YA Thriller/Horror

Review: We Were Never Here by Sophia Hannan

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We Were Never HereWe Were Never Here by Sophia Hannan
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

We Were Never Here follows three estranged friends, Georgia, Circe and James, who reunite to finish a task they set out to do months ago. They need to steal a prized painting from a haunted mansion on their school campus.

What could go wrong, you’re probably asking, and the answer to that is a lot. Back in July, the three, along with their other friend, Jules, had tried to steal the painting while filming an episode of their YouTube Ghost Hunting show.

The result of that mission was Jules, dead, with a knife in her chest, and Georgia waking up in a pool of blood with zero recollection of what happened.

Oh, and they didn’t get the painting.

Now it’s October, and the buyer for the painting is back, and he wants it. No excuses. They agree to get back together and try one more time. They need to put this to rest.

Unfortunately, haunted houses never rest and the three are about to enter another nightmare. Will they all make it out alive this time? And what’s the deal with this painting?

Y’all, I’m not going to drag this out. In no way, shape or form, was this for me. I didn’t enjoy any of it, really; not the writing, the characters, the plot, or even the overall tone.

I do love the cover though. The art style and colors, it drew me to it immediately. I really wanted to love this and while it had a solid concept, the execution fell flat, IMO.

It felt like it was 700-pages long. It just dragged and dragged. It’s completely morose. There’s no nuance at all in the pacing, or energy; very one note.

It also somehow felt like it was trying to do too much, while simultaneously not doing much of anything at all. James was the one beacon of hope, but even he couldn’t save it for me.

I’m sure Readers for this exist. They’re out there and I’m hoping they find it and love it. Perhaps someone with a bit more patience than me, or with less of an urge to eye roll all the drama at the end. Sadly, that Reader isn’t me, and I’m ready to put this far behind me.

Thank you, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, for providing me with a copy to read and review. On to the next!

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Review: Better the Devil by Erik J. Brown

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Better the DevilBetter the Devil by Erik J. Brown
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars**

Better the Devil is a YA Psychological Thriller that’s both dramatic and entertaining. It reads like one of the After School Special movies I used to love when I was younger.

I’m not throwing shade when I say that either. I’m serious. I loved those things, and a lot of popular celebrities starred in various episodes. I felt like this story captured a cinematic quality that could translate well to the screen.

In this story, we’re following a gay teen who is forced to run away from home after his extremely religious parents threaten to send him to a conversion camp. For him, it’s the logical next step, but unfortunately, extended life on the streets is very tough.

The teen is forced to do things that he never thought he would have to do, like stealing food to survive. When he gets caught shoplifting food from a store, he gets brought into a police station. While there, he notices a missing person poster with a boy on it, whose age progression happens to look shockingly like himself.

The missing boy’s name is Nate Beaumont. When the police ask him his name, he says Nate Beaumont. It’s the only thing he can think to do, but boy, oh boy, he could never have expected the insane can of worms that one choice would open.

The police are shocked. They know who Nate Beaumont is. He tells them he’s escaped from his captors, but he has no memory of anything prior to his escape. He’s taken to the hospital for assessment and the Beaumont family is notified.

The boy, now calling himself Nate, recognizes that things are quickly getting out of hand, but he assumes they’ll do some sort of tests, DNA tests or something, that will give him the time he needs to escape. But that doesn’t happen, and before he can make his escape, the Beaumont family is welcoming him home with open arms.

The next thing he knows, he’s at their house, at Nate’s house, swept up into their family. He has to play along, bide his time until he can figure out his next move.

The Beaumonts are such an enigma to him though. They’re nurturing and loving, so unlike his own family. He could get used to this, but then disturbing events start happening.

Someone is targeting Nate. Someone who probably knows the truth, that Nate isn’t who he says he is, but who? And more importantly, why?

Nate, along with his new friend, Miles, start digging for answers, but we all know, sometimes the past is best left buried. Will they be able to to figure out what happened to the real Nate, or will the baddie stop them before they get the chance?

This is a good novel. Many aspects of it were gripping. For me, the pace was off a bit, and I’m not sure I feel the author was really able to balance the serious aspects of this story with the more cinematic, entertaining aspects. A lot of it sort of gave me the ick, what Nate was doing.

