COME OUT, COME OUT, WHATEVER YOU ARE

Five teens compete on a reality show set in a haunted cave.

Lex Hazleton did not sign up for the paranormal reality show It’s Behind You to make friends. Nor is she interested in playing the role of supportive friend or comic relief the way manipulative producer Jackie suggests. She wants to be the star, and she wants to win. All she has to do in order to walk away with the $10,000 prize is outlast the other contestants—pretty actress Marla, flamboyant vlogger Python, serious paranormal investigator Abbie, and cute, nerdy Liam—in the caves of Umber Gorge, which are prone to collapse and supposedly haunted by a ghost known as the Puckered Maiden. But things go wrong from the beginning: A generator malfunctions, making the lights inside the cave unreliable, and a cave-in blocks areas that were supposedly safe. Everyone is hiding something, and at least one person will kill to keep their secret. Though descriptions of the cave layouts can be confusing and the book is fairly light on scares, mystery-loving readers will keep turning the pages to uncover the characters’ secrets and learn the truth about the events in the caves. Liam has brown skin; other characters are default White.

A fun read for readers who prefer mild suspense and enjoy reality TV settings.