8114 was one of those unique books that had the ability to still give me that creepy uneasy feeling while reading. As a seasoned horror reader, I feel mostly desensitized to even the most horrific descriptions. I absolutely loved the podcast elements, and felt like it only enhanced an already incredibly written story. The way the haunting aspects were written were blunt and chilling. The horror felt in your face, but not forced. I loved the way the story wrapped up, and absolutely loved the author notes at the end.
If you're looking for a "ghost story" that isn't afraid to be graphic, look no further! I am incredibly excited to find more work by this author!
Thank you Netgalley, Clash Books, and Joshua Hull for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book had my heart racing, my hands jittery and the urge to close my eyes real hard so I didn't have to read what was coming next. It takes a lot to genuinely creep me out.. but boy oh boy did Joshua deliver.

I really loved this one. Great horror. It was like The Shining made a baby with the Haunting of Hill House.
Yea. It's that good.

This was so fantastically written and easy to read. I devoured it and loved every minute of it. I was also terrified throughout it, and did in fact have a nightmare after reading it one night!

Joshua Hull’s 8114—a literary concoction that marries the festering charm of a haunted house with the existential dread of a podcaster’s midlife crisis. Imagine if The Haunting of Hill House had a sordid liaison with Serial, and their lovechild was raised on a diet of black mold and unresolved trauma. And yet, I struggled to get through it.

Our protagonist, Paul Early, is a true-crime podcaster whose career has taken a nosedive. He returns to his hometown and the titular house, 8114, after a friend’s suicide. The house, a character in its own right, seems to have a vendetta, not just against Paul but anyone remotely connected to it. As Paul delves deeper, he decides to document his experiences through a new podcast, blurring the lines between reality and hallucination.

I was instantly pulled in only to be ripped away with the person Paul turned out to be.

Hull employs a fragmented narrative, interspersing traditional prose with podcast transcripts. It adds a layer of realism piecing together a true-crime story.

My biggest complaint is the characterization. Paul’s internal monologue drove me crazy at times and I could not relate to him to save my life despite.

I will give it to him, Hull doesn’t shy away from the grotesque. The house oozes malevolence. The horror is psychological, relying on ambiguity and suggestion rather than overt gore.

This was a meta-horror experience that was a decent read.

*This was an ARC I received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

I was truly excited to read this story. I thought the premise was interesting, and I really loved the cover art. However, this book was lacking in many regards. Do I believe it had potential? Yes. But the execution? Not there.

Before I even get into the plot, I need to mention there are words throughout that are bolded—seemingly for emphasis. Personally, it just threw off the flow while I was reading. I don’t need the emphasis pointed out that way. It was awkward.

In this story, Paul is introduced as a failed podcaster after a scandal of his own creation. First and foremost, I still don’t understand this. The kid was never missing. I don’t get how he just decided to chat about this guy he used to go to school with and claim he was ‘missing’ when there was zero evidence of that. Like He left school one day and never came back. Okay? And? People move; it’s not like the kid has missing posters put up everywhere…or at least it didn’t say that.

Anyway, what this book also lacks is character development. We don’t know much about the people Paul interacts with besides he grew up with them, so there’s no true reason to care about them. When something happened to them, it was like okay, whatever.

Overall, the story was just missing certain elements to make it really…worth it. As thrilled as I was to read this story, it—unfortunately–ended up being a disappointment.

Books don't usually scare me. I've read a lot of horror in my lifetime and have watched hundreds (if not more) horror movies so I consider myself desensitized. This book SCARED me. Enough said LOL.

Thank you to NetGalley, Joshua Hull, and CLASH Books for a copy of the book.

Content Warnings: Death, Gore, Suicide, Child Abuse, Child Death, Cult Activity, Body Horror, and Violence.

"8114" by Joshua Hull is quick read, but don't be fooled--it is full of stories. Stories all connected to one central place like threads to a knot. It all starts with a podcast.

Paul messed up. He messed up bad, and ruined lives simply by refusing to shut down his mystery podcast about one of his old schoolmates' disappearance. Shortly thereafter, another friend from his past calls him up, inviting him to return to their old, boyhood hometown. Once there, Paul receives some horrible news that leaves him spiraling, his world ripped from his hands--one of their friends was dead. And he died in 8114--Paul's childhood home.

Why? Paul becomes almost obsessed, unable to think of anything else. As he digs into the death of his friend, he begins to dig into the heart of the town, and what's more, the sick, twisted history of 8114.

"8114" had a lot going for it, in my opinion. That being said, it felt like there were too many stories piled up over the main plot. There were far too many layers for any of them to take hold properly--too many levels to the 'curse' Paul has to deal with. Personally, I felt that the novel was weighed down by too many good ideas explored in a very short period of time. It was hard to grow attached to any of the characters, save for Paul, and with him being an unreliable narrator, I really didn't connect with him, either. Names are thrown out, characters are seen once and then never again, or if they are, they die shortly thereafter.

This novel felt rushed, overall. "8114" could have been a new favorite if Mr. Hull allowed the story to breathe. The horror within its pages focuses mostly on gore and body horror instead of any sort of creeping, thoughtful terror. The 'monsters' and 'ghosts' are many, and exploring more of their stories and Paul's haunting would have been an interesting way to show off more of the town's history. Instead, these ghosts were used for one-off jump-scares and nothing else.

I was amused by all of the horror media mentioned. That's something, I guess.

Originally, I was considering rating "8114" as a two-star, but I bumped it up to a three-star because I have to admit that I did have some fun while reading it. Hull's descriptions are a treat, and the dialogue felt genuine. There's heart here, under all of the mold and tree branches, creaking floors and yellow police tape. You just have to go hunting for it.

