Slasher Summer E.L. Chen

You can pre order the book HERE from Amazon, it is out on the 13th of August.


Slasher Summer by E.L. Chen
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - in and out over 4 days

Pages - 304

Publisher - Michael Joseph books

Source - ARC (out August 13th)

Blurb from Goodreads

In this campy love letter to the slasher films of the 1980s, seven friends reunite for a weekend of fun—only to be hunted down by a cold-blooded killer. But the real horror is not being able to escape who you were in high school...

The sleepy town of Cedar Lake Falls is best known as the shooting location of the campy ’80s horror flick Slasher. In high school, preppy Patrick, jock Jason, cheerleader Tiffany, stoner Freddy, goth Jennifer, and nerdy Michael had played the cast of Slasher during midnight showings, with virginal Carrie as the Final Girl, of course.

Years later, the friends reunite at the remote cabin where Slasher was filmed. They've changed since high school—Patrick came out, Mikey bulked up, and, well, Freddy's still stoned—and they're looking forward to a weekend to catch up. But when night falls, and the eponymous masked killer is spotted, the reunion takes a deadly turn. The friends discover their tires deflated and the phone line disconnected, and soon they’re being stalked by a mysterious assailant. Is someone trying to make their Slasher experience as authentic as possible?

One thing is for sure. Before the night is over, they each will have to take on the role they thought they'd left behind.


My Review

I absolutely love horror movies, I grew up on them at an age when I really shouldn't have been watching. Same goes for books, I was eight when I read my first Stephen King so yeah it is a life long enjoyment of the genre. This book gives nods to many of the movies/stories I grew up with, enjoyed as an adult and many of the tropes throughout the genre. It pokes fun at itself too which I think adds to the enjoyment, like look at the cast, the preppy guy, the jock, a cheerleader, the innocent, a stoner, a goth/lgb and the nerd like tick tick tick.

These guys used to have a club "The Jumpscare society" - horror movies and hanging out, something happened with Carrie (the good girl) and she left in disgrace. Now the group are having a reunion in the cabin where a horror movie was filmed, four years later. There is still some unresolved feelings and they are staying over in the cabin what could go wrong lol.

I love the cheesy poking fun not taking itself too seriously, the tropes, nods to the some of the classics that have gone before this one. We have lgb representation, the hot vacuous cheerleader, we have the relationship issues, sexuality questioning, wanting the one you never get oh and muuuuuuurder. A masked killer from the movie is picking them off one by one, creepy, the oh for Gods sake WHY ARE YOU DOING THAT you always question when characters do X action/plan in the genre.

The chapters are pretty short which is always a bonus but especially since the characters get their own pov's and each chapter is titled with their name so it is easy to follow. I think this would transfer really good to the big screen, to be honest I could get behind any horror being made to a movie. The tension, the masked killer going after their prey, the forest and water scene(s) I mean kudos because you can't help but think of those horror movies with these types of scenes, 4/5 for me this time. This is my first time reading this author, I would absolutely read them again and will check out their other books!

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Frankie by Graham Norton

Frankie by Graham Norton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1.5 days

Pages - 291

Publisher - Hodder & Stoughton

Source - Netgalley and bought

Blurb from Goodreads

Frankie Howe has lived a long life, her small flat is crammed full of art, furniture - and memories. Damian, her young carer, listens as she gradually tells him parts of her story - a story that takes us into a progressive, daring world of New York artists on the brink of fame, aspiring writers and larger-than-life characters.

Always just on the periphery, looking on, young Frankie is never quite sure enough of herself to take centre stage. But the outsider holds certain advantages, sees things others don't, can influence without drawing attention. And when the map has been lost, it's anyone's guess where you may end up, or the accidental choices you find you have made. Frankie discovers that life is not always the one we hope for, or the one others expect of us.

Travelling from post-war Ireland to the dazzling art scene of 1960s New York by way of London, Frankie is an immersive, decade-sweeping novel about love, bravery and what it means to live a significant life.


My Review

Damien is a carer and a bit adrift in his life when he gets called on for a job to look after an elderly lady who has hurt her leg and needs some care. Meet Frankie, her bestie Nor has arranged Damien to come and care for her during recovery and Frankie is spicy, fiercely independent and not amused. However with Damien staying over and a lot of hours to get through together Frankie starts to warm up and tell Damien about her life, she is the main character dahling. The book bounces between present day, elderly Frankie and going back to her early years and how we got to present day.

