRITTIER “Too Old For This” (Samantha Downing) but with some of that humor. The WHATSAPP messages between the women are FUNNY!! (Oh Linda-Bless your heart!)
This is a AMAZON ORIGINAL STORY and my FIRST READS selection for October, complimentary to Amazon Prime members. It will be available to purchase on November 1, 2026.
The 20 CATTY women on the Village Vibes WHATSAPP group, have a lot to say about their new neighbor, Brenda. Led by their manipulative ringleader, Beth, NOTHING is off limits.
They really are COLD-hearted.
Brenda doesn’t know WHY they have taken an instant dislike to her. After all, she is just a doting grandmother living with her daughter and her three grandchildren, and restoring old furniture at night to help make ends meet.
Isn’t she?
She keeps to herself except when she is watching her grandson, Noah at his sporting events or taking her youngest granddaughter, Esme to the farm nearby. Esme loves to feed parsnips to the pigs who live there, even the parsnips that look like fingers….
Have you figured out what else Brenda might be doing to help her daughter pay the bills?
You are getting WARMER…
This was John Marrs first novella and it was just as good as I expected it to be!
It reminded me of a DARKER, BLOODIER, GRITTIER “Too Old For This” (Samantha Downing) but with some of that humor. The WHATSAPP messages between the women are FUNNY!! (Oh Linda-Bless your heart!)
This is a AMAZON ORIGINAL STORY and my FIRST READS selection for October, complimentary to Amazon Prime members. It will be available to purchase on November 1, 2026.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
What better way to sample some John Marrs than with his first ever short story. Now I know I must read more from him!
That title and that cover with the shovel grabs your attention right away. We meet Brenda who has recently moved to a small English village with her 3 grandchildren and daughter. She's trying to help the family rebuild their lives. She spends a lot of her time in her backyard shed refinishing furniture or so she says. In the meantime there's a 'Village Vibes' WhatsApp group with neighbours that are very snarky and suspicious of the new village resident. The WhatsApp group messages added some humour and a whole lotta fun to the story.
Oh John Marrs for a short story you got me with those twists especially at the end! You delivered with a horrific and gruesome story and yet I also had a few chuckles along the way. Clever! This was an Amazon first reads selection for October.
That title and that cover with the shovel grabs your attention right away. We meet Brenda who has recently moved to a small English village with her 3 grandchildren and daughter. She's trying to help the family rebuild their lives. She spends a lot of her time in her backyard shed refinishing furniture or so she says. In the meantime there's a 'Village Vibes' WhatsApp group with neighbours that are very snarky and suspicious of the new village resident. The WhatsApp group messages added some humour and a whole lotta fun to the story.
Oh John Marrs for a short story you got me with those twists especially at the end! You delivered with a horrific and gruesome story and yet I also had a few chuckles along the way. Clever! This was an Amazon first reads selection for October.
November 11, 2026
Brenda is 58 years old, and, on the surface, she is just your typical middle-aged woman. She lives in a cottage in a village on the outskirts of Northampton with her daughter Lucy and three grandchildren. In the garden she has a shed in which her family thinks she restores furniture, but Brenda has recently taken on a very interesting new job.
Interspersed throughout the story, we get a message-style narrative from a group of local women who participate in the Village Vibes WhatsApp group. Their favourite topic of discussion (gossip of the 'Mean Woman Energy' kind) seems to be Brenda's everyday comings and goings, from what she is buying at the supermarket to the visitors she has at her house.
This had me cackling in places; there were some pretty funny lines, especially from the busybody ladies of the neighbourhood WhatsApp group. Amidst the humour, though, it covers several bleak topics, such as domestic violence, murder and body dismemberment. You could say at times it does stretch credibility; I mean, a 58-year-old woman hauling around, let's just say very heavy items (don't want to spoil), would be challenging, to say the least. Nonetheless, there were some nice little twists and turns throughout which kept the story moving along at a decent pace.
The Author does tend to lean into the darker side of psychological thriller, and for me they can sometimes be a tad hit or miss, but I think they did a good job with this novella; it's grisly but has a healthy dose of humour too, placing it firmly in black comedy territory. Reading the afterword, the Author states it's their first foray into a published short story (it comes in at just over 100 pages long), and I hope it isn't their last. The ending did get me nervous about which way it would go for Brenda, and it had me invested. Overall, it was a pretty enjoyable little tale.
Interspersed throughout the story, we get a message-style narrative from a group of local women who participate in the Village Vibes WhatsApp group. Their favourite topic of discussion (gossip of the 'Mean Woman Energy' kind) seems to be Brenda's everyday comings and goings, from what she is buying at the supermarket to the visitors she has at her house.
