This is definitely a read I chose mostly because of the creepy cover, but I was pleasantly surprised by how good it turned out to be. It was gripping from the start but like all thrillers it dragged a bit throughout. I thought it would follow the plot most thriller/mysteries do but the ending actually caught me off guard. It was fun and fast paced and I’m intrigued by the author and what she writes next.

Interesting plot but a wee bit predictable. I felt like the story went by too fast as well. I feel as if overall, it could have been better if there was more time in the book.

I had high hopes for this book, which was one of my most highly anticipated mysteries of the year. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy Little Creeping Things as much as I thought I would. I really liked the subplot of Cass not knowing what really happened when her playhouse caught on fire and killed her friend, but I did think that the author would delve deeper into what happened, rather than Cass just realizing who had done it.
I also didn't like any of the characters. The fight between Cass and Gideon at the beginning seemed so silly and unnecessary, as well as many of the other characters' desire to hide things from others. The amount of secret dating and almost-dating seemed unnecessary and unrealistic, even for high schoolers.

I really hated the writing style and the pace of this book. I knew by the first chapter that I was in trouble - the writing was so immature. I just could not get into this one and did not finish

When she was a child, Cassidy Pratt caused a fire that killed her neighbor and almost herself. Or did she? Because she remembers nothing about the incident except what's she been told. Years later, she remains a social outcast in her small town, bullied by her classmates, especially Melody Davenport.

And then Melody goes missing--and all eyes are on Cass. And while she might have information that could lead to the killer, she's hesitant to go to them, in part because she joked about killing Melody too. Now Cassidy has to figure out the truth before everything turns to ashes...

This is a pretty solid YA debut. It's the first I've read in the recent lineup of teen murder mysteries and I appreciate that I didn't immediately guess who the "bad guy" was. Author Chelsea Ichaso does a nice job in building the mystery and suspense. The writing is also solid and it's a quick read.

I didn't really feel connected to any of the characters, though. Cass is hard to follow because she's so all over the place, and many of the secondary characters weren't fleshed out enough to really care about any of them. And as another reviewer pointed out, I also felt a little let down by the killer--it's never really discussed why this person is the way he/she (I don't want to give away the gender and narrow down/spoil) is. Because this person is seriously bad, and we're never really let in on the how/why.

Overall, a good YA thriller that I'd recommend for fans of the genre.

I enjoyed reading this book. It had a good story to it. I liked the variety of characters in it. It is my first book read by this author. I hope to read more books by this author.

OMG! Look at the disturbing cover with that terrifying doll! Some people scare of clowns and I really irritate to look at porcelain dolls! ( Of course Annabelle series didn’t help me to form a lovely relationship with them!)

So this haunted cover intrigued me even though a few last YA thrillers I’ve read a little disappointed me. And here is the interesting thing: Normally I start reading a thriller with promising beginning but at the end I lose my interest and if I don’t like it outcome, it turns into a Switzerland- let’s meet in the middle three stars reading. But this book really surprised me. It hooked me at the beginning but I started to lose my interest in the middle and I started to think it turned into angsty teen romance (our heroine is in love with her childhood sweetheart but he starts rejecting her and dating with someone’s else and our heroine starts dating with his tutor blabla) and I thought the ending was so predictable but I couldn’t be so wrong with a surprising twist the author successfully pulled out the rug from under my feet and I sat on my ass with a dazzled look on my face. Wow! I didn’t see it coming! That was great. So promising 3 starred reading turned into 4 starred, surprising, psychological, fast paced one sit reading! Well done and well played!

Without giving any crucial spoiler, I’ll talk about the characters and the plot:

The story starts at the volleyball match: her teammates shouts at Cassidy a.k.a firegirl ( because when she was only 6, she got involved in fire accident which resulted with death of her friend, also her evil nemesis Melody Davenport’s cousin) to concentrate on the game. But Cassidy starts to see hallucinations that one of her teammates on fire. And she has a panic attack, leaving the school with her longtime best friend and crush Gideon. They’re besties since they were 10 and shared a special kiss but then Gideon acted like nothing happened and Cassidy was too proud not to come clean about her feelings. Her parents already treat her with kid gloves because of her traumatic incident when she was kid. ( After the fire she got involved, she spent her time at the hospital, forgetting everything about that haunted day.) Especially her brother Asher, who saved her from the fire is over protective, watching her every move.

But Cassidy still tries to adapt in school life, bullied by Melody Davenport who still calls her “fire girl”, has no intention to make her forget about the past. Cassidy still questions herself if she has started the fire intentionally. Could she be a cold blooded killer?

