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Eat the Ones You Love
A twisted, tangled story about workplace love-affairs, and plants with a taste for human flesh
During a grocery run to her local shopping center, Shell Pine sees a ‘HELP NEEDED’ sign in a flower shop window. She’s just left her fiancé, lost her job, and moved home to her parents’ house. She has to make a change and bring some good into her life, so she goes inside and takes a chance. Shell realizes right away that flowers are just the good thing she's been looking for, as is Neve, the beautiful florist who wrote the sign asking for help. The thing is, Neve needs help more than Shell could possibly imagine.
An orchid growing out of sight in the heart of the mall is watching them closely. His name is Baby, and the beautiful florist belongs to him. He’s young, he’s hungry, and he’ll do just about anything to make sure he can keep growing big and strong. Nothing he eats – nobody he eats – can satisfy him, except the thing he most desires. Neve. He adores her and wants to consume her, and will stop at nothing to eat the one he loves.
This is a story about possession, and monstrosity, and working retail. It is about hunger and desire, and other terrible things that grow.
During a grocery run to her local shopping center, Shell Pine sees a ‘HELP NEEDED’ sign in a flower shop window. She’s just left her fiancé, lost her job, and moved home to her parents’ house. She has to make a change and bring some good into her life, so she goes inside and takes a chance. Shell realizes right away that flowers are just the good thing she's been looking for, as is Neve, the beautiful florist who wrote the sign asking for help. The thing is, Neve needs help more than Shell could possibly imagine.
An orchid growing out of sight in the heart of the mall is watching them closely. His name is Baby, and the beautiful florist belongs to him. He’s young, he’s hungry, and he’ll do just about anything to make sure he can keep growing big and strong. Nothing he eats – nobody he eats – can satisfy him, except the thing he most desires. Neve. He adores her and wants to consume her, and will stop at nothing to eat the one he loves.
This is a story about possession, and monstrosity, and working retail. It is about hunger and desire, and other terrible things that grow.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published April 22, 2025
523 people are currently reading
35938 people want to read
About the author
Sarah Maria Griffin
10 books405 followersSarah Maria Griffin lives in Dublin, Ireland, in a small red brick house by the sea, with her husband and cat. She writes about monsters, growing up, and everything those two things have in common. Her first book, SPARE AND FOUND PARTS, is out now.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,229 reviews
netgalley
April 11, 2024is there a singing sadistic dentist in this too?
April 24, 2025
I listened to the audiobook version and I'm very glad I did. I thought the narrators were great and added a lot to the quality of the book, by giving more depth to the characters and adding a touch of humour.
The story of the creepy stalker killer plant is really unsettling, and the choice of setting it in a dying mall is a brilliant idea.
Honestly just after finishing this book I'm not sure how to describe exactly my feelings about it, but a creepy vibe remains, in a very good way.
Thank you MacMillan audio for this opportunity!
The story of the creepy stalker killer plant is really unsettling, and the choice of setting it in a dying mall is a brilliant idea.
Honestly just after finishing this book I'm not sure how to describe exactly my feelings about it, but a creepy vibe remains, in a very good way.
Thank you MacMillan audio for this opportunity!
June 29, 2025
I don't want to sound too harsh because this book did nothing wrong in particular, but the synopsis is not representing the actual story at all. I expected plant horror and sapphic romance and all I got was this mall worker relationship drama that totally sidelined the sentient men-eating plant. I wanted something obsession-worthy like "Bloom" by Delilah S. Dawson, but this really wasn't it.
May 22, 2025
Dublin-based author and poet Sarah Maria Griffin’s unsettling story is closer to weird fiction than conventional horror. Although her setting of Woodbine Crown a crumbling retail complex, inspired by Donaghmede shopping centre close to where Griffin grew up, gives it a distinctly gothic flavour – demonstrated in the emphasis on this labyrinthine, haunted, decaying space. The narrator’s known only as Baby, a monstrous creature, ostensibly a sentient plant able to tap into the consciousness of the people it comes into contact with. But it’s not really organic rather something otherworldly, almost Lovecraftian, that’s crept through a crack in the fabric of space and time. Its desires, its goals are inextricably tied to florist Neve whose tiny shop is based in the centre, although creeping gentrification threatens its future existence. Neve is reeling from a break-up with girlfriend Jen when she meets Shell who’s equally adrift. Shell takes a job as Neve’s assistant a stopgap intended to help her get back on track after a failed relationship closely followed by redundancy. However, Shell’s overwhelming attraction to Neve causes Shell to jettison her plans in hope of a shared future. But Shell hasn’t reckoned with Baby’s insatiable needs and obsessive manipulations which have already resulted in a series of mysterious disappearances.