I would recommend Joshua Hull's "8114" to those who really love the genre or to anyone who wants a slightly creepy, quick read.

I was intrigued by the premise, and really wanted to like this book, but it just wasn't for me. I struggled to understand the MC and his actions at times, and the horror elements fell a little flat for me. I am not much into body horror, which I'm sure contributed. This is probably for someone, and was a pretty quick read.

8114 gave me the heebie jeebies. It is not often a book truly freaks me out and Joshua delivered the creepy factor with this story. We follow Paul, a not so infamous podcast host. He learns his longtime friend has committed the big sad among the ruins of Paul's childhood home. Paul goes back to his hometown in search of answers and some form of closure. What ensues are events straight from nightmares. The podcast is giving life to something. Its listeners, susceptible. Paul's intentions inadvertently extend an invitation. An invitation to who ... or what? Well you will just need to read the book to find out. Despite its small page count, this novella is steeped in grief, shocking revelations and tells us what truly happened at 8114. Thank you so much to Clash Books and NetGalley for the ARC. You can pick this one up when it publishes August 26, 2025!

This was top tier horror for me. I slept like complete shit last night after reading 50% of the book and even reading it during the day I’m still creeped out. The imagery, the creepy and eerie vibes and THEN knowing this is a real place. Sir, you have outdone yourself 🫡

Talk about creeeeepy. This one gave me the heeby jeebies. I flew thru this pretty quickly and thought it was pretty good!!

This is a great horror read from Joshua Hull and I hope we'll see much more from him. Scary and disturbing, and really readable, I enjoyed this book a lot!

This book just didn't work out for me. I ended up DNFíng it but if I rate it as DNF it will count against my percentage. So, instead I will rate it here and say it just wasn't for me.

THE COVER IS CREEPY.
After returning to his hometown, Paul, the beleaguered host of a small-time podcast, discovers a longtime friend committed suicide in the dilapidated ruins of Paul’s childhood home. Desperate to find answers, Paul interviews friends and locals hoping to find closure. He finds himself in a chilling downward spiral of his memories and the land he grew up on. Has his past caught up with him or is there something far more sinister at play?

I absolutely loved this book! The atmosphere was incredibly eerie, and there were moments that genuinely gave me chills. Y’all my power even flickered during a certain scene and it legit freaked me out! 🤣

That said, I found the main character, Paul, to be 𝑒𝑥𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑚𝑒𝑙𝑦 annoying. But at the same time, I felt like I was losing my mind right alongside him, which made the story even more unsettling in the best way. Despite my frustrations with Paul, the psychological horror kept me hooked from start to finish.

I could see this dark, quickly paced novel working for a lot of people, but I don't enjoy the very conversational writing style that is employed in this book. I hope that there is a good audiobook made for this story seeing as I think narratives that employ podcast elements shine best when listened to.

Unsettling and dark, this story about a novice podcaster with little respect for social boundaries is a page turning take on the hometown horror story. When the main character seeks refuge at home after his ethically dubious podcast blows up, he finds his familiar friends and hometown are shadowed by ancient evil. Body horror, dark local lore, and a foolishly optimistic protagonist combine to make a dark and uneasy horror story.

I just couldn't get into this one and didn't finish the title. It felt rushed and I didn't connect with the main character.

DNF @ 12%. I’m not sure about this one. The writing style isn’t for me. It felt very casual, like reading some guy’s stream of consciousness, including the boring/irrelevant thoughts.

Paul, a podcast presenter, goes back to his hometown, where he discovers something terrible had happened at his old house, having his best friend being the center of it.

This book feels like you were reading a movie, it’s intriguing enough for you to want to know what’s gonna happen next, however some elements from cinema do not translate in the best way to written media, so they fall a little flat, as the jumpscares that do not complete themselves as we do not have the audiovisual to support them.

The writing is good and does not cause any unnecessary confusion, the story is established in a clear way, so it takes you from the beginning to the end without any trouble. The characters, on the other hand, it’s difficult to establish a connection with, and even it’s difficult to establish an empathy or even like some of them, however, this does help you to simply be waiting to see what happens next.

It’s a horror book that could be considered Classic horror, it contains all kinds of situations, ghosts, violent and bloody situations and a mystery that has not been solved.

Content warnings: Mention of suicide, death, infanticide, substance consumption, blood, body horror.


--- Spanish

Paul, un presentador de podcast, regresa a la ciudad de su infancia, donde descubre que algo terrible ha pasado en su vieja casa, siendo el protagonista su mejor amigo.

Este libro se siente como si estuvieras leyendo una película, es lo suficientemente intrigante para querer saber qué es lo que sigue, sin embargo algunos elementos de cine no se traducen de la mejor manera al medio escrito, por lo tanto se sienten algo flojos, como <i>“jumpscares”</i> que no se concretan ya que no tenemos ese factor audiovisual para acompañarlos.

La escritura es buena y no causa confusión innecesaria, la historia está establecida de una forma clara, por lo cual te lleva del inicio al final sin problema alguno. Los personajes sin embargo, son personajes con los cuales es difícil conectar, e incluso es difícil causar empatía o agrado por alguno de ellos, sin embargo esto ayuda a que simplemente estés esperando que es lo que les espera después.

Es un libro de terror que se podría considerar como terror clásico, con todo tipo de situaciones, desde apariciones, situaciones violentas y sangrientas y un misterio sin resolver.

Advertencias de contenido: Mención de suicidio, muerte, infanticidio, consumo de sustancias, sangre, horror corporal.