This had me cackling in places; there were some pretty funny lines, especially from the busybody ladies of the neighbourhood WhatsApp group. Amidst the humour, though, it covers several bleak topics, such as domestic violence, murder and body dismemberment. You could say at times it does stretch credibility; I mean, a 58-year-old woman hauling around, let's just say very heavy items (don't want to spoil), would be challenging, to say the least. Nonetheless, there were some nice little twists and turns throughout which kept the story moving along at a decent pace.
The Author does tend to lean into the darker side of psychological thriller, and for me they can sometimes be a tad hit or miss, but I think they did a good job with this novella; it's grisly but has a healthy dose of humour too, placing it firmly in black comedy territory. Reading the afterword, the Author states it's their first foray into a published short story (it comes in at just over 100 pages long), and I hope it isn't their last. The ending did get me nervous about which way it would go for Brenda, and it had me invested. Overall, it was a pretty enjoyable little tale.
November 2, 2026
3.71
Brenda, Brenda, Brenda. 😂
This woman is an absolute menace, and honestly, I’m here for every bit of it.
If there’s one important lesson to take away from this book, it’s DON’T PISS OFF YOUR NEIGHBORS. Especially when you’re a bunch of older women who have apparently never outgrown their mean-girl era.
A neighborhood WhatsApp group turns into a place for gossip, judgment, and tearing other people down. And Beth? Well, Beth might just be the ringleader of this lovely little mess. 😂
These women may have bitten off a little more than they could chew. Maybe minding your own business would have been a better life choice, ladies. Just a thought.
Chop chop. 🔪
And then there’s Michael! He was such a great addition to this already wild cast of characters. I absolutely loved him and his dog, and he brought another fun element to this crazy story.
This was such an entertaining, darkly funny read. A little reminder that neighborhood drama can get VERY out of hand when you mess with the wrong people!
🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🔪🤍🤍🔪🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍
🔪PrE rEaD🔪
Important rule….don’t piss your neighbors off. 😬
Brenda, Brenda, Brenda. 😂
This woman is an absolute menace, and honestly, I’m here for every bit of it.
If there’s one important lesson to take away from this book, it’s DON’T PISS OFF YOUR NEIGHBORS. Especially when you’re a bunch of older women who have apparently never outgrown their mean-girl era.
A neighborhood WhatsApp group turns into a place for gossip, judgment, and tearing other people down. And Beth? Well, Beth might just be the ringleader of this lovely little mess. 😂
These women may have bitten off a little more than they could chew. Maybe minding your own business would have been a better life choice, ladies. Just a thought.
Chop chop. 🔪
And then there’s Michael! He was such a great addition to this already wild cast of characters. I absolutely loved him and his dog, and he brought another fun element to this crazy story.
This was such an entertaining, darkly funny read. A little reminder that neighborhood drama can get VERY out of hand when you mess with the wrong people!
🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🔪🤍🤍🔪🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍🤍
🔪PrE rEaD🔪
Important rule….don’t piss your neighbors off. 😬
October 6, 2026
She Works Hard For the Money...
So hard For It, Honey...
WARM BODIES
by John Marrs
5 stars. Brenda is lucky to be able to rent a nice cottage for herself, her daughter, and her three grandchildren in Stretton village...
Brenda is a cleaning woman by day, but she moonlights afterward, working from home at her own business. She hopes to retire soon...
But...
She has trouble with the nosey hens in the village who gossip about her goings and comings on their WhatsApp site...
Always...
Reporting back to one another about Brenda not picking up her dog's poop and receiving late night deliveries...
And now...
They are reporting her to CPS and the police, accusing her, at her advanced age, of prostitution...
Well, Brenda works hard for the money, so hard for it, honey, so you better treat her right...
This was an entertaining little novella. While it seemed as if it was going to follow a familiar trope, it had many twists and turns at the end, making it seem like a Miss Marple mystery. I thoroughly enjoyed this Amazon First Reads selection.
So hard For It, Honey...
WARM BODIES
by John Marrs
5 stars. Brenda is lucky to be able to rent a nice cottage for herself, her daughter, and her three grandchildren in Stretton village...
Brenda is a cleaning woman by day, but she moonlights afterward, working from home at her own business. She hopes to retire soon...
But...
She has trouble with the nosey hens in the village who gossip about her goings and comings on their WhatsApp site...
Always...
Reporting back to one another about Brenda not picking up her dog's poop and receiving late night deliveries...
And now...
They are reporting her to CPS and the police, accusing her, at her advanced age, of prostitution...
Well, Brenda works hard for the money, so hard for it, honey, so you better treat her right...
This was an entertaining little novella. While it seemed as if it was going to follow a familiar trope, it had many twists and turns at the end, making it seem like a Miss Marple mystery. I thoroughly enjoyed this Amazon First Reads selection.
