5.0 (2 ratings)
The Monsters We Are
Published: February 20, 2026
Pages: 307
ISBN: 9781971469041
Reader Reviews
5.0
2 ratings
Katie J.
Mar 15, 2026
The Monsters We Are feels different from D. R. Long’s other books, but in a good way. This story leans heavily into a noir detective vibe, with layers of mystery and a slow unraveling of the truth.
The main character is a private detective who keeps digging even when the answers start getting uncomfortable, and the deeper he goes, the darker the world becomes. I genuinely wasn’t sure who was behind everything until the very end, which made the payoff even better.
If you enjoy noir-style mysteries mixed with strange, unsettling horror, this one is definitely worth the read.
The main character is a private detective who keeps digging even when the answers start getting uncomfortable, and the deeper he goes, the darker the world becomes. I genuinely wasn’t sure who was behind everything until the very end, which made the payoff even better.
If you enjoy noir-style mysteries mixed with strange, unsettling horror, this one is definitely worth the read.
D. R. L.
Mar 14, 2026
When I started writing The Monsters We Are, I thought I was writing a noir murder mystery set in a city where magical cloaks failed and everyone’s true form was exposed. I wanted to poke fun at tropes, lean into them a little, and have fun with it.
By the end, I realized it was about something else.
It became a metaphor for what it feels like when reality shifts underneath you and you’re still expected to function like nothing happened. For living in-between worlds. For masking. For exposure. For the quiet violence of being seen in a way you didn’t choose.
Lou is a mutant, like nearly everyone in Nightmare City. Almost human, but not quite. He can detect lies, but not motives. Truth doesn’t bring peace. It just brings more truth.
Nightmare City used to be ordinary. Then the cloaks failed. Now everyone can see the monsters that were always there, the ones that embody us all. Still, the city keeps moving. Bills get paid. Bars open at five. Even when something fundamental has broken.
I’m not saying this book is about schizophrenia, mental health, or any one diagnosis. But it is about perception. About fractured realities. About what happens when the masks come off and people do not like what they see.
It is about loss. And it is about how we survive that loss.
If you just want a hard-boiled monster mystery, you will get one. It is right there to smack you in the face.
If you are looking for something deeper under the surface, it is in there too, practically begging you to find it.
— D. R. Long
By the end, I realized it was about something else.
It became a metaphor for what it feels like when reality shifts underneath you and you’re still expected to function like nothing happened. For living in-between worlds. For masking. For exposure. For the quiet violence of being seen in a way you didn’t choose.
Lou is a mutant, like nearly everyone in Nightmare City. Almost human, but not quite. He can detect lies, but not motives. Truth doesn’t bring peace. It just brings more truth.
Nightmare City used to be ordinary. Then the cloaks failed. Now everyone can see the monsters that were always there, the ones that embody us all. Still, the city keeps moving. Bills get paid. Bars open at five. Even when something fundamental has broken.
I’m not saying this book is about schizophrenia, mental health, or any one diagnosis. But it is about perception. About fractured realities. About what happens when the masks come off and people do not like what they see.
It is about loss. And it is about how we survive that loss.
If you just want a hard-boiled monster mystery, you will get one. It is right there to smack you in the face.
If you are looking for something deeper under the surface, it is in there too, practically begging you to find it.
— D. R. Long