Halloween is almost here. The pumpkins have been carved. The corn maze is ready to go. You may have noticed the streets of Pleasant Brook are quieter than usual, though.

Maybe it’s because people are working and studying remotely at the moment. Or maybe it’s because people have been masking recently, and not just because of COVID.

“It was because of the weirdos in masks.”

This is all Lisa Owen’s fault.

If you’re unfortunate enough to be written into this book, it’s more than likely you’ll wind up splattered across its pages.

I absolutely intended to remember the names and backstories of everyone I met but then abandoned this lofty idea when I realised that the average time between meeting a person and seeing their insides was about a chapter.

After getting to know a bunch of the nearly departed, I settled in and waited for the book to tell me who the main characters were going to be. Not that being a main character gives you immunity from the virus spreading through this increasingly sleepy town.

There’s blood, there’s gore and why yes, that person is spineless. It’s carnage in Pleasant Brook this October and thankfully it’s the descriptive kind.

“The thing’s head exploded. Not only exploded but damn near disintegrated into an expanding geyser of gristle which splattered all over its shoulders and ruined neck, leaving nothing behind.”

Maybe you shouldn’t choose a favourite character.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Crystal Lake Publishing for the opportunity to read this book.