Review A semi-enjoyable young adult read. I enjoyed aspects of the story including the heartwarming friendship between two young girls, finding a first love, and the heartbreak of questioning one's worth after being abandoned by a father at a young age. On the negative side, the book was filled with lots of snappy dialogue that I guess was supposed to make me laugh. Instead, I found myself shaking my head at an author trying way too hard to be funny.

Thanks NetGalley for allowing me to read and review.

Zentner crafts a fun story with a steady narrative pace. It tells a story about friendship and growing up worthy of picking up and recommending.

Great read. The author wrote a story that was interesting and moved at a pace that kept me engaged. The characters were easy to invest in.

I was at 90% with this book for two days and could not bring myself to pick it up and finish it. Today I decided to rip off the proverbial band-aid and end the torture. That being said, giving this book one star is killing me because I loved Zentner's first YA novel with all my heart, but this story is abysmal.

Before I say anything else about this book... it demonizes those who have mental illness who think of themselves before helping someone else, a someone who won't take their medication, to save themselves. No adult is responsible for another adult's mental stability over their own. That is a ridiculous burden to put on someone. Also, this story, like the author's second book, has an element based on a faulty legal concept. As I have said a million times if you want to write Realistic Contemporary Fiction it has to be realistic, you can't twist or overlook fact to make the storyline, or plot easier (quicker) to write, or more dramatic. That's bad writing; plain and simple, but if you need more reasons for my one star rating keep reading.

This YA book is a mind-numbing avalanche of Middle Grade mentality fart and anus references mixed with too many nauseatingly bad puns, continuous eye roll worthy "trying too hard" similes and metaphors, and NA content (like porn movies and cocaine use). The characters were overly silly. I think the author was trying to paint them as having intellectually creative cool senses of humor, but they came off as cartoonish uncool posers. They were also supposed to be "deep thinkers" because at age eighteen they thought about things like the four seasons of life and being glad tears don't smell like pee. They were supposed to be smart kids, but one character thought there were still smallpox and dysentery epidemics in the US in the 1960s, and was also trying to figure out with her mother if "Zombie" was Rob Zombie's real last name. Characterizations like this are why teens in other countries think many US teens are stupid.

One of the characters was routinely violent towards her little sister and the parents (educated upper middle class) were nonplussed. These actions evoked no more than a furrowed brow given "stop that" as if the girl had done nothing more than call her sister a butthole. The eighteen year old character's internal dialogue was that of normalcy about it too. When I was thinking about this and other character thought processes I realized that there was change, but only infinitesimal growth for these characters (most times none at all), and most of that was crammed into the last two chapters of the book in sappy, overly dramatic ways in what was seemingly a last ditch effort to redeem the story. The book was also much too long for what it was.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I am a huge fan of Jeff Zentner and was so excited to get my hands on this book!

Josie and Delia are best friends, but couldn't have more different family lives. One who has a stable household and the other who comes from a broken home.

I love the friendship because these two and I must say there was a lot of humor in this book. Josie and Delia are awesome and back in the day, I would have loved to hang out with them and just laugh. These girls have their own tv show, just on their local cable station. They take on the roles of Rayne Ravenscroft and Delilah Darkwood. Its a campy show lol. But now they are seniors and have some tough decisions to make and are both afraid of what the future could hold.

There isn't all that much romance in the book, which I enjoyed! But the Friendship these two girls have...is amazing. If you are a fan of Jeff, this is a must read for you

Best friend stories are some of my favorite contemporary stories to read. There's something so earnest and genuine about them in an incredibly realistic way and Jeff Zentner continues to make flawed and fully realized characters that you want to route for and you want to know. And there's amazingly hilarious dialogue that's crafted to be impactful but not preachy or stilted. While the plot wasn't complex and was slow at times, I was more than here for the friendship - which is the heart of the story - so I didn't mind the slower pace.

I lucky enough to recieved this ARC from Netgally. This is my first book by Jeff Zentner. I tend to get worried when it comes to overly hyped Authors & books. However I was pleasantly surprised how much I like his writing. I enjoyed this book because it was a great reflection of what it’s like to be a teenager about to graduate high school. The change in friends, romantic relationships and tough decisions about the future. I felt like I could connect to each character on some level. I saw most of the characters get some kind of development throughout the book. The only real issue I had was Joise and Delilah have strong personalities that didn't always mesh well with me. Other then that I really enjoyed this book and plan to read more of his work. This book was a 4.5/5!

