December 12th, 2019, Jade returns to the rural lake town of Proofrock the same day as convicted Indigenous serial killer Dark Mill South escapes into town to complete his revenge killings, in this riveting sequel.

This is the second book in the Indian Lake Trilogy and I couldn’t be happier with it. There are times that the second book falls off a bit, but this didn’t happen. There was a lot more action in this novel compared to the slow burn in the first. It kept me hooked from the very first word until the last.

I’m interested to see how this trilogy concludes in the final installment. I will definitely be back for more!

I want to thank NetGalley, the Stephen Graham Jones and Gallery Books for the e-ARC of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are honest, my own and left voluntarily.

Thank you very much NetGalley and Gallery for this advance copy of the sequel to My Heart is a Chainsaw - this one came out back in February 2023!

I enjoyed this one much more than My Heart is a Chainsaw - I think it helped that I tandem read/listened to this one, so the male POVs felt like a totally different voice, and I felt like there were less holes as to “why” this book. I understand this is going to be a trilogy, and I’ll absolutely check out the final book when it’s released.

Thank you again NetGalley and the publishers for this copy in exchange for this review!

I was nervous and excited to read the sequel to My Heart is a Chainsaw. I really liked that book and wanted to know what awaited Jade Daniels. I do wish I had reread it before reading Don't Fear the Reaper, it would of helped to remember some of the other characters instead of trying to figure out who they were. Next time I will gladly reread both books before the third one.

I'm not really a slasher reader but I love this series. I love the atmosphere, the characters and the history that Stephen Graham Jones writes. It's not a book that you want to rush through but the ending is worth taking your time on.

Can't wait for the third book.

Jennifer "Don't Call me Jade" Daniels is back in Proofrock four years after the fateful night at Indian Lake. Unfortunately for her and the rest of town, someone else is coming to visit. Convicted Serial Killer, Dark Mill South (great name, isn't it?!) is being transferred and naturally a nasty storm blows in and forces the convoy of the road. Dark Mill escapes, and what better place to hang out than Proofrock?! Jennifer meets up with Letha Mondragon and despite both girls having aged-out of final girl status, they attempt to save the town from the serial killer's deadly rampage.

I loved <i>My Heart Is a Chainsaw</i> so I knew there was little chance I wouldn't like this. But I had no idea it would be so good! It was still extremely fun. The book hits the ground running and doesn't let us go until the end. I can't wait until the final part of the trilogy. Now, I'm off to find some of the slasher titles that Letha and Jade were bantering back and forth...

I unfortunately was only able to get 50% through this book before I decided to DNF it. I felt as though the hopping from character to character was very confusing and hard to get engaged in the story as there was constantly a new perspective being introduced. I also found Jennifer to be less engaging. Understandably, she dealt with a lot of trauma from the ending of the first book alongside her time in prison. But I just wasn't invested in her release and reintegration into the town.

I also found Dark Mill South to be a fairly boring villain, lacking the supernatural factor that the Lake Witch carried from the first book. I just kept hoping for things to get amped up to 100% like the last 3rd of the original book, but I just felt it was such a slog to get through the first half of the book and couldn't stay engaged enough to continue.

I still very much appreciate the opportunity to review the ARC and provide my feedback.

This sequel to My Heart is a Chainsaw brings Jade back to Proofrock at the same time that indigenous serial killer, Dark Mill South, comes to town to continue his series of revenge killings.

Like the first book in the trilogy, this is gritty, gore-filled, and odd. It brings a different spin to the horror-mystery genre. However, with some chapters reading like nonfiction with info dumps on the serial killers, it was more boring than I would like from a horror novel.

A thriller of epic proportions. I couldn’t put this book down, and I highly recommend it for fans of slasher movies. Jade is an epic final girl but there are so many twists that I never guessed the ending. A must read for horror lovers.

A fantastic follow up to a great book. What I liked most about this sequel is that the effects of the first book can really be seen. Think about horror movies you've watched and in part two there's hardly any sign that anything happened besides Dewey's limp in Scream. This book reminds you. The characters that got brutalized still show their scars and the events of book one still weigh heavy on the town.

What's great about Don't Fear the Reaper is that it jumps right back into. We don't have a quarter of book introducing everyone because we know them already. Any new characters we meet along the way. It's like watching the latest Fast & Furious movie. I don't need exposition, I want action. And Jones delivers.

What starts out as a familiar premise slowly turns into more. If there's one thing I can say about Stephen Graham Jones, is that he's always interesting and original.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review. I can't wait for the next book.

