A slasher horror with a decidedly supernatural element. I wasn’t sure what to expect, and this is very different from the stuff I usually read, but this was an entertaining read.
Temple Baker is used to seeing dead bodies. Her father is the infamous North Point Killer, and she knew some of what took place on her family’s land. Now a teen, Temple has been tasked with returning to her home to find her mother’s body. Only her home is now a camp for horror obsessed gay girls, so she has to find her way in with care.
The book throws us straight into the action, and Temple is not the easiest of characters to warm to. Initially I wasn’t overly impressed with the book, but once the campers discover a dead body things get a lot more intriguing.
While there’s plenty of graphic slasher-style violence, this didn’t trouble me as much as I’d expected. However, once Temple starts to work out what’s going on I admit to being quite creeped out.
Not everyone survives, but there was a clear sense of wrongs being righted here. Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this.

Dead Girls Walking was a creepy, fear-inducing read that I really enjoyed. This story gave me all the Friday the 13th, teen summer camp horror vibes. I think this would be the perfect book to read during the summer. It felt like I was watching a horror movie while reading this book.

Temple was a kick-ass main character who did not take crap from anyone. She knew how to defend herself from not only the mean girls, but also from the undead and her crazy family.

There’s some gore in this book, so be prepared for some disgusting imagery. I really liked the author’s descriptive writing.

This book is aimed at young adults, so there were was a lot of teen drama that I didn’t care for, but I still think adults will enjoy this story. If you love teen slashers or zombie flicks, definitely pick this one up.

3.5 bloody stars

Dead Girls Walking is a recent YA Horror release. One that I had been very anxious to pick up. The publisher's synopsis, as well as the intriguing cover, had my full attention. It looks like this is a debut novel for author, Sami Ellis, and while I can appreciate the author's creativity and ambition, the story did not work for me, unfortunately.

I considered giving it 3-stars, but I have to be honest about my experience. For me, a 3-star book is something I liked, but that didn't blow me away and may have minor issues. I just don't think this one reached that status for me.

I'm not going to say anything about the plot. Please read the synopsis for more info. I barely understood what was happening and had to refer to the synopsis multiple times to try to get my bearings. Because of this, I feel I have nothing further to add in that regard. And here we come to the heart of the issue for me. I found this narrative style confusing as heck. It felt like being dropped off at a movie halfway through, taking multiple bathroom breaks, and still being expected to understand what's going on. Spoiler Alert: I didn't.

It never succeeded in grabbing my attention. Additionally, the cast of characters, besides our MC, Temple, all blended together for me, and by the end, I just wanted it to be over. With this being said, just because this one didn't work for me, doesn't mean it won't work for you. I have seen some great reviews, I just feel like it was a miss for my tastes.

Thank you to the publisher, Amulet Books, for providing me with a copy to read and review.

I am interested it picking up more from this author in the future. I feel like maybe a different concept could help me engage more with their writing style.

I wasn't sure how to feel about this one when I first read it, but after ruminating on it for a couple weeks, I do think it brings some new twists to the subgenres it plays with and was overall enjoyable. Some of the plot points were a bit convoluted or confusing (the protagonist was a student, but also a counselor? and nobody recognized her despite being die-hard true crime fans of this exact event???), but I think the author synthesized elements from slasher and supernatural family secret traditions into a surprisingly coherent story. I was surprised at how well the characters were fleshed out, since many slashers tend to create cardboard characters who really just become murder fodder.

4.5 stars rounded to 5. First of all i can’t believe this is YA. I love a good ya horror because i feel the storyline is more fleshed out than adult. But not only was it good but super gory and bloody. This was the best example of a campy slasher horror book. The gore, the creep factor, and the underline story with the great twist! Temple was a complex character, hardened by the things her dad did and what she was exposed to but i loved her so much! I also loved yaya and cali, such new found friends with their own little stories and personalities. This author will def be a autobuy for me

I can't tell you how happy reading this book made me! Sami Ellis has taken the queer black girl experience and thrown it onto a blood-splattered and ice-edged canvas. With tons of gore, witty quips, and a raw examination of dealing with trauma, Dead Girls Walking kills.

