The Reading Bud

Book Blog by Heena Rathore-Pardeshi

Book Review: B&G Mystery: We Can’t Tell You by Josh Martin

Book Details:

Author: Josh Martin
Release Date:
January 27, 2025 
Series: B&G Mystery: We Can’t Tell You (Book 1 of 3)
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Psychological Thriller
Format: E-book 
Pages: 107 pages
Publisher: –
Blurb:
Have you ever awoken from a deep sleep and still feel like you’re dreaming? A few minutes of confusion is certainly common…..
But what about several months?
Not so common, unfortunately.
One day, not quite a year ago, it happened to me. I couldn’t shake the feeling. I could remember, and not remember, all at the same time.

Confused? Yeah, I was too….
Still am, as a matter of fact.
That one morning changed everything. I mean everything. Nothing could have prepared me for the events that followed.
Prepare yourself….
You’re about to see why.

Review

Rating: 4 out of 5.

B&G Mystery: We Can’t Tell You by Josh Martin is an ambitious and unsettling thriller that begins in the quiet of a Wisconsin morning but quickly spirals into a labyrinth of déjà vu, cryptic notes, phantom figures, and rules that seem to govern fate itself. Told through the eyes of a seventeen-year-old whose memory and reality keep splintering, the novel places readers in the same disoriented state as its protagonist, never sure whether he is awake, dreaming, or being manipulated by forces beyond comprehension.

The book’s strength lies in its atmosphere. From the very first pages, the story is drenched in dread. The text messages, the mysterious trio in the woods, the near-death experiences at intersections, and the omnipresent feeling of being watched create a constant sense of unease. Symbolism is cleverly threaded throughout, providing narrative cohesion even when the plot itself veers into deliberate chaos.

I must point out that the narrative often undermines itself with repetition. Tension that should build steadily sometimes loops back on itself, making the pacing sag in the middle chapters. Yet when the book works, it works brilliantly. The closing chapters bring together many of the scattered clues and escalate the narrative into cosmic horror, suggesting that the story is not merely about one boy’s fractured reality but about humanity itself being manipulated, collected, and used.

We Can’t Tell You Part 1 is a bold, eerie, and at times brilliant psychological thriller that thrives on atmosphere and symbolism. It is a gripping, confusing, and unforgettable experience that lingers long after the last page, even if the reader is left with more questions than answers.


You can also read this review at:

Goodreads


Amazon


One response to “Book Review: B&G Mystery: We Can’t Tell You by Josh Martin”

  1. Book Review: We Can’t Tell You: Part II (B&G Mystery: We Can’t Tell You Book 2) by Josh Martin – The Reading Bud Avatar

    […] no answers. From the very first pages, the book continues the claustrophobic dread established in Part I, and amplifies it with a sense of inevitability: the sense that Grayson is not just walking into […]

    Like

I love reading your comments, so please go ahead…

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

I’m Heena

Welcome to The Reading Bud, my cosy corner of the internet dedicated to all things books and authors. Here, I invite you to join me on a journey of discovering under-represented books, independent and small press authors, and all things book with a touch of love and loud purrs. Let’s get Reading!

Book of the Month

Read this captivating story on the adventures and hardships of Frank Knightlite, a man who strives to illuminate darkness with his lantern in search of answers to life’s questions.
You can get it here.
August 2025
M T W T F S S
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
25262728293031

Reading is like breathing to me.

Recent Posts

  • Guest Post: A Sense of Place by A.P. McGrath

    Today, at TRB Lounge, we are hosting author A.P. McGrath, author of A Burning In The Darkness. Presenting A.P. McGrath… A Sense of Place The small town in south Tipperary in Ireland where I grew up…

  • Guest Post: God, Myth and Mystery by K.M. Aul

    Today, at TRB Lounge, we are hosting author K.M. Aul, author of Synesthesia. Presenting K.M. Aul… God, Myth and Mystery The fourth book in the Senses Novels series, Synesthesia, deals with the concepts of immortality, God…

  • Book Review: Mr. Either/Or by Aaron Poochigian

    Author: Jon Budd Release Date: 10th October 2017 Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Sci-Fi, Poetry, Humour Edition: E-book Pages: 184 Publisher: Etruscan Press Rating: ★★★★+1/2 Blurb: Aaron Poochigian’s Mr. Either/Or is an ingenious debut, a verse novel melding American mythology, noir thriller, and…

  • Author Interview: Donnie Masters

    Welcome to TRB Lounge. Today, I’d like to welcome Donnie Masters, author of Start Winning With Money: Your Guide to Personal Finance, Small Business Growth, and Building Wealth, for an author Interview. About the author: Donnie Masters is…

  • Book Review: The Legend of the Washo Gold by Jon Budd

    Author: Jon Budd Release Date: 17th October 2015 Genre: Historical Fiction Series: The Vince Davis Trilogy Edition: E-book Pages: 177 Publisher: Jonathan H Budd Publishing Rating: ★★★★ Blurb: To prevent a repeat of the Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake, Hank, a modern…