The Summer Fun Massacre by Craig DiLouie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I’ll confess to being biased on this one. I met Craig DiLouie a couple months ago. He’s local to my city and had such a great time chatting with him and his darling gal. As such I knew exactly what I was getting into. I also knew why he wrote this the way he did, a redemption arc for the archetypical bumbling idiot deputy. You know the one in all the slashers who’s always two steps back and just doesn’t seem smart enough to stand a chance. Therefore going into The Summer Fun Massacre I knew the focus wasn’t the actual massacre event description but instead its investigation. From what I’ve read from others that is what they found disappointing. I’m not sad to miss out on gory explicit descriptions of slasher deaths frankly, but I get if you go in expecting that being disappointed by the political cop drama that unfolds here instead.
Don’t get me wrong there are still some slasher moments (including a call from inside the house!). My favourite is when a sole survivor stands up and just says, to the discomfort of everyone at a memorial, ‘fuck’. It’s a brilliant moment to make people understand that she doesn’t want condolences for her friends deaths or ‘wow you were lucky’ statements but instead for folks to realize she lost all her friends she loved and she doesn’t understand why she is the one to survive and not them. It’s a poignant moment and one I felt was a truly new expression for a sole survivor story. If there is one thing I do lament is we don’t get more of this character overall.
There are so many twists and turns in the end of this that I couldn’t put it down in the last 75 pages. Everything falls into place nicely and while I thought I had the twist figured out I was only half correct. DiLouie left in a surprise that tickled my brain but made perfect sense in the end. Nothing cheap or convenient here. Just good ole writing and set-up that turns a couple times more than you might expect.
I recommend going into The Summer Fun Massacre knowing this is a slasher-adjacent book. It’s about solving the crime. It has politics, moments of excitement and danger, a sad love story, and as many twists and turns as a good rollercoaster ride. Book two comes out this fall and connects right into this one. However there is enough of a finale here that you won’t be totally frustrated (or at least I wasn’t); and yet I still look forward to book two and some further answers and maybe more of a supernatural element?!
I’m glad to put this quick read on my print shelf with its author signature and inscription to both my husband and I.
Quick note: If you want a real spooky read from Craig DiLouie pick up Episode Thirteen. It’s the best of his I’ve read to date and a truly unique take on a haunted house (using found footage format!).
Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.
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My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I’ll confess to being biased on this one. I met Craig DiLouie a couple months ago. He’s local to my city and had such a great time chatting with him and his darling gal. As such I knew exactly what I was getting into. I also knew why he wrote this the way he did, a redemption arc for the archetypical bumbling idiot deputy. You know the one in all the slashers who’s always two steps back and just doesn’t seem smart enough to stand a chance. Therefore going into The Summer Fun Massacre I knew the focus wasn’t the actual massacre event description but instead its investigation. From what I’ve read from others that is what they found disappointing. I’m not sad to miss out on gory explicit descriptions of slasher deaths frankly, but I get if you go in expecting that being disappointed by the political cop drama that unfolds here instead.
Don’t get me wrong there are still some slasher moments (including a call from inside the house!). My favourite is when a sole survivor stands up and just says, to the discomfort of everyone at a memorial, ‘fuck’. It’s a brilliant moment to make people understand that she doesn’t want condolences for her friends deaths or ‘wow you were lucky’ statements but instead for folks to realize she lost all her friends she loved and she doesn’t understand why she is the one to survive and not them. It’s a poignant moment and one I felt was a truly new expression for a sole survivor story. If there is one thing I do lament is we don’t get more of this character overall.
There are so many twists and turns in the end of this that I couldn’t put it down in the last 75 pages. Everything falls into place nicely and while I thought I had the twist figured out I was only half correct. DiLouie left in a surprise that tickled my brain but made perfect sense in the end. Nothing cheap or convenient here. Just good ole writing and set-up that turns a couple times more than you might expect.
I recommend going into The Summer Fun Massacre knowing this is a slasher-adjacent book. It’s about solving the crime. It has politics, moments of excitement and danger, a sad love story, and as many twists and turns as a good rollercoaster ride. Book two comes out this fall and connects right into this one. However there is enough of a finale here that you won’t be totally frustrated (or at least I wasn’t); and yet I still look forward to book two and some further answers and maybe more of a supernatural element?!
I’m glad to put this quick read on my print shelf with its author signature and inscription to both my husband and I.
Quick note: If you want a real spooky read from Craig DiLouie pick up Episode Thirteen. It’s the best of his I’ve read to date and a truly unique take on a haunted house (using found footage format!).
Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.
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