Our protagonist is an unapologetically angry, snappy, bitter, queer teen. Temple starts off hating everything about her situation. She wears her disdain like a neon sign. And her inner monologue is so entertaining!

Elli's characterization of queer black feminine rage is tasty, digestible, and relatable. Temple's journey through understanding her family's secrets helps her see herself and the world differently.

As for the horror...delicious. And by delicious I mean, disgusting. There's gore and guts and body pieces, and, and, and. And I LOVED IT!

I hope to see many more books from Sami Ellis.

I recommend this book to anyone who loves the Friday the 13th franchise, The Fear Street books and movies, and other classically campy horrors.

overall I had a good time with this book. This is a YA (cozy)horror slasher that takes place at a summer camp for queer teen girls that are horror obsessed.

I really enjoyed the action/slasher portions of the book, the representation in this book was incredible with BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ characters, and the cover is beautiful. This also had some mixed media with emails, transcripts etc and if you know me, you know I love mixed media in books!!

It did have a bit of a slow start for me and things didn't progress enough for my personal taste until almost half way. I thought the concept of the book was really interesting, I wish some of the teen bickering scenes that just felt a little to long each time were shortened and there was more explanation into Temples family instead. I also felt like this was a little bit of a coming of age for Temple, from who she is at the start of the book to how she ends things.

Read this if you enjoy: YA horror, mixed media, family secrets, slashers, supernatural, creepy woods, isolation, serial killers, summer camp.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Amulet Books for sharing a digital copy. As always, opinions are my own.

Happy Publication Day to author Sami Ellis and her first book, Dead Girls Walking!
Dead Girls Walking is a YA horror slasher that is equal parts Friday the 13th and The Evil Dead with a queer twist.
The story centers around Temple Baker, whose father is an infamous serial killer on death row, as she searches her former home for her dead mother’s party. As it turns out, the woods that were once her father’s dumping ground have been turned into an overnight summer camp for queer, horror-obsessed girls. The seemingly straightforward horror story takes a decidedly paranormal twist which is when the real fun begins.
This felt like a fresh, fun take on several familiar horror tropes and comes highly recommended. It’s also a somewhat complex take on YA horror, so this might not be suitable for all readers, in terms of the dense plot and large cast of characters. I’m floored that this is Ellis’ first book and can’t wait to see what she does next.
A very special thanks to NetGalley and Amulet Books for the advanced copy!

Firstly, thank you to the publisher for accepting my request on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Not for me. I really struggled to get through this due to the pacing and the way things were explained. Whenever I managed to get into it I'd be pulled back out as I'd just feel lost all over again. I think the story had potential but like others have mentioned I think it would've done better in first person and with better pacing. I really enjoyed the friendships and character development though.

Holy moly! A YA horror book that's actually scary? A YA horror book that's actually scary and is chock-full of BIPOC and queer rep? And said YA horror book takes place at a HORROR CAMP for BIPOC queer teens?!

YA doesn't get much better than this, especially considering it's by a debut author! Get this for your library on the double! Go go go!

Temple grew up under less than ideal circumstances... her father is a serial killer who buried his victims’ bodies on their farm. One body that’s never been found is that of her missing mother. Her desire to find her mother and cryptic words from her father has her setting out on a mission. The problem is that there’s a camp on the farm now for horror loving queer girls. She gets herself hired as a counselor despite her lackluster people skills and her nemesis being there. It should be simple to just sneak away for a bit and locate her mother right?

Wrong... so very wrong... because little does Temple know that the seemingly crazy things her father use to say aren’t so crazy anymore. Something more than just serial murders is going on. The fact that more people have gone missing in the area since her father’s imprisonment is a big indicator of that. But what she couldn’t have anticipated was that something supernatural was going on. Her plans are ruined, the girls are dying and there’s no help coming. There’s a lot Temple never knew about her family’s history and it’s up to her to help the others escape. But Temple is no hero she doesn’t even like these girl...

