horror

Review: Are You Afraid of the Dark: The Tale of the Gravemother by Rin Chupeco

~ megs14malloy

Are You Afraid of the Dark?Are You Afraid of the Dark? by Rin Chupeco
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Many of you probably remember, hopefully fondly, the 1990s-Horror Anthology television series for young people called Are You Afraid of the Dark? I loved that show and all things related to it.

Recently, I binge-watched The Midnight Society on Netflix and it made me hugely nostalgic for this series. As I was searching the web for more content, I stumbled across this book about a week before its release date.

Seeing Rin Chupeco’s name on the cover sealed the deal, I ordered it immediately. Having read YA Horror from Chupeco before, I knew this would be good. I just knew it!

Spoiler alert: I was right.

In this story we meet Levi, who is the new boy in town. He gets the opportunity to try out to be a member of the Midnight Society. This book is the story he tells around the campfire that night.

First, let me just say, Levi is definitely getting in and deservedly if this is the story he is telling. I became so immersed in this and loved how it all played out.

The story follows Zane, who is also a new boy in town, after his family inherits a haunted mansion. He moves to town with his Dad and his little sister, Emma.

Local legend says the property is haunted by the Gravemother, a woman who was apparently suspected of kidnapping and harming local children.

It doesn’t take long before Zane comes to believe the legends are true. Even though they aren’t living at the property, it needs some heavy renovating, they do spend time there and Zane starts to see and experience things he can’t explain.

Along with his new friend, Garrett, who started out as a bit of an enemy, Zane digs into investigating the legend for himself. Are the stories about the Gravemother true? And even if they are, how can they help her to rest?

I really enjoyed this story. It had so many fun elements and was written really well. Zane’s friend Garrett has his own ghost-hunting team. How could you not love that?!

I think Chupeco did a great job transitioning into the Spooky Middle Grade genre. There is quite a difference between YA Horror and Middle Grade Horror and I feel like they navigated that so well.

The imagery was great, the story fluid, fun and engaging and there was also great messages about family, friendships and personal growth. I felt like it was so thoughtfully written for the target audience.

The highlight of this for me was the friendship between Zane and Garrett. I feel like Chupeco nailed the natural progression of new friendships.

In the beginning, I thought Zane and Garrett were going to have real issues; like a bully situation. Happily though, they were able to advance past that and become supportive friends. They also acknowledged it and communicated their feelings to one another.

It was nice to see and I think in a MG story, it sets a great example for Younger Readers. This is more than a spooky story, there’s substance here.

Overall, I had a lot of fun reading this. While I don’t think it will stick in my mind for years to come, I had a great time with it in the moment and that’s what I was looking for.

I’m hoping this is a start of an all-new revamp of this series. I would love to see future installments from other talented writers like Chupeco.

I would definitely recommend this to any fan of the original series, new fans, or any Young Readers who enjoy a spooky story. This was a lot of fun!

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Review: Burn the Negative by Josh Winning

~ megs14malloy

Burn the NegativeBurn the Negative by Josh Winning
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**2.5-stars rounded up**

Even though it had a promising start, sadly, Burn the Negative really let me down in the latter half of the story. I’m bummed about it, y’all. I wanted to love this.

Let’s discuss that initial set-up, shall we?

In the beginning we meet our MC, Laura, an entertainment journalist living in London. We are introduced to Laura as she is making her way to L.A. for a new assignment. She’ll be covering a modern remake of a 1990s Horror-Cult Classic movie called The Guest House.

It quickly becomes clear that there is a lot of mystery and dark lore revolving around the original movie and that Laura has first hand knowledge of that film.

As it turns out, Laura was a child actress who actually had the starring role in The Guest House. Since that time and the tragedies that struck many involved in the film-making, Laura has changed her identity and never let on to anyone who she truly is.

This includes her boss who sent her on this assignment.

Obviously, she’s concerned about returning to L.A. Having anything to do with this new remake, even in the slightest way, makes her nervous. It seems Laura’s doubts are for a reason too, as almost as soon as she is on the ground in L.A., strange things begin happening around her.

