A God in the Shed

A God in the Shed, Book 1

By: J-F. Dubeau

Narrated by: David Marantz

Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

The village of Saint-Ferdinand has all the trappings of a quiet life: farmhouses stretching from one main street, a small police precinct, a few diners and cafés, and a grocery store. Though if an out-of-towner stopped in, they would notice one unusual thing - a cemetery far too large and much too full for such a small town, lined with the victims of the Saint-Ferdinand Killer, who has eluded police for nearly two decades. It's not until after Inspector Stephen Crowley finally catches the killer that the town discovers even darker forces are at play. When a dark spirit reveals itself to Venus McKenzie, one of Saint-Ferdinand's teenage residents, she learns that this creature's power has a long history with her town - and that the serial murders merely scratch the surface of a past burdened by evil secrets.

©2017 J-F. Dubeau (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Move over True Detective. A rich, gothic story of murder and mystery, A God in the Shed is quite possibly one of the most enthralling novels I've read in the last 10 years. Dubeau is a force to be reckoned with." (Jerry Smith, Fangoria Magazine and Blumhouse.com)

A little Hard to Follow

I thought it had the potential to be something great but the way the story is told can be pretty confusing and quite frankly it ends with far more questions than answers. Doesn’t feel like there was any actual explanation for what was going on.

Harrowing, disturbing, and twisted.

This eerie tale of murder and supernatural revenge recalls touches of Stephen King's It and The Last Stand, cast over the sacrifice of a still living soul to a cruel and twisted god with a pinch of magic tossed in for flavor. With a wide array of believable characters, this conflict between the natural and supernatural realms rages across time on a small Canadian town, the battlefield on which humanity and a demon god struggle for existence. Overall, an engaging tale with just a few tropes common to the genre, but none that detract. I can promise you I won't be watching the TV series of this tale. I like to sleep.

The gore and suprise of the book

I loved how gorey and different this book was from others I’ve read! Great read! I recommend it to everyone!

Great story!

I’ve wanted to read this book since it came out in 2017 and it was definitely worth the wait. Creepy, unpredictable, soulful. A must for any horror fan.

Nice and creepy, but begs a sequel

a great little gothic creep-and-gore of a mystery story but feels unfinished, leaves unanswered questions.

Wonderful book!

Really loved the story. It was unique and surprising. Sometimes the gore made me cringe but overall a good read.

INCREDIBLE.

Perfect mix of true crime, small town Gothic, horror and plain old blood and gore. Great characters and a deeply entwined plot. I can't WAIT for the sequel!

I listened in two days

I’ve had this on my list for a while and finally decided to give it a listen while doing some remodeling. It kept me entertained and listening until I was forced to sleep. I had read the negative reviews but paid attention to the positive ones more. I’m glad I did. I’m not sure what the gripe is because I thought it was good. Clearly there is a sequel planned so know it won’t be entirely wrapped up but that doesn’t necessarily bother me. Looking forward to the next one!

Didn’t expect this one

Definitely a brilliant gothic horror/supernatural revenge tale, J-F Dubeau most certainly has a unquestionably unique voice in the genre.

2 Dimensional

The main plot, characters, and side stories are good. Just good. They could have been great. The bones are all there, the main plot kept the tension. The problem is that many of the sideplots are rushed, incomplete, or worse: resolved off 'screen'.

Why not show us the main character telling her best friend the secret, instead of skipping it and her friends shock? Why show us a gruesome mural, mention that it seemed like it has a purpose, draw attention to it repeatedly, but never let that come to fruition? we learn a character has a list of names, but that character drives another to get the same list of names, but it doesn't come back up in the end.

The town's history is another example of a world carefully built, but poorly used. 2 cults, one ran the other out of town, save 1 member. Why was that member kept? Why didn't they join the other cult? Why aren't reporters SWARMING over a town where a murder spree of 20 years just ended? The cult isn't everywhere, they don't have everyone, and one mans efforts won't stop the throngs of reporters looking to capitalize on the blood and gore, no matter how little is shared by the PD. Theres magic galore, in so many shapes and sizes, but none really matter except the use of necromancy that the necromancer has to be told about by a child's ghost, and one used by an old man. The narrative strips the magic to mundanity, and it feels hollow and 2D.

The story is best summed up by one of these flat uses of magic: A beautiful painting, so well done that it can move, but its trapped in 2 dimensions.