Ooft guys, there is a few emotionals so buckle up. I just wanted to hug Frankie, especially when we go back in time to young Frankie. She is so innocent, sweet and gets a bit of a shady hand dealt, we go from teen, to her first marriage and going from one situation to another, friendships, relationships, making her way in the world. She is one of those people you could just listen to their stories over and over, with Norton he draws us into her world so we can "live" it with her.

The book explores different themes and as I said emotive with it, coming of age, loss, love, LGB, AIDS, personal growth and woven with emotive scenes, like I said I wanted to hug Frankie, bless her. Whilst I loved it the last quarter went so fast and I wasn't ready to end the story and felt it came quite quickly, dare I say rushed. I would have loved another 100 pages, uck I could have kept reading to be honest, I really liked Frankie and escaping my reality to envelope in hers for a wee while, 4/5.

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Hidden Scars by Angela Marsons

Hidden Scars by Angela Marsons
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 3 days as able

Pages - 356

Publisher - Bookouture

Source - Netgalley

Blurb from Netgalley

While Jamie’s cold, lifeless body lay in the morgue, Detective Kim Stone stared at the empty board in the incident room and felt her anger boil. Why were there no photos, details, or lines of enquiry?



When a nineteen-year-old boy, Jamie Mills, is found hanging from a tree in a local park, his death is ruled a suicide. Detective Kim Stone’s instincts tell her something isn’t right – but it’s not her investigation and her temporary replacement is too busy waiting for the next big case to be asking the right questions.

Why would a seemingly healthy boy choose to end his life?

Why does his mother show no sign of emotional distress at the loss of her son?

Still mending her broken mind and body from her last harrowing case, Kim is supposed to be easing back into work gently. But then she finds a crucial, overlooked detail: Jamie had a recent injury that would have made it impossible for him to climb the tree. He must have been murdered.

Quickly taking back charge of her team and the case, Kim visits Jamie’s parents and is shocked to hear that they had sent him to a clinic to ‘cure’ him of his sexuality. According to his mother, Jamie was introverted and prone to mood swings. Yet his friend speaks of a vibrant, outgoing boy.

The clues to smashing open this disturbing case lie behind the old Victorian walls of the clinic, run by the Gardner family. They claim that patients come of their own accord and are free to leave at any time. But why are those that attended the clinic so afraid to speak of what happens there? And where did the faded restraint marks identified on Jamie’s wrists come from?

Then the body of a young woman is found dead by suffocation and Kim makes two chilling discoveries. The victim spent time at the clinic too, and her death was also staged to look like a suicide.

Scarred from an ordeal that nearly took her life, is Kim strong enough to stop a terrifying killer from silencing the clinic’s previous patients one by one?

A compulsive page-turner that will have your heart hammering in your chest and leave you absolutely reeling when you discover the explosive final twist. If you’re a fan of Karin Slaughter, Val McDermid, and Robert Dugoni, you’ll love Hidden Scars.



Can be read as a standalone.


My Review

If you haven't read the previous books you should because they are awesome but the precious book is really required as it helps understand DI Kim Stone's transition from what happened previously to where she finds herself now. Everything that transpired before has long lasting ripples and helps the reader grasp everything Stone has dealt with to get to this point. Her team is epic but Stone's replacement is an absolute tool, everything that is wrong with a leader/supervisior. With Stone just coming back and not quite there to take over the lead she can't ignore what makes her her and this suicide doesn't sit well and before we know it there is another "suicide" that calls for a closer look.

Kim Stone is such a great character, she has flaws, she is human but her inner compass pushes her past just about everything to do the right thing for the victims they come across as officers. This book has a trio of main themes, Stone and her recovery, the case(s) of course and the team dynamics and sexuality/LGB.

Some parts of the book are absolutely heart wrenching to read, what people will do to their supposed loved ones if they are gay, the lengths some gay people will go to in order to fit into what societal norms are expected in some areas of the world and the absolute extremes of this. I really struggled with that and whilst it is a fictional book/characters there are absolutely clinics/camps/conversions still active and it is 2023!

Murder most horrid, some really horrific individuals that will make you absolutely enraged and an abundance of things going on with our favourite team! You would think by book 17 things would be beginning to get overdone or boring or even just dropping in quality/ideas, nope. Marsons manages to keep it freh, the readers engaged and create more shady horrors that have us cheering on for our team to catch the baddy, 5/5 for me this time!

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