YA Book Giveaway: Slasher Girls & Monster Boys

See my review

 

 

I have FIVE FREE copies of Slasher Girls & Monster Boys up for grabs! This is a thrilling and chilling read for grade 9 and up! If you have high school readers who love things that go bump in the night, you'll want this book! If you love Stephen King, you MUST have this book!

For your chance to win a copy, simply post a comment to this blog. Please include your first name, city, state and email contact. Deadline for posts is January 19th at noon MST. Winners are chosen randomly by Randomizer. Please check your email in the afternoon on January 19th. Winners will be contacted immediately. Winners have 24 to respond to my email. Books will ship from New York.

YA Creepy Pick: Slasher Girls & Monster Boys

Slasher Girls & Monster Boys: Classic Tales, Brand-New Nightmares
Stories Selected by April Genevieve Tucholke
Dial Books
2015
385 pages
ISBN: 9780803741737

Dangerous, dark, devious, twisted (in the best way), tortured, and a true treasure trove of scary stories, Slasher Girls & Monster Boys cuts into YA fiction (pun intended). Compiled by Tucholke, this collection includes stories by YA heavyweights Jonathan Maberry, Carrie Ryan, Leigh Bardugo and Marie Lu, and others and it will truly entice teen (and adult) horror fans.

The dedication by Tucholke states this story collection is... "For everyone who read Stephen King when they were way too young." Count me in! Every horror fan will want to get a bite of this book. The creepy cover sells the book before readers even think about opening it.

Once opened, this book just keeps giving. From what starts out a bullying story and ends up apocalyptic (or does it?), "Fat Girl With a Knife" is compelling and scary. Readers are not likely to forget the main character. "Sleepless" is edgy and starkly realistic. It's a real cat and mouse game that readers are not likely to figure out until the gruesome and brutal end.

The book opens with "The Birds of Azalea Street," a dark tale of a terrifying neighbor who preys on the young and innocent. When the kids' prayers are answered, something otherworldly happens and it's awesome! At the end of each story, the inspiration for the story is revealed. Careful readers may be inspired to look up and read the earlier books and watch the classic movies mentioned. No one can go wrong with "Psycho," "Rear Window," "The Birds," or "Night of the Living Dead."

Finally! A short story collection for teen horror fans by YA authors! This book is bound to get attention in award circles due to the fact that it's a novelty among YA titles and it's so well done.
Each story is a gem and it's nearly impossible to pick a favorite, but Jonathan Maberry gets my vote.

Highly, highly recommended for horror fans and reluctant readers. Even a reluctant reader is bound to find a story here. This is a must have for story collections and horror collections.

Grade 9-up. Grisly, macabre and adult. Not for middle school readers.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Killer Thriller Pick: Project Cain

Project Cain
by Geoffrey Girard
Simon & Schuster
2013
352 pages
ISBN: 9781442476967

Terrifying, taut, terrific, tragic, and tremendous! Project Cain is a tour de force that grabs you up and won't let you go until you turn the last chilling page. Even then, you are destined to think about the premise of cloned serial killers and secret government genetic testing.

Fifteen  year old Jeff Jacobson's life goes from "normal" to nightmare in minutes. His whole life has been a lie. Not only is he NOT Jeff Jacobson, he is a clone of famous serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer. Jeff's "father," a scientist and famed geneticist has raised hundreds of clones of famous serial killers for the government. Now, his father is hell bent on releasing the clones into the public and witnessing their killing spree. His father deserts Jeff and leaves behind a folder explaining Jeff's existence. He warns Jeff to stay away from his company and the government.

Jeff hides out at home and barely escapes government agent types who break in and take his dad's papers and computers. Later, Jeff hides from another killer, but Castillo finds him and takes him away. Castillo isn't the government and he isn't a good guy, but he's not a bad guy either.

Jeff learns just how dangerous the government can be from Castillo. The U.S. government has always done secret testing on various unknowing populations. The government admits to more than 100 illegal genetic tests and biological weapons studies. Military scientists have released toxins in the subways of New York just to see how many people would get sick. Jeff learns the U.S. did secret drug tests with LSD and other psychotic drugs just to see how people would act. Now, the government wants to clone the clones and use them in warfare as the perfect killing machines.

Jeff also learns that Castillo is an ex-soldier who spent time in Afghanistan, and now works as a "contractor" of sorts. Castillo is hunting for the escaped clones and he needs Jeff's help to find them.

As Jeff's grasp on sanity begins to weaken,  he has terrible nightmares...or are they really memories? Surely being the exact replica of a monster named Jeffrey Dahmer comes with some shared likenesses. Jeff starts seeing things that aren't really there, but at least he knows he's seeing things. When will Jeff become a killer? When will he lose his humanity?

Trying to decipher his father's secret code, Jeff realizes a chilling fact: his father expected him to solve the puzzle all along. Is that why he used things that Jeff would remember? Is his father testing him or toying with him? Castillo and Jeff  plan a trap for the killing clones. They travel the Murder Map together coming closer and closer to evil. The two "men" share more than they care to admit. Both are broken and bruised, but both are willing to die righting the wrongs of Jeff's father, whatever it takes.

This is a must read for horror and thriller fans. Project Cain is riveting and terrifying; brilliant storytelling and an adrenaline fueled plot will force teen (and adult) readers to burn the midnight oil to finish this one!

Highly, highly recommended grade 9-up. Mature situations, violence, language. Not for middle school.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)