Title: Your Lonely Nights Are Over
Author: Adam Sass
Publisher: Penguin
Publication date: September 12, 2023
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Summary
Dearie and Cole have been inseparable best friends since the first day they met. Are they the most likeable teens at Stone Grove High School? No. But when they have each other, it doesn’t matter. It’s them against world. At least, until a notorious serial killer, Mr. Sandman, starts attacking queer kids at their school. And all of the evidence points to it being either Dearie or Cole behind the killings.
Now, the two have to team up in order to clear their names. But will they be able to unmask the killer in time? Or will their friendship survive the dark secrets bound to come out during the investigation? Only time will tell. Otherwise, their lonely nights must just be over.
Review: Your Lonely Nights Are Over
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin for an advanced copy of Your Lonely Nights Are Over by Adam Sass! YA horror seems to be really taking off in the last couple of years, especially this year. I’ve read quite a few, and this one will definitely be a great fit for true crime fans. Clues to follow, focusing on a serial killer who comes back like 20 years later. Sass introduces a lot of twists and turns that will definitely keep you guessing unti lthe very end.
This book is formatted like watching a true crime documentary on TV, separated into sections kind of like episodes. In the book, there is a fake, documentary-style show that a lot of the characters are watching about the serial killer, Mr. Sandman. The parallels between the past and the present made reading the book an entertaining experience; the two different sort of plot lines work together to help create the mystery, as you are watching it unfold.
From the beginning, you know that Dearie and Cole aren’t the most likeable characters. They kind of think they’re above all of the high school drama, in that teen movie drama sort of way. Even if they weren’t likeable, they were still complex, interesting characters, different from what you see in a lot of YA books. And there’s a great side cast of characters as well.
My only real complaint is that the book itself felt a little longer than it needed to be. But other than that, this is absolutely an entertaining take on horror that teens will devour when it comes out in September.
4/5 stars
Ooh, I didn’t know there’s a sort of doccu in the book. Is there then mixed media in the book or does it just feel like that? Might get me to read this book quicker then – if there’s mixed media as I love that. Glad to see you enjoy it! I’ve seen it a lot around.
Not mixed media, but it’s separated into sections like a documentary series, and there are little sections in between that read like episode summaries. It was a fun way to structure the story!