Let me start by saying ......I LOVE the cover art for this book!! I'd never read, or heard of, this writer. The synopsis sounded great and the carnival in the story is Halloween themed.....thus it earned a spot in my October reading list.

Tholen is obviously a new writer, but did quite well here. The plot has been DONE....but is interesting none the less. The entire girl group.... Senior year thing.... is a bit tropey. But, Tholen's offering was well executed, and has earned its spot among the ranks.

My biggest gripe.....the 90s references were off. As a teen in the 90s myself, this was my era. While some were technically accurate, they were socially and realistically inaccurate. Some were flat out incorrect. I cut some slack here considering this writer is obviously young, and ergo only has second hand knowledge of the era. That said....I'm a stickler for investigative writing.....so this irked me more than alittle.....some of the inaccuracies literally made me twitch.

Other minor, and less irksome, negatives......the stereotypes. The friend groups unbelievability.....the anticlimactic and rambling reveal.....and the super unrealistic ending. However, some of these things are what makes tropey cheesy slashers great.....so take them as you will.

I did know from very early on who the killer was.....very easy to figure out.....not sure if that was Tholens intent.

Overall.....I did really enjoy this.......my oldest daughters read and liked it as well. It was a fast read and had some great shock and gore horror moments. I will definitely purchase the other 2 books by this writer. ( )

This was a wild ride! I never guessed the killer, which was good writing, in my opinion. This was bloody, visceral, and unhinged. I loved it. ( )