I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Monsters of Ohio by John Scalzi Published by Tor Books on November 3 2026
Genres: Adult, Horror, Science fiction
Pages: 272
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Get ready for monster karaoke, exploding cows and more in Monsters of Ohio, an absurd but heartfelt story about change.
“There are monsters here, and they’re going to wreck our town. They’re just not us.”
John Scalzi excels at a certain brand of humor, and once again he’s brought that humor to his latest release, Monsters of Ohio. Scalzi asks the question “Can bad people change?” and according to this story, yes they can. I loved this upbeat, hopeful take on economic challenges and life in general, and while Scalzi’s social commentary is on the subtle side, it’s not hard to see what he’s talking about. I really had fun with this one.
The story takes place in Darke County Ohio in a small town called Richland. The main source of jobs is Bradson Foods, a meat packaging plant, but six months ago the plant was bought by Leyton Capital, and hundreds of workers were laid off. The rumor is that Leyton will be shutting down the plant for good, and folks aren’t happy about it. But before that happens, Leyton has decided to sponsor a Monster Mash, a local festival that incorporates the state’s cryptid legends and will help boost the town’s economy.
Leyton employee Bret Lawrence has been sent to Richland to oversee the closing of the plant and to make sure the five million dollars set aside for the festival is distributed correctly, although Bret has seen the writing on the wall with his own job and has decided to take drastic measures to protect himself.
Mike Boyd grew up n Richland and then left. He’s mostly estranged from his father, but he’s at a crossroads when the story opens and has decided to come home for visit until he can find a job and get back on his feet. He connects with some old friends, including local police chief Dave Prost. One day Dave gets a 911 call about a missing cow and Mike goes along for the ride. But that’s not the complete story, as he’s about to find out. When they arrive at the farm, blood, viscera and cow parts are scattered all over the barn. What happened to poor Cassie the cow?
With the help of Andi Sunders, who is on the festival planning committee, Mike and Dave start investigating the disturbing changes that are taking place all over town. Weird, impossible things are happening in Richland—to animals and humans—and that might just be a good thing.
John Scalzi’s timely story takes jabs at the current administration (which is par for the course) and focuses on our current state of affairs—a declining economy with the rich getting richer—but wraps it up in a fun, creature feature tale, keeping things light for the most part. His idea of people turning into monsters is both gross and hysterically funny, and I loved the twist he comes up with after that change happens. It’s not something I expected at all, but it gives the story a nice feeling of optimism.
As with most Scalzi books, there are quite a few characters to keep track of. But he does a great job of giving each one enough space so that the reader understands where they’re coming from. Some characters are portrayed as racists and bigots, but it’s necessary so that when the monsters start making an appearance, well, you’ll see! Two of my favorite characters ended up being Mike’s dad and stepmom, Harv and Barb, who are horrible people when you first meet them. What happens to them is both horrifying and heartwarming. I’m not sure how Scalzi manages to combine those two things, but he does!
The final clash between the towns people and Leyton was so entertaining, and I loved the open ended conclusion, which doesn’t resolve everything but gives readers a sense that things have changed for the better.
Big thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy. Above quote was taken from an uncorrected proof and may differ in the final version of the book.
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