Review of advance copy
I’ve been trying to move away from the nosey-parker, curtain-twitching-neighbour type of thrillers because I’ve binged far too many of them lately, but apparently I’m willing to make an exception for Mr Marrs. This one drops us into a picture-perfect English village where some of the residents are much better at minding everyone else’s business than their own, and Brenda quickly becomes their latest obsession.
The Village Vibes WhatsApp exchanges were always something to look forward to, with all the gossip and ridiculous assumptions making me laugh more than once. Maybe I read and watch too much crime, because even the idea of a neighbourhood WhatsApp group has me thinking of all the ways it could go wrong. Having all that petty village drama alongside what was really going on behind closed doors made Brenda’s much darker reality even more entertaining.
There was probably a little more detail around how Brenda does her job than I personally needed at times, but it still suited the tone of the story. The twists and misdirection kept me guessing, with one reveal in particular that I absolutely should have spotted but somehow didn’t.
A solid short story with exactly the kind of dark, unhinged fun I expect from John Marrs.
The Village Vibes WhatsApp exchanges were always something to look forward to, with all the gossip and ridiculous assumptions making me laugh more than once. Maybe I read and watch too much crime, because even the idea of a neighbourhood WhatsApp group has me thinking of all the ways it could go wrong. Having all that petty village drama alongside what was really going on behind closed doors made Brenda’s much darker reality even more entertaining.
There was probably a little more detail around how Brenda does her job than I personally needed at times, but it still suited the tone of the story. The twists and misdirection kept me guessing, with one reveal in particular that I absolutely should have spotted but somehow didn’t.
A solid short story with exactly the kind of dark, unhinged fun I expect from John Marrs.
Review of advance copy
Well, this is the most fun I’ve had reading a book in some time. Seriously, I was laughing throughout!
Brenda is new to the neighborhood. Moving into a rental with her daughter and grandkids. But not everyone is welcoming her.
Told through Brenda’s perspective and a neighborhood group chat.
Loved every minute of it! Start to end! Jaw-dropping twists! Just brilliant!
For me… the WhatsApp group chats stole the show🙌
Well done, Mr. Marrs!
✍️ John Marrs
📄 107 pages
🗓️ Anticipated release date: November 1, 2026
📈 5/5🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
👉 Short Story
Brenda is new to the neighborhood. Moving into a rental with her daughter and grandkids. But not everyone is welcoming her.
Told through Brenda’s perspective and a neighborhood group chat.
Loved every minute of it! Start to end! Jaw-dropping twists! Just brilliant!
For me… the WhatsApp group chats stole the show🙌
Well done, Mr. Marrs!
✍️ John Marrs
📄 107 pages
🗓️ Anticipated release date: November 1, 2026
📈 5/5🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
👉 Short Story
November 3, 2026
John Marrs has done it again! I have read all his books and couldn't wait to pick this one up. I love how he can take a completely dark and messed up situation, throw in some humor and make it ridiculously entertaining. You almost forget how twisted things actually are!
Brenda was such an unexpected character, and I loved the difference between her seemingly ordinary family life and what she was really getting up to. But the real entertainment for me was the Village Vibes WhatsApp group. Those gossipy nosey women had me laughing! The petty comments, assumptions and constant chatter were brilliant. There's nothing quite like a group of women with too much time on their hands and absolutely no business minding their own business. 😂 I had a bit of a worry when the crap hit the fan and wondered how Brenda would get herself out of that sticky situation, but John pulled it through brilliantly!
Well John, I was hooked by this short story, you have a way with words!
Brenda was such an unexpected character, and I loved the difference between her seemingly ordinary family life and what she was really getting up to. But the real entertainment for me was the Village Vibes WhatsApp group. Those gossipy nosey women had me laughing! The petty comments, assumptions and constant chatter were brilliant. There's nothing quite like a group of women with too much time on their hands and absolutely no business minding their own business. 😂 I had a bit of a worry when the crap hit the fan and wondered how Brenda would get herself out of that sticky situation, but John pulled it through brilliantly!
Well John, I was hooked by this short story, you have a way with words!
November 12, 2026
This is my first John Marrs read AND it was so much fun...
Brenda lives in a quaint English Village with her daughter, Lisa, and her three grandchildren. She upcycles old furniture for extra money, looks after her grandchildren while Lisa works, and prefers a quiet life in her retirement.
When the local WhatsApp group of snoopy women gets Brenda in their sights, things begin to get judgy and intense. They want to know what she's buying, who's visiting, and why she spends so much time in her backyard shed. What's in there, anyway?
Let me tell you, these ladies are vicious. But what these nosy neighbors don't realize is that Brenda has spent a lifetime calmly, meticulously, and permanently solving pesky issues like this.
