You Won't Find THIS Barb in Bethesda!

TITLE: Bethesda

AUTHOR: Lisa Morris

PUBLISHER: Quill and Crow Publishing House

PUBLISHING DATE: June 23, 2026

PAGES: 157   

SOURCE: ARC

FROM GOODREADS: Tryss just wants to get home to say goodbye to her dad before he passes away, but when she pulls off the freeway to find a gas station, she ends up stuck in Bethesda, a backwoods town with no cell service and a car that won’t start. Worse still, the town’s citizens aren’t exactly…alive. Unless you count the Barbs. They’re Bethesda’s sisterhood of cloned caretakers, and they may look friendly, but like the town, surface impressions can be deceiving. In her attempt to leave, Tryss meets Aiden, who’s been stuck in Bethesda for six months and has all but given up hope of escaping. They team up to figure out the town’s deadly—and just plain weird—secrets, but will the town actually let them leave?

MY THOUGHTS: You know those books where after the first page, you just get sucked in and you know you are going to love it?  Well, this was one of those books for me.  

Tryss is traveling back to her hometown in a race against time to see her father who just entered hospice.  Toward the end of her journey, she runs low on gas and finds a small town with an open gas station.  However, after filling up, her car won't start.  Thus begins Tryss's mission to find someone to help her. 

She cannot get cell reception and since it is the middle of the night, no one is on the streets.  Tryss knocks on several houses and eventually breaks into one where she finds a preserved woman sitting at the kitchen table.  Tryss sends Tryss exploring the whole town and she finds quite a few people, but none can help her because they are all dead. The next morning Tryss notices several open businesses, but all say the town has no working phones and all seem to look like that same person and have the same name - Barb. 

I really don't want to say much but if you love horror, then this is one you can't miss. I couldn't wait to see what unfolded and if Tryss would make it home to see her dad and even though the ending left quite a few things open for interpretation, it was still satisfying.  In fact, a day later, I find myself still trying to wrap my head around the mysteries of Bethesda. While this novel is only a novella, I find myself wanting more and I will definitely be checking out more from this author in the future. So stop reading my review and go preorder a copy!

MY RATING: 5 PAWS