Author: Goldy Moldavsky
Genres: Thriller, Young Adult
Publishing Date: April 13, 2021
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.
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Thank you to Xpresso Book Tours and Netgalley for an ARC of this copy in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my opinion in any way and all opinions are my own.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️{4}
YA thrillers, horrors and mysteries don’t usually intrigue me much. I mean I love all of Karen McManus’ books and there are a handful in my TBR but that’s all. For those of you who don’t know, I’m a big fan of all things horror ever since I was a kid (literally). My aunt loves horror too and since I was around 4+ years old, I’d try to hide and watch a horror movie she was watching because my mom wouldn’t let me. I’m the kind of person who watches horror stuff and it wouldn’t bother me in the least, I don’t scream during them, I’d love them…except when it’s the middle of the night and I need to go to the washroom. Then my mind goes into overdrive and an overthinking mode that tells me, “What if that thing from the movie you watched is waiting outside your door?” or something like that.
So anyway I might not have gravitated towards this book had it not been named, “The Mary Shelley Club” because I knew it was thriller/horror/mystery but I absolutely love Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein so I had to know what it was about and once I read the plot, I had to know more so I signed up for the tour.
For anyone who’s wondering, Mary Shelley doesn’t have anything to do without the book. Our main character, Rachel, transfers to a new school and tries to start anew after a scary incident prior that she’s still recovering from. At school she learns about the Mary Shelley Club which has her fascinated because she too, is a horror movie fanatic. Soon, Rachel becomes a part of this club and their main goal is pulling elaborate pranks. (I love plans when they’re not being played on me and yet I only remember one that I played with a bunch of friends 1 1/2 years ago and I still crack up over it!) Every one has to hold a Fear Test where the member picks a target and their goal is to make the target scream, while everyone else is in on the plan of course. That all seems fun and easy right? Wrong.
I can’t really TELL you what the book was about but I can tell you that it had me hooked from page one. It had the whole horror movie vibe to it which of course might be a reason I loved it.
Rachel was actually very likable, way more than I thought she’d be because some YA female main characters are so whiny and just…I don’t know how to explain but yeah. Then we had our side characters; mainly Freddie, Bram, Thayer and Felicity and they were all so different but their love for pranks and all things horror connected them together. I also might be a little biased because the horror movie references were so good and this makes me believe that Goldy herself is a horror movie fanatic because no one who isn’t into horror knows that many!!
I feel like the writing really added to it with the perfect touch of everything, the thrill to everything happening, the mystery of wanting to know more and the horror of it all of course. And what I loved above all else was that the whole book was all in Rachel’s point of view as it is HER story but whenever a Fear Test was held, the point of view turned to that of the person being pranked and I absolutely loved that because we get to see how these characters truly feel in that moment when an elaborate and scary prank is being played on them.
Despite loving everything about this book and my newfound interest in YA thrillers, horrors and mysteries, I gave this book a 4 because of the ending. It wasn’t bad but it was rushed. After the whole build-up the book just ended and the end seemed like a sort of cliff-hanger so I’m hoping there’s going to be a second book cause I’ve still got questions and stuff!! So other than the ending, it was an absolutely amazing book and totally worth it.
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.
Website | Goodreads | Twitter | Instagram
Giveaway
An international giveaway to win a printed copy of the Mary Shelley Club! Ends on 22nd April.
a Rafflecopter giveaway https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.jsHave you ever pulled an elaborate prank on anyone? Or do you love YA Mysteries, Thrillers or Horrors? Recommend me some if so! Let me know below!!
ShelfLove 
Omg I’m the same way with horror movies. I used to love them and watch them all the time and then get freaked out at night. I remember watching The Grudge and imagining that creep in my closet that was it for me hahaha! This book sounds like a fun thrill ride, though! So happy you liked it!
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Yes!! Watching them but getting scared and imagining crazy scenarios is like an everyday thing for horror fans haha.
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