Maybe it's time to teach these busybodies a bloody lesson...
Warm Bodies is John Marrs' first novella, and an ideal way to end my Spooky Season reads. It's written in Brenda's first-person narrative, except for the epistolary sections of texts between the gossipy WhatsApp group.
It was a perfect immersive reading experience with Elizabeth Knowelden and Lucy Rayner narrating the audiobook, and I loved hearing Brenda's cringe-worthy, yet humorous thoughts through her narration. She would say some of the craziest things. What a cut up!
Warm Bodies is a quick, twisty story, and although I would love to spend more time with Brenda, instead I'll spend it looking through Marrs' backlist for more gems like this one!
4⭐
Brenda lives in a quaint English Village with her daughter, Lisa, and her three grandchildren. She upcycles old furniture for extra money, looks after her grandchildren while Lisa works, and prefers a quiet life in her retirement.
When the local WhatsApp group of snoopy women gets Brenda in their sights, things begin to get judgy and intense. They want to know what she's buying, who's visiting, and why she spends so much time in her backyard shed. What's in there, anyway?
Let me tell you, these ladies are vicious. But what these nosy neighbors don't realize is that Brenda has spent a lifetime calmly, meticulously, and permanently solving pesky issues like this.
Maybe it's time to teach these busybodies a bloody lesson...
Warm Bodies is John Marrs' first novella, and an ideal way to end my Spooky Season reads. It's written in Brenda's first-person narrative, except for the epistolary sections of texts between the gossipy WhatsApp group.
It was a perfect immersive reading experience with Elizabeth Knowelden and Lucy Rayner narrating the audiobook, and I loved hearing Brenda's cringe-worthy, yet humorous thoughts through her narration. She would say some of the craziest things. What a cut up!
Warm Bodies is a quick, twisty story, and although I would love to spend more time with Brenda, instead I'll spend it looking through Marrs' backlist for more gems like this one!
4⭐
November 8, 2026
Yikes! Slide that bowl of Cheetos far from reach as you're reading this one. It's a tummy turning one.
John Marrs is one very creative author. He seems to re-invent himself book by book. This time he's tossed a quirky little novella our way. At only 107 pages, you'll snap this one up in a nano second. Chuckles and churning all in one.
Brenda has recently moved to a small English village with her daughter and three grandchildren. Brenda is a doting grandmother who is trying to make ends meet after her daughter Lucy's abusive marriage. She's taken up selling refurbished furniture that she works on in a shed behind their rented house. Her granddaughter, Esme, is delighted when they feed the piggies leftover vegetables on Michael's farm. Michael also owns a cafe. He's had his eye on the elusive Brenda, but she keeps a distant footing. Her family is everything.
Marrs then marches in the snippy village idiots who belong to a WhatsApp group chat. Said group wallow in judgment and Brenda becomes their target because she hasn't joined any of their outings or Pilates. Their interchanges have laugh out loud moments. Stupid is as stupid does. One of these darling ladies is hell bent on knowing what Brenda does in that shed after midnight. Only the Phantom knows.......or we readers who ain't talkin'.
A quick entertaining read, Warm Bodies gets to the heart of the matter in a cluster of pages. And in addition, John Marrs slides a neat little twisty next to your bowl of Cheetos. Munch on this one. It is, indeed, satisfying.
John Marrs is one very creative author. He seems to re-invent himself book by book. This time he's tossed a quirky little novella our way. At only 107 pages, you'll snap this one up in a nano second. Chuckles and churning all in one.
Brenda has recently moved to a small English village with her daughter and three grandchildren. Brenda is a doting grandmother who is trying to make ends meet after her daughter Lucy's abusive marriage. She's taken up selling refurbished furniture that she works on in a shed behind their rented house. Her granddaughter, Esme, is delighted when they feed the piggies leftover vegetables on Michael's farm. Michael also owns a cafe. He's had his eye on the elusive Brenda, but she keeps a distant footing. Her family is everything.
Marrs then marches in the snippy village idiots who belong to a WhatsApp group chat. Said group wallow in judgment and Brenda becomes their target because she hasn't joined any of their outings or Pilates. Their interchanges have laugh out loud moments. Stupid is as stupid does. One of these darling ladies is hell bent on knowing what Brenda does in that shed after midnight. Only the Phantom knows.......or we readers who ain't talkin'.
A quick entertaining read, Warm Bodies gets to the heart of the matter in a cluster of pages. And in addition, John Marrs slides a neat little twisty next to your bowl of Cheetos. Munch on this one. It is, indeed, satisfying.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Absolutely LOVED this. Perfect short story to cure my reading slump - read in one sitting. Brenda our FMC is dark and almost funny in her ways. John Marrs never dissapoints
Read
October 13, 2026No rating because I didn’t really know what to rate it with it being so short but all you need to know is Brenda is an absolute VIBE 🙌🏻
Want to Read
September 7, 2026EXCUSE MEEEEE!?
