Edward J. Cembal's The Monsters in Our Shadows is a dark, dystopian horror that explores the bleak, nightmarish remnants of humanity on the edge of extinction. While the novel offers a chilling atmosphere and a unique take on eldritch creatures known as Shivers, its pacing and character depth leave some room for improvement, resulting in a solid but uneven read.

Set in a decaying, gothic city on the brink of collapse, the story follows Anthem, an Exilist tasked with capturing and banishing Shivers—horrific, parasitic creatures that feed on their human hosts. Humanity has been reduced to desperate survival, and the ritual of exile, once their only hope, is beginning to fail. Anthem himself carries the weight of his own Shiver, whose growing hunger threatens to overtake him. As the city reaches a breaking point, Anthem is forced to venture beyond its walls in search of a solution to humanity's existential crisis.

Cembal excels in world-building, and the setting is one of the novel’s most striking features. The crumbling city, with its gothic architecture and pervasive sense of doom, creates an oppressive atmosphere that mirrors the internal struggles of its characters. The Shivers themselves are unsettling, nightmarish creatures, and the novel's horror is rooted in the existential dread they bring. The world Cembal constructs is bleak and unforgiving, and the imagery of a society clinging to life amid the ever-present threat of annihilation is genuinely eerie.

Anthem, the central character, is intriguing but somewhat underdeveloped. His internal struggle with his own Shiver adds tension, but his emotional arc feels somewhat flat. While the novel hints at his psychological turmoil, the exploration of his character remains surface-level. Readers are given glimpses of his past and the burden he carries, but there isn’t enough emotional depth to fully connect with him. Anthem’s journey beyond the city’s walls should feel like a personal reckoning, but instead, it often comes across as simply a necessary plot development.

The pacing of the novel is uneven. The opening chapters effectively set the stage for the story’s dystopian horror, but the middle section drags, with long stretches where the tension could have been heightened. The action sequences, when they do occur, are thrilling, but there are moments where the narrative loses momentum. The exploration of the eldritch horrors and the decaying city could have been more tightly woven into the story to maintain a sense of urgency throughout.

One of the novel’s key strengths lies in its exploration of the Shivers as metaphors for humanity’s inner demons and self-destructive tendencies. The "monsters in our shadows" represent both literal and figurative horrors, and Cembal does a good job of blurring the lines between external threats and internal struggles. The novel touches on themes of guilt, fear, and survival, raising interesting questions about what it means to face the darkness within. However, these themes, while present, could have been more deeply explored to give the story greater emotional resonance.

The climax and resolution offer some compelling twists, but the buildup to these moments could have been stronger. The novel’s final act delivers on its promise of high-stakes horror and existential dread, but by that point, some readers may feel that the emotional connection to Anthem’s journey has been lost.

Final Thoughts:
The Monsters in Our Shadows is an atmospheric and chilling dystopian horror that excels in world-building and unsettling imagery. Edward J. Cembal creates a bleak, gothic world overrun by nightmarish creatures, and the novel’s existential themes of inner demons and survival add layers to the horror. However, the uneven pacing and lack of deeper character development hold it back from reaching its full potential. A solid 3-star read, perfect for fans of dark, dystopian tales who appreciate atmospheric storytelling, but with room for more emotional depth and tension.

A post apocalyptic horror exploring a dystopian view of the future of earth after a chilling epidemic wipes out most of humanity.

This was a very different read for me but I really enjoyed it, and it made a refreshing change from my usual crime fiction books. The story follows Anthem, an exilist, whose job it is to exile afflicted members of the last known community on earth and rid the community of their ‘shivers’ or monsters to protect the unafflicted. Soon Anthem finds himself called upon by the town’s Architect and sent out into the Deadlands to try and find a more permanent resolution. As time starts to run out, Anthem discovers that what the residents have been told about life outside their walls isn’t all as it seems.

The story kept me enthralled and had lots of interesting developments and characters. I did find on occasion it was a little slow and the chapters could have been slightly faster paced for my tastes, but overall an enjoyable read.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book for an honest review.

A dystopian horror ,the world as we know it is almost extinct,.A race against time against the shivers through the dark lands where even more horrors and monsters await. An enjoyable gory read .

What a fantastic Dystopian horror read!
The world, characters were all thought out so well.
The story line kept me at the edge of my seat.



Following a world where people have actually monsters following them around, waiting until the monsters can no longer contain their hunger. The unfortunate people are then devoured. This is where our main character Anthem comes in the exilest. Basically the reaper. He bundles the infected with said monster in to a cage and hauls them out beyond the walls of Atlas.
I really enjoyed following Anthem on his journey of trying to find a way to get rid of the monsters.
Pretty fast paced. Give it a read
Thank you to NETGalley for the chance to give this a read and review .