So far, so good. I’m a sucker for stories revolving around the filming of Horror movies, series or documentaries too. It also had a strong is it supernatural, is it not supernatural-feel to it that I tend to enjoy.

I was getting major Poltergeist vibes because of all the lore surrounding the making of that movie and the aftermath; the Poltergeist Curse, if you will.

Laura, as a character, was quite mysterious herself. I was interested in learning more about her, as she slowly unveiled the truth of her time with the film, the reasons her family left L.A., and her life since. She has a rather dry personality, but I wasn’t put off by it. She was fine.

There was a certain point though where I stopped enjoying the ride. More specifically, when I stopped feeling as much that it was inspired and started to feel more like it was falling into cliche territory.

I can name the point where the switch-flipped too. Without giving too much away, I will just say it had to do with a road trip, a gas station and the police.

After that point, I started to be more annoyed with the story than pleased by it. Particularly, the dialogue towards the end bordered on cringe and I’ll admit, I was happy when it wrapped up.

Overall, while there were aspects of this I enjoyed, it was too much of a mixed bag for me to give it a higher rating. The concept was fun, but the execution throughout didn’t stay consistent in my opinion.

With this being said, I know a ton of Readers are going to love this. If the synopsis sounds interesting to you, please give it a go. You could end up finding a new favorite!

Thank you to the publisher, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I would be interested in checking out more of this author’s work.

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Review: The Hotel by Louise Mumford

~ megs14malloy

The HotelThe Hotel by Louise Mumford
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

10-years ago, Bex and her best friend, Leo, were set to explore the remote and abandoned hotel, Ravencliffe, as a way to celebrate the end of school. Bex’s new boyfriend, Richard and his best friend, Oscar, end up weaseling their way into the trip as well.

Four went there, but only three returned. Leo was lost that day, from a high cliffside, never to be seen again.

Richard, an aspiring filmmaker, recorded their entire doomed exploration of the old property. The footage of that day has become a Horror Cult Classic; think The Blair Witch Project had it been real.

A decade later, the trio of survivors have drifted apart, living very different lives and each coping with the events of that fateful night in their own way.

As the ten-year anniversary approaches a documentary project is proposed wherein Richard, Oscar and Bex will meet up and return to the property, to face the demons of their past once and for all.

Our main character, Bex, has lived in isolation in London for many years. She’s cut herself off from everyone, haunted by the past. Leo was her best friend. She has so many unresolved feelings stemming from that night.

Even though she’s against it initially, Bex ultimately decides that returning to Ravencliffe may provide her with the opportunity to get answers about what happened to Leo. So, begrudgingly she agrees to take part in the project.

Bex, Richard and Oscar are reunited just prior to filming and return to the property from whence all their nightmares stem; along with a whole host of crew members for the documentary, of course.

The property seems just a malevolent as ever and incidents aplenty occur as they begin to film. Will Ravencliffe end up taking more lives?

While I did see one of the reveals coming a mile away, there was quite a bit about this book that I found compelling.

I loved how Mumford told this story mostly using just Bex as the narrative voice, but providing both present and past perspectives. I really enjoyed the present perspective, but was equally as interested in the past, which followed the characters from the time they planned the fateful trip, up through Leo’s disappearance.

It was a slow build initially, but I didn’t mind it. I loved Bex as a main character, even though I understand she probably won’t be every Readers cup of tea.

Personally, I love a main character who is flawed in some way, maybe haunted by their past and deals with it by isolation, self-sabotage, or self-medicating. I also always enjoy when these same characters decide they finally need answers and go back to their hometowns, or some other remote location, to investigate the past.

In this way, The Hotel was made for me.

I would say this continued the slow build until about the halfway mark and then events began to escalate more quickly. Regardless of the slow burn, I was never bored and disengaged from the narrative.