I’ve read a few YA horror books and this was the best so far. Can’t wait to see more from the author.

This book was wild, and the twists and jump scares just kept coming. Temple is a great antihero-turned-hero, and I liked her arc a lot. The story is gruesome and exciting, with plenty of horror elements and a few funny moments sprinkled in.

But for me, horror is all about the story *inside* the story. If this was just a story about a cursed/haunted summer camp, it would have been a thrill. What made it for me was the underlying story about generational trauma and abusive families, and a young woman coming into her own. I don’t want to give spoilers, but that aspect really worked. I was confused by some of what seemed to be unrelated plot points at the outset, but they all came together in a really cool way!

I also loved that everyone in the story is Black and queer and that’s… just a fact. It’s not a story “about” race per se, and the trauma Temple is dealing with isn’t based on her race specifically, although that’s of course a big part of her identity. But this isn’t a story about Black trauma, or queer trauma. It’s a story about family and isolation and fear of being alone.

The thing that stops this from being five stars for me was that I often had to reread passage to understand what was happening in physical space, and even then I sometimes could not understand what exactly was happening. This story is pretty heavy on action, so it was a bigger issue than it would have been in a less action-packed story. That said, I received this book as an uncorrected ARC copy, so changes may have been made between the version I read and the final manuscript.

I still have zero problems recommending this book wholeheartedly. I love horror, and this one had me gasping and screeching in all the right places. It’s not quite as pulpy as “You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight” but it’s in a similar vein, and also reminded me a bit of “Just Like Home.” So if you liked either of those books, you’ll want to check this one out!

As I stated above, I read this as an ARC from NetGalley. This is a great debut and I’m excited to see what Sami Ellis does next!

Oh I liked this one - lots of characters to keep track of lead to some confusion. But oh the representation, creative backstory and somewhat grisly. I could not stop listening to this audio.
Temple is the daughter of an infamous serial killer - currently on death row and her mother likely one of his victims. Her father finally gives her clues to her mother's location - living on what used to the family farm or buried somewhere. Returning as a camp counselor for the summer, Temple must navigate her duties while investigating. Surrounded by horror obsessed teenage queer girls and lesbian camp leaders, focused on what happened on the property and the infamous book by a woman who disappeared somewhere on the property.
Slasher vibes, queer people everywhere and a deep rooted secret.

Dead Girls Walking is a YA slasher, Temple's father is an accused serial killer and goes back to her former home, turned queer horror camp to find her mother's body. The beginning is slow and the middle lag a bit but overall a fascinating horror story that took a turn that I was not expecting. I enjoyed the premise and inclusive representation. The characters are funny and realistic and even horror fanatics do not always make the best choices in a real life horror. 3.5 rounded up.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the ARC.

I wanted to take a day to sit back and process how i felt about this book and what my honest rating is.

Quick plot summary: Temple lied her way into counseling at a queer horror camp for Black girls who love true crime (does this exist in real life?!) to get closer to her old home- a home riddled with trauma, including her murdered mom and murderer dad. As the book goes on, readers get to dive into Temple’s familial dynamics and see why Temple is the way she is currently. Some other tropes besides horror is found family, generational trauma, and a refreshing lack of main character romance.

For context, I love campground horror, I love zombies, and I have recently started loving paranormal slashers. So everything about this book was right up my alley, and I enjoyed most of it! There were parts that felt a little convoluted by the end, and I think if I were in the actual YA demographic some of the book’s various tangles of plot might have gone over my head. This is a debut, and I tend to give more grace for things like that in debuts, as first books are usually geared towards making a splash.

Temple is an unlikeable lead, and I think some readers may have issues with that. Me? I love a woman mad at the world. She gave me SGJ Jade Daniels energy circa My Heart is A Chainsaw. And without an unlikable character you don’t get the satisfying growth arc, which we were absolutely gifted with in this book.

