I thoroughly enjoyed this book! This is out of my normal genre but it’s spooky, and has just enough magic for you to want to cozy up and get lost in without needing too much suspension of disbelief. I appreciate the time the Author took on character development and build up in the plot vs just rushing the story to get easy scares. I definitely recommend checking this one out!

I loved Road of Bones, so I was excited to see that Christopher Golden wrote a book surrounding Halloween. Overall, the book was decent and had positives & negatives.

What I did not like:
• Started slow
• The parents’ storyline/drama

What I LOVED:
• The creepy kids from the woods - seriously scary
• The neighborhood kids’ storyline - their perspectives where much more interesting than the adults.
• The Cunning Man -super creepy
• The narration made the creepy parts even more so

Thank you NetGalley and OrangeSky Audio for allowing me to listen to the audiobook ahead of publication in exchange for my honest review.

I was excited to receive this audiobook because 80s Halloween murder seemed like a shoe in for a creepy read.

Unfortunately, this story fell a flat. There wasn't real horror, the pacing never pulled me in, the multitude of characters didn't allow for any depth, and the overwhelming drama detracted from the emotions typically felt with thrillers and mysteries. When a character died, it never felt sad...or even gruesome...just necessary for the plot. Plus, the only nods to the 80s really seemed to be the landlines instead of cell phones and the lack of computers/video games eating up kids' time.

The sexual language and aggressive adults also didn't seem to meld with the overall tone of the book.

What I did like was the involvement of the entire neighborhood; full families and all their drama added many subplots and was a true nod to the twisted relationships that are common in a small town (even if they did turn clunky towards the end). The concept of the Barbosas haunted woods, trick or treating on Halloween, neighborhood block party, and supernatural elements were all good decisions that made sense in the context of the setting. Several of the main characters were likable, and the ticking of the clock to midnight helped to see how several stories overlapped since multiple characters where in multiple places.

Overall: 3/5 stars

I'll tell my students about: death/murder, violence, blood/gore, language (sexual and profanity), trauma, child molestation, ghosts, LGBTQ+,

**Thank you to NetGalley and OrangeSky Audio for the free ARC audiobook prior to publication. All opinions expressed are my own.**

I was expecting a spooky read, especially because of the cover however I feel like this book missed the thriller mark a bit. Up until about the 70% mark it was mostly family/neighbor drama. It was still a good read.

There were too many characters and I could have used more time spent on solidifying each one in my thoughts in order to figure out the many twisted ways they were all connected. Very much enjoyed the twist on the Cunning Man and the eeriness of it all. Did not really feel like the 80s.

I really need to start reading the synopsis of books before I request them on Netgalley…

I will say that this is a great Halloween story especially if you’re into monsters. I really enjoyed most of the story, but it got a little too weird for my liking towards the end. I’m also someone who likes happy endings when reading & I wouldn’t consider this to be one.

4 stars

I listened to the audio of this on an absolute whim, and this is one of the happiest accidents I've had in a while!

As the title suggests, the events that take place throughout the novel occur on the well-timed All Hallows Eve...but in the mid-'80s. As a person who was a young child at this time, I loved the focus on the period and especially on the '80s family/neighborhood vibes. What works so well here is that there is both traditional horror and the horror of regular people doing regular stuff to each other, and I often found myself thinking the usual items were scarier than the intentionally creepy ones. Folks who enjoy this element - the creepy nature of day-to-day life and our mundane interactions with each other - will likely also find a lot of value in this unexpected aspect of the book.

This is my first read from this author, and it won't be the last. It's an oddly timed release - a Halloween horror/thriller in early January - but hey, if 2023 is anything like the last few, we'll be feeling terrified by then anyway! Absolutely recommend this one for the season element, real vs. supernatural horror, and folks who dig movies like _Trick 'r Treat_ and shows like _American Horror Story_. 'Tis the season, I suppose!

This is a very creepy book! It’s like a mix of the twilight zone and and old Vincent Price movie. I enjoyed it. This would be a great Halloween book. It had a lot of different characters in it and that was a bit confusing but otherwise it’s a great book for anyone that enjoys a good scary story.

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

The narration in this book was spot on! I really enjoyed how it went back and forth between the male and female, who both played all the characters to perfection! I really liked how this story started off with three main families that are neighbors and all intertwined getting ready for Halloween festivities. The plot really had my hooked from the very beginning, but I felt it start to dwindle about 70% of the way through. I love horror and all things supernatural, just felt like there wasn’t enough of an explanation to go with the events so it didn’t feel totally believable to me by the end. I am interested in reading other books by this author and know most horror fans would enjoy this book!

I tried so hard to like this book. I loved the setting. Halloween night in 1984. It made me feels like a stephen king novel. But their are to many characters to keep up with especially when your listening to the audio book. The writing was okay. Did i get stranger things feels from this no. Sadly

I loved the idea of a blast from the past. A book set in the 80s & horror! The 80s is my fav time.

I didn’t really get a distinction for the time period tho. I struggle a bit with keeping up with the many POV and different characters. A lot do sub plot lines. I wanted more on Ruth and the cunnning man.

It was hard to really sit in the horror because it would bounce back to a sub plot and focus on that drama.

I wasn’t totally connected to the story. But i think the characters were well set up. The horror was too underlining for me.

I loved this one right from the first page where it opens with a father and daughter setting up the woods behind their house for what will be their last year of Halloween magic. As they put the final touches on an elaborate Haunted Woods walk through display, they have no idea the horror that's about to unfold.

My only issue with this one was that there are a lot of characters and they're not particularly distinctive, so in the beginning it was really hard to keep them straight. I struggled with that for maybe the first 1/5th of the book. Still, I loved the way that the kid's storylines were clearly established as were the adults and while they overlapped slightly, both could stand on their own.

As for the audiobook style, I generally prefer female narrators, but this narrator was awesome, and it really kept the book moving quickly.

Overall, I think the thing to note is that the kids plot being the primary driver in combination and nature of evil in this one makes it a must-read for fans of Stephen King. Highly recommended!

4.5 Picture it, 1984, Halloween.
Coventry Massachusetts is a spooky town perparing for the best day of the year. The kids are getting their costumes ready, the parents are placing candy by the doors and all is well in this small town.
That is, until its not.
As the night progresses children from another era start showing up and things start to take a drastic turn.
I loved how everyone had their own POV and as the night gets later and later the drama intensifies.
It has all the marks for a HORROR book, its creepy, its gore, and has jumpscare galore.
This would make the perfect Halloween book and I WILL be revisiting it again during that time!
Well done !

This book starts with many characters at the close of a chapter in their live - near the end of a marriage, the last trick or treat before moving, the last Halloween party before college. Throughout these dramas, a few kids appear at the periphery. Their costumes are ragged, they're strangers in town.

It's a solid start, and if you're a fan of contemporary, you'll appreciate the character drama unfold with the creepiness is set up in the background. I was personally less invested in the characters lives, though, as I don't read contemporary. The first half of the book is 90% drama, which means I was less interested in the narrative as a whole than another reader may be.

After that, the story really picks up as the strange kids become more prominent. There's some genuinely creepy moments, and the bad guy was interesting.

Also, I listened to the audiobook version. There were multiple narrators, which worked well for the large cast, and I liked the different voices everyone did.

I will say there aren't really 80s vibes. In fact, the only reason I can think of that makes this '80s' is that the characters watch TV and don't have cell phones. If you were drawn in by the 80s vibes, you may be disappointed. But if you're looking for a cool Halloween themed horror, this could be the book for you.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a free review copy!