Close to an original horror novel as you can get. A dystopian future where human have their own monsters waiting to devour them. A well plotted book with plenty of shocks that will keep you hook ( and looking over your shoulder) till the last page. Would love to see this as a movie. Thanks to Book Whisperer and Netgalley for this review copy

I read a lot of these genres, both horror and distopian, and I can honestly say that The Monsters in Our Shadows was unique and kept me guessing throughout!
I was so pleasantly surprised that, being a longer book for especially a debut horror, the author seemed to have a clear vision, know where he wanted the story to go, and had the ability to execute it well without getting lost in details, or lack of details!
There were a couple of moments that I thought "well, in a distopian situation they wouldn't be aware of that", but the monsters and the story arc were unique enough to me that I didn't even mind!
I'm really looking forward to seeing what this author does in the future!

I was slowly reading (although not particularly enjoying) this book but ultimately decided to DNF after I received *multiple* emails from the author insisting it was time to leave a review and that my review needed to be submitted within one week. This was extremely bizarre to me and something I've never encountered after receiving almost 100 ARCs from NetGalley. I will not be reviewing on GoodReads or other retail sites as I don't feel it's appropriate to rush reviewers in this way.

I don’t think I have read a horror novel so well and beautifully written! The character development was also really done well and the book was super creepy. The whole premise would be terrifying if this was real. The books pacing was also to my liking and I was so invested and didn’t want to have to put the book down (dumb work getting the way of my reading!) definitely would recommend to all my friends

I received this copy from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Interesting concept - it felt original. I really liked the main character, he had a good moral compass (in spite of his occupation). The writing was exceptional, this book had many great quotes, here are some of them:
‘Such a long climb for a short fall.’
‘The deeper the sadness, that depression, the closer the monster. The closer the monster, the deeper the sadness, until… well, until it devours you.’
My favourite thing about this book is that it presented hopelessness in a beautiful, raw and pure way.
3.5 ⭐️ rounded up.

Creepy and inventive, I really enjoyed the premise of this book. Touching sensitively on themes like depression/mental health and prejudice, the author used the monstrous “Shivers” in a very clever way. A ranging cast of interesting and different (if occasionally predictable) characters, and some real jump scare type moments. Overall enjoyable!

This was a fantastic dystopian horror about the reality of, quite literally, facing your demons.

Anthem, our main character, has lived the last ten years of life in Atlas as an Exilist. Escorting those who are to be devoured by their own personal shadow, a Shiver, out of their walled town. That is, until his own Shiver catches up with him and he's forced out of a job. At the behest of The Architect, Anthem sets out to find a cure for Atlas, hoping for a brighter future for his daughter.

The Monsters In Our Shadows follows the Exilist as he embarks on this death wish of a mission, unpicking the reality of the situation in Atlas and on Earth, in general.

I really enjoyed this book; the bleakness of dystopian life is interrupted occasionally with hints of beauty scattered throughout the dark existence. The metaphor for depression, grief, personal demons, reflected in the Shivers that haunt the afflicted. There were hints of gore, but nothing too intense, and the feeling of panic at times really got me powering through to see what happened next! It really was fantastic.

My only negative was I found the pacing a bit off at times - it felt a bit slow in places. The chapters were short and snappy though, so any feeling of slowness was only very short-lived.

I'll definitely be recommending this as a standalone book for lovers of horror and dystopian fiction.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

What an incredible journey! Cembal illustrates in riveting metaphor what it truly means to face our own fears and insecurities. Sometimes that one more step, one more moment, is all we need to keep moving forward. This may well get added to my list of yearly reads.

An edge-of-the-seat apocalyptic/dystopian novel that will have you turning the pages furiously into the night! I really enjoyed the world building, the sinister elements of the plot, the character arcs. Absolutely brilliant!

DNF at 40%. An intriguing premise but it felt like it was going nowhere. I liked the idea and the main character was ok but the pacing was off.

Great read! It was the right amount of suspense and creepy. It was a quick read and kept me engaged the entire time.

The Monsters in our Shadows was a very enjoyable debut for Edward J. Cembal. This isn’t just any other dystopian horror. I actually found the storyline to be quite unique, well-written, and incredibly relatable. Super minor spoiler: I absolutely loved the comparison of the Shivers to depression. This was a nice standalone but I also see potential for continuing the story.

This was right book wrong time for me I see the potential but just couldn’t get into it. I will try reading again at a later date

What can I say about this book?? What a unique story. Creepy and frightening and yet entirely relatable. I have struggled for almost 10 years with depression and the correlation between these characters/the world and depression is incredible. I feel so seen by this book!! I once had a counselor tell me that depression was like the villain Venom. It was part of you, but you could make peace with it. This is what this book was! And the reminder to never give up hope, never stop fighting, never stop trying. Big huge 5 stars for me. I want to process a little more before posting an official review, but man. Thank you for letting me read this!

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

**WARNING** MILD SPOILERS.
This was such a unique monster/horror story that it left me wanting more. It's a little bit of a slow burn at first, but once you get past the first exhile it really starts getting weird in a really great way. This story has a mystery element to it that drives the audience to continue following Anthem's quest for answers.

