2.5 * What I liked about this book were the atmospheric setting of being on a closed down haunted amusement park island & the character relationships.

What didn’t work for me with this one was how long it dragged out the story. It felt like a lot of the info that was constantly brought up was unnecessary to keep driving home to the reader. I also felt like quite a few things were put into the story to help it move forward without supportive evidence as to why that would make sense in the setting.

I also didn’t enjoy the reason behind all of this happening. It felt a little unoriginal. I expected something a little more unique.

This felt like it was trying to do too much while also not doing enough?

Also the audio book has some playback errors, specifically when it would switch to Isabella. Her recorded parts were much quieter and muffled a bit than the other characters. I enjoyed the male narrators performance although all of the narrators were overacting a tad too much.

Thanks to NetGalley & the publisher for this arc.

Actual rating of 3.5

It's Halloween weekend, and four friends have taken a trip to an out of service theme park called Malicia. Ray, whose family owns the park has enlisted the help of his closest friends to make a documentary of the Themepark. What they don't expect is to be trapped on the island by a raging storm while all four party members each deal with the real reason they've set foot on the island. Ray - to find out the truth behind the massacre that destroyed his family; Isabella - to make a documentary exploiting Ray's pain in order to gain from it; Sophia - to support her friends in one last adventure before she heads off to med school; Joaquin - to betray his friend and secret crush.
The four friends will face evil unknown which calls the island home, fighting against their own guilt every step of the way. Can their friendship survive? Or are they all doomed to fail?

I'm a sucker for a story that's set in one location of a short span of time. Even more so if it's a horror story. So, when I saw this one, I had to request it. It didn't quite live up to my expectations, but it was still an enjoyable read that had substance.

The story is told through alternating POVs of the four friends. Initially, I had trouble remembering which characters POV I was reading, and found I had to flip back to the start of the chapter in order to be sure who it was. The characters, while having distinct personalities, didn't exactly have distinct voices. I found myself getting them mixed up a fair bit, and it took over half of the book for me to keep them straight. The storyline itself was interesting and I loved how it pulled from all different lore, some of the creatures I'd heard of, but there were a few I hadn't, so it was really cool to learn a bit more about the culture and get a bit more detail about the different creatures. The theme park was described brilliantly, and if it were a real theme park - sans demons - I'd definitely want to go. It gave me Scooby Doo Spooky Island vibes with a lot more death, destruction and gore. I was here for it. I love Scooby Doo, and I love death, destruction and gore. The gore aspect wasn't stupidly overdone either, it was just the right balanced amount to give a creep factor and to illustrate the seriousness of the character's plight. While I was enjoying the story well enough, I did feel like it became a bit drawn out and repetitive at times. They were facing different creatures and dealing with different things, but it all seemed to happen in the same way. I feel like I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it was cut down a little. And in a couple of bits, I found that I had to re-read parts as there seemed to be continuation issues, that may have been my brain just shutting down a bit though.

The characters were likeable enough. I did care about what happened to all of them and I really enjoyed their interactions. As said above, I felt that they were a little bit flat and needed some more dimension to them. I had trouble keeping them straight for probably the first half of the book and had to keep flipping back to see whose POV I was reading at times. During conversations my brain struggled to keep them straight at times, but I did eventually get the hang of it all and was able to keep things straight and in line over the halfway point. I loved the message of friendship, and I found the sprinkle of romance adorable, I wish more could have been done with it, but alas, for this story, it wasn't to be. My heart ached for Ray and Joaquin. I also really enjoyed the characters working through their guilt and battling with their demons. It added a good layer of emotion to the story which endeared the characters to me so much more.

All in all, this was an enjoyable enough read, I did feel that it was a little bit too long and drawn out, and I would have liked the characters to have a bit more dimension to them. However, this was a solid horror story that had all the things a good horror read needs. It set the atmosphere of isolation well enough and brought relevant gore and terror without going over the top. If you're looking for a horror story set in a theme park with a group of friends just trying their best. Give this one a go.

DNF’d @ 55%

Sadly, the pacing was off for me. The story was moving a bit too slowly and didn’t capture my attention the way I had hoped.

However, Dos Santos does know how to immerse you into the scene, as the atmosphere was great! Although this book didn’t do it for me, I would definitely read from him again.

I went into this with such high hopes and that is completely on me. I was hoping this would scratch the itch that Fabtasticland, Hide, and the Island gave me. While it scratched around the area, it didn’t quite hit the itch.
I think I struggled mostly with the pacing and an inability to relate to any of the characters which is fine. Still a very good read.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was such a fun spooky tale! It was fast-paced, with lots of action keeping the story going. The setting of the park was very well described, and it sucked me in from the very beginning. Despite the obvious problems at the park, I found myself thinking it would be quite fun to go to a horror-themed amusement park.

