Book Review: The Need by Megan Mostyn-Brown

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

The Need by Megan Mostyn-Brown

Mogsy’s Rating: 4.5 of 5 stars

Genre: Horror

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Del Rey (September 22, 2026)

Length: 288 pages

Author Information: Website

I don’t know what it is about The Need, but I absolutely loved the hell out of this book. It’s weird, gory, a little ridiculous, and clearly not interested in taking itself too seriously, which turned out to be a pretty perfect combination for me. Megan Mostyn-Brown takes the idea of cannibalism in some very unexpected directions, mixing gruesome horror with dysfunctional families, dark humor, and a bit of chaos. I went into this expecting something dark and fun, and boy, did it deliver.

The novel’s premise alone is enough to grab your attention: certain people are born with a genetic condition that requires them to consume human flesh to stay alive. This condition, known simply as the Need, is passed down genetically, and kept secret amongst those who have it. For many, it is a curse that must be hidden at all costs. But others have embraced it as part of who they are, with some families even treating it as a source of pride and becoming obsessed with keeping the bloodline pure. This story follows Talia, a mother who falls firmly in the first camp. She has spent years moving from place to place with her twins, Sam and Rosie, trying to stay one step ahead of her mother-in-law, Vera, a brutal woman who falls firmly into the latter camp. Following the death of her husband, Talia wants nothing more to do with his overbearing family, but Vera has other plans. As the head of a wealthy and powerful family, she has every resource at her disposal and will stop at nothing to get her grandchildren back under her control.

Talia has another problem to worry about. While Rosie was born without the Need, Sam on the other hand has inherited the full-blown form of the condition. Now a teenager, he struggles with the impulses that come with it and sometimes loses control, leaving Talia to pack up the family and move whenever his actions threaten to catch up with them. Meanwhile, Rosie is simply eager to experience something resembling a normal teenage life, which is difficult when you have a brother who eats people and a mother who keeps uprooting you every few months. But as Talia’s carefully constructed plans begin to unravel and she runs out of places to hide, the family is forced to confront just how much damage the Need has caused across generations.

I really loved the concept behind the novel, especially the idea of families approaching the Need from very different directions. Talia sees it as something dangerous and almost shameful, while Vera has taken the opposite approach, becoming almost fanatical about her heritage and horrified by the possibility that any of her descendants, like her son or Rosie, could be born without the condition. That difference creates some wonderfully messed-up family dynamics, but underneath all the killing and cannibalism, there’s actually some deeper stuff going on about parenthood and the hang-ups and unhealthy patterns that get passed down from one generation to the next.

A possible sticking point, however, might be the number of POVs. There are a lot of them, and because the chapters move quickly between multiple first-person perspectives, keeping track of them can easily become overwhelming. At the same time, I have to admit this format probably worked better than it should have because of how it kept the story moving. And then there’s Vera. Oh my goodness, Vera! I was not prepared for how much I would enjoy this woman. She is absolutely terrible, completely unhinged, yet somehow manages to be hilarious while doing some truly dastardly things. I’m pretty sure she made me laugh out loud at least a dozen times. There’s just something incredibly entertaining about a villainess who is so committed to her own demented worldview that she can turn even the most horrifying situation into something absurd.

Speaking of which, some of the imagery in this book is genuinely wild. The Need was exactly the kind of strange, messy horror book I didn’t realize I was in the mood for. Of course, there was also a little more teenage drama than I personally needed, particularly when everything else going on was much more interesting. But if nothing else, it was entertaining to watch the kids worry about teenage problems when everything else around them is so out there. This is not a book where everyone makes sensible decisions, and honestly, I think the story is better for it.

Ultimately, this novel was just ridiculously fun to read. Sometimes all I need is a killer concept, some deeply questionable characters, and a whole lot of blood to have a good time. The Need has a sort of horror-meets-dark-humor energy that makes me think fans of Rachel Harrison will really love this, and I definitely recommend it to genre readers who like being entertained without losing sight of the emotional and dysfunctional human relationships underneath the horror.