Griffin worked in retail for close to a decade and once trained as a florist which grounds her narrative in reality. A reality which encompasses a critique of Dublin itself, the communities being swept away, the local gathering places purged then replaced by a series of barren, luxury buildings. Shell’s situation and that of the people around her encapsulates the issues around class, the failure of social mobility, precarity and urban alienation, that Griffin perceives as an inescapable feature of Ireland’s contemporary social landscape. And, although Griffin refuses any notion of Baby as metaphor, her malevolent narrator conjures visions of vengeful nature, of fractured eco-systems, a wider world that’s horribly out of balance. There are times when Griffin’s story falters, it’s slow-moving and could probably be trimmed back without losing any of its force. But its flaws felt relatively minor simply because the writing’s so incredibly fluid and hypnotic, overflowing with striking images and arresting passages. Although, be warned, it’s not a book for anyone seeking tidy resolutions or overarching explanations.
Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Titan for an ARC
Griffin worked in retail for close to a decade and once trained as a florist which grounds her narrative in reality. A reality which encompasses a critique of Dublin itself, the communities being swept away, the local gathering places purged then replaced by a series of barren, luxury buildings. Shell’s situation and that of the people around her encapsulates the issues around class, the failure of social mobility, precarity and urban alienation, that Griffin perceives as an inescapable feature of Ireland’s contemporary social landscape. And, although Griffin refuses any notion of Baby as metaphor, her malevolent narrator conjures visions of vengeful nature, of fractured eco-systems, a wider world that’s horribly out of balance. There are times when Griffin’s story falters, it’s slow-moving and could probably be trimmed back without losing any of its force. But its flaws felt relatively minor simply because the writing’s so incredibly fluid and hypnotic, overflowing with striking images and arresting passages. Although, be warned, it’s not a book for anyone seeking tidy resolutions or overarching explanations.
Thanks to Netgalley and publisher Titan for an ARC
January 31, 2025
Something has changed within me, something is not the same (I'm afraid of plants now)
June 14, 2025
Don't pick this up for the queer or horror aspects. It is more like a dull love triangle where she spends more time with the man instead of the woman, and one that is almost ten years younger than her. It starts off very slow and it's not scary either. A good chunk of this book is just a group of friends hanging out and the main character flirting with two people while working a new job. It's told from the omnipresent perspective of a parasitic orchid creature, yet the creature felt more like a subplot and not the main focus until near the end of the book. Just wasn't what I was expecting or wanting from this. Halfway through, I finally felt some interest but many scenes felt like filler. Like what was the point? This book didn't need to be half this long. I'm only giving it three stars because it did hold my interest for the last 20%.
April 29, 2025
i’m going to try to read this again but audiobook because i just feel like the narrative didn’t work for me reading it on my kindle, i really struggled to get in to it.
Read
August 29, 2025A Little Shop of Horrors premise without the silliness. Basically, there's a sentient carnivorous psychic plant in the crumbling shopping mall. Neve, a florist, is infected by / looking after it; Shell, escaping job and relationship losses, becomes her assistant and gets sucked in.
The weighting of the story is honestly a bit unexpected. We get a lot on Shell's psyche, her inability to engage fully with life and sense of modern anomie, and a lot on the crew at the crumbling mall. I'd say the emotional weight of the story is really all in the way these assorted people are trying to make meaning and connection in their lives. That's very well done, relatable and engaging and real, and honestly the horror element felt a bit surplus to that. In fact, I was less interested in the carnivorous sentient plant than in the closure of the shopping mall, which is not a sentence I would have foreseen myself writing.