Mr. Marrs coming out with a short story!
Ok I am sat and ready to read this one!
💛💛💛💛
Mr. Marrs coming out with a short story!
Ok I am sat and ready to read this one!
💛💛💛💛
November 6, 2026
Brenda appears on the surface to be a very ordinary grandmother living in a quiet English village. She restores furniture and keeps to herself, which is probably why the gossip of the local WhatsApp group starts to focus on her, and the focus begins to turn to an attempt to drive her out of the village. Little do they know the secret that Brenda keeps. Yes, I guess it is possibly everything that a comic thriller should be, but for me, the way the author fuses together comedy and thrills together just doesn’t work. Yet another cry of tonal whiplash from me within a group of reviewers that that are crying out for more. Being short was its saving for me.
November 9, 2026
Love when karma gets you!
Never ever count a grandma out. Let's NOT talk about Brenda. Busy body neighbors better watch their gossip because Brenda just wants to be left alone, caring for her grand kids and having a furniture business. In her small town where everyone knows everyone, they think they know everything, our Brenda has a surprise for them.
She is very competent in what she does, and the neighbors will soon find out Brenda's special skills. Sure enjoyed this short story.
Never ever count a grandma out. Let's NOT talk about Brenda. Busy body neighbors better watch their gossip because Brenda just wants to be left alone, caring for her grand kids and having a furniture business. In her small town where everyone knows everyone, they think they know everything, our Brenda has a surprise for them.
She is very competent in what she does, and the neighbors will soon find out Brenda's special skills. Sure enjoyed this short story.
October 5, 2026
This is brilliant. The end.
November 2, 2026
Favorite Words:
"Coincidence is what people believe when the truth is too hard to admit."
Mean girls have nothing on mean, nasty, nosy women. Get a group of mean women together and the spite and malice flows freely.There is a reason my friends have always been males!
Brenda Houghton has a secret. Brenda has a lot of secrets. But...her secrets are nothing close to what her neighbors dream up. Brenda's secrets are much more nefarious.
The ending was fantastic! I was not expecting the story to take the direction that it did. All in all this was a fun novella.
"Coincidence is what people believe when the truth is too hard to admit."
Mean girls have nothing on mean, nasty, nosy women. Get a group of mean women together and the spite and malice flows freely.There is a reason my friends have always been males!
Brenda Houghton has a secret. Brenda has a lot of secrets. But...her secrets are nothing close to what her neighbors dream up. Brenda's secrets are much more nefarious.
The ending was fantastic! I was not expecting the story to take the direction that it did. All in all this was a fun novella.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Grisly Granny
A review of the Prime First Reads Kindle eBook edition (October 1, 2026), released in advance of the official publication by Amazon Original Stories (AOS) in eBook and in audio formats (November 1, 2026).
I'm not going to go into many details about Warm Bodies as the title and the cover image are pretty much enough of a spoiler already. Suffice it to say that 58-year-old semi-retired primary school cleaner Brenda Houghton has moved to a rented house in Stretton village with her daughter and 3 grand children. Money is tight, but Brenda is making a go of it with her re-furbished furniture business and a mysterious sideline, both of which require a sound-proofed garden shed in the yard to work in.
Meanwhile, a village WhatsApp group resents the incomer who snapped up the rented house that many others had their eyes on. A duplicitous group leader is inciting the others to spy and report on Brenda and perhaps cause her to move out of the house due to the regular visits by the community police and social workers. What is the seemingly innocent granny going to do about it?
I quite enjoyed this recent Amazon Original Story with its gradual reveals and its twisty ending.
Trivia and Links
John Marrs is a former journalist and is now a prolific novelist of psychological thrillers and speculative fiction. Warm Bodies is his first ever short story. His most popular work (per current Goodreads Ratings and Reviews) is The One (2016), which is also the first book in the Dark Future (2016-2024-ongoing?) series.
Amazon Prime First Reads advance reading copies (ARCs) are available to Amazon Prime subscribers. They offer advance reads of books in Kindle eBook format one month before the date of official release. The current month's selection is available here (Link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region).
You can watch for current and past Amazon Original Stories eBooks which are usually paired with their audiobook edition at an Amazon page here (link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region).
A review of the Prime First Reads Kindle eBook edition (October 1, 2026), released in advance of the official publication by Amazon Original Stories (AOS) in eBook and in audio formats (November 1, 2026).
Well-behaved women seldom make history. - Laurel Thatcher Ulrich (used as the Epigraph for Warm Bodies.
