Found it confusing from the start not for me dnf this. Others may think differently about this. Liked premise just not body of book

Interesting, you'll like it if you like sci-fi and a bit of horror. You'll need to sit down for this book and not get distracted at some times to understand

There are a lot of reasons why horror fiction returns to the well of vampire, werewolves and witches. The audience knows the rules. Even when you are invoking Judeo-Christian or Pagan folklore there is a sense that your monsters or antagonists will follow some aspect of the religion or belief system being invoked. Good To Grave is a bold attempt to try and marry a high-stakes office satire with a wholly original other-dimensional pantheon. It is ambitious, but I am not sure it quite works.

It makes a claim for your sympathy early on: Josie is a new graduate in New York who has an interview with the massive Eburous Group, a huge multinational where it is both unclear what the company does, and what her role will be. She fails the interview, and sees some odd things while she is there, a chalk drawing of a man that no-one else seems to be able to see. However after a few days of moping and her relationship with her girlfriend deteriorating, she bumps into one of the recruiters in a cafe and is offered a job after noticing an anomaly with her shadow. From this point onwards the book descends into a murky and literal underworld of other-dimensional creatures, slowly getting more and more bizarre whilst nothing is explained to her. The problem is, nothing is explained to the reader too.

We are a little ahead of Josie, just because we know this is a horror novel. The book also has in-world promotional and human resources materials in between the chapters. The problem is that this material is a lot more jokey than the book; each one has a slight gag about how the company values its clients alive or dead, or similar. It's almost the opposite of how the book should work. By the time we and Josie get a proper idea of what might be going on (and it is the slimmest of ideas), the promo material has gotten very explicit about other-dimensional and non-human clients. There is a rather smart idea at the heart of Good To Grave, and it plays its big twist with a rather open hand, but the confusion around the core narrative means it never feels quite as clever as it might have been, and the stakes suddenly get wildly out of control. There are lots of good things here but it will depend on your acceptance of a narrative where it isn't always clear what is going on.

I have no idea what I just read. This was such a strange and horrifying book. But after a bit of an uncertain start, I ended up loving it! The clearly evil from the start corporation just get worse and worse as the story went on. The last chapters in particular were deeply disturbing (that’s not to say it wasn’t disturbing before) and the ending… And to think I found the first communication slightly humorous in a huh, this is strange kind of way.

Horror aside, I loved all the information we got between the chapters through fliers and bits of the handbook and the like. Although some were… let’s say interesting at times, they were remarkably mundane and normal compared to everything else that was happening. Oh and I kind of love that the site that’s mentioned at one point was actually made. The home page at least (yes, I went and checked because why not).

The book was a little confusing at times and while I think this was to some extent intentional (it does help us connect with Josie’s experiences), I would have loved a little more clarification at times. Particularly at the end where I felt like everything could have been pulled together a bit better. Even if we got some memos between high level members at some point. But overall, I did enjoy it.

This whole book was a very exciting thrill ride!!
The imagination and description was top notch!! 👌
Josie is given an exciting opportunity to work for the Eburos company.
Really strange things happen is it magic, is it a job from Hell?
She has to fight to break free, all while wearing someone else's face and carrying around their heart in her chest.
You will not be able to stop reading this fantastical story!

Do you remember when you first encountered ‘Resident Evil’ - be it game, movie or just lore in general? Corporate horror, people as resources, so many layers beneath the surface (figuratively and literally)?

This book kept reminding me of that.

We have an Evil Corporation, right off the bat. Professional and desirable on the surface, but with an overload of ‘HR-speak’ that includes the odd unexpected word. Like ‘blood’ or ‘limbs’ with regard to insurance. And company picnics.

Protagonist Josie is desperate for a job in New York City and Eburos looks like the ideal. Except there’s a weird chalk drawing on the CEO’s wall, and staff members with red paint all over them. Time seems to run differently while in the office (which I admit I can relate to!), and there’s something very off about the branded stress ball she’s been given…

From limousines and boats to caves and penthouses, via Manhattan skyscrapers and islands that I’m sure I’ve never heard of, Josie must uncover exactly what the hell is going on beneath Eburos’ perfect public business veneer, for the sake of herself, her family and potentially everyone.

Having worked in corporate London, I saw so much that was familiar in this book. The author clearly knows his Legal Jargon, what office life is like these days, and just how ruthless you have to be to get ahead. This isn’t just Wall Street, this is somewhere far more Faustian - or even Lovecraftian.

‘Good to Grave’ is one of the most fun horror/thrillers I’ve ever read. Intensely fast-paced, dark when needed but with great threads of humanity and black humour, it’s an absolute trip. My only gripe is that I was left wanting to know what happened after the final page!

I don’t know how to review a book where I had no idea what the hell happened.
All the characters were having conversations with each other but each conversation was a different conversation. The main character Josie didn’t even know what was happening the entire book.

