HEADS WILL ROLL is a slasher of a book that slowly builds up to the gory finale.

The book begins by leaning into the setting in an almost gothic way for the first half. There's a camp in the woods with staff who are hiding something. There's a local legend of a wronged woman. It's very isolated with a lake and lots of woods. As someone who likes gothic fiction, this set up was a lot of fun.

But, fear not readers of slasher horror! There is a murder pretty early on (and then another) to tide you over until the book transitions from atmospheric gothic to slasher. It's a fun tempo change once 90% of the historic mystery has been solved and it all goes into survival mode with axes and knives and some very messed up villains.

The thing I like most about horror is how the overt violence can be used to explore more insidious horror in daily life. This book touches on religious bigotry leading to abuse and how historic abuse impacts people years afterwards. It was also fun to see this book tackle cancel culture head on with lots of references to cancel culture within the book world.

In all, it was a very good, very gory read (and I'm very glad I read it in daylight!)

I've not read many slasher books so this was a fun and gory read for me!

Willow finds herself at camp castaway needing some time away from social media and real life after being “cancelled” online for a tweet. Around the campfire the legend of Knock Knock Nancy is told, the ghost of a woman who was decapitated and now wants your head. Later that night Willow hears a knocking on her cabin door.

This book was interesting and intriguing. There were a few surprises and red herrings, I really had no clue what was going on and who was behind it all! I found it felt slow in places and then there was a mad, fast paced gory ending.

I liked Willow and some of the other characters and enjoyed the commentary on cancel culture.

I'm not sure slashers are my favourite horror sub genre (I'm a haunted house girl at heart) but it was a fun read!

Thank you Netgalley for the advance copy. I really loved the book and its characters. I can see that the author spent a long time on worldbuilding and forming 3 dimensional characters. This was already on my wish-list for the year, and I couldn’t wait to get my hands on a copy. I loved the read and can’t wait to see what the author comes up with next!

I keep searching for a slasher horror that will replicate the feeling of watching Scream for the first time, with all the jump scares, gore and shock reveals. This came pretty close but can't quite take the crown from "Clown in a Cornfield" for me. I was looking forward to this being aimed more towards adults compared to some of my more recent horror reads but it still came across as slightly YA despite the older characters. The idea of a wilderness retreat and a lack of technology worked well but I didn't get a chance to connect to any of the characters and found Willow mildly annoying. However, overall I did enjoy it and as the pace picked up I couldn't put it down.

Thank you Netgalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for providing me with a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

I struggled to get into this one. I didn't find it enjoyable and a lot of the characters didn't particularly grab me and the retreat setting was just too reminiscent of too many other horror thrillers.

When a post on social media gets taken the wrong way and goes viral, Willow finds herself cancelled. As she deals with abuse and harassment, online and in person, her personal life falls to pieces. With nowhere else to go, she learns about Camp Castaway, an adults-only retreat that doesn’t allow electronic devices. A bonus is that it’s located in the middle of nowhere. No one can find her while she takes time to work things out for herself.

That’s the plan, anyway. But we all know what they say about best-laid plans. As she settles in at Camp Castaway and learns more about her fellow campers, Willow realises all of them are running from something. When campers start to go missing, she isn’t sure if it’s because of something from their past or if the local urban legend is real. Someone is playing into the urban legend; Willow has heard knocking outside her door.

The more she learns about the camp and her fellow campers, the murkier things get. What’s clear is that Camp Castaway is no longer a safe place…

Heads Will Roll is the third novel I’ve read by Josh Winning. Once again, it was a creative horror novel influenced by Winning’s passion for TV shows and his experience working in the entertainment industry. In Heads Will Roll, he explores online interactions and cancel culture. At the novel’s start, we don’t know what Willow has done to be cancelled; is she the villain or the victim of circumstance?

Winning writes complex characters, and the more I got to know Willow, the more I liked her, which conflicted with the knowledge that she did something to be cancelled. What I particularly like about Winning’s books is that all his characters are fully developed, and he doesn’t treat his secondary characters as lesser. Every camper at Camp Castaway gets their chance to shine, rather than just being fodder for Willow to bounce off of.