I'm not going to go into many details about Warm Bodies as the title and the cover image are pretty much enough of a spoiler already. Suffice it to say that 58-year-old semi-retired primary school cleaner Brenda Houghton has moved to a rented house in Stretton village with her daughter and 3 grand children. Money is tight, but Brenda is making a go of it with her re-furbished furniture business and a mysterious sideline, both of which require a sound-proofed garden shed in the yard to work in.
Meanwhile, a village WhatsApp group resents the incomer who snapped up the rented house that many others had their eyes on. A duplicitous group leader is inciting the others to spy and report on Brenda and perhaps cause her to move out of the house due to the regular visits by the community police and social workers. What is the seemingly innocent granny going to do about it?
I quite enjoyed this recent Amazon Original Story with its gradual reveals and its twisty ending.
Trivia and Links
John Marrs is a former journalist and is now a prolific novelist of psychological thrillers and speculative fiction. Warm Bodies is his first ever short story. His most popular work (per current Goodreads Ratings and Reviews) is The One (2016), which is also the first book in the Dark Future (2016-2024-ongoing?) series.
Amazon Prime First Reads advance reading copies (ARCs) are available to Amazon Prime subscribers. They offer advance reads of books in Kindle eBook format one month before the date of official release. The current month's selection is available here (Link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region).
You can watch for current and past Amazon Original Stories eBooks which are usually paired with their audiobook edition at an Amazon page here (link goes to Amazon US, adjust for your own country or region).
Review of advance copy
Coincidence is what people believe when the truth is too hard to admit.
Well, that was a satisfying read. One of my October Amazon First Reads Selections, Warm Bodies, is all about grandmother Brenda and her nosy neighbours who seem to want her gone from the neighbourhood. They don't know what she's capable of.
I cackled. This was a heartwarming tale. If you have missed Dexter, then you shall adore Warm Bodies.
Goodreads review published 04/10/26
Well, that was a satisfying read. One of my October Amazon First Reads Selections, Warm Bodies, is all about grandmother Brenda and her nosy neighbours who seem to want her gone from the neighbourhood. They don't know what she's capable of.
I cackled. This was a heartwarming tale. If you have missed Dexter, then you shall adore Warm Bodies.
Goodreads review published 04/10/26
November 4, 2026
The moral of the story: Don't fuck with Brenda. She's not your ordinary doting grandmother. She's a one-woman crew.
A bunch of gossipy neighborhood ladies, led by Beth, think they can mess with Brenda's life, but they have another think coming. Brenda will do anything (and I do mean anything) to protect her daughter and grandkids.
Pigs are involved, as is the sexy widowed farmer next door who knows more than he's saying.
I wanted more tension, and the ending was kind of weird and unsatisfying, but hanging with Brenda wasn't a bad way to spend an hour.
A bunch of gossipy neighborhood ladies, led by Beth, think they can mess with Brenda's life, but they have another think coming. Brenda will do anything (and I do mean anything) to protect her daughter and grandkids.
Pigs are involved, as is the sexy widowed farmer next door who knows more than he's saying.
I wanted more tension, and the ending was kind of weird and unsatisfying, but hanging with Brenda wasn't a bad way to spend an hour.
November 8, 2026
This author's mind will never cease to amaze me lol unhinged older women in the best way😅 really enjoyed this but I need more🔪
Plot Summary
Brenda leads a quiet life in a picture-perfect English village, looking after her grandchildren and restoring old furniture. But when the local WhatsApp group becomes obsessed with her private life, gossip soon turns into suspicion. What her nosy neighbours don't realise is that Brenda has a dark past and is far more dangerous than she appears.
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Plot Summary
Brenda leads a quiet life in a picture-perfect English village, looking after her grandchildren and restoring old furniture. But when the local WhatsApp group becomes obsessed with her private life, gossip soon turns into suspicion. What her nosy neighbours don't realise is that Brenda has a dark past and is far more dangerous than she appears.
My Bookstagram
November 9, 2026
Warm Bodies
By John Marrs
This was a great book but is a difficult book to review without giving away most of the plot. It has a snotty group of women on a social media group. A murder or two. Society in its worst forms from social media bullies, school pressures, domestic violence, and the need to protect your family.
By John Marrs
This was a great book but is a difficult book to review without giving away most of the plot. It has a snotty group of women on a social media group. A murder or two. Society in its worst forms from social media bullies, school pressures, domestic violence, and the need to protect your family.
November 2, 2026
Excellent 👌🏻
Longer review to follow but I can say this was so much fun, I felt bad for enjoying it as much as I did. 😲 ☺️
Longer review to follow but I can say this was so much fun, I felt bad for enjoying it as much as I did. 😲 ☺️
Review of advance copy
𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗯𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗱! 😂
It took me a little while to find my footing with the back-and-forth timeline and all the backstories, but once everything clicked, I was completely invested.
