In The Store, a giant retail discount chain known as The Store opens a location in the small town of Juniper, Arizona. In a town like Juniper, where the economy is driven mainly by local businesses, The Store is a major threat to residents—especially when you can shop for everything you need at one place and save THOUSANDS of dollars. It’s not long before The Store buys out every small business in town and completely takes over.
And that’s not all. The Store also recruits out of work locals and subjects them to its sinister corporate training course, which involves passing a series of humiliating and torturous acts including sexual acts. Gross!
Bill Davis is the only man in town who’s been able to resist the luring, mysterious pull of The Store. But unfortunately, his teenage daughters have already managed to get caught under its evil spell.
My copy of The Store sits at a robust 431 pages, and not one page of it is dull or boring. The story is understated. It reveals just enough about the goings-on behind closed doors at The Store without being too specific, which makes the book even more horrifying. At several points, the author describes how one of the female characters keeps coming home with bloody underwear, but doesn’t divulge much more than that. The entire novel is just terrifying.
I also enjoy how Bentley Little takes time going into how The Store makes local commerce suffer in Juniper. He creates a world in which a quiet and happy community is beaten down and devastated both financially and emotionally at the hands of The Store. The aftermath is a community of broken, desperate people who’ll do anything to keep food on the table and their families safe, no matter what the cost.
I’m excited to read more of Bentley Little’s backlist! I’ve also read and reviewed The Association and Death Instinct.
What are your favorite books by Bentley Little?
Last Updated on November 23, 2025 by Sarah Ann
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