If you took the movies Mean Girls and The Craft and mixed them together, you'd get this book. It was actually pretty impressive. The book reads just like a movie with similar pacing and atmosphere and keeps you invested up to the very last word. Let's take a look at it.
Sofia Flores is the new girl in Friend, Mississippi and already she's caught in the midst of high school drama. She finds herself drawn to two potential friends, the popular and deeply religious Riley and the wild, adventurous Brooklyn. But when Sofia confides in Riley about Brooklyn's behavior, Riley and her friends come up with a plan to save Brooklyn's soul by preforming a violent exorcism...and Sofia will either help them or be next.
The story is a desperate little tale of survival and extremes. Most of the book takes place over a single night and possesses all you could want in a horror story. Things get violent pretty quickly in this thing, and it's pretty cringe inducing. You find out pretty quickly that there's a lot more going on than an attempt to save a girl's soul and the line between trying to save someone and hurt for the sake of causing hurt are quickly crossed.
The girls in this story are all kept wonderfully mysterious. At first glance, you think you have these girls figured out but they all have secrets and pretty messed up lives. Sofia, the one we're following throughout this story, is not immune to this. She comes off as being likable and pretty much the most reasonable person in this story, if not the only one. But she's far from perfect and there's much to discover about her as the story progresses, leading us to wonder just if anyone in this book is truly who they say they are. It's that untrustworthy atmosphere and knowledge that you don't really know any of these people that makes this story work as a horror. You have no idea who to trust and, therefore, no idea who to root for.
As I said earlier, the book reads a lot like a traditional horror movie. The pace is fast yet gripping and filled with uncomfortable and gory details to keep the reader engrossed and desperate for more. There are close calls and sheer brutality all throughout the book, but it does take just enough time to breathe and let the reality of these situations sink in. It also takes place in mostly the same location as well, an abandoned house on the outskirts of town where nobody goes and there's no way out. This claustrophobic environment just adds to the feeling to dread. It was masterfully done.
That being said I'm not entirely sold on the ending of this book. While it did have the satisfyingly horrific climax and crap-your-pants scary moments, I don't know if I really understood the twist they threw in at the last second. But, then again, I guess you could say it's all part of the sequel fodder and, yeah, I'd pick up the sequel to this book. It's well written, well executed, and if the sequel is the same as this, I'll be adding it to my list.
Final Verdict
A wonderful way to kick off October! Genuinely scary, violent, gripping and well put together piece that horror fans will enjoy. If it sounds like your cup to tea, then I'd say it's totally worth your money at your local bookstore.
Have you read the book? What did you think? Comment below and share your thoughts. Have a book you'd like me to read or would like to make a recommendation? Contact me on goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/65448711-michelle-beer
Next Time: Asylums....why did it have to be asylums.....
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