June 8, 2018

#Murdertrending : A Review

Helllllo, Kittens!

I feel kinda bad for referring to you guys as kittens for the last year or two, since I’ve recently become a cat owner myself. And let me tell you about Velociraptor. She’s a complete jerk. Love her, but holy hell. The cat is a dick.

One cannot simply talk about a kitten without sharing a photo.

Anyhoo. Our founding mother / one of the greatest humans alive, Jolene, gifted me a copy of Gretchen McNeil’s newest book, #MurderTrending, and I just have to tell you guys about it. So…shall we?

I’m going to steal the book jacket off GR, since they *obviously* do a better job of summing things up.

WELCOME TO THE NEAR FUTURE, where good and honest 8/18 citizens can enjoy watching the executions of society’s most infamous convicted felons, streaming live on The Postman app from the suburbanized prison island Alcatraz 2.0.

When eighteen-year-old Dee Guerrera wakes up in a haze, lying on the ground of a dimly lit warehouse, she realizes she’s about to be the next victim of the app. Knowing hardened criminals are getting a taste of their own medicine in this place is one thing, but Dee refuses to roll over and die for a heinous crime she didn’t commit. Can Dee and her newly formed posse, the Death Row Breakfast Club, prove she’s innocent before she ends up wrongfully murdered for the world to see? Or will The Postman’s cast of executioners kill them off one by one?

That last line had me hooked before I even started reading. I mean, executioners?? How awesome is that? Ms. McNeil has a killer *haha* line-up of hitmen (and women). My favourites were Molly Mauler and Robin’s Hood. Each of them had their own grizzly way of killing the inhabitants of Alcatraz 2.0. If you like a good kill scene, you’re going to lose your shit over this book. McNeil’s kill scenes are top shelf. They stay true to the characters she’s concocted. They’re gorey, but kinda beautiful at the same time. One of my absolute favourite scenes pays homage to one of the Midnight Society favourite flicks. You’ll know what I’m talking about when you get there. Trust.

Since McNeil’s book isn’t out for a few months, I don’t want to give away any spoilers. I will say that she is SO good at ensemble casts. Dee is kick ass, as well as Griselda. I love women who can handle themselves in horror. No running upstairs or slow-motion forest escapes for these ladies. Despite the book being a delightful bloodfest, McNeil managed to make me swoon amid the carnage. Nyles, British hunk and fellow convict, is charming as hell. Ethan is hilarious and constantly spitting out amazing one-liners.

The intensity is constant. Whether Dee is at work or home, wandering the streets or fleeing in terror, you will be dying to get to the next page. I had to keep reminding myself to relax and loosen my grip on the poor pages.

Like twists? You got em.

Endings you didn’t see coming? She’s got one of those too.

I think that’s all I can say without giving any juicy bits away, but definitely put this on your list. #Murdertrending is out on August 7th, 2018!