This was my first read by Jeff Zentner. I had to look up what other books he has written and saw he was the author of The Serpent King which I want to read but haven't gotten around too. I have heard good things about this author . I liked this book but it wasn't the best. The beginning of the book was going good but then it just went down hill a bit. That's about all I have to say.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this ARC.

Thank you to Crown Publishing and NetGalley for the advance reader copy of Jeff Zentner's Rayne and Delilah's Midnite Matinee in an exchange for an honest review.

Rayne and Delilah's Midnite Matinee is my first experience with the wonderful writing of Jeff Zentner. This YA Contemporary is a must read!! It is filled with two delightful characters, who have been best friends for so long that people often mistaken them for sisters. Each is struggling with their own impending changes that will shape their future. Through their individual struggles, they support each other in friendship, humor, heartbreak, and abandonment.

I love Jeff Zenter. The Serpent King and Goodbye days are frequent recommendations of mine. He gets me right in the feels, just how I like it. Most often books have taken me places, when life gets tough boooks take me somewhere else. They also remind me that I am human that I can feel things. My life has never been easy and it wont ever be easy. Ive learned how detach from myself and my emotion. But when I read I can feel again.

Reading Rayne and Delilahs Midnite Matinee. I ccouldnt help but feel connected to Delia and I think thats why I disliked her so much. You werent expecting that were you. Well its true, she made me so angry. People leave all the time that just the way life is. Listen I have daddy and abandonment issues myself and what you wont see me doing is putting the people I love in a choke hold to keep them.

Josie on the other hand complete delight. Funny and loyal shes who i would want as a friend. Shes who i hope i am as a friend.

One of the things i love about Zenter's writing is the inspirational speech the characters recieve from an unlikely source. I even had a bookmark made of the speech in The Serpent King. Those words they stick with you.

Loved the title, the ending with Dee just going off to find her father instead of meeting Jack Devine didn't sit well with me, but overall loved Jeff Zetner and his writing. A laugh out loud book.

Jeff Zentner can do no wrong. Each of his books is an emotional roller coaster in the best possible way. Each book manages to be completely different as well. This book is no exception, the story and characters work their way in to your heart. Zentner is an auto-buy for me.

Loved the book! I really loved the way the author constructed the story and how creative it was in the end.

Rayne & Delilah’s Midnite Matinee is my first time reading a Jeff Zentner novel, so I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect going in. What I got was pretty much everything I love about contemporary novels all rolled into one fabulous book. It’s a story about friendship and family, first loves, taking risks and following your dreams, and it’s also a story about goodbyes. It also features a hilarious Saturday night public access TV show that features horrible horror flicks, and it takes us on a road trip to a horror fan convention.

Rayne & Delilah’s Midnite Matinee is equal parts hilarious and heartfelt, and I was there for every minute of it.

Rayne & Delilah’s Midnite Matinee features two main characters, Delia and Josie, both of whom I found to be very likeable and the situations they found themselves in easy to relate to. They are both high school seniors who are making plans for the future and wondering how those future plans are going to impact their friendship. Josie wants a career on television and while she’s currently starring on a public access TV show with Delia, her opportunity to follow her dreams would be much greater if she moved away from their town and attended one of the bigger universities, one of which has an internship at the Food Network with her name all over it. Josie is very conflicted about what to do, not just because she hates the idea of leaving Delia behind, but also because she has just met a new guy named Lawson that she has quickly grown very attached to, and going away to school would mean leaving him as well.

Delia’s plans for the future are less academic-based and more focused on her personal life and something that she needs to resolve once and for all for the sake of her mental health. Her father abandoned her and her mom years ago, just up and disappeared and hasn’t been heard from since. Between him leaving and now possibly Josie following suit, Delia is struggling emotionally with the idea that she is always being left behind. She knows it’s not fair to think that in Josie’s case, but her father walking out had just been such a weight on her shoulders for so many years that it colors everything else in her life, even her TV show. She really wants to track him down and confront him because she needs answers if she’s ever going to move on.