I do understand his motivations, for sure. Brown did do a good job of building that up, and he still makes Nate a character you have great empathy for, but I don’t know, I still felt a little queasy at times, NGL.

I did end up loving many of the characters in here though. Not just Nate, but also his neighbor Miles, Miles’s dog, Chardonnay, and Nate’s Grandma Sharon, were all super fun and brought a lot of humor to the story.

I would recommend this to YA Thriller Readers, particularly for its actual target audience. I can definitely imagine teens really getting hooked into this one. I’ve never read any other work from Erik J. Brown, but I’m looking forward to doing so in the future.

Thank you to the publisher, HarperAudio Children’s, for providing me with a copy to read and review. The audiobook narration from Daniel Henning was excellent and definitely channeled the overall vibe of the story!

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Review: Beware the Abbott Boys by Chelsea Abbott

~ megs14malloy

Beware the Abbott BoysBeware the Abbott Boys by Chelsea Ichaso
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A year ago, the small town of Silver Creek was shattered when popular high schooler, Mariana Flores, was killed in a car explosion. Even though the police ruled out foul play, the local rumor mill tells another story.

Ask anyone in town and they’ll tell you the Abbott boys had to have been involved. Granted, they do work as mechanics and had been working on Mariana’s car just prior to the incident, but still, there’s no evidence.

The Abbott boys, triplets, Henry, Bram and Adam, are used to the town chattering about them, but they were close to Mariana, so her death hit their household very hard, and the allegations didn’t help matters.

Hayden, the girl next door to the Abbotts, knows they’re innocent. She’s Henry’s best friend, but she feels a special connection to each of the brothers and she knows they wouldn’t have done anything to harm Mariana.

When the new school year starts, another popular high school girl is found dead in the woods abutting the school.

When security camera footage reveals a figure seen entering the woods with the victim, it’s clear they’re wearing a special hoodie. One with a giant A on the back. A hoodie all three of the Abbott brothers own, but which one was it?

To clear their names, Hayden begins an investigation of her own, but the deeper she digs the more she starts to question, how well does she really know the Abbott boys?

I had a lot of fun with Beware the Abbott Boys. It’s a great YA Mystery-Thriller, full of drama and all the things that go along with that. The characters were well-imagined and I feel like Ichaso did a great job building up the intensity.

The mystery of it was fairly simplistic, NGL, but that didn’t retract from the enjoyment I had going along for the ride. Clearly, I’m not the target audience for this, but in spite of that, I still really enjoyed my time with it and can appreciate how much a Teen audience would love this.

Honestly though, with this being said, I love YA Mystery-Thrillers and Horror. I don’t think I’ll ever stop reading them. I’ll never age out of the category.

I like all the drama, and how deeply the characters feel their emotions. It reminds me of a simpler time in my own life, and each story feels nostalgic almost in their own way. Also, the stakes don’t tend to get as serious, and frankly depressing, as Adult dramas.

But that’s just me…

I would highly recommend this one to YA Mystery-Thriller Readers. For me, Ichaso’s books are getting stronger and stronger as she goes and I’m looking forward to whatever she writes next.

Thank you to the publisher, SOURCEBOOKS Fire and Tantor Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. This is one of the most engaging YA Thrillers I’ve read this year, and I’m very happy I made time for it!

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Review: Be Right Back (Let’s Split Up #2) by Bill Wood

~ megs14malloy

Be Right Back (Let's Split Up, #2)Be Right Back by Bill Wood
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Be Right Back is the sequel to Bill Wood’s 2025-release, Let’s Split Up. These are YA Horror books that follow a group of friends in the small town of Sanera, California.

These novels are multi-perspective and channel all the fun spooky vibes of 80s and 90s Horror Fiction. There’s something about these books that feels nostalgic to me. I think it’s Bill Wood’s set-up and delivery. They’re very fun.

This sequel is set a year after the events of Let’s Split Up. Our friends, Amber, Buffy, Jonesy and Cam, have all now graduated high school, and moved on to their next steps as young adults. They’ve all left town, attending different colleges, except for Cam, who has stuck around and is currently an assistant coach at their old high school.

The start of this novel finds Amber, Buffy and Jonesy all returning home to attend the Sanera Halloween Festival. It’s the first time they’ve reunited, and it feels so good.

That is until the murders start. The gang, now known as the Sanera Four, is thrust into a grisly mystery as the Halloween Festival descends into chaos. It seems someone is using local legends as inspirations to commit their heinous crimes.

