THE AFTERDARK by E. Latimer

This review first appeared in Booklist on March 4, 2025.

After her identical twin sister, Ada, dies in a lurid accident, Evie Laurent is swiftly sent to Northcroft, an elite boarding school, and away from prying eyes. Located on a remote island, the mysterious school is plagued by increasingly disturbing phenomena, all apparently connected to Hemlock Woods—the vast old-growth forest that surrounds it. Amid these strange occurrences, Evie meets Holland Morgan, a young TV star, and the two feel an instant connection. But their burgeoning romance is beset by challenges wrought by painful pasts; dangerously jealous friends; Northcroft’s sinister, cultlike secret society; and, of course, the eldritch forest itself, which seems to have a mind and will of its own and is intent on drawing the two young women deeper into its impenetrable darkness. This slow-burning thriller successfully combines contrasting genres such as romance and body horror to deliver a dark, distorted love story with enough shocking revelations to induce whiplash. Ideal for fans of Kate Alice Marshall’s YA horror, such as These Fleeting Shadows (2022) and, in particular, The Narrow (2023).

MURDER LAND by Carlyn Greenwald

This review first appeared in Booklist on March 1, 2025.

Best friends Billie and Grace love a good theme-park conspiracy—so much so that they both land jobs at Californialand, a park brimming with harrowing history and sinister secrets. When Billie is assigned to Murder Land, the park’s latest addition inspired by California’s most infamous crimes, their excitement is paramount. Then one of their coworkers ends up dead—on a ride that Billie was supposed to be operating. Things quickly go from “apparent accident” to “apparent murder,” and Billie, fearing blame, takes it upon herself to find the culprits. But she is soon overwhelmed as Murder Land lives up to its name, and the bodies begin to pile up around her. Greenwald’s debut thriller, like a roller coaster in her titular park, delivers nonstop twists and turns as we barrel through a decades-spanning mystery. While the whodunit aspect feels somewhat convoluted, the story being told through the eyes of amusement park enthusiasts and urban explorers lends a fresh perspective on a tale as old as crime. Pair with Kiersten White’s Hide (2022) for maximum theme-park thrills.

DEADSTREAM by Mar Romasco-Moore

This review first appeared in Booklist on March 1, 2025.

After the traumatic death of her best friend, Teresa finds herself living in an increasingly small and suffocating world—reduced to the size of her bedroom, though she fears it might shrink even further. Her only reprieve from these dark thoughts—and her sole connection to the outside world—comes from the streaming community she’s recently joined. This safe space is suddenly shattered when a shadowy force begins to haunt people’s live streams, inexplicably leaving its victims in an eerie, unresponsive state. When a famous streamer dies shortly after one of these incidents, and the entity starts targeting Teresa and her small group of online friends, she becomes determined to stop it—even if it means facing her fears and leaving the confines of her self-imposed isolation. Romasco-Moore perfectly captures the irreverent and intentionally inscrutable spirit of today’s internet, telling a thoroughly terrifying and viscerally modern ghost story that explores themes of grief, identity, belonging, and the double-edged nature of social media. A companion to other online-savvy thrillers like Tatiana Schlote-Bonne’s Such Lovely Skin (2024) and Adam Cesare’s Influencer (2024).

HOW TO SURVIVE A SLASHER by Justine Pucella Winans

This review first appeared in Booklist on February 1, 2025.

Welcome to Slasherville, Ohio. The small town of Satterville earned its sinister nickname by being the site of gruesome murders committed by two individuals wearing cheap plastic wolf masks—events that became infamous after a series of sensational novels about the killings gained immense popularity. The bloody legacy of the Wolf Man attacks weighs heavily on CJ, who witnessed their father’s murder during the last spree and who, years later, mysteriously receives the manuscript for a new Slasherville novel. When someone starts killing again, seemingly using the unpublished book as a guide, CJ knows they must unmask this new Wolf Man and confront their trauma once and for all. Aspiring to give a generation their own Scream, Winans (Bianca Torre Is Afraid of Everything, 2023) delivers a thoroughly modern thriller that’s both a sharp slasher and a clever commentary on the genre. This contributes to the growing trend of horror stories, like Kalynn Bayron’s You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight (2023), told from the perspective of queer protagonists, offering new, refreshing takes on an otherwise widely explored genre.

THE LABYRINTH OF SOULS by Leslie Vedder

This review first appeared in Booklist on January 1, 2025.

Ix Tatterfall can see Nightmares—something that makes her an outcast in her small hometown but a considerable asset for the Candle Corps, who guard the kingdom of Spinar against the fearsome Nightmares that sometimes crawl out of the legendary Labyrinth of Souls. The mysterious maze has grown increasingly unstable due to the schemes of a terrifying scarecrow figure calling himself Jack, and it’s up to Ix and her newfound friends to embrace their budding powers and save not only the Labyrinth but their own Waking World as well. Vedder offers a fantasy full of intrigue, countless imaginative creatures, and instantly endearing characters. While the world building can be a little overwhelming, it’s sure to ignite the imagination of readers and leave them wanting more. Hand The Labyrinth of Souls to fans of magic-school series such as Shannon Messenger’s Keeper of the Lost Cities (2012) and Jessica Townsend’s Nevermoor (2017) and watch them devour this book.

IT’S WATCHING by Lindsay Currie

This review first appeared in Booklist on January 1, 2025.

Best friends and budding reporters Josie, Alison, and Jackson want to write a groundbreaking article for their school newspaper. So, on Halloween night, they head to their town’s old cemetery, hoping to prove the existence of ghosts. Their efforts seem fruitless at first, and the friends walk out with nothing but damp, dirty clothes and shattered nerves following a close call with a security guard. Then they start receiving sinister messages on their phones, and weird things keep happening wherever they go. An angry ghost has followed them out of the cemetery, they soon realize, and the intrepid trio must figure out why it’s haunting them before the ominous countdown that’s appeared on their phones runs out—or else. Brimming with creepy imagery and unsettling scenarios, Currie’s latest supernatural mystery is bound to thrill. Historical details are woven naturally into the plot, adding a fascinating layer of fact on top of the haunted happenings, making this story appealing to fans of the curious and unusual. Pair with Holly Black’s Doll Bones (2013) and India Hill Brown’s The Forgotten Girl (2019).

THE PUMPKIN PRINCESS AND THE FOREVER NIGHT by Steven Banbury

This review first appeared in Booklist on November 20, 2024.

Eve has spent much of her young life running away, be it from a cruel orphanage, an identity that never felt like her own, or loneliness and fear. Her repeated efforts to escape this dreary existence finally find success when she meets the Pumpkin King, an imposing figure with a jack-o’-lantern head, who helps Eve not only by giving her a proper name and a royal title but also by spiriting her away to the lands of the undead. In the bewitching Hallowell Valley, Eve hopes to find friendship, family, and a place to finally call home—though not without first facing the many challenges that come with bearing the noble rank of Pumpkin Princess. Full of wonderful world building, clever conceits, and autumnal abundance, debut author Banbury has written a cozy, heartwarming story that has all the makings of a seasonal staple. Reminiscent of books like Ray Bradbury’s The Halloween Tree and Joseph Fink’s The Halloween Moon (2021), readers will find similar festive delights here.


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