I loved both of these girls, and even Josie’s boyfriend Lawson, who is just super adorable in every way. I thought Zentner did an incredible job of really getting inside of both Delia and Josie’s heads to give us so much insight on what they’re thinking and feeling as they’re trying to plan their futures without losing their friendship. The friendship between Josie and Delilah is written so beautifully. It feels so authentic and takes me back to when I was graduating from both high school and college and had to say goodbye to friends I had grown to love and those fears that we would drift apart if we didn’t see each other every day. It makes me shed a tear just thinking about how relatable this aspect of the story was.

Speaking of tears though, there were also many tears of joy shed. In addition to the emotional journeys that both Delia and Josie take us on, there’s also a tremendous amount of humor in the book, especially as it relates to Rayne & Delilah’s Midnite Matinee, the public access TV show that Delia and Josie co-host. All I could think while I was reading was that I need this TV show in my life. For the show, the girls play horror hosts Rayne Ravencroft and Delilah Darkwood, dress up as vampires and do quirky comedic skits (a la Elvira, Mistress of the Dark for those who are old enough to remember her). Their guest stars include their own pets, as well a group of boys who dress up in skeleton costumes and dance around like fools in the background. As if those antics weren’t enough, they aren’t even the main event. The main event each week is basically the worst, cheesiest horror flick you’ve ever seen. Think Mystery Science Theater 3000 except with horror movies instead of cheesy old sci fi. The whole concept for the show, and Delia and Josie working with their grumpy old tech guy Arliss, had me in stitches every time they went to prep an episode of their show.

While I thought it was sweet that Delia and Josie were often mistaken for sisters because their personalities and sense of humor were so similar, I also thought the similarity in voice made it a little challenging at first to keep the girls straight in my head. I had to keep flipping back to the first page of each chapter to remember whose perspective I was reading. Once each character’s journey became more defined, however, I settled in and was more easily able to keep track of who was who. As you can see from my rating, it didn’t keep me from loving the book in any way but I figured I should mention it just to be 100% honest here.

Rayne & Delilah’s Midnite Matinee was a delightful read from beginning to end. I’d highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys humorous, heartfelt reads that focus on family, friendship, and following your dreams.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Every Friday night, best friends Delia and Josie become Rayne Ravenscroft and Delilah Darkwood, hosts of the campy creature feature show Midnite Matinee on the local cable station TV Six. But with the end of senior year quickly approaching, the girls face tough decisions about their futures. Josie has been dreading graduation, as she tries to decide whether to leave for a big university and chase her dream career in mainstream TV. And Lawson, one of the show's guest performers, a talented MMA fighter with weaknesses for pancakes, fantasy novels, and Josie, is making her tough decision even harder. Scary movies are the last connection Delia has to her dad, who abandoned the family years ago. If Midnite Matinee becomes a hit, maybe he'll see it and want to be a part of her life again. And maybe Josie will stay with the show instead of leaving her behind, too. As the tug-of-war between growing up and growing apart tests the bonds of their friendship, Josie and Delia start to realize that an uncertain future can be both monstrous...and momentous.

Rayne & Delilah's Midnite Matinee is my first ever Jeff Zentner novel, but I now know that I absolutely need to read more from him in the future. I think this novel has become a new read of 2019 as well as a new favorite YA Contemporary. As soon as I heard about this I knew I needed to try it ASAP as a big fan of Svengoolie, so needless to say I was quite excited when I realized I managed to get approved on NetGalley. Luckily, it totally lived up to all of my expectations. There's a little bit of everything, but I loved reading about the friendship, sense of humor, love, and following your dreams. The story packs quite an emotional punch as well since it also deals with making big decisions, dealing with change, and worrying whether or not you'll get left behind. It certainly is a celebration of new beginnings and respecting endings. The title characters, aka Josie and Delia, though are what really make the story because they are so well developed and well written that they could practically walk right off of the page. Finally, I'd just like to mention how much I appreciated all of the talk of campy and cult horror and sci-fi classics as well as real life horror hosts.

Overall, Rayne & Delilah's Midnite Matinee by Jeff Zentner is an absolute must read YA Contemporary novel. If you're a fan of Scream All Night by Derek Milman, Becky Albertalli, Adam Silvera, David Levithan, Svengoolie, and classic horror hosts, I have a feeling you'll enjoy this new release. I can't wait to read more from Jeff Zentner in the future. I think I've found a new favorite author. Thanks again, NetGalley!