It’s clear the killer wants to get the attention of the Sanera Four, as the legends they’re choosing seem to specifically target the myths they once debunked. With the gang drawing unwanted attention, they must solve the mystery and catch the killer before they have a chance to strike again.

It didn’t take me long to remember why I liked Let’s Split Up so much. I was so happy and excited to be back with this great cast of characters that Wood has created. The Sanera Four are all well-developed, and I love getting each of their perspectives over the course of the book.

Another aspect I adore is the heavy Scooby-Doo vibes, which if you’ve read the Author’s Note of the 1st-book, you realize is intentional. But it’s not just Scooby-Doo. They’re pretty trope heavy, so feel nostaglic in that way, which I enjoy.

For example, this one was giving me sort of combined I Still Know What You Did Last Summer with Urban Legends; both popular Teen Screams of 1998. When I’m reminded of Horror media of the past that I’ve loved through a story, without it feeling copy-catty, I’m happy.

Bill Wood makes me happy.

I also respect how these books don’t take themselves too seriously. They’re pure entertainment, so if you’re looking for an entertaining and nostalgic feeling YA Horror series, I would absolutely recommend these books.

There’s already been a 3rd-book announced, One Last Scare, which is slated to release in October of 2026. I’m planning to be first in line for that. I cannot wait.

Thank you to the publisher, Scholastic, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’m not sure how many books are going to end up being in this series, but either way, I have a feeling Bill Wood and I are going to have a long and beautiful friendship!

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Review: The Cove by Claire Rose

~ megs14malloy

The CoveThe Cove by Claire Rose
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

**2.5-stars rounded up**

The Cove is a YA Horror-Thriller that follows 17-year old, Lindsay Weinburg. Lindsay’s parents, though able to provide for her everything she needs, are pretty absent from her life. Because of that, Lindsay acts out quite a bit.

After she gets kicked out from yet another expensive prep school, her parents are fed up. Without consulting Lindsay at all, they ship her off to remote Marbury, Maine, to stay with her estranged Uncle Levi.

When she arrives at her Uncle’s farmhouse though, he’s gone, leaving the farm in the control of his evangelical wife, Irene, who Lindsay has never met.

Another fun fact Lindsay learns upon arrival is that Irene runs a reform camp for troubled teens at the farm, and there’s four other teens currently in residence. They must follow very strict rules, and perform laborious tasks during the day. It’s exhausting, isolating, and definitely not the lifestyle Lindsay is used to.

When Lindsay meets Phin and Cass, twins who live on a nearby island, she’s intrigued by them right away. After she convinces the other teens at the farm to sneak out for a party, everything changes. They wake in their beds the next day, clutching sea shells and with zero recollection of how they got back home.

One of the camp members is missing and Lindsay and the other teens realize something is very wrong. They need to figure out what happened at The Cove, before anyone else falls victim to its mysterious pull.

This was fine for me. I wasn’t really that intrigued by what was happening, unfortunately, so my attention waxed and waned. I found Lindsay’s perspective super grating, so we got off on a wrong foot almost immediately.

The way her narrative voice was written just didn’t work for me that well. Instead of feeling like I was with her as she was relaying the events of everything happening to her, I felt more like I was just getting a laundry list of her judgements of everywhere and everyone around her.

I feel like the author did succeed in setting up a mysterious culty-vibe with the setting. It felt a little disjointed though, in the later half, as everything was coming to a head.

The writing style and pace weren’t as fluid as I tend to enjoy, and some of the more supernatural elements felt under-baked, IMO. I do think for Younger Readers looking to be exposed more to Horror Thrillers, this could work very well. More experienced Readers of the genre, whether YA or not, may feel like they’ve seen this done better elsewhere.

I will say that I did enjoy the audiobook narration by Jesse Vilinsky. Vilinsky’s delivery was believable as Lindsay and it did keep me relatively dialed in. I would recommend that format if you’re going to pick this one up.

At the end of the day, my thoughts on this one just boil down to personal taste. I know there’s a good story in here, the execution just didn’t work for me personally.

Like I always say, however, just because this didn’t work for me, doesn’t mean it won’t work for you. If the content sounds interesting to you, give it a go. You could end up finding a new favorite.

