The Darkness All Around Us

by Megan Boley

Reviewed by Matt Adcock

Step this way for a brutal, pulse-pounding descent into dystopian horror that grips and pleases as it rips your heart out.

Megan Boley's The Darkness All Around Us is a full-throttle, nerve-shredding journey through a world where survival is an act of defiance and the line between humanity and monstrosity blurs with every blood-drenched step forward. If you like your dystopian fiction with a razor-sharp edge, a touch of Resident Evil-esque bio-horror, and characters who carry their trauma like a loaded gun, then buckle up, this one hit's hard.

Boley brings a world drenched in shadow, in a future where corporate greed has mutated into something far more monstrous, the novel throws us into the ruins of a society ravaged by unchecked scientific ambition. Pharmatox, the omnipresent pharmaceutical juggernaut, has been playing God with genetics, and now the world is paying the price.

Humanity is splintered, what remains of civilization clings to the edges, while unspeakable horrors lurk in the wastelands beyond. Enter Stella, a scientist with a past as dark as the world around her. Haunted by guilt and the weight of past mistakes, she’s thrust into a desperate fight when her closest friend is taken by Pharmatox for “research.”

What follows is a relentless, high-stakes infiltration into the belly of the beast, where every corner holds a new nightmare, and trust is as scarce as clean air. Boley really knows how to craft characters that feel raw and real.

Stella isn’t some invincible action hero, she’s flawed, broken, and barely holding herself together. Her journey isn’t just about survival; it’s about redemption, about clawing her way back to something worth living for. Alongside her is a ragtag band of misfits: a snarky teenage scavenger who’s seen too much, a rogue scientist who knows too many secrets, and a former Pharmatox enforcer who may or may not be trustworthy. Their dynamic crackles with tension and gallows humour, offering rare moments of light in a world gone pitch-black.

I loved the pacing, it's relentless. Every chapter drags you deeper into the abyss, each moment of reprieve shattered by another horrifying revelation. The horror here isn’t just in the grotesque mutations and corporate-controlled monstrosities, it’s in the loss of self, the fear of what we’re willing to become when the world demands it.

I also admired how Boley wields tension like a scalpel, slicing through any illusions of safety. The action is brutal, cinematic and desperate. Fights are scrappy and visceral, more survival than spectacle.

And when the horror kicks in you'll witness imagery that lingers, scenes that burn into your mind with eerie precision.

Must-Read for Dystopian Horror Fans The Darkness All Around Us is a gut-wrenching, adrenaline-fueled nightmare that refuses to pull its punches.

Megan Boley is a dystopian and urban fantasy author (and, alas, a former redhead). Her stories are full of ragtag teams, strong women, grumpy but lovable men, and some steamy romance to keep things nice and interesting...

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Out of a potential 5, you have to go with a Darkmatters:

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(4 - Read it with the lights on… but know that the darkness is already inside you.)