A Chicago Tribune Best Book of 2023
2024 American Book Fest Best Book Award for Visionary Fiction
Guardian Best Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Horror (September 2023)
SciFiNow Best Science Fiction Books (August 2023)
New Scientist Best New Science Fiction (August 2023)
Powell’s Bookstore Pick of the Month (August 2023)
Bookriot’s 10 Don’t-Miss Horror Novels (August 2023)
“A powerfully weird, original tale that combines American folk horror with a surreal coming-of-age nightmare.”—The Guardian

“An eerie, surrealist twist on the American Midwest, highlighting everything unusual about small-town living . . . The focus on creating a desolate and strange atmosphere pays off. Horror fans who value ambiance over jump scares will want to check this out.”—Publishers Weekly

“A genre-bending horror thriller that grapples with adolescent desire and existential dread . . . Gooey, gory, and frightening, Kennedy’s latest will appeal to fans of coming-of-age horror.”—Booklist

“Strap yourselves in for a super-storm of psycho-sexual intensity: American gothic, full-blown horror, wrapped up in an adolescent coming-of-age tale . . . Don’t try to understand, just get swept up and enjoy the ride.”—Daily Mail

“Wonderful, improbable . . . Its dream logic unfolds into an epic.”—Chicago Tribune

“A twisty, startling, atmospheric Midwest Gothic with the unstoppable power of a freight train and the moody ambience of a mist-shrouded diner at midnight. I could not put it down, and the ending left me in pieces.”—Delilah S. Dawson, New York Times-bestselling author of Star Wars: Phasma, Bloom, Wake of Vultures, and more

“A Lynchian sense of creeping nastiness, rooted in the way small-town life can be stifling, pervades a novel that, as its various plot strands come together, has a whirlwind energy that’s hard to resist. Four stars.”—SFX Magazine

“An utterly unique coming-of-age horror-thriller . . . Deadpan creepy, extremely weird, and totally satisfying.”—Laini Taylor, New York Times-bestselling author of Strange the Dreamer and the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy

“So weird and wonderful it carves a lasting mark on your memory. The distinctive and eerie small-town setting, the magic-laced mystery that becomes a nightmare: it’s a midwestern Twin Peaks, in the very best way.”—Jacqueline West, New York Times-bestselling author of Long Lost, The Books of Elsewhere, Last Things, and more

“Depraved, hilarious, and genre-bending.”—Kathleen Rooney at Brooklyn Rail

“Delves into surreal, mind-bending depths . . . Fans of eerie, atmospheric horror will be hooked.”—SciFiNow (“Best New Science Fiction Books of August 2023”)

“It’s downright unsettling . . . a wildly original and haunting coming-of-age story.”—Cavan Scott, New York Times bestselling author (Star Wars The High Republic, Shadow Service)

“Reads like a fever dream wrapped inside of techno-colored nightmare and viewed through a kaleidoscope . . . Kennedy keeps the reader hooked with his vivid descriptions and the narrator’s infinite curiosity, trying to make sense of the messy business. Anyone looking for a surreal, supernatural thriller with mysterious undertones will be blown away by Bride of the Tornado.“—Manhattan Book Review

“Nightmarish . . . Reads like Ray Bradbury channeling David Lynch and Stephen King.”—Keir Graff, author of The Tiny Mansion and The Swing of Things

“A fever dream for adults who want to be surprised . . . A high-velocity twister of a ride.”—Lori Rader-Day at Chicago Review of Books

“There are some utterly bonkers & epic moments that I’ll remember for a long time . . . You’ll find yourself utterly enthralled.”—FanFiAddict

“Unabashedly candid, raw, and at times humorous and heartbreaking . . . If you enjoy stories that aren’t afraid of being weird and are draped heavily in looming dread, check this one out.”—Michael Goodwin (author of Smolder, Scribe, and The Ritual)

“Ten Best Horror Books of 2024. Haunting, fantastical, twisted. This went in all the directions I wasn’t expecting, and delivered from start to finish.”—Daniel Willcocks, bestselling author of Dream, When Winter Comes, and many other books

“Written in an unsettling, eerie style that has the reader suspicious of every character and every event, Bride of the Tornado crawls under your skin and stays there.”—Jamie Stewart, author of Something Wicked, Something Dark and Montague’s Carnival of Delights and Terror

“Creepy and increasingly surreal . . . For readers who like strange things in their fiction.”—SF2 Concatenation

“Feverish, compelling and brilliantly original . . . Bride of the Tornado is everything horror can be. “—The Book Beard

“I love the way Kennedy sweeps us away in a story that’s both relatable and heartbreaking with characters who yearn for escape in a town eager to trap them forever.”—Aimee Trutt Hardy (author of Pocket Full of Teeth)

“A strange whirlwind of a horror story . . . What I loved most about this book is how freaking weird it is. The experience of letting go of trying to figure out any practical explanations and just enjoying the ride was fantastic.”—Elliott Bay Book Company (Seattle)

