The Mary Shelley Club by Goldy Moldavsky
ABOUT THE BOOK
New York Times-bestselling author Goldy Moldavsky delivers a deliciously twisty YA thriller that’s Scream meets Karen McManus about a mysterious club with an obsession for horror.
When it comes to horror movies, the rules are clear:
x Avoid abandoned buildings, warehouses, and cabins at all times.
x Stay together: don’t split up, not even just to “check something out.”
x If there’s a murderer on the loose, do not make out with anyone.
If only surviving in real life were this easy…
New girl Rachel Chavez turns to horror movies for comfort, preferring stabby serial killers and homicidal dolls to the bored rich kids of Manhattan Prep…and to certain memories she’d preferred to keep buried.
Then Rachel is recruited by the Mary Shelley Club, a mysterious society of students who orchestrate Fear Tests, elaborate pranks inspired by urban legends and movie tropes. At first, Rachel embraces the power that comes with reckless pranking. But as the Fear Tests escalate, the competition turns deadly, and it’s clear Rachel is playing a game she can’t afford to lose.
MY REVIEW
Holy cow! I found another book to add to my favorites of 2021. It’s a macabre young adult thriller with horror, dark comedy, and a bit of romance that will scare the scream out of you. In addition, the creepy cover adds to the vibe.
Rachel is just trying to get through a new school after her assault last year, but that’s easier said than done since she doesn’t fit in at a prep school full of snobby socialites. If it weren’t for Saundra, her new and only friend, she would be alone there. Unfortunately, her unexpected reaction to a prank at a party has made her even more of a pariah and an outsider so why not join the club that was behind the prank. The Mary Shelley Club is for those who are experts and connoisseurs of all horror movies and hold Fear Tests to see who can make their targets scream. But the game is becoming too dangerous and people are getting harmed. The game of terror is putting her in danger.
What a brilliant idea to re-enact urban legends and horror movies to get revenge on bullies and bad people. But who are the bullies now? The cast of characters is full of mixed-up youths who use the club as an escape. To let loose. To unwind and be themselves instead of who society wants them to be. Rachel is a likable person. She is vulnerable and on the edge and joins the club to get her aggression out in a controlled environment, but she realizes, almost too late, that not everything is as it seems. Her fellow prep school club members who she thought were her friends aren’t telling her the whole story.
I recommend this gripping thriller to those who love horror movies old or new and who enjoy a chilling and edgy ending. You won’t be able to put the book down.
Thank you to Ms. Moldavsky for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review.
- Print copy of The Mary Shelley Club
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Goldy Moldavsky was born in Lima, Peru, and grew up in Brooklyn, New York, where she lives with her family. She is the New York Times–bestselling author of Kill the Boy Band and No Good Deed. Some of her influences include Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the esteemed works of John Irving, and the Mexican telenovelas she grew up watching with her mother.
Follow Goldy on her website, Goodreads, Twitter, and Instagram.
This sounds like a really intense, exciting thriller and right up my alley, too! Great review, Sharon!
I think you’ll like it, Giselle. It would make a fantastic movie. 😊