But like Willow, there’s that lingering question over their real identities, and as the story unfolds, the separation between the characters’ camp facades and their lives before the camp begins to blur. Through his characters’ backstories, Winning shows an awareness of current issues and events relevant to readers’ interests.

Considering the subject of the cancel culture, there is much reflection from characters’ on their actions and past. This includes addiction, illness, mental health, grief, trauma and other sensitive topics that Winning writes with care. Heads Will Roll also features LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC representation.

Heads Will Roll is a whodunnit mixed with a good old-fashioned urban legend horror story, and what I like about Winning’s style is that he can spin alternate theories with equal believability right up until the big reveal. With additional resources and pop culture references galore, this is a horror novel with a difference.

I enjoyed this book, well, I enjoyed about 97.5%.

First off, I loved the premise, I loved the snippets of extra info between chapters. I love the characters, Willow's developments and insecurities made her so vulnerable, I loved her little gang with Dani and Kurt.

The writing was perfect and there were some points where I was genuinely scared while reading alone and I may have yelped when during a particularly tense scene my cat jumped on me in a silent attack! The kills are well written and descriptive I love how they're done. And I was definitely pointing fingers throughout until the reveal.

It was such a great story and I would 100% recommend.

But to address the 2.5% I didn't enjoy as much, I felt at the very end one twist was a little bit clunky and I'm still not sure how it would've happened and worked, and it seemed a bit out of nowhere.

Now we’re talking! September rolls around and I get antsy for #SpookySeason. This means I start my horror reading early. So when I saw this camp slasher for adults (a lot of these books are aimed at a YA audience, which I’m cool with but 40 year olds need creepy drama too 😅) I gravitated straight towards it.

Welcome to Camp Castaway, you’ll find it in the middle of nowhere in upstate New York. People go there to get away from the mistakes they’ve made in their lives; addiction, betraying loved ones, criminal activity, and eh, being cancelled online for saying stupid things. Rule number one is no contact with the outside world; you hand your devices over on arrival. Now, what could possibly go wrong with that idea 🤔😅

Tv-star Willow’s worst nightmare was being cancelled, so at first she embraces the anonymity of Camp Castaway, but soon people start going missing, and the vibes turn much more Friday the 13th than anyone could have anticipated. Can Willow survive and protect her new friends or is she about to be cancelled…for good?!

This is 100% my cup of tea. Lots of pop culture references, plenty of gore, some seriously creepy scenes, and a good dollop of action to get the heart pumping faster. Oh and, my new favourite character; Juniper Brown; a washed up Hollywood actor and camp member who is basically a female Samuel L Jackson and just as cool.

This would work great on screen; often slashers are less effective in book form because it’s hard to convey the jump scares well on paper. That’s also true here but it’s still one of the better examples of the genre that I’ve read.

I enjoyed this; a fun, scary read, perfect for this time of year.

With many thanks to @netgalley @penguinrandomhouse @michaeljbooks for my early copy. Heads Will Roll is available to buy now. All opinions are my own, as always.

The plot is all over the place, and I had a hard time getting into this one. The dialogue was bogged down by endless horror references. It redeems itself towards the end with a few good twists but the ending seems unresolved.

Overall, there’s plenty of action, it’s fun and if you like slasher movies it does capture that vibe.

I really enjoyed this! It gave me all the nostalgic '80s/'90s slasher vibes! I could really picture the setting, and the writing created such an eerie atmosphere 👌 Will be recommending as some spooky season reading!

Willow has been cancelled she runs away to a retreat no phones allowed Camp Castaway. But in the woods away from civilization Willow realises that maybe more than her reputation is in danger.

This was a typical style 80s slasher summer camp story. I did initially struggle to get into this but I think that was more a me issue. Once this book had it's hooks in me I couldn't stop reading. Some of the reveals were a bit of a let down but some were also jaw dropping. If you are into slashers this is definitely worth picking up ☺️

Thank you to Netgalley, Michael Joseph and Josh Winning for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed Heads will roll by Josh Winning. I couldn’t put it down and literally flew through the pages.

Heads Will Roll was the kind of horror that keeps you glued to the page in fear and suspense. It was delightfully creepy and dark, full of slasher goriness and excellent characters.