“Fascinating, bizarre and mind-twisting.”—The Constellation of Moon

“Captivating and utterly unique . . . James Kennedy’s masterful storytelling, imaginative world-building, and compelling characters make this novel an enchanting and thought-provoking read.”—Ginger Nuts of Horror

“I love me some smart horror, I love being puzzled and guessing up to the end, and I love being immersed in a weird world. If you are like me, you will probably love this book. This is for fans of Stephen King, of House of Leaves, and of Ishiguro’s Buried Giant.“—The Chuckanut Reader

“No one does lost outcasts searching for purpose like James Kennedy. What a strange, haunting, eerie, unsettling, satisfying, infuriating piece of art.”—Books Inc. (San Francisco)

“A Twin Peaks-esque tale of first love, sinister adults and strange cults that will leave you wondering: what did I just read?! Unsettling, funny, electric. And just a little sweet.”—University Book Store (Seattle)

“We always feel like there’s a lot we don’t know, which keeps the tension and dread at tantalizingly high levels. I loved the narrator.”—Snail On The Wall Bookstore (Staff Pick)

“Rarely am I left speechless by a book. I’m speechless. I don’t even know what I read but all I know is that it was absolutely insanely awesome . . . I felt like I was on a horrible HORRIBLE acid trip the whole time but I couldn’t put it down. The best way I can describe this book is Midsommar/Hereditary vibe if you’re into horror movies.”—Neeley Likes Words (One of her Top 10 Reads of 2024)

“I wish I could treat James Kennedy’s mind like Netflix and just scroll down his ideas and the way he sees the world—I want to go to the movies inside this man’s dreams and nightmares so I’m really glad he decided to be a writer . . . The setting was so vivid, atmospheric, suffocating, that it felt like a character that I loved and feared in equal amounts. Reading this book raised my blood pressure because I felt like there was something behind ME the entire time.”—Lucsbooks

“I was hooked from the get-go. Intrigued by every scene and every interaction, I had a hard time setting my book down when real life summoned me. While at times, the character seemed younger than her years, I found her to be quite relatable to the teenage version of myself. This tale weaves moments of beauty, curiosity, horror, and cultish behaviors so artfully that it cannot be defined. I’m certain this book will land in my top ten favorites of 2025.”—Dark Violet Dreams

“Holy cow! This has got to be the strangest book I’ve read in ages. A mix of horror, coming of age, fever dream, and midwestern folklore! It’s also utterly compelling. As a child of the Midwest, I’ve had tornadoes swirling around in my nightmares for a very long time. This book was an uncomfortable, fascinating and surreal read that will probably live in my head for a LONG time.”—Jodi’s Many Books

“I have not been able to forget this book. Coming-of-age story turns horror in this Stephen King-like read. Five stars.”—Reading With Randy

“This book is brilliant and it’s bizarre. It’s basically one big existential nightmare in a novel . . . I can’t really do the book justice but if I had to try and explain the style it’s probably Stranger Things mixed with Stephen King’s IT but with more of an adult feel similar to Twin Peaks . . . the best contemporary horror thriller I’ve read in a long time.”—Amanda Llwyd

“This book is unique . . . I loved the concept of this book. I mean this as a compliment, but you know that feeling in a bad dream when you become aware you’re in a bad dream . . . that is what this book feels like.”—Lauren At Read

“What did I just read? This was definitely one of the most bizarre books I have ever read, I had no idea what was happening, ever, and yet I couldn’t stop reading—I was fascinated . . . a confusing fever dream of forbidden love with a cult-like creepery looming everywhere.”—SJ Through The Looking Glass

“Twin Peaks meets The Mist in one of the most bizarre books that I have ever read. Talk about true love.”—Philly Ghoul

“This was a doozy . . . folk horror sprinkled with a little science fiction with a drizzle of speculative horror. This was a mind bending story and defies all the laws and boundaries of story telling . . . If you’re looking for a different type of horror that will utterly surprise you, this is it.”—Stefany Krantz (stef_reads_books_)

“Yes to everything about this novel. It’s like if Twin Peaks took place in the prairies of the Midwest and the protagonist was an awkward teen girl instead of a chipper FBI agent. It has cults. It has extreme weather. It has small town secrets. It has teenage misfits. It has cats. It has first love. It has a tornado killer. What more could you want?”—Becky Robison, author of My Parents Are Dead: What Now?

