Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix | ARC Review

Discovered: BookRiot Youtube

Status: Read

Received: First Reads Giveaway from Quirk Books and Goodreads

Mode: Paperback

Goodreads Rating: ****

Ever wish you could sleep over at an Ikea?

Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix takes that simple curiosity of retail comfort and terrifies it into all things that go bump in the night. 

Synopsis:

Horrorstör is about an Ikea knock-off chain called Orsk where eerie things start to happen at one of its retail locations in Columbus, Ohio. Employees clock-in to find broken furniture, defecated sofas, and reversing escalators. Naturally, upright manager Basil Washington needs to do something about it and that something involves gathering a team of store partners to investigate during a graveyard shift. That team involves reluctant Amy, the ever-kind Ruth Anne, and quirky couple Matt and Trinity. And they're in for a surprise as a simple floor sweep takes them deep into the horrifying history and secret of the land Orsk is built upon.   

In Depth:

Do you know the true horror of Horrorstör? It's the idea that the paranormal is not limited to haunted houses, schools, and hospitals. It's found in everyday retail stores and the furniture we bring into our homes. Orsk is a satire on the labor and culture of the retail industry. The exaggerated company motto plastered all over the store does nothing to ebb the monotony of mindless work, nor does it hide the sterile corporate mindset we see at the end of the book. Also, Horrorstör shows that the work and furniture we take for granted could be perverted into something horrifying and unforgiving. 

My Favorite Parts:

What's great about this book is that it reads like a movie. At first, I started reading Horrorstör as a secondary book, to take breaks from the primary book I was reading at the time. After three chapters, it took the place of my primary book. I was hooked! The narrative and story flowed and I was easily visualizing every chapter as if I was watching a horror film inside my mind. 

Lastly, if you've done some research you'll know that the book was created to look like an Ikea catalog. One my favorite parts of Horrorstör is the illustration and description of a piece of furniture in the beginning of every chapter. And that piece of furniture takes precedent in that specific chapter. It was scary and awesome flipping through the pages and seeing the growing perversion of each furniture. 

All I'm asking of Grady Hendrix and Quirk Books is a sequel to Horrorstör! I love the Amy-Basil duo and would love to see them kicking more ghost-butts!