Unfortunately, I found the characters a little one-dimensional, which made it a little harder to sympathize with them and their plights. I also wish the chapters from each of their POVs were labeled so I didn't have to spend the first page or so of each chapter determining who was talking.

Overall this was a fun, if not quite believable horror romp. I genuinely enjoyed this read despite some flaws, and would recommend for a quick scary YA read!

Publication date: 7 May 2024

This was not a book for me, I felt no connection to the characters, as we were just kinda thrown into the craziness. I spent the first half of the book trying to figure out what was going on. If you like fast past horror stories with a lot going on, this might be a book for you. I myself would have liked a little bit of a build up before they got to the theme park to get introduced to the characters. We do get to learn a lot about them during the book, which was nice, but I found myself disconnected from the story even after I finished the book.

This is an example of a book that has everything I love, but unfortunately just isn't executed in a way that I like. I'm over halfway through the book and feel like I have a good idea where it's going, but it is so slow getting there. This may have done better has a novella, or even a short story, but as it stands, the pacing is so sluggish.

While I like the characters well enough, it's never made clear from whose perspective we're reading from. I don't know if this is exclusive to the ARC and if the published editions will have chapter titles with names, but the first time the point of view changed I was genuinely confused. There isn't much nuance in how the characters are written, so they kind of amalgam together.

The threat is interesting enough, but the reveal for something so simple is much too long. Simple is not bad, simple is good, that's why I found the threat interesting, but when something is simple it doesn't need a lot of padding.

I'm not sure who I would recommend this to, but it isn't a bad read, just slow and not for me. I'm hoping that the published version fixes some of the issues I had, especially being able to distinguish between the characters from point of view to point of view.

I read this knowing it was YA horror and it really was, but it was unique and it kept getting weirder and weirder. I loved the whole mythology with the kids wanting to go back and document a massacre, and I will always enjoy when people are cut off from help in a horror novel in a way that feels realistic.
I spent the whole time not knowing what was going to happen and liking the characters enough to care. A little romance, a lot of danger, some supernatural elements -- this was a fun combination. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

Why would four friends embark on a nightmarish adventure at an abandoned horror theme park on an island near the Dominican Republic.? The theme park Malicia became the. site of a massacre that claimed many lives. It included Raymundo’s mother and his brother. Ray is planning a ritual to summon his dead brother. Joaquin dreads the trip for another reason: He’s desperate to save his own soul from the demon El Bacá, but in order to do so, he must sacrifice his best friend, Ray, on Halloween night—despite the feelings he has for him. Isabella, comes to the island ready to exploit her friends and the theme park’s blood-soaked history for a documentary she hopes will secure her college dreams and filmmaking future. Pre-med student Sofia joins in just to lend support—but she loses hold of herself shortly after their arrival. Then a hurricane hits the island, and death follows. The friends plunge deep into Malicia’s darkness while a hostile evil lurks among the shadows.

The author writes a tale out of the leads’ dueling perspectives, slipping in motivations to show up the twists and turns. It is heavy on the gore. The novel includes a nice mix of Dominican folklore elements. It is truly a horror novel.

Malicia by Steven dos Santos was a fantastically gruesome, atmospheric nightmare. It was scary, gory, and suspenseful. Dos Santos used vivid imagery and perfectly timed paranormal revelations to keep the reader on their toes.
I was immediately engaged by the creepy retelling of the massacre that occurred on the isolated island off the coast of the Dominican Republic, that housed only Malicia, a unique horror theme park. The first scene set the stage and delivered me into Malicia's clutches.
It was clear from the beginning that each of our teen team of four heading to the island had their secret agenda.
The story was told from the alternating perspectives of the four friends and gave bits of insight to help propel the plot. I also enjoyed the Spanish thrown in and some information about Dominican culture.
Through the dark twists and turns, we learned more about our friends; their secrets, love for one another, will to protect and survive, and ultimately sacrifices were made. This book was very well written!
I am giving 4.75 because I wasn't 100% satisfied with the author's choice of ending but it was still too good, so I rounded up. I highly recommend this fine YA queer horror novel.
#queer #grotesque #creepy #gore #paranormal #theDominicanRepublic #foundfamily #horror #dark #gruesome #hauntedthemepark #YA
I also love the cover!

