jessejane306 's review for:

Breathe In, Bleed Out by Brian McAuley

5.0

tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

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Hannah takes ‘ghosts’ to a new level, being haunted by nightmares of her dead fiancé. When he starts visiting her during her waking hours, she knows she needs to do something drastic. Her longtime friend booked time at an isolated wellness retreat. 

Centering her healing, reconnecting with old friends, being one with nature. Maybe she can finally heal. Or maybe her ghosts will take a new form and this form is angry.

In addition to an unreliable narrator, we’re wondering if our slasher is a human killer, vengeful ghost, or hallucination. It’s impressive work by McCauley to have the reader weighing all those options. In addition to the pickaxe wielding blast from the past, we’ve also got a wellness guru who is suspicious AF. 

McAuley will keep you guessing. When the big reveal comes, I was quite surprised who the big bad really is. His background is as a screen writer so the pacing is excellent. The ending was when the credits would run in a film. It never drags or meanders. No time is wasted. 

Absolutely make time for the afterword. It’s a fascinating lil essay that only adds to the experience. I’m also a sucker for authors thanking their readers in their acknowledgments. Specifically shouting out Bookstagrammers was a very nice touch. We appreciate being seen. 

I had a lot of fun with this. As summer fades and spooky season settles in, it’s a great way to prep for your final girl era. 5/5