I patiently waited about a year and a half for this book. I was looking forward to getting back into Jade Daniels’ life, to be in that chase with the unkillable slasher. Unfortunately, Don’t Fear the Reaper did not live up to the standard set by My Heart Is a Chainsaw.

After waiting a year and a half to get my hands on this book, it took me a month and a half to read it. That is just way too long. On one hand, my bad, I should have put more time into reading Don’t Fear the Reaper than I did. On the other hand, Jones should have made me want to spend more time with it. Let’s be honest, the whole “it’s not you, it’s me thing” is a lie we tell to avoid conflict. The truth of the matter is I wanted to love this book, but I didn’t. I should have put more time into, but I didn’t. The reason I didn’t is that the story didn’t make me want to.

When I went back over my review for My Heart Is a Chainsaw, I found that this book did many of the same things the same way. The things I really liked, annoyed me. At times I found myself saying there he goes again, flexing his ‘80s slasher knowledge. I just couldn’t connect with the book and the characters this time.

Will I read more from Stephen Graham Jones? Absolutely! Another book in The Indian Lake Trilogy, though, I can’t see it happening.

*3 Stars

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me an advance reader copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 out of 5 stars. Not my favorite so far this year but worth a read! Found myself having to think back and trying to remember My Heart Is a Chainsaw quite often which may have slowed me down! May give it a listen in the near future as well to see if my opinion changes.

Description
December 12th, 2019, Jade returns to the rural lake town of Proofrock the same day as convicted Indigenous serial killer Dark Mill South escapes into town to complete his revenge killings, in this riveting sequel to My Heart Is a Chainsaw from New York Times bestselling author, Stephen Graham Jones.

Four years after her tumultuous senior year, Jade Daniels is released from prison right before Christmas when her conviction is overturned. But life beyond bars takes a dangerous turn as soon as she returns to Proofrock. Convicted Serial Killer, Dark Mill South, seeking revenge for thirty-eight Dakota men hanged in 1862, escapes from his prison transfer due to a blizzard, just outside of Proofrock, Idaho.

Dark Mill South’s Reunion Tour began on December 12th, 2019, a Thursday.

Thirty-six hours and twenty bodies later, on Friday the 13th, it would be over.

Don’t Fear the Reaper is the page-turning sequel to My Heart Is a Chainsaw from New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones.

Caveat: I do think it's best that you read the first book before diving into this one and I do think you likely need to love Slasher Movies in order truly get everything out of this.

Now, I loved this! I'd forgotten how much I adored Jade and was so glad to be back with her.

The author very quickly brought us back into a world that's scary, heartbreaking and absolutely pulse-pounding. I worried for our characters, really wanted to know the 'who' of everything, and I was just happily along for a thrilling ride.

Loved this and ended it just wanting more!

“Fifty thousand ancestors, going back and back, each of them a final girl.”

I say it every single time -NO. ONE. writes a intro like Stephen Graham Jones. The rhythm took me longer to get into than usual, for which I’m blaming baby sleep deprivation. But hoo boy, once it came back to me, once I started singing it in my head instead of reading it? Off and running.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest (and delayed) review.

‘Don’t Fear the Reaper’ is everything its predecessor was and then some. It’s got all the same love-letter-to-the-genre slasher tropes and even more literary character development and social commentary than ‘My Heart is a Chainsaw’ did. With red herrings galore and an unrelenting pace, this sequel avoids the middle child of the trilogy slump by simply not letting readers rest or process any of the visceral action before slamming to a halt at the thrilling conclusion. Jones’ passion for the horror genre is as palpable in ‘Don’t Fear the Reaper’ as it is in all his work, beating like a heart with every trope and subversion. This is one that’s difficult to get into too much detail about without spiraling into spoilers, but if you like slashers, ‘My Heart is a Chainsaw,’ or any of Jones’ novels, you will love this latest installment in the ‘Lake Witch’ trilogy.

Thank you so so much to Stephen Graham Jones, Netgalley, and Gallery Books for the opportunity to read an advanced e-galley of this incredible book in exchange for an honest review.

As does every Stephen Graham Jones novel, this one got up and went from the first page and I was so extremely, insanely happy to be reunited with Jade Daniels because she is everything; tough, resourceful, brutally honest.
What I wasn't expecting was to develop such a relationship with Dark Mill South, who is essentially a bad guy that you wouldn't want to come face to face with in a well-lit public place let alone a dark alley, but here we are.
I can't wait for book three.

Absolutely brilliant, somehow manages to surpass My Heart is a Chainsaw! I love Jade Daniels and this world, and Jones once again lets us into their world in terrifying and intimate fashion.