This is an appropriately twisted love letter to the slasher genre, full of blood and guts in more ways than one. The kill scenes themselves are graphic and nightmare fuel, taken to outlandish points at times that are not quite Final Destination but aren’t far off. Winning gives each victim one final moment of agency, something that speaks to the core of their character. I had my personal favourite, but I will let you discover these dark scenes yourselves. The pacing and atmosphere are (forgive me) killer, with enough room for excellent character work that doesn’t slow down the breakneck pace of the novel and the constant sense of tension. The stakes are clear and they are sky high. It is precisely because Winning does not hold back with the death and destruction that you have a very real sense of just what could happen next. We are taken to some extremely dark places and wallow in the mire.

Winning also incorporates some interesting conversation starters that leave you ruminating while you shiver in fear. The book is incredibly meta, as good slashers have a tendency to be. It is very self-aware of the horror genre and the conventions within. A lot of the book revolves around the acting industry across TV and film, particularly in terms of fandom and how people can start to blur the line between character and actor. They become somewhat obsessed with their one role, until this is all that they are defined by. Stepping outside of this box can lead to vitriol and hatred beyond your wildest dreams. Willow embodies this as our protagonist, fleeing the implosion of her life, but still somewhat controlled by her public facade. She needs to work out who she is and this is one hell of a training ground for that.

Heads Will Roll is a blood-curdingly good time. This was one of the slashers of this summer - it sits perfectly for your horror binge alongside Bury Your Gays by Chuck Tingle and I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones. All of this are up to their elbows in blood and gore, paying homage to classic horror narratives with a meta wink at the audience.

Heads Will Roll offers us a summer camp slasher horror read, drawing on familiar events/situations to draw us in. Nothing new, but entertaining none the less.
Our main character is an actress, well-known for her role in a teen sitcom, but when we first meet her she is a wreck. Having been found passed out in a pool by her publicist, we learn that after an unfortunate tweet our character has been cancelled. Vitriol and hate have been poured on her since that tweet. Her fiancé dumped her. She’s lost her job. She’s receiving death threats. So, she blows an extortionate amount of money on a camp experience that offers her the chance to get away from it all.
The camp takes place in remote woodland. Nobody is allowed access to phones or electrical items while they’re at camp…and it doesn’t take long for them to wind each other up about potential threats.
Unfortunately, someone seems determined to make this camp memorable for very different reasons. One by one members of the camp disappear. Strange things take place and there’s more than a passing link to the horror story they shared of Knock Knock Nancy.
As with a lot of horror stories that have come out recently, much of the enjoyment stems from the characters’ awareness of the genre and its expectations. We don’t see anything particularly original here, but I liked the fact that it’s adult characters who form our focus. One best read in the light, and definitely there are moments that are not for the squeamish!
Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the chance to read and review this.

A perfect summer camp slasher story to read this summer. A delightful mix of humour, horror and nostalgia of a typical slasher.
I got into this book pretty quickly and found the pace of the narrative to be excellent. I liked how the characters were portrayed, most of them were strongly developed and I enjoyed finding out how each of them got ‘cancelled’.
I also loved the inclusion of the camp ghost story and thought it fitted in perfectly with the rest of the story. There were some pretty good twists that I didn’t see coming.
Gore is quite mild so this is perfect anyone starting out in this genre.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an opportunity to read this book.

When last time you read/watch a good horror story? For me it was long long long time ago. Horror isn't my first choice genre when I want to read for relaxation. But I really appreciate suspens and thrilling sensation from good horror story. Head Will Roll basicly offer all elements from a good classic slasher trope.

Take set at Camp Castaway, a retreat site for people to be absolutely anonymous. Adults whom desperate to unplugged from media, social life and networks. The plot starts slowly when everyone meets our MC, the Camp host and share background. The plotline quite familiar fills with suspicion and mystery. Put in the mixed a portion of creepy old ghoststory, queer romance, family drama and action packed with sharp thingy activities.

The writing style is okay and quite easy to follow. Gore level is standard, safe enough for horror beginner as me. All the characters are memorable and the ending are promising. This is a thrilling read and perfect for Hallowen read.