The other issue for me with the plant is its psychicness: it knew what Neve and Shell were going to do and how they felt at all times, which for me rather got in the way of discovering more about them as people, because it was all laid out rather than gradually unspooled. again, this is only an issue because I was committed to the people plot not the plant plot. Say that three times fast.
Intriguing, beautiful writing, really lovely characterisation including terrific sketching in of minor characters, wonderful sense of place. Ultimately I didn't quite feel it came together because of the tensions between the things it was trying to do but I'll be really interested in what the author does next.
The weighting of the story is honestly a bit unexpected. We get a lot on Shell's psyche, her inability to engage fully with life and sense of modern anomie, and a lot on the crew at the crumbling mall. I'd say the emotional weight of the story is really all in the way these assorted people are trying to make meaning and connection in their lives. That's very well done, relatable and engaging and real, and honestly the horror element felt a bit surplus to that. In fact, I was less interested in the carnivorous sentient plant than in the closure of the shopping mall, which is not a sentence I would have foreseen myself writing.
The other issue for me with the plant is its psychicness: it knew what Neve and Shell were going to do and how they felt at all times, which for me rather got in the way of discovering more about them as people, because it was all laid out rather than gradually unspooled. again, this is only an issue because I was committed to the people plot not the plant plot. Say that three times fast.
Intriguing, beautiful writing, really lovely characterisation including terrific sketching in of minor characters, wonderful sense of place. Ultimately I didn't quite feel it came together because of the tensions between the things it was trying to do but I'll be really interested in what the author does next.
June 19, 2025
this started out really strong for me, botanical horror?? i’m into it always. but this book left me wanting so much more!! i wanted more uncomfortable body horror, i wanted more from the queer love interest, but then a man had to ruin it. i cant lie and say this didn’t have its moments, because it really did! it unsettled me deeply at times, but overall it was okay
June 22, 2025
plant girly approved
February 20, 2025
3.5 stars - thank you Tor for an early copy of this book!
I thought this book was not only really quirky and unique, but also unsettling and deranged. I loved the LGBTQIA+ rep and how it takes place in Ireland. I enjoyed watching Shell blossom in her new surroundings and the dynamics between her new friend group. I also loved the drama weaved throughout, it messy and entertaining. But, overall my favorite part was Baby’s obsession with Neve and his relentless desire to consume her.
I had a good time reading this book, though ultimately I would’ve liked for there to be more horrific scenes of Baby doing what he loves to do.
Video review: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT2f2uK68/
I thought this book was not only really quirky and unique, but also unsettling and deranged. I loved the LGBTQIA+ rep and how it takes place in Ireland. I enjoyed watching Shell blossom in her new surroundings and the dynamics between her new friend group. I also loved the drama weaved throughout, it messy and entertaining. But, overall my favorite part was Baby’s obsession with Neve and his relentless desire to consume her.
I had a good time reading this book, though ultimately I would’ve liked for there to be more horrific scenes of Baby doing what he loves to do.
Video review: https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZT2f2uK68/
September 4, 2025
4.75 stars
A thoughtful exploration of the loneliness epidemic… as witnessed by a devious sentient plant. Eat the Ones You Love was not at all what I expected—and that’s likely for the better. Going in knowing only that it was compared to Little Shop of Horrors, I anticipated a campy, over-the-top gore-fest featuring a flesh-eating plant. Instead, the novel turned out to be far more lyrical and melancholic, focusing on a group of adults feeling 'stuck' in life—emotionally, romantically, and professionally.
I loved the setting of a dilapidated shopping mall—not just as a moody, liminal backdrop for horror, but also as a powerful metaphor for a crumbling capitalist society and the abandonment of communal, physical spaces. The characters are incredibly relatable (especially if you’re in your thirties and still feel adrift), and I appreciated the exploration surrouning adult friendship and sexuality.
I’ve seen complaints regarding the shifting POVs being hard to follow. Fortunately, in the audiobook version, the dual narrators make those transitions clearer. Still, I understand why it might be disorienting in print (though you could argue the ambiguity is intentional), and chapter labels would’ve gone a long way in improving clarity.
