“If John Irving ever wrote a horror novel, it would be something like this. I loved it.” —Stephen KingNoah Turner sees monsters.His father saw them—and built a shrine to them with The Wandering Dark, an immersive horror experience that the whole family operates.His practical mother has caught glimpses of terrors but refuses to believe—too focused on keeping the family from falling apart.And his … keeping the family from falling apart.
And his eldest sister, the dramatic and vulnerable Sydney, won’t admit to seeing anything but the beckoning glow of the spotlight . . . until it swallows her up.
Noah Turner sees monsters. But, unlike his family, Noah chooses to let them in . . .
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Shaun Hamill’s A Cosmology of Monsters brilliantly combines the mythos of H.P. Lovecraft with a contemporary story of a family under threat of destruction from supernatural forces. It succeeds because these are good, likeable people that we root for; they could be our neighbors. Horror only works when we care for the people involved, and because we care for the Turners, their nightmare becomes ours. Hamill’s prose is simple, and simply beautiful. If John Irving ever wrote a horror novel, it would be something like this. I loved it, and think you will, too.
Exquisitely written, A Cosmology of Monsters is both beautiful and haunting. Shaun Hamill has crafted the best sort of horror story: one full of love and dread that will have you rethinking your definition of what a monster is.
This was an easy 5 stars for me!
~Noah Turner sees monsters. But unlike his family, Noah chooses to let them in~
That’s all I needed to be intrigued by this book and I went into it expecting a lot as I’d seen many glowing reviews. I didn’t get a lot. I got a lavish banquet of brilliant characterisation (characters you *care* about), the twistiest twist, and a whole load of Lovecraftian references, all mixed up with an intricately spun tale of a family haunted by monsters.
Hamill weaves such an addictive story, mixing horror with dark fantasy, packed with atmosphere and bittersweet relationships.
I can’t believe this is a debut novel, and I’m here queuing up waiting for the next in eager anticipation!
Noah and his family are special, but I’m not so sure that’s a good thing! A COSMOLOGY OF MONSTERS is a unique story. With a great opening line like: “I started collecting my older sister Eunice’s suicide notes when I was seven years old.” how can one NOT get sucked in?
This tale about a family, the haunted house/attractions they’ve managed and their unique relationships with, (I’ll just call it “the other” for the purposes of this review), made for fascinating reading. As a longtime fan of horror, I loved the shout-outs and homages to those who have come before, most especially Lovecraft and King. (Check out the blurb from King on the cover!)
I also enjoyed the character development here, even if I didn’t like most of the characters. Almost none of the characters are perfectly good or bad, they are a mix of both, just like in real life. I did, (mostly), root for them anyway, especially Megan because I thought she got a raw deal.
That said, the story fast-forwarded a bit after extensive time was spent on Noah’s early years. At first it was a bit jarring, and then I became accustomed to it. Other than that, one other thing bothered me, but I can’t get into it without spoiling a few plot points. I’ll just say that I wanted to know more about “the other.” More being everything, really. I just wanted more.
For a debut novel, this one kept me turning the pages and I think it will be interesting to see how others react to it. For that reason, I’m going to keep my eyes open for other reviews on
*Thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC, (in exchange for my honest review), and thanks to THE LINEUP for their giveaway, in which I received a beautiful hard copy with no strings attached. This review is my honest opinion.*
A monster stalks a family across generations; a hidden city beckons from beyond perception; trauma and human frailty and loss bear their terrible fangs… A Cosmology of Monsters is as weird and compelling and ambitious a horror novel as you could possibly want.
Sometimes you read a book and you know it’s special. A Cosmology of Monsters by Shaun Hamill is just such a book. It’s a book about family, love, loss, obsession… and monsters. Unique and wonderful. You won’t read anything like it this year.
A Cosmology of Monsters by Shaun Hamill is beautiful, heartbreaking, offbeat horror. A terrific debut.