Dark humour, village gossip, a deliciously twisted premise and a woman who is absolutely not to be underestimated. Brenda is ruthless, fiercely loyal and resourceful. I was rooting for her so hard!
A brilliant little dark tale that left me smiling. More Brenda, please! ❤️
It took me a little while to find my footing with the back-and-forth timeline and all the backstories, but once everything clicked, I was completely invested.
Dark humour, village gossip, a deliciously twisted premise and a woman who is absolutely not to be underestimated. Brenda is ruthless, fiercely loyal and resourceful. I was rooting for her so hard!
A brilliant little dark tale that left me smiling. More Brenda, please! ❤️
October 5, 2026
I did enjoy this one but I am selfish when it comes to John Marrs. I always want more! He's one of my favorite authors and this was a good little appetizer to hold us over until his new release in the spring. It was fun, fast, and twisty in the way that everything he writes is, but I will say I did predict one of the twists which doesn't happen often when I read his books!
November 7, 2026
Take a small English village, a hoard of gossipy neighbors, and a quirky, homicidal grandma, and you’ve got the wickedly funny novella, Warm Bodies. Bringing together neighborhood drama and gruesome acts of murder into one dark comedy-slash-psychological thriller, this brilliant work of fiction easily kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. You see, it had everything I love: an unhinged middle-aged woman, laugh-out-loud-funny humor, jaw-dropping twists, and a shocking, fist-pumping conclusion that made me grin with unadulterated glee. Even better, this creepy as hell novella was only 100 pages long but also somehow felt complete in a way few do. A devilishly entertaining story of delicious dark humor and heart-warming vibes, Marrs showed off his insanely talented brain yet again.
So what was my favorite part of this unputdownable read? Well, not only was the plot twisted in the extreme, but it all centered around a sweet-but-deadly grandmother with one very large secret. A force to be reckoned with as she protected her family against her nosy, spiteful neighbors, I’d be thrilled to find her in a full-length novel someday soon. After all, this unlikely heroine had a Dexter-meets-Miss Marple feel all while reminding me of Samantha Downing’s bestseller, Too Old for This—only darker and grittier. So if love any of those books or shows and want to dive into a quick, easy read that was just as hilarious as it was gruesome, grab this one now. John Marrs never disappoints, which was evident in this morbidly sinister yet wittily playful story. Now all I want is more time with Brenda. Rating of 5+ stars.
Read if you’re a fan of:
- Morally gray narrators
- Original novellas
- Gruesome scenes
- Cozy-ish thrillers
- Juicy gossip
- Nosy neighbors
- Memorable stories
- Twisty endings
- Small-town setting
- Dark secrets
- Short chapters
- Mixed media format
BRIEF BLURB:
Please go into this one at least mostly blind! All you need to know is that this brilliant novella is about a grandmother named Brenda who has just moved into a small town of busybodies with her daughter and three grandchildren. Little does she know that her neighbors love sticking their nose into everything under the guise of protecting their picture-perfect village. Watching everything Brenda does, they report it all in their WhatsApp group chat until things spin out of control. Because they couldn’t possibly imagine how good their new neighbor is at solving problems discretely—and permanently.
Thank you John Marrs and Amazon Original Stories for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
PUB DATE: November 1, 2026
Content warning: murder, blood, mention of: domestic abuse
So what was my favorite part of this unputdownable read? Well, not only was the plot twisted in the extreme, but it all centered around a sweet-but-deadly grandmother with one very large secret. A force to be reckoned with as she protected her family against her nosy, spiteful neighbors, I’d be thrilled to find her in a full-length novel someday soon. After all, this unlikely heroine had a Dexter-meets-Miss Marple feel all while reminding me of Samantha Downing’s bestseller, Too Old for This—only darker and grittier. So if love any of those books or shows and want to dive into a quick, easy read that was just as hilarious as it was gruesome, grab this one now. John Marrs never disappoints, which was evident in this morbidly sinister yet wittily playful story. Now all I want is more time with Brenda. Rating of 5+ stars.
Read if you’re a fan of:
- Morally gray narrators
- Original novellas
- Gruesome scenes
- Cozy-ish thrillers
- Juicy gossip
- Nosy neighbors
- Memorable stories
- Twisty endings
- Small-town setting
- Dark secrets
- Short chapters
- Mixed media format
BRIEF BLURB:
Please go into this one at least mostly blind! All you need to know is that this brilliant novella is about a grandmother named Brenda who has just moved into a small town of busybodies with her daughter and three grandchildren. Little does she know that her neighbors love sticking their nose into everything under the guise of protecting their picture-perfect village. Watching everything Brenda does, they report it all in their WhatsApp group chat until things spin out of control. Because they couldn’t possibly imagine how good their new neighbor is at solving problems discretely—and permanently.