The atmosphere was incredible. I loved the remote, stark setting of the hotel, as well as its dark history. It had a solid is it supernatural, is it not supernatural-feel, which I enjoy. Give me all the dark, spooky things.

Overall, I thought this was a super-entertaining read. The plot elements kept me engaged and I loved the overriding tone and feel of the story. Even though it was slightly predictable in places, it was still a great time nevertheless. Well done by Mumford!

Thank you so much to the publisher, HQ, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I really enjoyed this one and am looking forward to picking up more from this author!

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Review: Motherthing by Ainslie Hogarth

~ megs14malloy

MotherthingMotherthing by Ainslie Hogarth
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**4.5-stars**

Motherthing is a really, really good domestic horror novel. I found it to be so unique and strange.

The topics explored were interesting and I was definitely shocked by the final bits ((pun intended)). Yikes. Seriously, in some ways, I may never view the world the same again.

I’m sort of kidding with that reaction, but also not really. This one took me by surprise.

In this story we follow Abby and her husband, Ralph. At the beginning of the story, Ralph’s Mom is found dead in the basement of the home in which they all live together.

It appears she’s taken her own life. There’s a lot of blood. It’s super tragic for Ralph, and Abby as well, of course.

The heart of the story explores the aftermath of that sudden death. It explores Ralph’s grief and also Abby’s mixed emotions about her mother-in-law and her actions.

The narrative is stream-of-consciousness from Abby’s perspective and while generally, that isn’t a style I tend to enjoy, it actually really worked for me here.

I feel like when an author is able to bring a great sense of humor to the perspective we are hearing from, it definitely helps me to settle in and enjoy the story.

Keeping in mind this is an extremely dark story, with stomach-churning, toe-curling, won’t eat for a week imagery, it still had moments where I literally LOL.

Even with all the humor, I felt like Hogarth did a great job of capturing the different levels and outward expressions of grief. It came off as genuine and believable.

Additionally, while some aspects seemed jarring, because they were shocking in nature, or otherwise upsetting content, the flow of the story consistently worked throughout. It was well constructed and presented.

The final scenes had my jaw on the floor. I think I sort of got lulled into it all over the course of the narrative and wasn’t expecting it to go the direction it did. I loved that part. It was a super solid finish.

I recommend the audio format, if you are someone who enjoys audiobooks. The narration was perfect for the story and it definitely felt immersive to me.

I cannot wait to read more from Hogarth in the future. It’s clear she is super creative and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next!

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Review: The Last Word by Taylor Adams

~ megs14malloy

The Last WordThe Last Word by Taylor Adams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I had the pleasure of Buddy Reading The Last Word with my beautiful niece, Lyss. I knew when she texted me the night we started saying she couldn’t read it if she was home alone, it was going to be good.

And it was!!! We had such a fantastic time with it. Although I am sure having someone to chat to about it while I was reading it, enhanced my experience, I am still proclaiming this to be my favorite book of 2023, so far.

The Last Word is getting a lot of buzz right now and IMO, it’s totally warranted. This is Adams returning to his No Exit-style and a lot of people, myself included, are eating it up.

If you aren’t aware, this story follows, Emma Carpenter, a woman who after a personal loss has secluded herself in a beach house on the Washington Coast. She’s technically house-sitting, but really she’s licking her wounds and trying to heal her broken heart.

Her days are spent with her dog, Laika, reading a ton of cheap e-books, walking on the beach, doing some drinking and chatting with the only neighbor via a whiteboard and binoculars. You know, the usual winter activities on an abandoned coastline.

After reading a particularly horrendous Slasher Horror novel, Emma can’t help herself. This book is trash. Absolute trash. She has to warn other unsuspecting e-book readers.

Therefore, she heads over to Amazon to leave a snarky 1-star review. She’s surprised moments later to get a direct reply from the author. He’s offended by her review and demands she take it down.

She refuses, or course. They go back and forth for a bit and he tells her that if she doesn’t take it down, she’ll regret it. Emma’s not playing this game. Sorry, loser, but your book sucked. Emma refuses to engage further.

