Review: The Unfinished by Cheryl Isaacs

The Unfinished by Cheryl Isaacs

The Unfinished(The Unfinished #1)
Cheryl Isaacs
Heartdrum
Published October 15, 2024

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About The Unfinished

In this debut YA horror novel by Cheryl Isaacs (Mohawk), small-town athlete Avery is haunted by the black water and Unfinished beings of Kanyen’kehá:ka stories and must turn to the culture she hasn’t felt connected to in order to save her town.

The black water has been waiting. Watching. Hungry for the souls it needs to survive.

When small-town athlete Avery’s morning run leads her to a strange pond in the middle of the forest, she awakens a horror the townspeople of Crook’s … Continue reading

Review: A Mastery of Monsters by Liselle Sambury

A Mastery of Monsters by Liselle Sambury

A Mastery of Monsters
Liselle Sambury
Margaret K. McElderry
Published July 29, 2025

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About A Mastery of Monsters

Ninth House meets Legendborn in this thrilling first book in a dark academia fantasy series about a teen who’s willing to do anything to find her brother—even infiltrate a secret society full of monsters.

When August’s brother disappears before his sophomore semester, everyone thinks the stress of college got to him. But August knows her brother would never have left her voluntarily, especially not after their mother so recently went missing.

The only clue he left behind was a note telling her to stay safe … Continue reading

Review: Deephaven by Ethan M. Aldridge

Deephaven by Ethan Aldridge cover shows a boy holding up a torch and standing in front of an opened gate. Behind and above him lurks a shadowy monster with glowing eyes and tentacle-like hair.

Deephaven
Ethan M. Aldridge
Quill Tree Books
Published September 5, 2023

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About Deephaven

From Ethan M. Aldridge, bestselling creator of ESTRANGED, comes a gothic middle grade prose novel that follows a nonbinary student who is drawn to their boarding school’s forbidden east wing, where something stalks the shadowy corridors. Perfect for fans of J. A. White and Mary Downing Hahn!

When Guinevere “Nev” Tallow receives an acceptance letter to the exclusive Deephaven Academy, … Continue reading

Review: It Looks Like Us by Alison Ames

It Looks Like Us by Alison Ames

It Looks Like Us
Alison Ames
Page Street Kids
Published September 13, 2022

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About It Looks Like Us

The remote terror of THE THING meets the body horror of WILDER GIRLS in this fast-paced Antarctic thriller.

Shy high school junior Riley Kowalski is spending her winter break on a research trip to Antarctica, sponsored by one of the world’s biggest tech companies. She joins five student volunteers, a company-approved chaperone, and an impartial scientist to prove that environmental plastic pollution has reached all the way to Antarctica, but what they find is something much worse… something that looks human.

Riley has anxiety–ostracized by the … Continue reading

Review: A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

A Curse So Dark and Lonely (Cursebreakers #1)
Brigid Kemmerer
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published on January 29, 2018

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About A Curse So Dark and Lonely

Fall in love, break the curse.

It once seemed so easy to Prince Rhen, the heir to Emberfall. Cursed by a powerful enchantress to repeat the autumn of his eighteenth year over and over, he knew he could be saved if a girl fell for him. But that was before he learned that at the end of each autumn, he would turn into a vicious beast hell-bent on destruction. That was … Continue reading