She and Gideon meets at the woods at their Hobbit nest they’ve build when they were little. They hear Melody’s branded laugh, talking with somebody. At the same time, Gideon leaves Cassidy alone for getting phone reception and Cassidy resumes listening Melody from her hiding place (she doesn’t leave because she doesn’t want to face her nemesis) but when Melody’s laughter turns into cry for help, she gets panic she has to do something but when she gets out, Melody is nowhere to be seen.

She realizes that she has written a murder plan for Melody as a prank a few days earlier on her notebook and shares this with Asher’s best friend Brandon. Could Brandon conduct this murder plan literally? Because after Melody’s suspicious disappearance she gets a text message from unknown number tells her: he is great to be in this together! What the hell? Who is this? Did someone really kill Melody? And where is her notebook? Did someone try to pin her on the murder?

Keep reading my friends, especially for the eerie, nail biter, smart final twist! I was entertaining, fast, action packed, debut YA thriller and so much better than my last reads! I’m looking forward to read Chelsea Ichaso’s upcoming works!

Special thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for sharing this enjoyable ARC in exchange my honest review.

I never noticed the cover when I requested this book. Probably for the best, as I would never have chosen to receive an arc for a novel with a creeping child/doll on the cover. Some people are afraid of clowns, I shudder at creepy porcelain dolls. And the word Creeping was in the title. I also didn’t realise this was a YA novel. So it seems unlikely I would ever have read this one, and that would have been a shame. It’s really a suspenseful read with compelling young characters and I really wanted to see how it ended!

In this YA mystery/suspense/thriller everyone is a suspect after the town mean-girl goes missing and later turns up dead. Filled with teen sleuths, angst and jealously, and lots of twists and turns, most teens will speed right through this one hoping they picked the whodunit.

This was not a well written book. Very difficult to read and stay interested. The characters and plot were not interesting

At age 7, Cassidy accidentally set a fire that killed her childhood friend. Through the years she has been forced to live with the tragedy. Her main source of comfort is her older brother Asher, who saved her from the fire and vows to keep her safe. When Cass masterminds a plan to kill her nemesis Melody, who then ends up dead, Cass and her best friend Gideon try to find the murderer. There are twists and turns and it’s a little far fetched, but still a good read. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to be an early reader in exchange for my unbiased review.

This book was so good! It was creepy and kept me guessing til the very end. The writing was really good and I liked the characters. I would definitely recommend if you like a good thriller!

I received this ARC from Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

Deliciously creepy and unsettling. The MC was a perfect unreliable narrator whilst still being a touchingly relatable portrait of a teenaged girl, burdened with a reputation and identity that she perhaps didn’t want or deserve. There was definitely something of ‘if they do not love me, let them fear me’ about Cass. The idea that you can turn popular opinion about you into a sort of protective colouration that will get you through high school relatively unscathed was particularly well done – and it was disturbing how this survival mechanism was turned against Cass. Or did she do it to herself? This was a compelling read.

I haven't read much YA in the genre since my foray into Pretty Little Liars, but the cover and blurb for Little Creeping Things sold me.

Cass is haunted by her past. Assuming the blame for a horrible fire that took the life of her best friend, scarred her brother, and almost killed her, Cass embraces the identity of Fire Girl, believing anyone who gets close to her is doomed to be burned. Unfortunately, she finds herself in a precarious situation when she overhears the murder of her sworn enemy. Spiraling deeper into the mystery and suspect pool, Cass must confront her demons to overcome her tormented history and solve the case before it's too late.

Little Creeping Things was a wonderful blend of murder and mystery. As an MC, I really liked Cass. Her reflective nature and anxiety about the past was endearing. She never absolved herself from blame, and with the severity of the event, it made sense that something of that nature would follow her. A small town where everyone knew each other, it was interesting to see how the fire affected the rest of her life. From taunts to bullying, Ichaso did a superb job of structuring the plot so that the weight of responsibility she felt didn't seem hyperbolic or unwarranted.

While I don't often care for romantic subplots, I found Cass' relationship with Gideon refreshing and adorable. Exploring the nuances of friendship, how childhood friendship can blossom into romantic entanglements, their friendship was never perfect or cut and dry. They fought, held differing opinions, attacked problems in two completely different ways, and yet when things got scary or difficult, their instincts were always to protect each other.

