Thank you so much PenguinTeen for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review! I am stuck between a 3.5 or 4 star rating. So on my Goodreads I have it rounded to 4 Stars!
I had a really fun time reading this book and I won’t lie when I say I jumped a little that night after I finished reading, worried there was someone lurking around. You know when Halloween time starts to roll around and you just want to sit and watch some slasher movie that isn’t the worlds best, but it is just so perfect for the time and mood? Thats exactly how I would describe Stephanie Perkins’ newest novel. A high school slasher with your average dose of romance and sex and tons of gory bits to keep you on edge. While the exact reason behind the killings and some of the “secrets” leave a little to be desired, the overall experience was fun and well worth it. I soaked in this bloody, thrilling read in a day and I enjoyed every second of it.
Goodreads Synopsis:
Scream meets YA in this hotly-anticipated new novel from the bestselling author of Anna and the French Kiss.
One-by-one, the students of Osborne High are dying in a series of gruesome murders, each with increasing and grotesque flair. As the terror grows closer and the hunt intensifies for the killer, the dark secrets among them must finally be confronted.
International bestselling author Stephanie Perkins returns with a fresh take on the classic teen slasher story that’s fun, quick-witted, and completely impossible to put down.
My Experience:
I really couldn’t put this book down. I HAD to know what was going to happen, who the killer was, who was next, how it would end! And it was written in such a fast paced way that I flew through it not wanting to miss out on the next gory attack. The suspense in the first half of the book was built pretty well, and I even wanted to know what was going on with the main character’s secret as much as I wanted to know who the murderer was.
There was a diverse range of high school students with the main story following the romantic interest of Ollie and Makani. I enjoyed them both, but at times I did find myself wanting more gore and less romance. In the end though I think it was well balanced. After all this is a YA thriller so you have to go into it knowing you’re going to get some amount of cutesy romance. The side characters were fun and I do wish we had seen a little bit more of them, but I think it fit into the high school slasher theme that you don’t get too connected to too many characters.
The killings and gore itself. Obviously, this is not Stephen King and this again, is young adult. So while it isn’t as intense as some may love it to be, it was still well written. I enjoyed the chapters that people were being killed because it kept me on edge and rooting for the survival of these kids. These scenes were true to slasher movies as well, when you know something is going to happen and the anticipation is making you want to yell at the screen, or in this case the book, RUN AWAY!! And just as quickly as it’s started its over. They aren’t very detailed deaths, but thats ok it keeps the flow going and you as the reader wondering when this person will be stopped. Way more people go down for the count than I had originally expected which I liked as well.
This part may be a little spoiler-ish, I won’t mention anything out right so really there may not be any spoilers, but I like to say that just incase some people would rather look away. Makani’s secret to me fell a little flat. I thought it would be something a bit more, I don’t know, intense? Not to say that what she went through was not intense, but for how she was acting about it I thought what she personally did would be something more. I suppose it worked with the story, but I personally didn’t love that part. Also, I wish the identity of the killer had remained a secret longer than half way through the book. While I was definitely surprised by who it was, which is always a good thing, I think the suspense of not knowing is really fun so I would have liked that to go on just a touch longer.
Overall, this book was incredibly enjoyable. I couldn’t put it down and I was on edge all night wondering if someone was inside MY house. Coming from a YA romance author I was pleasantly surprised. Perfect for Halloween time, I suggest this for anyone looking for a completely entertaining, lighter horror story!
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