I'm all over the place with this book...

I enjoy a good psychopathic thriller...but I simply despise the slasher subgenre.

I like a good horror novel with a tortured hero...but I'm not crazy about anything that doesn't give some insight into character motivation.

So, let's dive in. First and foremost, for a novel that mostly spans two nights at a Halloween attraction, I've got to say, Ihli does a phenomenal job of keeping the tension on, even while skipping over various characters. I'm going to say it was absolutely the tight, assured writing that kept me going, and also what saved the story from just relying on the same old tropes the slasher subgenre tends to wallow in.

Second, Ihli also does a very good job of painting the primary characters and making them all incredibly believable—with one notable exception, that I'll get to in a moment. The main viewpoints through this novel are real, and they're catty, and loyal, and disrespectful, and caring, and everything teenagers are supposed to be. They brought a rare realness to the story, and I got invested in each one.

Where the story disappointed a bit—though I think I understand exactly why the author did it—was not turning the killer into the mythical, unstoppable knife-wielding larger-than-life monster. I think she was doing her best to craft a story that, while still thrilling, kept the focus more on the victims and survivors. Which is actually a very cool angle, and one I have no problem getting behind, however, while I really don't like the mythical, unstoppable knife-wielding larger-than-life monster, I do still like a peek into their reasoning. Even if real life is messy, and the killers don't necessarily know why they do what they do, or why they choose particular people and let others live, fiction's a bit more demanding.

Overall, as I said, this wasn't necessarily the typical horror I enjoy—and before you ask why I even picked it up if that's the case, I will say that, with indie authors, if I see a couple of friends sing the praises of a horror novel, I'll often pick it up without really looking to see what it's about. Yes, it's bitten me in the behind a couple of times, and disappointed me horribly a couple of times more, but mostly, it works out—so, while it's not my go-to type of read, it was a good read, and it's absolutely worth your time. You'll probably dig it even more than me. ( )

Almost perfect amusement park horror! The characters were believable. They acted and spoke like teenagers. My only complaint is that the three friends (Jamie, Taylor, and Maren?) read very similar, and I had a tough time telling them apart. Other than that, and a few typos, I thought the plot and pacing were great. I really enjoyed this book. ( )

The Thicket is a "haunted house" attraction set in Declo, Idaho. It is hundreds of acres with multiple cabins, and each cabin is "haunted". It is ranked as one of the Top Ten Haunted Houses in the US. So of course, all the local kids flock to The Thicket every year. One particular night, Brandon, a middle school boy talks his older sister, Norah, into taking him there telling her he is meeting some friends. Norah leaves Brandon half-way through the cabins to wait for him in the main area, but Brandon doesn't return. His body and one of the "scarers' bodies are discovered in cabin 12.

Petitions from local parents are signed to shut down the Thicket, but it soon reopens. Norah is drawn back to the place her brother was murdered. One the same night, a group of her former friends decide to go, and the murderer is back. Norah inadvertently finds herself with the group and becomes the strong one. Leading everyone and trying to save them, since she feels like she failed her brother.

This is fast, easy read, right in time for Halloween. ( )

I received an incomplete book in a giveaway. ( )