I think the only thing that got repetitive was Cass' suspicion of literally every male character in the book at some point or other. She jumps from one to the next, producing "proof" for all of her rationale into why this person was *definitely* the killer. I wouldn't say she's an unreliable narrator, but you're supposed to question her ability to critically think about the information she's giving to us as the reader. I had to suspend some disbelief on this part, one because she's a teenager inserting herself into a murder investigation, and two, I didn't understand how she was so sure of everyone else's guilt; but, comparing it to a show like House or, yes, Pretty Little Liars, where all the wrong answers are exhausted before the truth comes to light, her approach to solving the mystery worked. I wasn't shocked by the ending, but I didn't dislike it either.

Overall, I'd highly recommend this to anyone looking for a psychological YA thriller with a dash of romance thrown in. I really enjoyed this read.

Big thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for providing an arc in exchange for review consideration.

Thank you, NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for an arc of this suspenseful page-turner by Chelsea Ichaso. Hooking me from Chapter One with nicknaming the main character and voice of the story "Fire Girl," I had a hard time putting this book down and stayed up way too late one evening too many to finish it. I regret nothing.

Ichaso's portrayal of high school life, of the way a nickname and identity you perhaps never wanted nor asked for yourself can follow you around like a bad, reoccurring dream was exceptionally organic. All too often, YA stories and their points of view feel too old and out of touch for YA. This one fit the high school persona perfectly, and on that note, what really kept me reading was the almost-frustrating fact that I couldn't decide if I trusted Cassidy. Her compelling backstory coupled with her ease of lying to her oldest and dearest friend Giddy threw me for a loop more than once. Even at 90% through the novel, I wasn't entirely sure if I believed her, and I absolutely loved that element. Give me an unreliable narrator every time, please.

A well-woven mystery with gut-tightening-read-with-many-lights-on moments, Little Creeping Things will appeal to fans of E. Lockhart, Gillian French, and Kara Thomas.

Creepy, chilling and twisty! I haven't read many books lately so was glad I could get into this one from page 1. Highly recommended!

Since she was a child and her best friend died in a fire she started Cassidy has been called fire girl and relentlessly tormented by the kids at her school. Now in high school when one of her biggest tormentors goes missing Cassidy becomes the target and she begins to question everyone and everything. With a twist ending you never see coming and a good lesson about the powers of rumors this book was an engaging read!

I struggled through this one, I'll be honest. I didn't connect with the main character at all. Cass is hard to follow when she goes into one of her episodes. She's panicked and spacey a lot. Also I wasn't really surprised by the twist in the end...

Little Creeping Things - Chelsea Ichaso

Cassidy Pratt survived a fire as a child, but her neighbour wasn’t as lucky. Ever since, Cass has been haunted by flashbacks of the fire, and has been treated as a social pariah by the popular kids at school. But that’s okay. She has her brother, Asher, and her best friend, Gideon. But things start to unravel for Cassidy when she overhears what could very well be the murder of someone that she knows. Worse? It sounded like it happened exactly the way she had planned it.

Our main character is heavily flawed. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as all humans are flawed. She is also a very unreliable narrator. Being a social outcast, as well as teased by the popular crowd, Cass is reluctant to let anyone into her and Gideon’s small, close world.
When Cass overhears what she believes to be the murder of the town darling, Melody - who happens to be the cousin of the neighbour who died, as well as Cass’s biggest tormenter - she is reluctant to share everything she knows. Even Gideon, her best friend since she was six, feels like someone she can’t talk to. Because as well as an ingrained belief that Cass herself started the fire all those years ago, she has another secret. She wrote down the exact method the possible killer may have used to do away with Melody.
Cass feels that the whole world, apart from Gideon and her brother, Asher, are against her. She can never measure up to her older brother’s stellar school record. She has flashbacks to the fire that plague her at the most inopportune times - such as the middle of a volleyball game. With the disaprearance followed by murder of Melody, Cass is reluctant to tell anyone everything she know.
Honestly, this review is getting hard to write without spoilers. So.
I thought that the character development for Cass and Gideon was done well - though we know less than we might about Gideon, it vibes with the way that Cass holds things close to her chest. Character development for the rest of the book… Not so great. Asher is home all the time and all we know is that he has his own business, and a friend called Brandon - who Cass doesn’t like. There is a character introduced in the beginning of the book who I didn;t think twice about when they reappeared; as far as I knew, it was our first time meeting them.
I thought I knew who-dunnit; I was wrong on my initial instinct but I did figure it out in advance of our main character.

In all, not a bad book. I kept reading it, because I wanted to know what happened, and I wasn’t expecting the reveal near the end.

Content Warning: Violence, death of a child, death of a teen, fire
Overall Rating: 3.5 stars

I would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review, but unfortunately this was just not a book I could sink my teeth into. It started out too slowly for me and I couldn't keep any interest in the characters.