One thing I try really, really, really hard to do, is to not mention/discuss/compare my own writing within a book review because this space is about me sharing to you (whomever is reading these reviews) about a book I’ve read and what I think you’ll enjoy and what may make you decide to read it. It shouldn’t be about why you should read my work/buy it or how something I’ve written exists in the same space as someone else’s book.
But every once in a while, a book comes along that pushes that to the test. ‘A Cosmology of Monsters’ is such a book. Shaun Hamill is a fantastic guy. We’ve connected via social media and seeing his success has been fantastic, yet – up until now – I had to hold off on reading this. The reason was that a few folks who’ve read the book had messaged me before and told me that the atmosphere and ‘base idea’ (not to say anyone copied anyone etc etc) was eerily reminiscent of my own novella ‘Wagon Buddy.’
I’m still in the ‘Wagon Buddy’ world. In fact, just yesterday I plotted/outlined the third and final ‘Wagon Buddy’ novella. So, out of fairness, I wanted to give myself and this book some space to make sure I could enjoy it as much as I knew I would.
So, how is it “similar”? In Hamill’s, a young kid who’s father has died just after he was born, discovers he has a nightly visitor, a large, clawed beast that seems to be there to be his friend and protect him. He’s not sure where they’re from and the friend won’t tell him. But it opens up so many questions that Noah Turner, our young kid, wants to learn more.
In mine, Scott, a young kid, who’s father has abandoned his family, is bullied. Discovering an immense, trench-coat, mask wearing imaginary friend one day, realizes his friend is there to protect him. He’s not sure where they’re from and the friend won’t tell him. But it opens up so many questions for Scott.
Cool, yeah?
Now, other than those, there are some similarities in the journey our characters take from start to finish, but that’s about it, two very very different stories that are grounded by this shared space of a young kid, growing up, trying to find their place in the world, but also having this friend that they can’t tell anyone about. Love it.
What I liked: As mentioned above, the story follows our main character, Noah, over the course of his life. We get to see the family before he arrives and their decision to create and operate a haunted house attraction.
From there, we see the spider web cracks created by Noah’s father falling ill and how his passing away affects each of the kids and his mom, as well as the tangible effects that reverberate following.
Hamill writes with such sublime prose. Each and every page hummed and crackled with energy but also the sorrow of a father’s passing. I really loved seeing how Noah’s relationships with his two sister’s and even his mom, were so unique and decidedly different than the other.
The monster who scratches on his window and begins to form a friendship was fantastic as well. I loved the amount of detail/story we got with them and thoroughly loved seeing how Hamill expanded upon it more and more, until we arrived at a point where a decision needed to be made.
Throughout, we have a side story of kidnapped/disappearing people, which worked really well, but when it happened directly to the Turner family, it really elevates the anxiety that seemed to be running just below the surface of the story, but also the tension between the family themselves.
The ending of this was perfect. With how Hamill had set it up and got us from A-B, I was so happy to see us return to C and get the closure we needed, but also the wrap up with the creatures.
What I didn’t like: The only thing I wasn’t too keen on was a specific character within The Fellowship. This was a group of characters who were having meetings to discuss how their family members had disappeared mysteriously. The main male annoyed me to no end, but the character was used well in their minimal involvement.
Why you should buy this: Hamill has really created a beautiful story here, one that covers decades, and how people change the inevitable creep of time can change and sculpt things in ways you never expect. The use of Lovecraft at the beginning to open the concept of other dimensions or monsters among us was great, but the fact that Hamill really created and owned his own monsters within this was stunning.
I’m so happy that I’ve now read this and it’s a book that explores relationships so well that often you’ll forget you’re reading a truly dark, horrific book where people will be ripped apart and stolen in the blink of an eye.
Outstanding work.
Perfect read for Halloween time!!
I find myself struggling to write a review for this book because it is so unique and original that I don’t want to say anything that would spoil any part of it!