I was really excited to read this book based on its premise. The main character gets a job at a company that has a contract with other world entities, and she quickly finds herself in over her head. This is a really interesting concept, but I found the execution left something to be desired. The world building felt incomplete and the other world entities were not explained beyond being some vague capitalism metaphor. I understand intentional confusion in a book, and I am usually a fan of disconnected fever-dream writing, but this was a poor execution of the concept. This book had hints of a really interesting plot but nothing was explored in-depth enough for it to really shine. The writing itself felt disjointed while the plot wasn’t given the room to be purposefully unclear. This is also a concept that I have seen explored better in other works. Overall, this book has a lot of potential but it just didn’t live up to it.

intriguingly fever-dream-like horror with some interestingly peculiar set development and some quite impressive overall vibes. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

While this had some moments, I largely found it to be a drag...and a confusing one at that. I only ploughed through to the end to see if it would pull everything together and make sense. It didn't.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

The book is atmospheric and mysterious. Author pulled me in and didn’t let me go until the end. Characters were mysterious and intriguing too. The setting gives both eerie and mysterious vibe.

Josie is a college graduate and she is in a financial trouble so when she gets an opportunity to work for The Eburos Group, she grabs the opportunity. But she notice something odd and couldn’t make peace with it. The writing felt feverish. As I read further, the plot unfolded with a shroud of mystery. It was all so unpredictable.

Thanks to the Publisher

Some books just aren’t for you. I thought this one was for me. It just isn’t.

This definitely has humor in it.

Im also so confused.
The middle images in the book were also weird. This entire book was so odd I don’t know how to feel. I was really hoping for something scary.

If you want a bizarre novel that you might laugh at and be scared at times while giggling I would recommend this. It’s just not for me.

Thank you for the eARC approval. I appreciate the opportunity to leave honest feedback voluntarily.

I don’t typically read horror in the middle of the summer, but would highly recommend this for spooky season!

It gave me major Severance vibes with a gruesome twist and the “easter egg” press releases/marketing posters/news articles sprinkled throughout were so fun!

4 ⭐️!!
Thanks NetGallery and FPB for the ARC 🙌🏼

This was a weird one - weird and confusing. It's unsettling, there's a lot of supernatural dread and it is well written though so I kept at it hoping the confusion will sort itself out but instead it just got more confusing and increasingly weirder. Maybe I am missing something or the point of the story but this was not very satisfying for me.

This is a weird supernatural novel about an evil corporation who's clients are actually demons perhaps or something else.

When Josie takes a job for a high paying position at a corporation, her life will change almost immediately but not for the better. Her girlfriend is acting cold and distant, a mutual friend suddenly disappears, and her orientation for this new job is next level strange to say the least.

But it only gets worse from there as the horrifying secrets of the company are revealed in a very visceral manner. Entities from... someplace... perhaps another world or hell itself are their clients and have some nasty demands to keep them happy. And Josie is going to find out much too late that the contract she signed comes with terrifying consequences.

This novel ramps up the bizzare proceedings rather quickly and Josie really has no time to think about what's happening. Some really freaky things happen to her as she's made to deal with a creature known as the Friendly Man. He's really not so much.

While the book seems to jump from one situation to the next fairly rapidly, it all settles into a satisfying conclusion albeit one which will leave you with more questions. Overall, this is a strange, frightening novel and I highly recommend it.
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This is an excellent read--I truly found it hard to put down once I’d started. Sure, it’s horror, but I think you’re going to be okay unless you get easily spooked. The story is interesting, suspenseful, and it was tough to predict where it was going to go, which made it a fun ride throughout the novel for me. Well worth the read!

The book was a fun satire of corporations literally being hell. I’ve seen better than this, but it was still fun. Surprisingly spooky, as well. I’d recommend for sure!

Ok, I'm SO confused... I liked the writing, mostly - but it was a fever dream of a story, and the jumps were bizarre and unsettling and nothing was ever clear. I get that this is probably the point, or at least a significant part of it, and in that sense it's a great success. I was as lost as Josie, and stumbling along in the dark right there with her. But at some point I wanted clarification on something - anything? - and I never felt like I got that, and that left me frustrated... I slogged along in the hope that it would all come together and can't say that I feel like it ever did for me.

Thank you for the opportunity to preview Good to Grave. This is a very interesting novel. As you begin the story you are in the mind of a young woman seeking a job. She goes to an interview and she is asked many questions. But something is not quite right about this employer.
She does not get the job and tries to move on. Soon unexplained issues arise and many coincidences that make her think she’s possibly imagining the things she sees. But then she gets the job at an unplanned meeting.
Getting this job is not typical and soon she realizes she may have just signed up for a job that is more than just a job. It may be a commitment. And one that lasts a very long time. 3.5 stars

Thank you so much to @netgalley for the prerelease read of Good to Grave by Michael Park. It’s a fun and unique read. Think corporate greed meets demons, throw in some chaotic adventures, a few “wait, what?!” moments, and you’ve got a ride that somehow ties it all together just enough to leave you satisfied… and still desperately needing book two. (I can hope!). The corporate events and reminders, like the one above, are amazing. I love the mix of corporate jargon and demonic activities. To sum it up in a sentence: Poor Josie ends up in literal corporate hell….or is her name Grace?

If you are wanting some escapism, this will do it. I highly recommend checking it out when it comes out July 8th!