Riley’s Post It Note Reviews: Bent Heavens, Harrow Lake and Five Total Strangers

It’s time for another installment of Riley’s Post It Note Reviews where a teen tells us what she thinks about some of the recent Young Adult literature she has read.

Bent Heaven by Daniel Kraus

Publisher’s Book Description:

Liv Fleming’s father went missing more than two years ago, not long after he claimed to have been abducted by aliens. Liv has long accepted that he’s dead, though that doesn’t mean she has given up their traditions. Every Sunday, she and her lifelong friend Doug Monk trudge through the woods to check the traps Lee left behind, traps he set to catch the aliens he so desperately believed were after him.

But Liv is done with childhood fantasies. Done pretending she believes her father’s absurd theories. Done going through the motions for Doug’s sake. However, on the very day she chooses to destroy the traps, she discovers in one of them a creature so inhuman it can only be one thing. In that moment, she’s faced with a painful realization: her dad was telling the truth. And no one believed him.

Now, she and Doug have a choice to make. They can turn the alien over to the authorities…or they can take matters into their own hands. 

Post It Note Review: This book is so interesting. There was always a new surprise.

Editor’s Note: I was so excited that Riley wanted to read this book because I read it earlier and really liked it and wanted someone to talk about it with! This book is a stunning read and it’s out now.

Harrow Lake by Kat Ellis

Publisher’s Book Description:

Lola Nox is the daughter of a celebrated horror filmmaker – she thinks nothing can scare her. But when her father is brutally attacked in their New York apartment, she’s swiftly packed off to live with a grandmother she’s never met in Harrow Lake, the eerie town where her father’s most iconic horror movie was shot.

The locals are weirdly obsessed with the film that put their town on the map – and there are strange disappearances, which the police seem determined to explain away.

And there’s someone – or something – stalking Lola’s every move.

The more she discovers about the town, the more terrifying it becomes. Because Lola’s got secrets of her own. And if she can’t find a way out of Harrow Lake, they might just be the death of her…

Post It Note Review: This book is very creepy. I wanted to keep reading it forever. The ending is now what I expected.

Editor’s Note: This book was a wild ride. Riley talked to me a lot about all the truly bizarre twists and turns in this book. It comes out in August 2020 from Kathy Dawson Books

Five Total Strangers by Natalie D. Richards

Publisher’s Book Description:

A hitched ride home in a snow storm turns sinister when one of the passengers is plotting for the ride to end in disaster.

When Mira flies home to spend Christmas with her mother in Pittsburgh, a record-breaking blizzard results in a cancelled layover. Desperate to get to her grief-ridden mother in the wake of a family death, Mira hitches a ride with a group of friendly college kids who were on her initial flight.

As the drive progresses and weather conditions become more treacherous, Mira realizes that the four other passengers she’s stuck in the car with don’t actually know one another.

Soon, they’re not just dealing with heavy snowfall and ice-slick roads, but the fact that somebody will stop at nothing to ensure their trip ends in a deadly disaster.

Post It Note Review: This was a very captivating read. The action never stopped.

Editor’s Note: Natalie D. Richards is a solid choice for teen thrillers, always. This book was especially fascinating because Riley’s father and I once rented a car with strangers during a blizzard while stranded at an airport. We were young college kids and I’m happy to report that no one in our journey was murderous. In hindsight, I of course do not recommend anyone do this. But the book was fascinating. This book comes out in October from Sourcebooks.

Filed under: Book Reviews