Then things start happening…

Y’all, I loved this from the first 5-pages. I was hooked immediately. I’m not even exaggerating.

Honestly, the self-absorbed part of my brain wondered, did Taylor Adams write this after reading my review of Hairpin Bridge? Feeling frightened, I went back and read my review. It wasn’t that bad, so I figured I, at least, was in the clear.

As a reviewer and horror lover, this novel is disturbing, fun and disturbingly fun in so many different ways. It played on some of my biggest fears.

While I can see that there are some aspects of this that not everyone will love, for me, it was pretty much a perfect reading experience.

Even though I saw many of the twists coming a mile away, it didn’t damper my enjoyment of them one bit. I was still completely engaged and loved sitting by as Adams revealed it all in his own time.

I also loved the characters. Emma was a classic-feeling ‘good for her’ horror-girlie and I’m always down for that. Some of her lines had me laughing out loud and I loved watching her sort of come back to life throughout the story.

Lyss and I had some great discussions regarding this plot, both while we were reading it and after. I would absolutely recommend reading this with a friend. There really is a lot to discuss, as far as themes, structure and character development.

This is a case where I would recommend reading the hard copy, if you have the opportunity to do so. The way the book is arranged, including things such as the font choices, makes this a unique reading experience. I love how it was layed out.

I am so happy that Adams knocked this out of the park for me. Wild, crazy, gripping, anxiety-inducing terror ride of seclusion and desperation. I loved, loved, loved it.

I’m really looking forward to his next release!

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Review: Maeve Fly by C.J. Leede

~ megs14malloy

Maeve FlyMaeve Fly by C.J. Leede
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

Maeve Fly is an Extreme Horror novel by debut author C.J. Leede. In addition to the fascinating cover, I was drawn to this book because the synopsis mentions the main character was inspired by the pages of American Psycho.

Even though I was bored to tears by American Psycho, I still wanted to see what this was all about. It had my attention.

Luckily for me, I enjoyed this much more than AP. I definitely felt the same tone throughout, but I really enjoyed the Feminist twist that Leede brought here.

This story follows Maeve, who is the Patrick Bateman of our story. Instead of NYC, we’re in L.A. for this one, where Maeve lives with her ailing grandmother, a former movie starlet. Their secluded mansion is Maeve’s safe haven.

By day, Maeve works at a theme park, it’s unnamed, but think Disneyland, where she plays a super popular ice princess. Let’s call her, Elsa.

Maeve works alongside her best friend, Kate, the only person, besides her grandmother, she feels a real connection with. That is until Kate’s brother, Gideon, arrives in town.

Gideon makes Maeve feel things she doesn’t necessarily want to be feeling. She tries to avoid him, but the attraction can’t be helped. Once they start chumming around, all bets are off. It’s no holds bar, gripping, pulse-pounding, exhausting, exploring their darkest and deepest desires.

We’re talking dark. Real, genuine debauchery. Maeve has a fetish with eggs. You’ll never be able to unsee that. I will never look at an egg the same again.

The narrative style is biting and shocking, as you would expect Extreme Horror to be. It’s stream of consciousness from Maeve’s perspective and being in her brain is not a comfortable place to be.

I did enjoy some of the ideas that Leede explored in this. For example, Maeve talks about how we have a need to understand why people do horrific acts, but when men perform such acts, it’s sort of like, men are aggressive, men can snap, men can be harmful. It’s not super shocking, but when the same acts are performed by a woman, it’s almost unbelievable to us.

Maeve’s thing is, what if this is just me? There’s no reason behind it, no justifications or excuses. It’s her true being, point blank.

I also liked the dichotomy displayed in Maeve’s life. She loves her job, she’s interacting with children all day, the epitome of a pretty, pretty princess, but as soon as the park closes and she’s free in the world, she’s a monster, a predator, an evil being.

That back-and-forth was really well done and I appreciated how Leede set that up. I also loved the ending of this. The final two scenes were my favorite of the whole novel.