Eat the Ones You Love ended up being a deeply resonating surprise—especially since I read it during a period of personal transition (like the protagonist, I’m also a graphic designer who recently made a big career shift). The novel combines many of the elements I’m drawn to: semi-abandoned urban spaces, a surreal, dreamlike tone, and slow-burning dread. While readers expecting a fast-paced, escapist horror story might find its literary tone and introspective focus a letdown, I genuinely loved it—and appreciated that the horror hook has led me to it!
A thoughtful exploration of the loneliness epidemic… as witnessed by a devious sentient plant. Eat the Ones You Love was not at all what I expected—and that’s likely for the better. Going in knowing only that it was compared to Little Shop of Horrors, I anticipated a campy, over-the-top gore-fest featuring a flesh-eating plant. Instead, the novel turned out to be far more lyrical and melancholic, focusing on a group of adults feeling 'stuck' in life—emotionally, romantically, and professionally.
I loved the setting of a dilapidated shopping mall—not just as a moody, liminal backdrop for horror, but also as a powerful metaphor for a crumbling capitalist society and the abandonment of communal, physical spaces. The characters are incredibly relatable (especially if you’re in your thirties and still feel adrift), and I appreciated the exploration surrouning adult friendship and sexuality.
I’ve seen complaints regarding the shifting POVs being hard to follow. Fortunately, in the audiobook version, the dual narrators make those transitions clearer. Still, I understand why it might be disorienting in print (though you could argue the ambiguity is intentional), and chapter labels would’ve gone a long way in improving clarity.
Eat the Ones You Love ended up being a deeply resonating surprise—especially since I read it during a period of personal transition (like the protagonist, I’m also a graphic designer who recently made a big career shift). The novel combines many of the elements I’m drawn to: semi-abandoned urban spaces, a surreal, dreamlike tone, and slow-burning dread. While readers expecting a fast-paced, escapist horror story might find its literary tone and introspective focus a letdown, I genuinely loved it—and appreciated that the horror hook has led me to it!
June 15, 2025
If this story had been solely about co-workers bonding over a dying shopping center, this story would have been better, and that's not a good thing.
March 4, 2025
3.5 stars
I have a weird obsession with venus fly-traps and carnivorous plants in general, so as soon as I saw Sara Maria Griffin's upcoming novel, EAT THE ONES WE LOVE, I knew that I didn't care what it was about—I was going to read it!
EAT THE ONES WE LOVE is a dark, twisted tale of workplace romance, possession, and a sentient, carnivorous orchid named Baby. When Shell Pine, newly single and unemployed, takes a job at a struggling mall flower shop, she’s drawn to Neve, the enigmatic florist who hired her. But Neve isn’t just running a shop—she’s trapped in a terrifying bond with Baby, who watches, hungers, and will do anything to consume the one it loves.
Blending Little Shop of Horrors with millennial ennui, the story is a queer retelling that also dives into many different social aspects that anyone my age can relate to, for example, one aspect it captures is the slow decay of dying malls and the desperation of the job market for young professionals. While the premise is compelling, the pacing feels uneven, with a slow build-up that suddenly wraps up too quickly. The shifting POVs between Shell and Baby sometimes blur the narrative voice, but the eerie atmosphere and well-developed characters make this a fun, unsettling read for those who enjoy a light horror with a darkly comedic edge.
I have a weird obsession with venus fly-traps and carnivorous plants in general, so as soon as I saw Sara Maria Griffin's upcoming novel, EAT THE ONES WE LOVE, I knew that I didn't care what it was about—I was going to read it!
EAT THE ONES WE LOVE is a dark, twisted tale of workplace romance, possession, and a sentient, carnivorous orchid named Baby. When Shell Pine, newly single and unemployed, takes a job at a struggling mall flower shop, she’s drawn to Neve, the enigmatic florist who hired her. But Neve isn’t just running a shop—she’s trapped in a terrifying bond with Baby, who watches, hungers, and will do anything to consume the one it loves.
Blending Little Shop of Horrors with millennial ennui, the story is a queer retelling that also dives into many different social aspects that anyone my age can relate to, for example, one aspect it captures is the slow decay of dying malls and the desperation of the job market for young professionals. While the premise is compelling, the pacing feels uneven, with a slow build-up that suddenly wraps up too quickly. The shifting POVs between Shell and Baby sometimes blur the narrative voice, but the eerie atmosphere and well-developed characters make this a fun, unsettling read for those who enjoy a light horror with a darkly comedic edge.
