I’ll begin with a hypothetical question. Imagine working as an actor at a haunted house and somehow getting trapped in a sarcophagus with a dead body. This isn’t just any dead body—it’s your friend who was murdered—someone you actually care about. What do you do? Call the police like a normal person or stay silent and continue to work at the haunted house knowing a deranged killer is on the loose? I’m hoping you’d go with the former, but hey, kids these days.

So, against my better judgement, I decided to soldier through with this book hoping it would get better. It did not. A big chunk of the story involves the main character and his love interest, an edgy coffeehouse barista, running around the haunted house to erase any incriminating evidence…because yeah, it’s a bad look when you find a dead body and stay silent.

I’m sorry, y’all. I couldn’t get passed this. I tried to get involved in the mystery, but it ended up being rather anticlimactic since the suspects were so glaringly obvious. Was this even meant to be a whodunnit? I don’t know. And why is a scary clown on the cover? I was hoping for some psycho clown action, but nope, just a bunch of teenagers running amok at a local haunted house.

I hate to be a downer, so I will end on a positive note! I love the premise of a haunted house gone wrong and all the spooky vibes, but that’s about all I can offer.