Thank you to the publisher, Wednesday Books and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. Though this one didn’t quite knock my socks off, I wouldn’t be opposed to picking up more from this author.

She’s definitely someone I will keep my eye on in the future!

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Review: The Escape Game by Marissa Meyer & Tamara Moss

~ megs14malloy

The Escape GameThe Escape Game by Marissa Meyer
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Escape Game is a fun and suspenseful YA-Murder Mystery centering around an Escape Room Game Show.

A concept, I say with confidence, was executed wonderfully.

Six months ago, the 4th-Season of The Escape Game ended tragically after one of the contestants, Alicia Angelos, was found murdered on set. Suspicions immediately fell on Alicia’s sister, Sierra, also a contestant, but without any proof, Sierra was never charged.

Now Sierra is back to play again in Season Five, but it’s not just a win Sierra’s looking for, she’s also looking for justice. Sierra’s new teammates include Adi, a celebrity’s son and cryptography expert; Carter, a math wiz and social media influencer; and Beck, an aspiring Game Master.

As the teammates begin to bond, they decide to help Sierra in her quest for answers. Soon enough they start uncovering clues to the true identity of Alicia’s killer.

As the games kick off, unsettling events seem to plague the team. Is it because of Sierra and her link to last season? Will they be able to put the puzzle together before one of them becomes the killer’s next victim?

The Escape Game was such a gripping and entertaining read. I ended up quite invested in it, even after a slightly rocky start. We meet the characters and get introduced to the game very quickly, and it took me a second to get my bearings with it all. Once I did though, I was hooked.

The Escape Room element was so well done. I loved how everything was described and how we got to follow along with our main characters as they worked through the various puzzles together.

The four MCs were extremely well-developed and likable. I loved watching them get to know one another and watching their various relationships blossom. They were each distinct and their personalities played well off of one another.

I’m honestly hoping this will get adapted. It would make a great Limited Series on Netflix, especially with all the intricacies of the various Escape Rooms. I would love to see them brought to screen. If it’s anything like what I was imagining in my head, it would be amazing!

Thank you to the publisher, G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers, for providing me a copy to read and review. I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this, and I’m so pleased with the experience I had with it.

I would love more books with these characters. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that happens, and if it does, I’ll be first in line for a copy!

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Review: Dead Fake (Bleak Haven #1) by Vincent Ralph

~ megs14malloy

Dead Fake (Bleak Haven, #1)Dead Fake by Vincent Ralph
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Dead Fake is the 1st-book in an all-new YA Horror series from beloved YA Horror author, Vincent Ralph. I have read previously from this author and had fun with his stories, so I’ve been looking forward to this.

This Bleak Haven series had the first 2-books release this January, and books 3 and 4 are set to release in the Fall. If I’m understanding it correctly, these books are like Fear Street in that they’re all set in the same fictional town, where curious and horrible things frequently happen, but each book follows separate characters.

I’m assuming there will be some overlap of characters, but I’m not sure how much since I haven’t read them all yet. This one did set-up nicely the idea that this town is cursed, and it also referenced some previous atrocities that would lead residents to believe that.

This story in particular follows Ava Wilson, whose Uncle Miles is an infamous Bleak Haven murderer. Ava attends the local high school and it’s there that the action kicks off. Flyers are posted around the school asking students if they would Swipe to Die?

The flyers have a QR code that lead to a mysterious website where students can view their own ‘death’. These deaths take the form of AI-generated Slasher Movie moments, putting the students in the final death scenes. These videos are then made public for all to see.

Ava is a hard pass on this disturbing new trend, but many students, including her friends, can’t resist trying it out. Curiosity killed the cat, and all that.

When some of her classmates deepfakes are replicated in real life, Ava can’t help but notice unsettling details that prompt her to believe these deaths may be connected to the past. Unable to leave it alone, Ava digs in, determined to find the killer before they take out anyone else she loves.

Dead Fake is a lot of fun to read. It’s engaging and well-written, with a solid intensity and well-developed characters. IMO, it’s a great start to a YA Horror series. It felt nostalgic for me, channeling the Point Horror, or Christopher Pike/R.L. Stine reads of my youth.

I really enjoyed Ava as the protagonist. I thought she felt very natural and the backstory of everything involving her Uncle added substance to the story. There was a lot of complicated emotions her family was dealing with in the aftermath of all that, and I enjoyed that exploration.

