Bauer has been pretty hit or miss with me but all her books are wildly different from one another so that's to be expected. Mostly this reads a lot like a CW show in that the two mains are unrealistically attractive opposites who went from friends to lovers just because the nerdy one hit puberty, and all the other characters are kind of tropes or vaguely written. However I was charmed by both Emory and Connor and their relationship seems more realistic than most MM. They first bonded over horror movies and filmmaking but they only really spend a few weeks every year together in their families' adjacent beach vacation houses so they don't see each other grow up in between. Apparently, this year, Emory hit puberty hard and changed from social outcast to the hot mystery guy and Connor wants to dive in dick first.
While a lot of sex is alluded to or mentioned, nothing really happens "on screen". Bauer also didn't make it the focus which made the actual horror plot more prominent which was good. There are a lot of plot points that need to be cleared up and I found the climax a little anticlimactic and ridiculous but you can't expect much more than that from someone that's not really a horror writer. Overall, this was a fun read but I'm not sure I'd read a sequel. ( )

I knew I had to listen to this as soon as I read the synopsis! This was an excellent story, with wonderful narration. It's easy to get pulled in, and Lockheart was a great narrator. I felt like I wasn't just listening to the story, but watching it unfold in front of me as well. Emory and Connor are so different, yet fit so well together. There were plenty of twists, and while there were some moments that made me giggle, there were also some that had me waiting with bated breath to know what happened next. Highly recommend if you're looking for a mix of romance, giggles, and a few chills. ( )