May 4, 2025
I loved the setting of a dilapidated mall on the verge of being condemned, the little flower shop and the terrarium at the centre of things. I could picture it perfectly in my mind. Where I struggled was the slower pace of the plot, especially at the beginning of the book, and the confusing/shifting POVs.
I think clearly indicating who is narrating, including Baby’s perspective would’ve made the story more clear and definitive, it felt a little too muddled and dreamy as it was.
This was weird fiction, sapphic, and fantastical, but missing the “horror” elements per se as there was no pending sense of dread or doom, no immediate fear of the story either. I’d say it’s more dark scifi/fantasy honestly.
This was one I really couldn’t get into, it felt like I was stuck in limbo through half of it. Definitely want something more fast paced for my next read!
I think clearly indicating who is narrating, including Baby’s perspective would’ve made the story more clear and definitive, it felt a little too muddled and dreamy as it was.
This was weird fiction, sapphic, and fantastical, but missing the “horror” elements per se as there was no pending sense of dread or doom, no immediate fear of the story either. I’d say it’s more dark scifi/fantasy honestly.
This was one I really couldn’t get into, it felt like I was stuck in limbo through half of it. Definitely want something more fast paced for my next read!
December 5, 2024
EAT THE ONES YOU LOVE follows michelle "shell" pine who—fresh off a divorce from her fiancé, the loss of her job, and the inevitable move back home with her parents—seeks a much-needed change of pace by asking after work at the woodbine crown mall's thriving florist shop. it belongs to neve, whose beautiful looks and commanding personality spark an immediate crush in shell, but neve belongs to something else in the mall: an unassuming orchid growing in the atrium at the heart of the mall. baby is young, starving, and has grown his roots all through the building. nothing—and no one—he eats can satisfy him as much as eating neve, and he will have her no matter the cost.
with her gorgeous prose and masterful characterization, sarah maria griffin explores the world of retail through a monstrous lens, following a closely knit group of friends who work in the woodbine crown's surviving shops and the ways they interact with one another—both in public and in secret—and wrestle with the rumors of the mall closure, which threatens to put a stop to the beating heart of their community and the lives they've built around it. as they nurse friendships, develop crushes, and begin workplace affairs, baby threads his way into their lives, determined to take everything he can get before it's too late.
EAT THE ONES YOU LOVE is a slow and relentless fever dream of insidious unravelings you won't be able to look away from. it shines with the peculiar sheen of the desirous and hungry, strikes with the fury of a person possessed, and blossoms as only the most beautiful of flowers can. it is a story about finding yourself, and finding your chosen family, even in the worst of times. the woodbine friend group at its heart is one of the most memorable and arresting casts i've read about in a long while, and i saw parts of myself in each of them, rooting for them all even as the world around them grew into a lush and verdant hell.
a horrifying journey that will leave you reeling all the way into its pitch perfect ending, sarah maria griffin's adult debut is an eerie and unforgettable triumph. i can't wait for you all to venture into the mall of it next spring.
with her gorgeous prose and masterful characterization, sarah maria griffin explores the world of retail through a monstrous lens, following a closely knit group of friends who work in the woodbine crown's surviving shops and the ways they interact with one another—both in public and in secret—and wrestle with the rumors of the mall closure, which threatens to put a stop to the beating heart of their community and the lives they've built around it. as they nurse friendships, develop crushes, and begin workplace affairs, baby threads his way into their lives, determined to take everything he can get before it's too late.
EAT THE ONES YOU LOVE is a slow and relentless fever dream of insidious unravelings you won't be able to look away from. it shines with the peculiar sheen of the desirous and hungry, strikes with the fury of a person possessed, and blossoms as only the most beautiful of flowers can. it is a story about finding yourself, and finding your chosen family, even in the worst of times. the woodbine friend group at its heart is one of the most memorable and arresting casts i've read about in a long while, and i saw parts of myself in each of them, rooting for them all even as the world around them grew into a lush and verdant hell.
a horrifying journey that will leave you reeling all the way into its pitch perfect ending, sarah maria griffin's adult debut is an eerie and unforgettable triumph. i can't wait for you all to venture into the mall of it next spring.