I wish I had known more about this book before i read it. If I remember correctly, it’s book 2? Apart from that it was slightly hard to keep track of and I personally fell a little bored with it. It was written well and the story carried through as it should but maybe this one just wasn’t for me.

I did not care for this story at all. I know there’s a whole group of individuals who love this genre, but I am not one of them. I read this one because I finally gave in to all the hype about how creepy and horrifying it was, and because I also read My Heart is a Chainsaw and enjoyed it more than I thought I would. However, I would not consider either horrifying. I’ve read some light hearted mysteries that were more intense than either of these.

SGJ DOES IT AGAIN. Jade is back and she's fierce as ever in this follow-up to My Heart is a Chainsaw. Dare I say I may have even loved it more than the first??(and I LOVED the first one). I missed the slasher expert herself so much. You can't miss this.

I would first like to thank Simon & Schuster for sending me an eARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

I was highly anticipating this novel because I adored the first book in this series, My Heart is a Chainsaw. I loved the meta-slasher that Jones was able to create while also weaving important social commentary into the story as well. I enjoyed Jade Daniels’ love for horror as a genre, and I was able to geek-out with her throughout the entire story. I’ve heard others refer to it as slow-paced; however, I think that it was the perfect pace for the story Jones was trying to convey to the reader.

I’ve also read other works by Stephen Graham Jones and enjoyed them all as well, so I knew that I would enjoy Don’t Fear the Reaper, regardless. I’m pleased to say that my assumption was correct; I did enjoy Don’t Fear the Reaper; however, unfortunately, I did not enjoy it as much as I enjoyed My Heart is a Chainsaw.

Initially, I was unsure of how this story would be continued into a trilogy, but it was interesting to see the continuation of the story through the lens of our returning characters. This read felt a lot like watching a cliché horror sequel, but in the best ways.

There was a lot more action in this novel, and Jones doesn’t shy away from the goriness of a lot of these kills. It was also interesting to see the kills that were inspired by horror movie kills (even one from my favorite horror film: It Follows). There were twists and turns, nonstop action, and a propelling premise that really made this book nearly impossible to put down.

One thing I wasn’t the biggest fan of was the switching perspectives throughout the novel. Some of the characters were interesting to read from (mainly the same characters we were familiar with from the first novel in the trilogy); however, I felt like it became a bit much at certain times. Also, as someone listening to this novel as an audiobook, it was harder to follow than the first novel was (even with the full-cast audio).

I’m interested to see how this trilogy concludes in the final installment. I, unfortunately, felt that this book suffered from the second-book-slump; I hope that the final book is able to bring everything back around as a successful trilogy.

There is something so poignant about Jennifer "Jade" Daniels. She went through hell for years, taking comfort in an encyclopedic knowledge of horror movies to deal with the many traumas in her high school and home life. Then there were a series of horrific murders in her rural town of Proofrock, and after the blood had settled, Jennifer was arrested, and spent four years in prison before her conviction was overturned. She decided to return home and ends up arriving in the midst of a snowstorm.

Jennifer reconnected with Letha, who still bore the results of her injuries (in book one) and several surgeries. She married Sheriff Hardy's deputy, and had a child.
The town also has a number of new residents, including several high school-aged kids.

The same day that Jennifer was making her way back home, indigenous serial killer Dark Mill South escaped from custody during his prison transfer and arrived in Proofrock to continue his killing spree to avenge the deaths of thirty eight Dakota men hanged in 1862.

Jennifer was not inclined to draw horror movie parallels this time around; she was wiser, and her mental health was much better. I loved Jade of book one, and I loved this older, quieter person who returned home to rebuild her life. Letha instead, in the interim, had taken on the mantle of horror movie queen, and she and Jade/Jennifer find themselves back in a terrifying scenario when Dark Mill South began targeting high schoolers.

And speaking of Dark Mill South, from his hook hand to his ability to keep popping up almost everywhere Jennifer and Jade seemed to go, as well as his seeming invincibility, he felt more monstrous than human. His ability to leave a gory trail and a high body count everywhere he went was prodigious. He was freaking terrifying.

Jennifer realized that she had to take Jade back on if she hoped to make it alive through Dark Mill South's rampage, and this time I felt a different strength and determination in her--her four years away and in relative safety have helped her immeasurably. How she eventually faced off with Dark Mill South (she's much, much braver than I am!) and saved the town, again, is brutal, bloody, scary, and damn, just wonderful. I was scared, hopeful and just so entertained.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Gallery Books for this ARC in exchange for my review.