By far my favorite Zentner book to date. It has everything I look for in a contemporary. Humor, romance, friendship, heartbreak.

Josie and Delia are best friends who host a horror series on their local public access station. The biggest reason is because Delia’s dad left years ago. And he was into all the awful horror films. This was her way of trying to get him to SEE her. When the girls see an opportunity to potentially take their show to the next level, they road trip to a convention in Florida.

That is not all that happens. In between comes a budding romance, arguments with family, arguments between friends. Most importantly, though, is the humor! I cannot tell you how many times I laughed out loud. My favorite scene was a MMA fight and the girls’ interactions with two seat mates. I haven’t laughed so hard in a long time.

But my favorite theme of this book was the friendship. You could feel the girls’ love for each other. And so when tough points came up, it was clear they hurt just as badly for the other as they did themselves. And though both girls had different wants for their futures, somehow that made them stronger in the long run.

As is typical of a Zentner novel, there is plenty of heartbreaking moments. Not necessarily romantically. So many times my heart bled for Delia and her struggles. Some people are dealt a shit hand right out the gate. And it may feel impossible to dig themselves out. But that was what I loved about Delia. Her strength and willpower to succeed. And Josie—she was absolutely hilarious. She had her own issues to deal with. And while not the same as Delia’s, they weren’t any less important.

Somehow Zentner packs so much love into one story. It’s brilliant. He makes it easy to remember high school friendships. And when that part of your life is ending and adulthood is on the horizon. He writes with passion, understanding, and heart. Somehow a book about two teens hosting a horror show becomes MORE.

This is easily my favorite read of 2019, so far.

I genuinely enjoyed this story about facing change and letting go. It's meaning is wrapped in a lovely package of humor and excellent writing. The authors use of simile to humorous effect made me look forward to each new fun and funny phrase. The banter between best friends was so much fun to read. The characters were lovable and even sweet at times, while never feeling to saccharine. Except perhaps for Lawton, who frequently seems too good to be true. However, I sometimes feel that there is nothing wrong with showing teens what a positive and supportive relationship ought to look like.

[Excerpt]:

I haven’t read any books by Zentner, although I’ve heard of them plenty these past few years: “The Serpent King” and, more recently, “Goodbye Days.” There’s really no specific reason for my not having read his books except…well… I have 900+ novels on my Goodreads to-be-read list, so I’m a little bogged down [to put it mildly, yeah?]. But when I saw this title on NetGalley, I was immediately drawn in, and I have to admit, it’s because of the cover. Maybe the phrase “never judge a book by its cover” is true most of the time, but not all the time. I loved the colors [I got a very rave-y neon feel] and the title itself was quirky and unusual, so I thought, why the hell not?

Character Thoughts:

Josie

At first I genuinely liked Josie. I thought her sense of humor and no-bullshit behavior was pretty neat, and she knew that she wanted to get out of her town and strive for more. I can relate because I’ve wanted to leave my home state of New Jersey for years. I’ve grown to really dislike being here, and I sometimes feel really suffocated by the people. To me, Josie seemed to feel the same way. She and Delia were very close BFFs, and they were really in-sync. But then Lawson came into the picture, and…well, I couldn’t stand her behavior towards him. Lawson was the definition of sweet and kind-hearted, and Josie for some reason thought she could treat him like shit purely because his feelings for her were so obvious. I get that she was trying to protect herself, to some extent, and she wanted to seem Super Witty and Funny, but she just came across as extraordinarily condescending to someone who totally did not deserve to be treated that way. Her initial interactions with him put me off her in a bad way, and I only deemed her “okay” rather than “cool/fun” like I first thought. The ending made me like her more, however, because she became more kind and less bitchy, thanks to Lawson.

Delia

Delia had to deal with a lot. Her father left her when she was young, her mother suffered from major depression (or maybe depressive episodes), Josie was leaving to go to a far-off university, and her pride-and-joy TV show had an uncertain future. Delia also suffered from some sort of depression-centered mental illness, so she was sometimes not in the best frame of mind. Most of the time I thought Delia was okay, although her humor and witticisms were often in line with Josie’s – that is, she thought she was being Super Funny but really was just Condescending. Towards the end of the novel I thought she became a bit immature, and I struggled with empathizing with her because she refused to accept reality, which became frustrating. Honestly, there was one chapter towards the end when I became worried that Delia might hurt herself or try to commit suicide because she was in a pretty dark place, and this took me by surprise, but ultimately the story ends on a hopeful note for her.