July 6, 2025
A sentient orchid chilling in a decaying mall who’s obsessed with a florist? Count me in.
I do need to take away a star because damn talk about a sloooooow burn.
Also the ending was to clean, but that’s just me. I don’t need no happy ending to have a good time.
I do need to take away a star because damn talk about a sloooooow burn.
Also the ending was to clean, but that’s just me. I don’t need no happy ending to have a good time.
dnfs
July 17, 2025dnfing at 25% bc im painfully, painfully bored. that’s literally it
May 30, 2025
Good but it felt like I was waiting for something that never happened. Some very cool body horror bits but ultimately unmemorable.
November 28, 2024
There's so many things I want to say about Eat the Ones You Love, but let me start with this: Reading this book was an absolute delight. It feels very much like a love letter to floristry and plants, a love letter to the now-failing malls that dominated in the 20th century, a love letter to all the things we know we shouldn't love but still do, and, perhaps most importantly, a love letter to starting over, not because you want to, but because you have to--and how it might not be as much of a blank slate as you think. Sarah Maria Griffin infuses humor and heart into the horrifying and dread-inducing, and effortlessly spins a web of complex relationships that both serve the plot and feel like a realistic representation of the friends you make at work. The choice to make the primary narrator the man-eating plant named Baby was absolutely immaculate, and made the novel feel as if it was drenched in the desire to love and consume. Even the breaks we got from Baby were fantastic, introducing a bit of mixed-media as we see some of the secondary characters emailing back and forth in a way that becomes central to the book's conclusion. It feels a little like this novel was grown in a lab to appeal completely to my tastes--even just the premise of queer florists and a carnivorous plant had me desperate to devour this. I am so overjoyed that I had the privilege of reading a digital advance copy, and the second I can buy it outright, I am going to be getting a physical copy and recommending it to everyone who will give me even a second of their time. An endlessly satisfying book for all those dangerously hungry readers out there.
April 23, 2025
(3.5, rounded up—HOWEVER the audio specifically deserves a 5/5, for anyone considering the 2 formats)
I was really excited to start this one when I won an ARC giveaway thru Tertulia (check 'em out, they rock & are a great alternative to Amzn). I flew thru the first 20ish pages, then it felt like it stalled out. Being the first print ARC I've received from Tor I wanted to push thru anyway. Those of you who know how freely I DNF know that this is a pretty big deal lol. Another 30+ pages and I'm still not into it enough to keep reading. Fast forward a few weeks, I see I can request the audiobook on NetGalley. The premise really sucked me in, so I went for it...... HOLY CRAP!!!!! I WAS LOOKING OVER MY SHOULDER DOING LAUNDRY I WAS SO PARANOID!!!! Iykyk, anyone who has listened to the audiobook in its entirety will know EXACTLY the section I'm talking about. BRAVO, producers & narrators. Wow. That portion is up there with the efficiency of Plastic by Scott Guild's audiobook.
Had I continued in print, I may have thrown in the towel and never gotten to the part mentioned above, idk. And just looking at the print format of that section, print doesn't do it justice at all. I rarely am adamant about someone going with a certain formatting (ASSuming they're physically able)—actually this is the very first time—but there is simply no way print can live up to the goosebumps I was left with multiple times by the audiobook.
Thank you bunches to Tertulia, Tor, Macmillan Audio, Barry McStay, Lauren O’Leary, Sarah Maria Griffin and NetGalley for the ALC & ARC ❣️
I was really excited to start this one when I won an ARC giveaway thru Tertulia (check 'em out, they rock & are a great alternative to Amzn). I flew thru the first 20ish pages, then it felt like it stalled out. Being the first print ARC I've received from Tor I wanted to push thru anyway. Those of you who know how freely I DNF know that this is a pretty big deal lol. Another 30+ pages and I'm still not into it enough to keep reading. Fast forward a few weeks, I see I can request the audiobook on NetGalley. The premise really sucked me in, so I went for it...... HOLY CRAP!!!!! I WAS LOOKING OVER MY SHOULDER DOING LAUNDRY I WAS SO PARANOID!!!! Iykyk, anyone who has listened to the audiobook in its entirety will know EXACTLY the section I'm talking about. BRAVO, producers & narrators. Wow. That portion is up there with the efficiency of Plastic by Scott Guild's audiobook.