Book Review

Title: Malicia by Steven dos Santos

Genre: Young Adult, Horror

Rating: 3.25 Stars

The opening of Malicia introduces to the Quisqueya Club consisting of Raymundo, Joaquin, Sofia and Isabella who are all Dominican, the reason for them starting the club in the first place. They are heading to an abandoned theme park, Malicia, to film a documentary about the massacre that happening there that resulted in Ray’s mother and brother being killed. Each has their own reasons for wanting to be there; Ray wants to perform a ritual to summon the dead, Joaquin is part of a coven and has been sent to kill Ray despite the fact he has feelings for his friend. Isabella is there to film footage to get into film school while Sofia just wants to spend some time with her friends before heading to med school. While the girls start noticing strange things first like strange figures in the shadows, but they do seem like fodder right now. The team that was supposed to be looking after them have disappeared and they are tracking them down. The pacing is fast with little background on the characters and their dynamics, and it is reminding me a little of Horror Hotel and Cursed Cruise.

Very quickly things take a drastic shift as all the workers are found dead and Carlos is seemingly possessed by something that causes him to blow up the dock, boat and himself. He does manage to survive but Joaquin knows that something isn’t right as this wasn’t the plan and now the hurricane is heading straight for them. We learn that Joaquin and Carlos are both members of a coven of dark witches to kill Ray within three days. His mission started by befriending Ray and gaining his trust, but he developed feelings along the way. Despite that he is responsible for destroying the phones and seems more than willing to kill Izzy and Sofia if they get in his way. This is because he might be possessed and killed by an entity known as El Baca which was possessing Carlos at the time of the explosion.

As the hurricane hits the island the group with the injured Carlos goes down into the maintenance tunnels for protection. However, it is here the group begins to fracture, first Izzy discovers that Joaquin has been lying about his identity as he is the sole survivor of the Malicia massacre, and they don’t understand why he has hidden this especially from Ray who lost family as well. This puts a lot of suspicion on Joaquin, but it also drives a wedge between the boys and girls of the group. In addition to this Sofia is injured by Carlos and it looks like she is infected with whatever he has but it isn’t affecting her yet. Izzy is also the one experiencing the most paranormal things but now Ray is starting to experience them as well driving the tensions between the group extremely high which might be a problem especially with their confinement in the tunnels.

In the second half of the novel things descend into absolute chaos. The constant shift between perspectives does add to the tension but it makes a little difficult to follow what is going on as you are being drawn in so many different directions. Watching the dynamics between the group and how it changes over the course of the novel because of their secrets was one of the best aspects of the book alongside the creepy, atmospheric setting of the abandoned theme park. While the plot reminded me a little of Horror Hotel it ended up reminding me of Hide in the end.

Overall, I liked the setting and character dynamics but there were elements that I didn’t enjoy. One of those was the obscenely quick pace which didn’t allow much time for us to get to know the characters and their motivations. Maybe if there was a prologue showing the massacre and some flashback chapters to those times and the immediate aftermath, it would have created a stronger bond to the characters and their dynamic. I also wasn’t a fan of the character motivations at times as it didn’t seem to fit their personalities making them feel a little two-faced and flat. Apart from that it was a solid entry into the horror genre, not lacking in gore and chills.

On Halloween weekend, Ray convinces his friends Joaquin, Sofia, and Isabella to make a documentary about the haunted, abandoned amusement park, Malicia. Ray’s mother and brother died in a mass shooting there thirteen years ago. It should be an easy weekend, but things turn sinister when everyone else has their own reasons for visiting Malicia, and they are not altruistic.

Abandoned place and folklore horror are two of my favorite rando things, and this brings them together nicely. The park is off the coast of DR, so there’s some really cool Latinx lore and monsters. There is some queer rep (happy Pride!), and it gets real weird like an A24 film. Solid good time.

Rated 3.5 really.

First off...DISCLAIMER:I requested this title on NetGalley. Thanks to Page Street Publishing for providing a temporary ecopy. This didn't influence my review in any way.