The story centers around the Turner family and is narrated by the youngest son Noah. His father, Harry, is passionate about all things horror. He is mesmerized by H.P. Lovecraft and collects comic books, movie posters, etc. He decides to build a haunted house for his neighborhood to enjoy. As construction begins, Harry changes. He’s moody and irritable and often lost in a dream world. Enter the monsters.
Truth be told, I’m not really sure why this book is categorized as horror. When I think of horror, I think of blood and gore and things that go bump in the night. While this book has monsters, they are so uniquely created that it was difficult to fear them. To me, this book was more about the horrors associated with real life. Many of the most horrific things in life fill the pages: suicide, kidnapping, and statutory rape just to name a few. At it’s core, I felt like A Cosmology of Monsters was more about a family battling the demons within, rather than the monsters outside.
I found the narration to be a bit confusing at times. Noah tells his mother’s story starting years before his birth but it was a bit difficult to understand her perspective through Noah’s eyes. Eventually, the story shifts to the present and things seemed more coherent to me at that point. Between chapters, there are sections known as the Turner Sequence and each is narrated by a different family member. These sections bring a cohesive conclusion to a great finale.
One complaint: towards the end of the section there is a part where (in the paperback version anyway) the pages turn black and the print is white. Stylistically brilliant and so fitting for the story. Unfortunately for me (and my 47 year old eyes, even with readers), I found the section very difficult to read. Perhaps if the white ink would have been brighter or something…
Anyway, I thought this was a great book and I look forward to see what the author presents readers with next. My advice is not to go into this book thinking you are going to be reading a traditional horror story. Instead, imagine the horror within to be a little less literal and and a little more figurative.
I am usually too much of a wimp for horror, but this striking story about family, alienation, love, loss, and the elusive lines between light and dark, the familiar and the alien, the intimate and the horrific totally hooked me. A great, fun, engaging read!
One of the best horror novels I’ve read in years. Following through the lives of several members of the Turner family and their ancestors, before finally settling on Noah Turner, our first-person narrator, we go on a journey that spans lifetimes and a mystery that has befuddled generations. The family business is a haunted house, open for the Halloween season, called the Wandering Dark, which children Noah, Eunice, and Sydney have grown up with. Even though the livelihood of the Turners is entrenched in darkness, each family member struggles with their own issues, as seen by the memorable first line of the novel: “I started collecting my older sister Eunice’s suicide notes when I was seven years old.”
What a way to begin. Hamill does a great job of balancing the fantastical with the ordinary and blending the two. The children grew up with a haunted house, already an odd profession for a family to have, and the Wandering Dark plays a perfect setting for the family as they grow and begin to realize that they really are haunted. I won’t spoil anything, but the way Noah, perpetually isolated, reacts to being haunted is wonderful and original. There is an unusual bond between Noah and his demons, one that I’m sure will probably disturb some readers but was so new that it just engrossed me further. Do beware of literally all the content warnings, though, guys. This book deals with a lot of heavy material, and even though it was handled great and never felt depressing, you might want to skip it if you have any common triggers.
Something that stuck out to me the most was the vacillation between Noah’s first person point of view and the omnipresent tone the novel has for all other sections. Having Noah as our narrator gave us an insight into his mind, especially as the novel spans decades of his life. We get to see him grow up, fall in love, get married, go through all the life events. It feels, at the end of the novel, that Noah is a friend we know very well. The other part of the narrative leads us through the lives of Noah’s family members, which is easily one of the highlights of the novel. Each character is uniquely developed and deals with their own brand of horror.
Overall, most everything about this novel was so original. The horror, the monsters, the family dynamics, the unusual writing style, everything worked. A stunning debut into a genre that struggles to stay unique. I look forward to everything else this author puts out. The only reason this didn’t get a full five stars from me is that I did see the ending coming from a mile away, and even though it was a good ending, in a book that was so wholly fresh and twisty, it felt like a disappointment to know where we were going to end up.
Much thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me a digital ARC of this book.
From what I have read so far, A Cosmology of Monsters has been wickedly twisted and it is so thrilling the further I dive deeper into it.