I'm a little torn on the ending of the book, though. If it is meant to be a standalone book, I think the ending is too open to truly be a successful standalone. However, if this is meant to be part of a duology or more, then it was excellent. I want an origin story on how the Shivers came to be. Plus, the brand new relationships that were introduced so close to the end of the book has me wondering what is in store for Anthem and the rest of the (surviving) Atlas community. How will they navigate their future in the Deadlands, and will the "Great One" return? I NEED TO KNOW!!! :)

The protagonist, Anthem, is actually very easy to like and fits the typical "hard on the outside, soft on the inside" character personality. Although that tends to be a protagonist cliche, it's done so well in this story, that it doesn't feel like he falls into that trope. Throughout the story he seems to think he's not a good guy and he does whatever is necessary regardless of how terrible. However, when the "big reveal" happens, and he becomes aware of the part he played in the antagonist's major plan, that revelation nearly cripples him emotionally. His devastation at the "big reveal" of the story, speaks volumes to his morality and sense of compassion.

The descriptions of the Shivers had my imagination in overdrive. I kept imagining the eyeless, terrifyingly toothy grins of the Isz from Sam Kieth's "The Maxx" mixed with the smoky fluidity, and infinite expansion of Hexxus from Fern Gully (yes I know that's a childs' movie but lets not pretend that Hexxus isn't creepy). Part of me would love to see an adaptation but I worry that any amount of movie effects wouldn't live up to what my mind sees when I think of Shivers. I love that each Shiver is described totally different but somehow alike too. They have become one of my favorite book monsters.

I've read a lot of post-apocalyptic fiction and I can honestly say, this story is unlike anything else I've read. Like I said earlier, I want an origin story. Where did the Shivers come from? You can't actually classify this under an "alien invasion" type post-apocaplyptic story, because it is never determined where the shivers and the Great One come from. In some parts of the story, it seems like the shivers come from the hosts themselves, but in the big reveal, it seems that they might come from the Great One. Either way, I want to know the details. I really hope that the author continues this story. I think there's still a lot to unpack here and I would love to read more.

Real Rating: 4.5* of five

<B>The Publisher Says</B>: It’s been a century since “the great consumption.” Humanity has been devoured to the edge of extinction by the ever-ravenous Shivers – terrifying, shapeless creatures that latch onto their hosts, tormenting them over time before consuming them all at once. The last of civilization lives in the crumbling city of Atlas, where they subsist on processed insects and await their inevitable fate.

Anthem is the city Exilist, tasked with trapping the Shivers and banishing them to the malevolent Deadlands outside the city walls. But Anthem is ailing and destined to soon fall victim to his own Shiver, a fate he’s reluctantly accepted. As Anthem begins to withdraw from his world, a threat he’s unprepared for comes hurtling home. If he is to save anyone, he will have to travel into the Deadlands in search of a remedy to tame these creatures. But no Atlas dweller has ever made it back alive, and Anthem must confront his own darkness before humankind is forever lost to the monsters in our shadows.

<B>I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.

My Review</B>: I like horror stories about things I can believe exist, and the Shiver is one of those things. A thing unseen and unseeable to direct examination but real, and perceptible only obliquely? A thing that costs you huge energy to overcome the fear of, and ultimately it's most likely the thing that carries you off anyway?

Sounds like Life to me. Only this time it's seen from the widdershins view. No demons or supernatural gubbins or things from legend that don't exist. A real, demonstrably harmful...something...that we just don't understand. Like diseases we can't cure, conditions we can't treat, mental illnesses we refuse to look at.

Anthem, our PoV character, lives in Atlas, a walled city that's been erected to "protect" people yet it can't keep them safe from their Shiver. His job is to identify the threatened person's Shiver and get it corralled so he can take them both to the Deadlands outside Atlas's walls. He succeeds, he fails, but all he can do is treat the symptoms of the Shiver by ridding Atlas of the affected and their affliction. The drug that has prevented mass deaths is no longer effective, and Atlas needs a real solution...but where's it going to come from?

Atlas is under the control of a "savior" called The Architect whose walls have failed to keep out the Shiver, and whose claims to be the only one who can understand the Shiver and keep Atlas's people safe from it are wearing thin. The drug's no longer acailable and the price of cruelly exiling the sufferers to die outside Atlas is...well...distasteful. Anthem himself is now aware he needs to be exiled as his opwn Shiver is about to finish its ugly work.

The point of the story won't need belaboring, I trust, and the parallels won't need explication. The most effective part of the read is the sensory world Author Cembal evokes. The tense, paranoid, claustrophobic Atlas he creates is very effective. The way he adds sensory cues smalls and sights and sounds that get right to the emotional heart of the scene they're in...*chef's kiss*

I won't give the ending away. I will say that, by the end of the read, I felt I was rewarded by the story.