A review by dchaseb
All the Dead Lie Down by Kyrie McCauley

4.0

First YA book I've read in a minute. This is a horror, dark academia aesthetic, LGBTQIA+ story that follows Marin Blythe. She is a high school junior age girl that has recently lost her mother, her only family. She receives an invitation from one Alice Lovelace to stay with her. She is an author of horror novels that Marin is a fan of but was also a former close friend of her mother's. Marin will be the nanny for Alice's two daughters (between 6 and 9ish maybe) who also lost their father somewhat recently. As Marin arrives, she is told how Lovelace Manor is cursed or haunted. She meets the family, caretakers, and eventually Alice's other daughter who comes home from school, Evie. What follows is a crush into possible romance with Evie in the midst of strange happenings (birds crashing into windows, the children being plain ole creepy (burying dolls, mean and twisted pranks), Alice locking herself in her office months on end to write, and Evie and the rest of the family hiding many secrets.

I really dug this book. The horror/dark academia aesthetic is something that I am a sucker for. Kyrie McCauley does a good job with creating an atmosphere that has the feeling of something off or creepy happening at all times even when it is just a simple event like breakfast; you're always on your toes waiting for the next scare to happen. It was also impossible not to love Marin and Evie and hope for their relationship to strengthen. The end has some set pieces that seem a bit much and more horror movie climax style but I was more than happy to have some Evil Dead style horror to alleviate from the constant undertone of spooky dread.