Had I continued in print, I may have thrown in the towel and never gotten to the part mentioned above, idk. And just looking at the print format of that section, print doesn't do it justice at all. I rarely am adamant about someone going with a certain formatting (ASSuming they're physically able)—actually this is the very first time—but there is simply no way print can live up to the goosebumps I was left with multiple times by the audiobook.
Thank you bunches to Tertulia, Tor, Macmillan Audio, Barry McStay, Lauren O’Leary, Sarah Maria Griffin and NetGalley for the ALC & ARC ❣️
August 25, 2025
this was genuinely very bad lmao.
May 28, 2025
3.75🌟
Does this mean I should stop talking to my plants? Ya know…just in case
Does this mean I should stop talking to my plants? Ya know…just in case
July 21, 2025
Oh yes yes yes
This freaky little book got me out of my HORRIBLE slump. I absolutely adored Eat The Ones You Love. Fabulous prose with beautiful, memorable quotes. Heartbreaking with the perfect kiss of humor. I really adored this for a debut! Really looking forward to what else this author publishes!
This freaky little book got me out of my HORRIBLE slump. I absolutely adored Eat The Ones You Love. Fabulous prose with beautiful, memorable quotes. Heartbreaking with the perfect kiss of humor. I really adored this for a debut! Really looking forward to what else this author publishes!
July 1, 2025
As someone who just took up gardening, I’m obsessed! 😭😂
March 8, 2025
If anyone else worked in a mall during their younger years, this book captures the combination of eerie foreboding and camaraderie to be found there.
Shell has lost her job, her fiancé, and moved back in with her parents during a painfully short time frame. When she sees a 'help needed' sign in a mall florist window, combined with the compellingly attractive shop owner, Neve, Shell thinks she has found a place to rest and recharge her weary heart. What she doesn't know yet is that Neve has some dark and dangerous secrets, including a sentient orchid she calls 'Baby' who has some secrets and hunger of his own.
This was such an enjoyable read: the sexual tension between Shell and Neve, the dark and hungry voice of Baby, the concerned and mildly unhinged correspondence of Neve's ex Jen with another mall employee. I found myself liking the side character Jen so much, wishing she had her own story! The ending was a bit explosive and shocking, but I very much liked how things wrapped up after that.
Thank you so much to Tor Publishing and Netgalley for this ARC!
Shell has lost her job, her fiancé, and moved back in with her parents during a painfully short time frame. When she sees a 'help needed' sign in a mall florist window, combined with the compellingly attractive shop owner, Neve, Shell thinks she has found a place to rest and recharge her weary heart. What she doesn't know yet is that Neve has some dark and dangerous secrets, including a sentient orchid she calls 'Baby' who has some secrets and hunger of his own.
This was such an enjoyable read: the sexual tension between Shell and Neve, the dark and hungry voice of Baby, the concerned and mildly unhinged correspondence of Neve's ex Jen with another mall employee. I found myself liking the side character Jen so much, wishing she had her own story! The ending was a bit explosive and shocking, but I very much liked how things wrapped up after that.
Thank you so much to Tor Publishing and Netgalley for this ARC!
April 21, 2025
3.5 rounded up
Baby could never reach me because I kill every plant I come into contact with. So listen, do I know what I was reading? Not especially. But did I have fun? Absolutely. I don’t even really know what to say except that Shell and I have a lot in common, especially when it comes to self isolating and ignoring texts from friends so while I think she was maybe supposed to be an unlikable main character I really related to her. I think I was expecting this to go sort of in a Bloom kind of direction but I like that I didn’t see the ending coming. Weird but fun, catch me cultivating plants never.
Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for a free audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
Baby could never reach me because I kill every plant I come into contact with. So listen, do I know what I was reading? Not especially. But did I have fun? Absolutely. I don’t even really know what to say except that Shell and I have a lot in common, especially when it comes to self isolating and ignoring texts from friends so while I think she was maybe supposed to be an unlikable main character I really related to her. I think I was expecting this to go sort of in a Bloom kind of direction but I like that I didn’t see the ending coming. Weird but fun, catch me cultivating plants never.
Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for a free audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
April 22, 2025
Eat the Ones You Love is a bizarre, tangled tale that feels like Little Shop of Horrors reimagined—only sapphic, set in a crumbling Irish mall, and even more unhinged. As someone who genuinely enjoys weird books, I was intrigued by the premise, but I’ll admit this one was a bit of a struggle at times.
The story shines brightest when it focuses on Shell and Baby. Shell’s journey—leaving behind a toxic relationship, moving back home, and slowly finding her footing in the most unlikely of places—was compelling and heartfelt. Watching her shed her past and grow into herself gave the story an emotional core that really worked. Baby, the sentient, carnivorous orchid lurking in the mall, is an absolute standout. His obsessive hunger and possessive love for Neve are both deeply unsettling and oddly fascinating. I actually wanted more of Baby and the body horror that came with him—it felt like the story was holding back a bit when it could’ve gone full monstrous.
What bogged me down a little were the multiple side characters and shifting perspectives. While they added layers, I found myself getting distracted and wishing the focus had stayed tighter on Shell and Baby.
That said, the audiobook production by Macmillan Audio was excellent and added a whole new dimension to the experience. Barry McStay and Lauren O’Leary brought the characters to life with vivid, engaging performances that really pulled me in—so much so that I’m bumping my rating from 3 stars to 4 purely because of the narration.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the early copy. If you like your horror weird, your romance dark, and your plants hungry, this might just be the twisted little book for you.
The story shines brightest when it focuses on Shell and Baby. Shell’s journey—leaving behind a toxic relationship, moving back home, and slowly finding her footing in the most unlikely of places—was compelling and heartfelt. Watching her shed her past and grow into herself gave the story an emotional core that really worked. Baby, the sentient, carnivorous orchid lurking in the mall, is an absolute standout. His obsessive hunger and possessive love for Neve are both deeply unsettling and oddly fascinating. I actually wanted more of Baby and the body horror that came with him—it felt like the story was holding back a bit when it could’ve gone full monstrous.
What bogged me down a little were the multiple side characters and shifting perspectives. While they added layers, I found myself getting distracted and wishing the focus had stayed tighter on Shell and Baby.
That said, the audiobook production by Macmillan Audio was excellent and added a whole new dimension to the experience. Barry McStay and Lauren O’Leary brought the characters to life with vivid, engaging performances that really pulled me in—so much so that I’m bumping my rating from 3 stars to 4 purely because of the narration.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the early copy. If you like your horror weird, your romance dark, and your plants hungry, this might just be the twisted little book for you.
May 14, 2025
“Human skin has so many holes. So small that their own eyes can’t see them. But I can see them. Passages towards their insides. Open doors all over their body. I plugged the tiny threads of me to the pores of her, and in an instant we were locked together. I was truly with her. With her.”
This was very strange and somehow I really enjoyed it a lot!
This was very strange and somehow I really enjoyed it a lot!
June 26, 2025
An Irish horror story with twisted love triangles, a dilapidated shopping mall, and . Not sure if that’s worthy of a spoiler, since it’s right there in the blurb.
I’m not sure I would have chosen this one, had it not been a monthly read at Horror Aficionados. It seemed at face value a little too imitative of “Little Shop of Horrors,” which frankly, I didn’t much enjoy. But I felt that this story had tension, and I was truly creeped out when . I wish there would have been more attention to all of the missing people attached to the mall - you would think some copper somewhere would think a serial killer was staking out the area.
I found the ending with Neve and Shell satisfying. Thumbs up from me.
I’m not sure I would have chosen this one, had it not been a monthly read at Horror Aficionados. It seemed at face value a little too imitative of “Little Shop of Horrors,” which frankly, I didn’t much enjoy. But I felt that this story had tension, and I was truly creeped out when . I wish there would have been more attention to all of the missing people attached to the mall - you would think some copper somewhere would think a serial killer was staking out the area.
I found the ending with Neve and Shell satisfying. Thumbs up from me.
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