I'll Quit When I'm Dead - by Luke Smitherd (Hardcover)

About the Book

"Madison has seen better days. Reeling from a bad breakup, self-soothing with junk food, and totally consumed by her lack of direction, she's in need of a big reset. When she runs into an old acquaintance at the gym, Madison is shocked by how fit they've suddenly become. The cause? An all-female fitness boot camp led by ex-military guru Ellie Fellowes. The course is characterized by grueling reps and minimal contact with the outside world, and when Madison signs up to experience it herself, something doesn't feel right. The other students keep acting strangely; Ellie seems almost superhuman, and her intense motivational methods are becoming bizarre, even dangerous. But Madison is getting results. How can she stop now? Musician Johnny Blake has been struggling with a pain pill addiction after a very public, very bad fall. At the encouragement of loved ones, he retreats to a secluded cottage to detox. But Johnny isn't alone. Something is lurking in the shadows of his new home--a creature unnatural and hungry, one that traps Johnny in a frightening bargain. If Johnny doesn't stay off his pills and keep his end of the deal, he will be eaten alive. As Madison and Johnny's predicaments spiral into the unthinkable, they will have to look within to find the true and terrifying answer to the age-old question: How badly do you want it?"--

Book Synopsis

A young woman at an intensive wellness retreat and a struggling musician vow to turn their lives around--or die trying--in this provocative, "unputdownable" horror story (Josh Malerman).

Recommended by NBC/TODAY - CrimeReads - The Orange County Register - Booklist and many more

Madison has seen better days. Reeling from a bad breakup, self-soothing with junk food, and totally consumed by her lack of direction, she's in need of a big reset. When she runs into an old acquaintance at the gym, Madison is shocked by how fit they've suddenly become. The cause? An all-female fitness boot camp led by ex-military guru Ellie Fellowes. The course is characterized by grueling reps and minimal contact with the outside world, and when Madison signs up to experience it herself, something doesn't feel right. The other students keep acting strangely; Ellie seems almost superhuman, and her intense motivational methods are becoming bizarre, even dangerous. But Madison is getting results. How can she stop now?

Musician Johnny Blake has been struggling with a pain pill addiction after a very public, very bad fall. At the encouragement of loved ones, he retreats to a secluded cottage to detox. But Johnny isn't alone. Something is lurking in the shadows of his new home--a creature unnatural and hungry, one that traps Johnny in a frightening bargain. If Johnny doesn't stay off his pills and keep his end of the deal, he will be eaten alive.

As Madison and Johnny's predicaments spiral into the unthinkable, they will have to look within to find the true and terrifying answer to the age-old question: How badly do you want it?

Nerve-shredding and compulsively readable, I'll Quit When I'm Dead marks Luke Smitherd as a major voice in horror to watch.

Review Quotes

"Part 'Stranger Things, ' part Stephen King. . . It's a gut-punch of a story with a twisty, satisfying payoff."

--Isaac Fitzgerald on the Today Show

"Smitherd, who lives in both Los Angeles and Coventry, England, returns with a horror novel that follows two people: Madison, who joins an all-female boot camp to break her breakup-related junk-food habit, and Johnny, who goes to a remote cottage to detox from pain pills. There's something sinister lurking in both places, though."--Orange County Register

"Both Madison and Johnny find strength deep within as they face the demons that put them in their situations, and readers won't want to put this page-turning horror novel down but will keep reading to see how both characters triumph over impossible odds."--Booklist

"Smitherd managed to surprise me at least half a dozen times throughout this book. Every time I thought I knew where it was going, the next page proved me wrong. An intense, hallucinatory journey that shows--in fist-clenching detail--how far some people are willing to go in that perpetual hunt for the best version of themselves."--Keith Rosson, author of Coffin Moon and the Fever House duology

"Captivating, unique, and an utter page-turner from start to finish, I'LL QUIT WHEN I'M DEAD shines a light on the questionable lengths humans will go to, all under the guise of "self-improvement." A must-read!" --Carissa Orlando, author of The September House

"I'll Quit When I'm Dead is gripping from the first page, pulling the reader deeper with every twist and turn. Smitherd is so incredibly talented and has proven himself to be a master of suspense in this surreal, nightmarish ride."--Monika Kim, author of The Eyes Are the Best Part

"Luke Smitherd's I'll Quit When I'm Dead is a shadowy mirror maze of terror and suspense. Just when you think you know where it's going, you're blindsided by another shocking twist. I devoured it in two breathless sittings."--Richard Chizmar, New York Times bestselling author of Memorials

"Smitherd pulls off one hell of a trick with I'll Quit When I'm Dead, a uniquely compelling, propulsive thriller and an eerily unsettling horror novel all rolled into one. Highly recommended!"--Christopher Golden, New York Times bestselling author of The Night Birds and Road of Bones

"Your workout begins with reps of thrilling scenarios before stretching into an unputdownable story. All upon a mat of fantastic writing. Never has self-improvement existed on such pins and needles."--Josh Malerman, New York Times bestselling author of Bird Box and Incidents Around the House

About the Author

Luke Smitherd is the author of the The Stone Man (shortlisted for Audible Book of the Year 2015) and its sequels. A former singer and guitarist, he now writes full time for a living and divides his time between Los Angeles and Coventry, England.