Delicious Monsters

By: Liselle Sambury, Angel Pean

Narrated by: Sandra Okuboyejo

“A haunted house thriller packed with cryptic mystery, dark humor, and bone-chilling twists.” —Ryan Douglass, New York Times bestselling author of The Taking of Jake Livingston

The Haunting of Hill House meets Sadie in this “genuinely terrifying” (School Library Journal, starred review) psychological thriller following two teen girls navigating the treacherous past of a mysterious mansion ten years apart.

Daisy sees dead people—something impossible to forget in bustling, ghost-packed Toronto. She usually manages to deal with her unwanted ability, but she’s completely unprepared to be dumped by her boyfriend. So when her mother inherits a secluded mansion in northern Ontario where she spent her childhood summers, Daisy jumps at the chance to escape. But the house is nothing like Daisy expects, and she begins to realize that her experience with the supernatural might be no match for her mother’s secrets, nor what lurks within these walls…

A decade later, Brittney is desperate to get out from under the thumb of her abusive mother, a bestselling author who claims her stay at “Miracle Mansion” allowed her to see the error of her ways. But Brittney knows that’s nothing but a sham. She decides the new season of her popular Haunted web series will uncover what happened to a young Black girl in the mansion ten years prior and finally expose her mother’s lies. But as she gets more wrapped up in the investigation, she’ll have to decide: if she can only bring one story to light, which one matters most—Daisy’s or her own?

As Brittney investigates the mansion in the present, Daisy’s story runs parallel in the past, both timelines propelling the girls to face the most dangerous monsters of all: those that hide in plain sight.

Critic reviews

"Narrators Sandra Okuboyejo and Angel Pean deliver haunting performances in this young adult thriller. Ten years apart, two young women uncover the secret of a mansion in secluded Ontario. Daisy, whose family originally inherited the mansion, can see spirits. Ten years later, Brittany wants to solve the mystery of who died in the house and write about it in her web series. Though the main characters have stark differences, both narrators use tones that work well for a murky mystery. Okuboyejo and Pean deliver paranormal intrigue that becomes clear over time with exciting reveals."

I Wasn’t Prepared for How Good This Was

I got this on a daily special and started it that day. Since it wasn’t my usual genre, I intended to give it 15 minutes and then pass on it if I wasn’t interested, only my first listen turned into hours. This story was so well written, so beautiful and tragic. The performances were incredible as well. Well done Liselle. You are masterful.

Completely Amazing

This book had such a complex compelling story. The characters pulled at my heart even when they made me mad. I was biting my nails & completely engrossed the whole way through. The story wasn’t what I expected but was everything I needed it to be. A fantastic listen/read. And the voice actors did an amazing job keeping you in the story.

Why isn’t everyone freaking out about this!?

This book is brilliant. Narration was fantastic. The pacing and twists were engaging and the story was so original.

Good Listen

So glad I took a chance on this. My usual reads and listens involve sarcastic cyborgs in the distant future or sword-wielding adolescents and fire-breathing dragons - or both. Or Nordic detectives. Jumped out of my comfort zone to check this out.

This. 'Delicious Monsters' popped up in my recommendations around Halloween and I thought, 'Why not?' Despite being loaded with supernatural content, this is not a fright fest. There are elements of the story that are beyond creepy, but those elements evoke revulsion and thoughts of 'I need a shower now!' rather than a terror-fueled adrenaline rush.

There are trigger warnings for child abuse. (It appears in sexual and psychological forms as well as physical torture.) There should also be warnings for people with mommy or daddy issues. The novel revolves around incompetent parenting in general and sadistic fathers and narcissistic mothers in particular.

There are ghosts, ghosts and more ghosts here. Ghosts literally come out of the woodwork. All of the ghosts are creepy, but most are pathetic, some are malevolent, and a very few of the malevolent ones are dangerous. But it's the living that behave in the most monstrous ways.

'Delicious Monsters' is a lovely, at times heartbreaking story that is well told. 'Daisy' is well performed. I really enjoy the story when it is told from her point of view. 'Brittany' is read mostly in monotone. There are some changes in volume and the pace of speech, but there is little inflection. While I like Brittany's story, I don't look forward to hearing it.

Brava, Ms Sambury.

Fantastic!

Loved the book! Great story, great narrators, very enjoyable listen. I'm telling all my friends to read it!!!