Overall, I feel like this is a good book. I think it is smart and visceral. For me, though, I felt a little disconnected with it at times. It was sort of a mixed bag.

I enjoyed a lot of the themes and the ideas behind the creation of the story, but didn’t vibe as much with Maeve’s narrative voice.

Also, I feel like I am just not enjoying Extreme Horror as much as I used to. That is my own reading journey though, and yours may be completely different, so please keep that in mind when reading this review.

Fair warning: don’t be fooled by the subtle-sounding synopsis. This is intense, torture, body horror, fetish acts, sexually explicit content for days, it’s all here. If you’re looking for a good shock, you’ll definitely find it somewhere in this story. I dare you not to be shocked by at least a few scenes. You can’t do it. You can’t.

Thank you to the publisher, Tor Nightfire and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

I would definitely be interested in picking up more from this author in the future, especially if she continues with the feminist themes that were so well done here.

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Review: Reprieve by James Han Mattson

~ megs14malloy

ReprieveReprieve by James Han Mattson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this. I don’t read a lot of stories that feature this sort of Literary Fiction mixed with strong Social Horror.

I felt like this author did a great job constructing this one. I feel like with the people it’s going to hit with, it will really hit. Reprieve has the power to stay on your mind.

I listened to the audiobook and found it immersive. The tone of J.D. Jackson’s narration was, despite the content, soothing and very easy to get swept up in.

This story is set in 1997 and is constructed via a few different style elements. The idea is that there has been a murder at a full-contact, horror-inspired escape room called Quigley House, and we learn about the individuals involved, as well as the aftermath of the crime.

You get a few different character perspectives leading up to their involvement with the fateful night at Quigley House. You also follow along with the group of four contestants making their way through the different levels of the escape room process. Finally, you get court transcripts from the trial following the murder.

An aspect I think some Readers may dislike are the fairly large sections from the different perspectives in the before portions, that are pure character development. They provide context for the various characters ending up at the escape room, but they’re not particularly exciting, or thrilling, if I’m being honest.

With this being said though, I actually really enjoyed the author’s choices in constructing it that way. There were little hints provided throughout these sections that gave you insight into how they were all ultimately going to be connected. I liked watching it all come together.

Additionally, I enjoyed that sort of slow build-up of the eventual relationships and connections. I felt James Han Mattson gave real care to the creation of these characters and it gave it a certain level of authenticity that I appreciated.

The Social Horror was strong, particularly involving race and social status. Those themes branched throughout all of the different sections of the story and I feel like the author did a great job with it, bringing a slightly different perspective than I have read before. Jaidee’s experience as a foreign student coming to the U.S. was eye-opening.

Even though I had a great experience with this one, I do understand why some Readers aren’t connecting with this like they wanted. I think if you go into it expecting a fast-paced and exciting Horror-Thriller set in a escape room, you may be let down by the slow-build and focus on non-escape room content, of which there’s a lot.

I think if you enter this one with the right mindset though, and allow yourself to just settle into the character’s personal journeys, you could end up enjoying this as much as I did. Hopefully, this review will help you decide whether it will be for you or not.

I will definitely be picking up whatever James Han Mattson chooses to write next!

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The Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson

~ megs14malloy

The Year of the WitchingThe Year of the Witching by Alexis Henderson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

In The Year of the Witching we follow a young woman, Immanuelle Moore, who lives in a Puritanical-feeling settlement known as Bethel.

Immanuelle is an outsider amongst the group. She is accepted for the most part, but no one is really warm and fuzzy towards her.

This stems back to Immanuelle’s mother, who had an affair with an outsider, a man of a different race, the result of which was Immanuelle’s birth.

Immanuelle’s Mom’s life had a tragic ending. Because of this, and the stigma attached to her very being, Immanuelle tries her best to just get along and fly under the radar. Unfortunately, no one can do that forever.

After a mishap leads Immanuelle to the forbidden Darkwood that surrounds the settlement, she encounters the spirits of powerful witches killed years before. These spirits gift Immanuelle the journal of her dead mother.