“Genre-defying . . . I did find myself constantly trying to solve this mysterious puzzle but always being left surprised by another twist . . . It was as chilling and twisted as it was bizarre. Reading this book felt like a fever dream.”—My Wee Reads

“I loved the unabashed quirkiness of this read. Full of off-beat characters and ominous goings-on. The whole thing left me with that ‘WTF did I just read’ feeling that I absolutely live for! I found it to be quite coming-of-age and young adult-ish yet still incredibly dark and very enjoyable as a horror novel.”—What Wandering Windy Reads

“A hearty mix of thriller, horror and even a unique romance. The horror aspect gradually increases as the story goes on and really pulls you in because you don’t expect the scenes that play out before you . . . I highly recommend Bride of the Tornado.”—Nicole’s Novelous Nook

“Bizarre. Eerie. Weird . . . This horror-thriller is nothing like I’ve ever read before. I read it in about a day (I couldn’t put it down) . . . This is quite literally a tornado of a book; it’ll spin you, whip you, and throw you and leave you dumbfounded in the end.”—Taylor Paige

“An absolutely phenomenal read . . . A quirky vortex of speculative fiction steeped in existential dread that sucks you into the bizarre and rather terrifying world, cloaked in an incredibly creepy macabre mood . . . Equal parts chilling, witty and sensitive.”—The Vampire’s Library

“A rich page-turner full of atmosphere and intensity. At times the writing was cinematic and psychedelic. The scenes are ripe with emotion. I found this book so hard to put down. It’s very original . . . I highly highly recommend this book.”—Peculiar Throne

“One of the most challenging and beautiful characteristics of this book, for me, is the surrealist style. The illogical aspects drew me in deep because I adore a good puzzle; and then I became heavily invested in this dark tale painted over with a thin veneer of normalcy. As the narrative progresses, this veneer peels back, and the story becomes increasingly strange and uncanny. This narrative wrestles with some worthy themes, such as youth conformity and finding one’s place in a group, unwanted and forced pregnancy, and intergenerational trauma . . . I loved it and definitely recommend it to horror fans who like to be challenged and surprised.”—Dona’s Books

“Suspenseful yet poignant writing . . . Lovers of Stephen King and Ari Aster would appreciate the twists and turns of this James Kennedy book. I certainly had nightmares after finishing it, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it (my highest compliments to any book) . . . Once you pick it up, there is no forgetting it.”—Reading With Randy

“Extreme horror level! Have you seen the old show Unsolved Mysteries? Bride of the Tornado has that same vibe, but with a more David Lynch feel and it reads like a fever dream . . . I’d definitely recommend it if you want a mindfuck of a book!”—Reads With Dogs

“This book was the weirdest fever dream in the best way possible. It literally feels like you are in a weird nightmare and can’t wake up. A super unique read. Four out of five stars.”—Horror Chronicles

“A complete mind bender of a read that I couldn’t pull away from. If you’re a fan of Stranger Things, Twin Peaks, or just quirky reads in general, this is one for you . . . Quite gruesome and a sickening read in places and really makes your head spin! Four stars.”—All Books Great And Small

“Viscerally creepy and gory but never gratuitous . . . I love when stories and writers are willing to go for broke and create worlds and characters that readers will either love or hate. In the end I read this in a single sitting—it was fun and definitely unique . . . A creepy good time!”—Rona Reads

“A captivating blend of coming-of-age drama, surreal horror, and psychological thriller that will thrill fans of Stephen King and Catriona Ward . . . If you enjoy books that challenge your perception of reality and embrace the strange and the uncanny, Bride of the Tornado will leave you both mesmerized and unnerved.”—Twins And Talent

“One of those bizarre books that feel like entering the realm of dreams only to find out it’s been a nightmare all along. Short, dark, with a compelling writing style and solid storytelling . . . The main character’s voice is powerful and vibrant, and so is the portrayal of the secondary characters. If you enjoy weird books, peculiar narrators, a certain sense of nostalgia, and a dash of horror, you’ll love Bride of the Tornado.“—Books In Parentheses

“This book surprised me a bit as it had its moments that really drew me in but the parts that surprised me were the ones that made me go ‘oh shit’ because of their disturbing nature. This was a really unique story for me and I loved its originality as well as the underlining aspects you need to read into a bit.”—The Macabre Reader

“Knocked my socks off. If you like weird fiction, creepy small towns, and Eraserhead, check it out!”—Small Friend Records & Books (Richmond, Virginia)

“This book is a whirlwind of a story . . . Ohh how i really enjoyed this book!! Kennedy keeps the whole story shrouded in mystery up until the very last page, and even then we don’t know the whole thing! This book was so good it put me in a temporary slump . . . Have you ever had a book like that? It’s so good/weird that it leaves you flabbergasted for a bit and you have to process what you just read.”—Novelette

“An incredibly weird book . . . It was a strange journey but an enjoyable one, and Kennedy’s writing style really drives you through the action, making it hard to put the book down.”—Elysa Reads It All

“The writing is wonderful, with stunning world-building and character development. It’s rare that I find a book that is this bizarre, and this excellent. I LOVED it.”—Danielle Vinson (luna13darke)

“Wizard of Oz meets Being John Malkovich . . . Things go very pear-shaped, and then that pear rots, ferments and goes very very moldy. But as the story warps from something understandable to something nightmarishly surreal, from sunny fluff to terribly dark.”—Kasey’s Book Hoard

“Horrifying and twisted in the best way . . . I enjoyed it immensely.”—Infectious Reading

Staff Pick, The Bookloft Berkshires (Cheri)