A fast-paced thrill ride.
An incredible opportunity for a group of friends to shoot a movie at a notorious castle in Romania turns into a nightmare.
Alexandra Rush aspires to be a film director, but her dreams feel threatened when she gets wait-listed for the prestigious college program she was set on attending alongside her producer-wannabe boyfriend. With the help of a famous Romanian actress, Alex is given a new chance: She and six friends, all assumed White, get to spend spring break in Romania at Castle Prahova to create Alex’s Dracula-inspired short film. The castle was once home to Vlad Dracul, inspiration for the fictional vampire Dracula. In the novel’s opening scene, set after the fateful trip, readers learn that Alex was the only one to make it out alive. The story then jumps back to tell the complete tale, with parts of the subsequent criminal report interspersed. This exhilarating novel plays with the Dracula mythos in fun ways while using classic horror tropes like a remote, eerie locale and a mysterious man in a mask. There’s a cinematic feel throughout; it reads like an ode to beloved horror films such as Scream. Crisp writing builds tension and keeps the pages flying as the atmospheric and moody story becomes increasingly gruesome and twisty. Uneven power dynamics based on gender and financial status are skillfully woven in.
A fast-paced thrill ride. (Horror. 13-18)Pub Date: June 14, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-593-20485-6
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Razorbill/Penguin
Review Posted Online: March 15, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2022
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense.
Everyone believes that Salil Singh killed his girlfriend, Andrea Bell, five years ago—except Pippa Fitz-Amobi.
Pip has known and liked Sal since childhood; he’d supported her when she was being bullied in middle school. For her senior capstone project, Pip researches the disappearance of former Fairview High student Andie, last seen on April 18, 2014, by her younger sister, Becca. The original investigation concluded with most of the evidence pointing to Sal, who was found dead in the woods, apparently by suicide. Andie’s body was never recovered, and Sal was assumed by most to be guilty of abduction and murder. Unable to ignore the gaps in the case, Pip sets out to prove Sal’s innocence, beginning with interviewing his younger brother, Ravi. With his help, Pip digs deeper, unveiling unsavory facts about Andie and the real reason Sal’s friends couldn’t provide him with an alibi. But someone is watching, and Pip may be in more danger than she realizes. Pip’s sleuthing is both impressive and accessible. Online articles about the case and interview transcripts are provided throughout, and Pip’s capstone logs offer insights into her thought processes as new evidence and suspects arise. Jackson’s debut is well-executed and surprises readers with a connective web of interesting characters and motives. Pip and Andie are white, and Sal is of Indian descent.
A treat for mystery readers who enjoy being kept in suspense. (Mystery. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-9636-0
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2019
A lukewarm thriller.
In England, a group of teenagers tries to stay alive when a long weekend in an abandoned castle goes wrong.
When Bessie and her friends decide to join a party their classmate Allegra is throwing in her family’s abandoned castle before it’s converted into apartments, they think the biggest issues they’ll face are making it there before a big storm hits and keeping their plans secret from their parents and teachers. Once they arrive at the castle, however, Bessie and best friend Kashvi discover menacing graffiti and evidence that someone has been staying in the cellar. They also learn that protestors from the nearby village are angry about the development plans for the castle—one of them even argues that it would be better to burn it down. A handful of classmates manage to get there before the storm gets too severe. But when the teens wake up the next day to discover one of their own dead, and the storm makes it impossible for them to leave, they quickly realize that they’re in danger. But is the killer one of the members of the Facebook protestors’ group…or one of their own? Despite the book’s intriguing setup, the prose is dominated by repetitive conversations that convey little substance. Still, readers may still find themselves propelled forward by a need to discover the identity of the murderer. The central cast is racially diverse.
A lukewarm thriller. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Dec. 3, 2024
ISBN: 9780593704080
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
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