[Full review on my blog!]

I’ve received an e-ARC of Rayne & Delilah’s Midnite Matinee through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes included in this review are from the e-ARC & may not be in the finished copy!

"I think it means there’s something great inside me, something extraordinary and mysterious and undiscovered."

Just to get it out of the way — I have 0 negative things to say about Rayne & Deliah’s Midnite Matinee. I’m 82% sure that this book was actually written for me. I relate so deeply to Delia & because of that, this book had me in my damn emotions.

Josie & Delia, or as they’re known on TV Six, Rayne & Delilah, are horror hosts. As their senior year comes to an end, the two are forced to face tough decisions about their futures.

Josie & Delia – Josie & Delia’s friendship is absolutely extravagant. Their connection is so strong & through their dialogue, they’re able to build off each other with their absolutely ridiculous humor. It’s honestly extremely rare to click with someone in the way that Josie & Delia clicked, but it’s something that I relate to when it comes to my friendship with Jak. Even when the two run into conflict, it doesn’t last long, because their friendship overcomes all.

Eccentric Cast – On top of the two title characters is an array of colorful & wild characters. Meet Colt & Hunter, the twins who strongly believes that animals change species when they grow older. Meet the incredibly grumpy Arliss, who has a secret soft spot for the girls. Meet Lawson, an MMA fighter who’s determined to win a match in front of Josie. & others show up to stir things up for the girls.

Dialogue – Most of the dialogue was extremely cheesy & ridiculous, however due to the horror host subject manner, it fit perfectly. I caught myself cheesin’ over the dumbest lines. Guys, I’m here for a good time — not a long time.

Aesthetic/Horror References – If you know anything about me, you know that I’m an extreme sucker for horror references. I eat that shit for breakfast. There are so many mentions of my favorites such as Svengoolie, Elvira, Tales From the Crypt, Texas Chainsaw Massacre & Jason X — this book is jam packed with the things that make me happy. OH, sidenote: there’s also a Charlotte Holmes reference!! Plus, AESTHETIC. The entire thing centers around a horror show & a horror convention!! This is what I’m here for.

Delia – There is clinical depression rep in Rayne & Delilah’s Midnite Matinee that I feel is handled perfectly. Delia even promotes the usage of medication & is never looked down on for it. This representation is another aspect that helped me connect with Delia. In general, I don’t think I’ve ever connected with a character as much as I connected with Delia. From her love for horror to her depression, I really felt for her throughout this read.

Emotional to Comical – This book has a strong range of emotions. One minute, I’m laughing over something stupid & the very next, I’m nearly in tears. Jeff Zentner gets a lot of bonus points for making me feel so many things in so few pages.

I strongly recommend this book, especially if you’re a sucker for horror references & aesthetics.

Thank you to Crown Publishing and NetGalley for the Arc

Posted on Goodreads. Very short review on Instagram. Will not post on my site/twitter out of respect to Jeff Zentef.

First let me say I am a huge Jeff Zenter fan. I especially liked his last book because it covered a topic so desperately needed in today's topic and for the audience intended. Texting and driving is a rampant and deadly issue that needs a light shined on it and he did a terrific job. He was also the perfect author to do it with his legal background.

I know my opinion on this book isn't a popular one nor will I publish it other than here and Netgalley (thank you for the ARC).

I was barely able to finish this book. If it wasnt for the author, I probably would not have finished it.

I did like that it touched on the social themes of poverty and mental illness. The first half of the book set up for a fantastic start but the second half just kind of fell apart. While the two main characters are supposed to be very "twin" like, they are their own people and should have their own voices. Somewhere along the line Zenter loses their individual voices and they meld into one voice. With a book set up in two points of view from chapter to chapter, the impact of that structure gets lost in translation.

Lastly, while I understand the want to build the relationship between Delilah and Josie over time, after a while it just seemed drawn out. I began to lose interest and that is when I almost just stopped reading it altogether but my love for the author's work overall kept me going.

I for sure will keep reading Jeff Zenter's work going forward but was disappointed in this book