This may sound puzzling, but trust me, in the context of the rest of story, it flows nicely.

Intrigued by the journal, Immanuelle becomes focused on discovering the truth behind her mother’s life. The more she digs, however, the more she stands apart from the rest of her society. It becomes clear that the history of Bethel isn’t as clear-cut as the leaders try to make it.

The Year of the Witching is a very solid story.

While I didn’t personally find it to be as successful as House of Hunger, I still enjoyed the eerie atmosphere and dark, vivid imagery Henderson brought to the page.

The initial build-up was strong and captivating. I liked meeting Immanuelle and learning a bit about her family history and the beliefs/traditions of Bethel.

Some of the insights into Immanuelle’s Mom made me sad. I felt for Immanuelle. She definitely was not dealt an easy hand. Reading of her overcoming and finding her power within herself was definitely satisfying though.

I did find some of the action towards the end difficult to track. There were moments where I couldn’t picture anything that was happening.

Overall though, I did really enjoy this. It’s a powerful story with some interesting themes explored. Immanuelle was a sympathetic main character; easy to get behind.

I am hoping that Henderson does end up releasing a sequel to this. I know that was sort of up in the air for a while, but I would love to see more with these characters!

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Review: Wasps in the Ice Cream by Tim McGregor

~ megs14malloy

Wasps in the Ice CreamWasps in the Ice Cream by Tim McGregor
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

🐝🍦🐝🍦🐝🍦🐝🍦🐝🍦🐝🍦🐝🍦🐝🍦🐝

Wasps in the Ice Cream is a captivating Coming of Age Horror novella that quickly reminded me why I love this subgenre.

It’s the Summer of 1987 and Mark Prewitt spends his time working at the local ice cream shop, avoiding his parents, tinkering on his dream car and engaging in miscellaneous hijinks with his best buds.

When the other boys stage a prank on the mysterious Farrow sisters, it goes too far and one of them gets hurt. Mark is riddled with guilt after the fact. He should have stopped it, but he didn’t.

Seeking to make amends with the girls, he ends up befriending the middle sister, George.

She’s unlike anyone he has ever known and he’s drawn to her like wasps to ice cream. The more time he spends with George, the less time he has for everyone else.

Mark finds himself keeping a lot of secrets, but he should have known in a town this small, it was bound to blow up in his face. What happens when you fall for the girl everyone hates? Mark is about to find out.

Spoiler Alert: It’s not good.

Y’all, I really enjoyed my time with this story. I know when some people think of Horror books, they think, scary books, things that scare me, and then if they don’t get scared by a book, they say, this isn’t Horror.

For me, Horror is a much more nuanced genre than that and thinking only books that literally scare you can be classified as Horror is simplifying the genre unfairly.

A good example of this is one of my fave subgenres of Horror, the Coming of Age story. Wasps in the Ice Cream is a perfect example, channeling all of the essential vibes. This basically transported me back to the Summer of 1987.

Coming of Age always hits home for me. Literally nothing could be happening and I still find myself so invested.

There’s something about the innocence and feeling of possibility in viewing the world through that lens. The emotional traumas and challenges the protagonists have experienced up to this point in their lives only scratch the surface of what the world will ultimately dish out for them. It’s such a special time. Nostalgia for days.

Also, it’s in the presentation. You generally have an Adult narrator, who is reflecting back on some pivotal moment in their life. Something that impacted them so deeply, it helped to shape the adults they became; good or bad.

There also tends to be powerful friendships and the exploration of sexuality. All of this is mixed together with deeper things that scare us; sometimes supernatural, sometimes not.

I felt McGregor did an amazing job telling Mark’s story. It felt so authentic. I believed everything I was being told and understood how the events of this Summer shaped Mark’s future, choices, wants and desires.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys an engaging Coming of Age Horror story. If you are just looking for scares though, you’d be best looking somewhere else.