This settles comfortable at a personal 3.75 for me; it was super fun, tons of diversity representation, modern references to entertain young readers, and a good heart of the story. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite make 4 star status for me, simply because it suffers from debut over-excitement. But I think Sam Ellis has proven in this that her follow ups will be worth checking out! For that reason I will be rating 4 stars.

A special thank you to Netgalley, ABRAM kids and RB audio for sending me both the ebook AND audiobook so that I could listen along while I read- the easiest way for me to consume stories. (Side note, the narrator did a great job of differentiating a multitude of character voices!)

"Dead Girls Walking" by Sami Ellis is like a pulse-pounding thrill ride through a haunted house - once you step in, there's no turning back! From the get-go, I was sucked into Temple Baker's twisted world, where evil runs in her blood and secrets lurk behind every corner.

The story starts a bit slow, but once it gains momentum, it's an unstoppable force of terror. Temple's quest to uncover the truth about her father's crimes while navigating a queer horror camp filled with true crime enthusiasts is a ride I won't soon forget. The characters are richly developed, their backstories adding layers of depth that make them relatable and real.

Ellis's storytelling prowess shines through in every spine-chilling moment, keeping me guessing and gasping in equal measure. The twists and turns had me reeling, and I couldn't shake the feeling of impending doom lurking in every shadow.

For horror fanatics and lovers of the macabre, "Dead Girls Walking" is a must-read with its unique premise and fantastic representation. Just be prepared for some gruesome moments that will leave you sleeping with the lights on.

Reading from the POV of Temple, a serial killers daughter on a mission to find her mother, was a genuinely scary experience. The descriptions in this book were so vivid that I had to put the book down multiple times to process it. This book is also packed to the brim with plot twists, up until the very last page Making it so addicting to read.

♡ eBook Review ♡
♤ Release March 26 ♤
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•YA
•Horror | Slasher
•Summer Camp
•Paranormal Vibes
•Queer
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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 thateven 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. 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.
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This book is sooo well written! I enjoyed everything about this book, the representation is amazing. Black girls are doing major things in books this year. Thus definitely gave me the Friday the 13th vibes, and I LOVE it. This is my first time reading this author work and I will be waiting for more.
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♡ Thank you Netgalley for the eArc for my honest opinion

Dead girls walking was a book that played homage to all the classic horror fans out there. It’s a YA slasher / horror focused on a group of black LGBT women and girls who spend their time in a writers retreat in the middle of nowhere. We follow Temple who is the daughter of the “north point killer” as she searches the grounds for her mums body.

I am surprised that I loved this as much as I did, I was worried that this book would be on the younger side of YA but it was perfect. The authors writing was easy to follow and was really suspenseful so you didn’t want to put this one down! The imagery used set the perfect eerie atmosphere and location to send shivers down your spine

I was very surprised by the way the book spiralled into the supernatural but I really enjoyed the generational monstrosity of it! I could never guessed what was going to happen next!

This seemed like a book that was right up my alley - queer girls who spend the weekend at a horror summer camp and have to survive a night of horrors - what’s not to love?

The plot was really interesting and I really enjoyed the characters, but I was confused for the majority of this book. The very beginning seemed to start with you, as a reader, being in the dark and having to learn about the lore and history of this spooky camp. But as I kept on reading, the confusion just grew and grew. I think this book was trying to do way too much without really focusing on a single plot point. It felt very reminiscent of Friday the 13th, mixed with Cabin in the Woods, mixed with Evil Dead, but then also mixed with so many other well known horror medias that it just got so muddy and a bit frustrating to read.
I did like the book and the premise of it, I just feel the execution was way off mark and could have used a few edits to cut out the fluff that didn’t add to the story.

Overall, this was okay. The writing is a bit confusing and you are left in the dark for 90% of the book, but it was creepy, spooky, and most importantly, a little gay.

Thank you NetGalley and Amulet Books for this E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.