Thank you John Marrs and Amazon Original Stories for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.
PUB DATE: November 1, 2026
Content warning: murder, blood, mention of: domestic abuse
Review of advance copy
IN A NUTSHELL
If you enjoy dark humour, twisty plots, amoral heroines, and you don't mind having a few bodies sliced and diced along the way, 'Warm Bodies' will keep you entertained for an afternoon.
Although 'Warm Bodies' is John Marrs' fifteenth book, he's a new author for me. I picked 'Warm Bodies' from this month's Amazon First Reads because I liked the quirkiness of the publisher's summary.
'Warm Bodies' is only 107 pages long, so when the first few pages made me smile and made me curious, I decided to make more coffee and read the rest. It was a fun ride.
The story starts with a set of plausible, 'mean girl' exchanges between the members of the Village Vibe WhatsApp Group, vivisecting Brenda, a woman who has recently moved to the village. Then the story flips to Brenda, who seems like a nice woman and a dedicated grandma. She is those things. But that's not all she is. The WhatsApp Group have no idea who they have in their sights.
The story then flips back a month, moving towards "today" a few days at a time, intercutting the WhatsApp Group's bitching with Brenda's actions. Her backstory and what she does to pay the bills were surprising but believable. I loved how John Marrs managed the pace of the story so that, as the WhatsApp Group's meanness escalated from spiteful comments to actions that threaten Brenda and her family, we found out more about just how desperate, determined and dangerous Brenda is. The tension by the end of the story was delicious. Better yet, the final chapter still had a surprise or two that made me smile.
I'm keen to read more John Marrs now. I'm going to start with his 'Dark Future' series. I just need to decide whether to read the original version of 'The One' published in 2017 or the updated version published in 2026 with five additional chapters set ten years after the end of the first version.
If you enjoy dark humour, twisty plots, amoral heroines, and you don't mind having a few bodies sliced and diced along the way, 'Warm Bodies' will keep you entertained for an afternoon.
Although 'Warm Bodies' is John Marrs' fifteenth book, he's a new author for me. I picked 'Warm Bodies' from this month's Amazon First Reads because I liked the quirkiness of the publisher's summary.
'Warm Bodies' is only 107 pages long, so when the first few pages made me smile and made me curious, I decided to make more coffee and read the rest. It was a fun ride.
The story starts with a set of plausible, 'mean girl' exchanges between the members of the Village Vibe WhatsApp Group, vivisecting Brenda, a woman who has recently moved to the village. Then the story flips to Brenda, who seems like a nice woman and a dedicated grandma. She is those things. But that's not all she is. The WhatsApp Group have no idea who they have in their sights.
The story then flips back a month, moving towards "today" a few days at a time, intercutting the WhatsApp Group's bitching with Brenda's actions. Her backstory and what she does to pay the bills were surprising but believable. I loved how John Marrs managed the pace of the story so that, as the WhatsApp Group's meanness escalated from spiteful comments to actions that threaten Brenda and her family, we found out more about just how desperate, determined and dangerous Brenda is. The tension by the end of the story was delicious. Better yet, the final chapter still had a surprise or two that made me smile.
I'm keen to read more John Marrs now. I'm going to start with his 'Dark Future' series. I just need to decide whether to read the original version of 'The One' published in 2017 or the updated version published in 2026 with five additional chapters set ten years after the end of the first version.
October 16, 2026
Neighbors
Brenda is the daughter of an abused woman, then later in life Brenda was also abused by her husband. Then the pattern continued with her daughter married an abuser. She was proud that her daughter was doing a great job as a single mother after her husband disappeared, and of course, Brenda loved her grandchildren dearly.
They struggled when her daughter’s husband went missing, but then Brenda discovered a new vocation. She told everybody she was up cycling old furniture, but the truth was a little more unsavory.
Meanwhile, the neighborhood busy bodies are busily watching every move Brenda makes and causing her trouble at every turn.
This was a pretty full story for a Novella and I thought it was very well written. I gave it five stars.
Brenda is the daughter of an abused woman, then later in life Brenda was also abused by her husband. Then the pattern continued with her daughter married an abuser. She was proud that her daughter was doing a great job as a single mother after her husband disappeared, and of course, Brenda loved her grandchildren dearly.
They struggled when her daughter’s husband went missing, but then Brenda discovered a new vocation. She told everybody she was up cycling old furniture, but the truth was a little more unsavory.
Meanwhile, the neighborhood busy bodies are busily watching every move Brenda makes and causing her trouble at every turn.
This was a pretty full story for a Novella and I thought it was very well written. I gave it five stars.
October 8, 2026
Creepy as hell, but good.
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