Thank you so much to the publisher, RDS Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review. The audiobook is fantastic. The narrator truly captured Mark’s character. Well done!

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Review: We Don’t Swim Here by Vincent Tirado

~ megs14malloy

We Don't Swim HereWe Don’t Swim Here by Vincent Tirado
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of reading Vincent Tirado’s 2022-YA Horror debut, Burn Down, Rise Up.

First, let me say, if you are a YA Horror fan who enjoys stories involving urban legends, settings with a dark history, as well as a deep sense of place in the storytelling, you really should pick that one up.

I had a lot of fun with it and was instantly drawn in by Tirado’s creativity and writing style. I loved how quickly the action kicked off, no wasted time whatsoever.

Additionally, there was some fantastic horror imagery within that story that really got under my skin. Not too long after completing that book, I heard some buzz for Tirado’s latest release, We Don’t Swim Here.

I immediately made it my mission to get my hands on it.

I was so blessed to receive an early copy of the audiobook from Tantor Audio…

And I’m not even lying to you, when I say I listened to it twice this weekend. Explanation as to why I listened twice: I was on a long solo road trip and had a lot of steering wheel time and it was that good.

The narration of the audiobook is FANTASTIC. I absolutely recommend it as a format. The narrator, iiKane, was able to channel a overriding sense of urgency to the entire story. It had my pulse racing, even when nothing overtly scary was happening.

This story follows two cousins, Bronwyn and Anais. Their grandmother, LaLa, is in ill health and because of that, Bronwyn’s father, moves their family to the small Arkansas town, Hillwoods, where he grew up and into LaLa’s house, while she is in hospital.

Anais calls Hillwoods home. Her Dad and Bronwyn’s Dad are brothers, but because their two fathers have a strained relationship, Bronwyn and Anais, don’t know each other all that well, even though they’re cousins.

Bronwyn takes the move pretty well. She’s a good girl. Her biggest disappointment is that she was a really successful swimmer at her old school, and this school doesn’t have a swim team. In fact, in seems like there is no place to swim in the entire town.

While that’s a major bummer, as soon as she starts school, Bronwyn is more distracted by how weird everyone is acting to care too much about the whole swimming thing.

One overly-enthusiastic girl befriends her and seems to be hovering around like an annoying fly every time Bronwyn turns around. Additionally, other classmates are super strange and elusive. It’s like they’re all hiding something from her; some giant collective secret.

This story is fast-paced and it involves a lot. That’s why I didn’t mind listening to it two times in a row. I was sure there were little things I might have missed the first time through, in my haste to get to the bottom of what was happening in Hillwoods.

Overall, this is a solid read. It’s quite trope-filled, but honestly, for YA Horror, that’s what I’m here for. It did have some of my favorite things too.

There was a lot of local lore, missing outsiders, odd acting locals, the new girl, a found diary, a nosy reporter digging into the past and an older character guiding the younger ones, whilst also providing a bit of levity.

Mystery, intrigue, dark imagery, a spooky town, it has it all. It felt like a mix of the 90s movie, The Faculty, with Hex by Thomas Olde Heuvelt + diversity. It’s so freaking mysterious. I had no clue what was going on in the beginning and it had me disturbed.

My slight criticism is that it almost did too much. I could have delved more into certain areas, while leaving other areas out, if that makes sense. Digging deeper into certain aspects could have made it feel more tied up at the end; more focused.

This is just my opinion though and at the end of the day, I know nothing of writing and certainly could never have created what Tirado did here. Also, I read it twice and gave it four stars, so clearly, I still really enjoyed it.

For a sophomore novel, this showed growth and I’m super stoked that Tirado stayed in this lane. I’m so glad to have a new voice in the YA Horror space that I can obsess over.

Thank you to the publisher, Tantor Audio, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I definitely recommend this one, as well as Tirado’s debut.

Also, if you have enjoyed Tiffany D. Jackson’s Horror novels, I think you’ll enjoy this as well. The synopsis definitely got that comp right.

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