For fans of horror and summer camps, you’ll have to read Dead Girls Walking. It’s a story that delivers an almost locked room setting with a supernatural perspective. Dead Girls Walking is a quick paced thriller which will captivate you in. Keep reading this book review of Dead Girls Walking for my full thoughts.
Summary
Temple Baker knows that evil runs in her blood. Her father is the North Point Killer, an infamous serial killer known for how he marked each of his victims with a brand. He was convicted for murdering 20 people and was the talk of countless true crime blogs for years. Some say he was possessed by a demon. Some say that they never found all his victims. Some say that even though he’s now behind bars, people are still dying in the woods. Despite everything though, Temple never believed that her dad killed her mom. But when he confesses to that crime while on death row, she has no choice but to return to his old hunting grounds to try see if she can find a body and prove it.
Turns out, the farm that was once her father’s hunting grounds and her home has been turned into an overnight camp for queer, horror-obsessed girls. So Temple poses as a camp counselor to go digging in the woods. While she’s not used to hanging out with girls her own age and feels ambivalent at best about these true crime enthusiasts, she tries her best to fit in and keep her true identity hidden.
But when a girl turns up dead in the woods, she fears that one of her father’s “fans” might be mimicking his crimes. As Temple tries to uncover the truth and keep the campers safe, she comes to realize that there may be something stranger and more sinister at work—and that her father may not have been the only monster in these woods.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The set up for Dead Girls Walking is an instant hook. It’s bloody, not afraid to pull its punches, and is full of action. While there were a few moments, especially towards the end, where I wasn’t sure where the book was taking me, I enjoyed this high action horror. I’m not even a horror girlie! There’s a healthy dash of supernatural and this is more for the horror vibes. It’s not going to be one of those whodunnit boards with red string and theorems. It’s for the “I’m too busy running to dwell too long on who’s behind me”.
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With transcripts and tweets, you’ll be running alongside Temple. While I wish there had been a bit more plot in the middle, as someone who likes to be sprinting behind a thread, I let myself get carried away. It’s a high octane horror which isn’t afraid to pick ’em off. There’s also some discussion about the true crime community and serial killers, families and victims, which I enjoyed.
At the same time, Dead Girls Walking is about inheritance and legacy. About family and the things we inherit from the ones we love – even if we don’t know if we should. Find Dead Girls Walking on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop.org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.