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2.94 AVERAGE
2.94 AVERAGE
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really wanted to love this book. The plot drew me in in an instant. The prose is gorgeous. The opening chapter had me holding my breath. But slowly, as the plot progressed, that tension faded and never really came back quite as strong as it did in that opening. Perhaps I’m comparing Amy to another horror-obsessed protagonist from recent works on the shelves, but I just wanted the same thrill from the beginning, if not even more thrills and chills and tension once the novel reached climax.
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Good, quick read! Deeply enjoyed all the nods to 90s horror films and might well read this one again sometime in future. Just like a good horror movie there's something in the length and pace that makes it enjoyable for me to return to!
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Disappointing. Not only was it NOT the fun 90s slasher that I thought I was getting, but practically nothing happens for the entire book. At least it was short ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It’s 1993. Amy is an anxious, horror-movie-loving seventeen year old who babysits for several different families in the local area. So, when single mom Eleanor Mazinski goes out on evening for a date, she leaves her two young children — six-year-old Ben and precocious, twelve-year-old Mira— in the capable, albeit sweaty, hands of of the teenager, despite whispers of strange break-ins happening under the cloak of night all over the suburb.
The evening starts out normally enough, but as midnight approaches, events in this quiet New Jersey home take a turn for the worst —unexpected visitors at the door, ominously silent phone calls, and by the early morning hours, sweet little Ben is in the kitchen standing in a pool of blood.
This was a highly anticipated release for me. The 90s in all its glory— a nod to classic horror films and the potential for a terrifying home-invasion is like the perfect recipe for visceral chills, but honestly, this wasn’t it. There’s quite a bit of rambling about topics that just didn’t matter [to me] for such a short novel. Instead of developing the character of Amy into someone more endearing, it made me understand why someone is going to get stabbed. True to ‘90s horror, there are several plot points purposely misdirecting the reader off the trail and honestly, those got a little exhausting too.
The chills weren’t chilling, the thrills weren’t thrilling, and I just wasn’t buying into it. Have I read worse? Absolutely, but this wasn’t the fun, campy, haunting ride I hoped it would be.
The evening starts out normally enough, but as midnight approaches, events in this quiet New Jersey home take a turn for the worst —unexpected visitors at the door, ominously silent phone calls, and by the early morning hours, sweet little Ben is in the kitchen standing in a pool of blood.
This was a highly anticipated release for me. The 90s in all its glory— a nod to classic horror films and the potential for a terrifying home-invasion is like the perfect recipe for visceral chills, but honestly, this wasn’t it. There’s quite a bit of rambling about topics that just didn’t matter [to me] for such a short novel. Instead of developing the character of Amy into someone more endearing, it made me understand why someone is going to get stabbed. True to ‘90s horror, there are several plot points purposely misdirecting the reader off the trail and honestly, those got a little exhausting too.
The chills weren’t chilling, the thrills weren’t thrilling, and I just wasn’t buying into it. Have I read worse? Absolutely, but this wasn’t the fun, campy, haunting ride I hoped it would be.