I also loved the build-up, with the flyers and the videos dropping, and then finally with the bodies dropping. There were some good twists as well once Ava starts looking into who is possibly behind the website and the murders.

I’m really excited to continue on with these books. I’m looking forward to seeing what the content of the other books is going to be. I’m not sure if they’re all set in the same time period or not, or if some of them will maybe feature some of the previous bad things that have happened in the town that were referenced in this book.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys YA Horror, or even Adult Horror Readers who are looking for something fun and potentially nostalgic ((if you’re of a certain age, like me)). You can tell by this phenomenal cover exactly the vibes you’re getting in this story too. I love it.

Thank you, Wednesday Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’m super excited to start the next book. I have no doubt it will be as much fun as this one!

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Review: Hazelthorn by C.G. Drews

~ megs14malloy

HazelthornHazelthorn by C.G. Drews
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

**3.5-stars rounded up**

Hazelthorn is a YA Gothic Horror story from C.G. Drews. I read from Drews for the first time last year when I read their popular novel, Don’t Let the Forest In.

I was immediately impressed by the style of their prose, the relationships developed within the story and the vivid imagery evoked. I’m happy to report, all of these top-shelf qualities are again on display within the pages of Hazelthorn.

This story follows Evander, who has lived like a ghost within the walls of Hazelthorn estate ever since he was taken in as a small child by Byron Lennox-Hall, the reclusive billionaire owner of the estate.

Evander has very specific rules that he is made to abide by, such as he can never leave the estate, he isn’t to go into the gardens, and he shouldn’t ever be left alone with Laurie, Byron’s mischievous grandson.

The last rule was actually established for good reason, when 7-years ago, Laurie tried to kill Evander, a situation which he barely survived. In spite of this though, Evander does have a bit of an unhealthy attraction to Laurie. Honestly, he’s hard to resist.

When Byron unexpectedly dies, and it’s announced the entire estate is being left to Evander, he suddenly has threats coming from all sides. As you can imagine, other family members aren’t exactly pleased with this turn of events.

Despite his sudden windfall, Evander’s not happy. He’s suspicious about the way the way Byron died. He believes he was killed, but why? And how can he prove it?

Suddenly, Laurie becomes Evander’s best ally for getting to the bottom of what really happened to Byron, and figuring out the true that lies at the heart of Hazelthorn.

This was great. It’s dark and engaging and I was intrigued by Hazelthorn and everything going on there. Actually the more I think about it, perhaps I underrated this one a bit. It’s probably closer to a full 4-star rating for me.

I just think in comparison to Don’t Let the Forest In, I didn’t find this one as easy to track, and I also didn’t feel as emotionally invested, although there was still so much to love about this story.

In some ways, this story did remind me of a few other things I’ve read before, for example, These Fleeting Shadows by Kate Alice Marshall. What did stand out was the level of botanical horror that Drews included. That I really, really enjoyed.

This did have some interesting twists and some dangerous family drama, which I also thought was a lot of fun. I actually wouldn’t mind reading this again someday, maybe getting a hard copy and annotating could help bring more of the nuances of the story to the forefront for me.

At the end of the day, this is another fantastic story from Drews, delivering on their signature writing style and lush, gothic atmosphere.

Thank you to the publisher, Recorded Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. C.G. Drews is such a talent, and I cannot wait to continue to follow their career. I know we’re going to have a long and beautiful friendship!

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Review: The Darkness Greeted Her by Christina Ferko

~ megs14malloy

The Darkness Greeted HerThe Darkness Greeted Her by Christina Ferko
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

The Darkness Greeted her is a YA Horror novel tackling themes such as sapphic relationships, mental health struggles, overcoming trauma, and features a dark atmosphere.

In this story, our MC is Penny, who has a traumatic past, mostly surrounding her abusive father, that she’s trying to overcome. She also struggles with Harm OCD, so she enlists in a therapy camp to try to face her issues head on, and get control of her life back.

Camp Whitewood is very small, I think there were maybe 8 girls total. I don’t remember specifically, but it was a smaller group, which gave it a more intimate feel.

Even though we follow Penny mainly, Ferko did provide different sections for the other girls, where we are shown the parts of their pasts that may have contributed to them entering Camp Whitewood. And though everyone had very different experiences, you could tell that their trauma was something that they could relate and bond over.

