A review by aamna_theinkslinger
Saint Juniper's Folly by Alex Crespo

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious relaxing sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The author accomplishes the impossible by creating a story that is equal parts horror and wholesome. 
There are themes of self-discovery, friendship, dealing with an unstable childhood, and a great, engaging mystery to match. 

I can’t say much about the pacing though since I read the first half of the book, and then I put it down for more than a month, and then started back up. But personally, I felt that it was a little slow-paced and relaxed for a horror book. It was never a thriller. There are definitely creepy elements- some scenes that truthfully made my hair stand on end. But the majority of it is following our characters as they try to solve the mystery behind this haunted house and try to get their friend out. 
I personally found it quite enjoyable to follow each character as they unravelled the mystery thread by thread, and discovered things about themselves in the process. There are definitely a few parts where you feel like it’s just tedious detective work- going through hundreds of books in the library, past documents, foraging through the attic, and cupboards and closets they find inside the haunted house. 

It’s a silly observation, but people usually complain that YA books pretend that their heroes have no parental supervision- either they’re dead or their role is non-existent. But this book definitely doesn’t do that. Even though reading this book gave me a very nostalgic feeling of sorts, it didn’t fall into that trap. Our characters had to answer to their parents, and it was all very realistic. 

A lot happens in the second half book. The book really does take its time to establish the characters, their personalities, and their relationships. Its well-written. 

There is a light sprinkling of a romantic subplot between two of our main characters that I found adorable. Their friendship very organically developed into love, with such relatable apprehensions and fumbling and overthinking and awkwardness on both sides was captured very well. 

I don’t know what else to say. The characters were lovable, and you get to know just enough about each of them to be able to connect with them and be invested in their journey. 

It’s just a good, creepy, fun time.