Thank you Netgalley and Michael Joseph from Penguin Random House for providing copy of this ebook. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Expecting release date : 8 August 2024

Unfortunately, I just didn't gel properly with this one. I didn't find it enjoyable and a lot of the characters didm't particularly interest me. Usually I would write a much longer review but I just felt really disconnected from the story and don't have that much to say.

Thanks so much to Michael Joseph and Penguin random House for this e-arc.

Josh Winning is for me, a must buy author. After completely falling in love with his debut novel, 'The Shadow Glass' it was a no brainer to get 'Heads Will Roll'which was published last week in the UK , by Michael Joseph Books in hardcover and e-book formats.

It's a homage to the slasher genre which takes a long hard look at the impact of social media, cancel culture and the nature of dependency on validation via mobile phone.

This includes texting, filtering of images, 'likes' , 'shares' and 'brand awareness', so when actress Willow, unwittingly implodes her personal and professional life with a careless tweet, the fall from grace is so swift it makes your nose bleed.

Co-dependency on an audience which increasingly feels like it is waiting in the wings to pounce and vilify has created an out of control narrative where truth matters less than hashtags and views has left Willow with no home, no friends and an engagement ring that mockingly winks at her whilst her fiancé has run as far away as he can.

Her last best hope is to run away to the middle of nowhere , surrender herself to the process of healing and to put that damn phone down!!

But...this might be a case of from frying pan to fire as things in the camp don't quite add up...mix in an urban legend about an axe wielding killer forever looking for her missing head, and you have quite the situation.

Is it the camp therapist, the camp owner, a fellow camper or none of the above behind the spooky knocks, the lovingly left 'presents' or mysteriously disappearing campers. First there were 8...then , there were not...

It could be a novel which comes across as preachy, or at the other extreme, Scooby Doo in the woods, however, this is a tale of false narratives where the truth matters less than how you can exploit lies.

It is genuinely jumpy, isolating you in paradoxically wide open woods away from any social contact so that you can essentially 'reboot'. But in order to find yourself, sometimes you have to lose absolutely everything. How far will Willow go to get back to who she was before fame and fortune got in the way?

And how far do we readers buy into the 'need to know' without really having the right to know? I was deeply intrigued to find out exactly what Willow said, but does that really matter and what does that change?

Living in a post truth world where everyone has a perspective, but lack of accountability on sharing, this is a rampant charge for taking people down(see the recent riots in England for example as a comparative issue) .

You can see how the slasher trope is perfect for this exploration of what exactly is trying to remove the head of a rumour, which, as you cut it off, is like a Hydra in growing more, and more, and more...who amongst us will restore justice with a swift chop or two?

Fast, fun, with interspersed posts/emails/commentary from the outside world, staying in Camp Castaway is the best way to spend time those long summer nights!

Willow's life has just imploded. An ill-judged tweet has seen her lose her TV career, her fans, her boyfriend, her friends, & her home & gain an abusive online stalker. In desperation, she decides to attend Camp Castaway, an adults-only retreat in a campground in the woods. Here they are worlds away from the internet & Willow hopes no-one will recognise her.

The first night sees a campfire cookout where Willow is introduced to her fellow campers. It's also where she first hears the legend of 'Knock Knock Nancy', a witch who supposedly haunts the campground & knocks on the cabin doors in the dead of night & if you answer she takes your head. Typical campfire ghost story, right? Willow thinks so, but when one of the group suddenly vanishes, she's suddenly not so sure anymore. Has her stalker found her or Nancy real?

I rather enjoyed this one. It starts off quite slow & gets the reader invested in the characters before unleashing a finale where the death toll rapidly rises. No-one is safe & it wasn't immediately obvious to me who the killer was - in fact I think I suspected just about everyone at one time or another. It has some commentary on modern cancel culture, but at its heart, it's an entertaining horror/thriller. Perfect reading for a cold, dark October night.

My thanks to NetGalley & publishers, Michael Joseph/Penguin Random House, for the opportunity to read an ARC.

Happy release day!

I finished this one last night and it was good. Although I wasn't the biggest fan of the reveal, the rest of the book was an enjoyable read.

I love the horror references, as always. They always make me giddy when I'm reading a book.

3.5