The interesting and horrible part of the camp is that their traumas seem to suddenly take form in the shape of a Shadow Man, a monster who brings their deepest fears to life. The visions involved in this are truly horrific for the girls, and also confusing.

As their hallucinations escalate and girls begin to turn up dead, Penny must team up with whoever is left to get to the truth behind the Shadow Man, and try to defeat him before he’s able to conquer the rest of them.

I liked this. It’s a heavy story and does involve a lot of depictions of traumatic situations happening on page; check for trigger warnings if that concerns you. I enjoyed the idea of this Shadow Man entity bringing their darkest nightmares to life for these recovering girls to try to defeat.

The action bits, particularly towards the end, were quite chaotic and I did find it slightly difficult to visualize and track. Additionally, I didn’t necessarily find any of the characters, besides Penny, that memorable. They were pretty much interchangeable to me, but I did appreciate the difficult topics the author was addressing.

I think in the YA space this would be a good introduction to this style of Horror for a lot of younger readers. For me, this really didn’t do anything new or exciting, therefore I’m not sure how memorable it will be long term.

However, I do appreciate the author’s efforts and vision. I know so many Readers are going to be able to connect to the girls’ experiences in this book, and that’s super important as well. I’m glad I checked it out.

Thank you to the publisher, Sourcebooks Fire, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I’d be happy to pick up more from this author in the future.

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Review: The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson

~ megs14malloy

The ScammerThe Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️💜❤️

The Scammer is classic Tiffany D. Jackson. A true to life, hard-hitting YA Thriller with thought-provoking Social Horror elements and a compelling protagonist.

This story gets so intense and succeeded in getting my pulse absolutely racing in multiple places. A++ to the added twist at the end, which I did not see coming!

I’m getting ahead of myself though. What is this about?

This story follows Jordyn, who against her overbearing parents wishes, has given up her shot at an ivy league school in order to enroll at a prestigious, historically-Black college, in Washington, D.C.

She has her reasons for making this choice, but her parents don’t want to hear any of it. They practically disown her. By the time Jordyn is moving into her dorm she is ready for a fresh start, far removed from her parents.

She enjoys meeting her new roommates and all seems to be going well. Jordyn keeps a lot of her past to herself, but other than that, she feels like she’s found a place to belong and is making good friends.

But when one of her new roommate’s brother, Devonte, moves into their dorm suite after he’s released from prison, things start to vastly change.

It was supposed to be a temporary arrangement, to help him get back on his feet, but as time passes, Devonte shows zero signs of leaving. In fact, he’s inserted himself into the girls’ lives in disturbing and inappropriate ways. Jordyn seems to be the only one growing increasingly uneasy in Devonte’s presence, and soon she finds herself on the outside.

When one of her roommates suddenly disappears under frightening circumstances, Jordyn suspects Devonte had something to do with it, but how can she prove it?

She teams up with the university’s lone white student to try to get to the truth regarding her roommate’s disappearance. Unfortunately, they’re ready for her and Jordyn finds herself enmeshed in a nightmare she may never escape.

Watching Devonte come into this shared living space and do the things he did, it infuriated me at times. And by at times, I mean the majority of the time.

The way Jackson wrote this, it was like I was a fly on the wall watching it all go down, and as the danger escalated, I was powerless. I couldn’t do anything to help these girls. I imagine that may have been what Jordyn was feeling in a lot of these moments too.

I believe this is based on the case at Sarah Lawrence that began around 2010, but I don’t know too many specific details on that. This did make me want to research it further though, as I’m shocked something like this could happen on a University campus and it wouldn’t be stopped.

Jackson also did a great job developing Jordyn as a character. There were moments I wasn’t sure I liked her, some of her thought patterns bothered me, but as I learned all she had been through with her family and just her entire past, it started to make sense. I grew to really love her.

Also, I feel like she had such a great character arc, from her first day on campus until the shocking conclusion.

I would definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys an intense and twisted YA, or New Adult, Thriller. Bonus points if you enjoy social commentary, or have enjoyed any of Jackson’s work in the past. This has her signature style all over it and I love it.

Thank you to the publisher, Quill Tree Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review. Tiffany D. Jackson is one of my favorite authors. I always look forward to her new releases and they NEVER disappoint.

I can’t wait to see what she graces us with next!

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