I'm happy to report that, on the horror front, Malicia is a strong book. Coupling a raging hurricane with plenty of bloody scares in the form of monsters straight out of the Dominican folklore (but also providing twists on some more familiar horror tropes), and peppering the narrative with secrets and personal agendas, all on the backdrop of a dilapidated theme park, Dos Santos created a compulsive read whose visuals jump off the page (more often than not in the most gruesome manner 😅). Add to that a couple of twists that I didn't see coming (one of them particularly heartbreaking), and a well-orchestrated crescendo of terrors and action that lead up to a frantic finale. Character-wise, I found the book to be less compelling, and the protagonists' voices often tended to run together for me (though Sofia and Izzy have some moments of clarity about themselves that I appreciated). I also wish that the build-up to the revelation of Joaquin's secret had been subtler, and I found it hard to suspend my disbelief about the premise - the park has been abandoned after a tragedy that occurred on its grounds 13 years earlier, but it's only on the verge to be dismantled when our characters pay it a visit, and the local crew has kept it functional? all that time? plus Ray - the owner's son - who was only 4 when the tragedy occurred and hasn't set foot in the park ever since, knows how to operate the rides? Last but not least, while I found the the epilogue to be fitting, I'm not sure that I bought it (I mean, magic has its limits, after all), and I can't help but wonder what cover story was fed to the general public for the events on Malicia Island (especially since Izzy's camera is missing, and the deaths on the island should technically be pinned on whoever survived, since they clearly have nothing to do with the hurricane - but the issue is never raised). Regardless, I had lots of (bloody) fun while reading this story, and I can see horror fans drinking it up - especially those in the target audience.

Malicia starts off fast paced and with a bang immediately jumping into the fun which I appreciated. Steven dos Santos did a great job making the chapters short and sweet but also making all 4 povs feel distinct which is something many authors struggle with. Malicia managed to be the perfect balance of paranormal creepiness I needed.

Highlights:
✨Setting: Dos Santos uses a lock room/isolated setting trope to create a creepy atmospheric vibe. The setting is an abandon amusement park on a island off the Domincan Republic coast with an impending hurricane. Oh, and the amusement park is haunted. His vivid descriptions add to the eeriness.
✨Four (first-person) POVs: l enjoy how each chapter shifts between the characters. The story reveals early on that each character agrees to come to Malicia for their own reasons. And their individual POV chapters unravel their secrets and reasons why, adding to the suspense. The audiobook includes four narrators, one for each POV. All the narrators are terrific!
✨Horror elements: demons, possession, body gore, ghosts, werewolves, and El Baca

Other quick highlights: Spanish woven into the story (terrific on audio), Dominican Folklore, Queer characters

Dang… I’m glad I didn’t start this one before bed last night! It was properly scary and I could envision it in my mind as I read like a horror movie. It doesn’t lack in its detail. It’s scary, gory, haunting, and thrilling.
It’s basically Spooky Island from the Scooby-Doo live action movie but on steroids. It’s everything horror come to life, and where the past literally comes back to haunt you.
The island park is abandoned now, but it’s very much alive. The squad gets stuck there due to a hurricane but the hurricane is the least of their troubles. Two members have a secret for being there, and two are innocent but things happen.
There were so many layers to this story and I found myself flying through it as the thrills escalated.
Also I loved all the Spanish! As a Latina, it felt nice to just read it in a book. And that cover! There’s a lot of detail and context from the story in it.

Thank you TBR and Beyond Tours for my gifted copy! I very much enjoyed it. Be sure to check out their website for the rest of the tour!

there's an abandoned theme park called malicia, a place where a huge massacre took place in years past. amongst the victims were ray's mom and little brother and now he's going back with friends to make a documentary of the place that took so much from him.

i think this was a case of this book not working for my personal taste. though i finished it, i feel like i mentally checked out 30-40% in and couldn't tell you a ton about the back half of the book. for a book that was set in an abandoned theme park, i felt really disengaged from both the characters and the action. ray wanted to go to the park to make is documentary. his friends each had different motives, most importantly that joaquin, a boy with a crush on ray, was the only surviving member of the park massacre and is set with a choice - sacrifice ray or be the sacrifice.

i think part of the issue with this for me was that i wasn't expecting a paranormal read, nor do i think i would have picked it up had i known that's what i was in for. i was looking for a serial killer and lots of chases and hiding around old park rides.

i do think some of the park lore that was set-up was pretty cool, but i think the back half of the plot and the reasons for everything going on lost me a little.

i do want to say i think i'm very much the exception as i'm a reader that likes things exclusively rooted in reality. i believe that most will enjoy this one!

Malicia is a YA Horror novel with a fantastic premise.

Thirteen years ago a mass killing occurred at Malicia, a horror theme park located on an island. Ray lost his brother and mother that day. Now Ray hopes to perform a seance to speak to his brother and enlists the help of his three best friends to help him. The four head to the abandoned theme park over Halloween weekend. And while one of Ray’s best friends (Joaquin) agreed to come, it wasn’t to help Ray. Joaquin has his own deadly ulterior motives for going to the island.

The novel is written in first person and told from all four point of views. I understand why we have all four povs because the direction the story goes in, but I do wish the characters were more fully developed. This is a short book and I don’t feel like I got to fully know any of the characters. I wanted to know more about them and what fueled their motivations to a deeper level.

Malicia by Steven dos Santos is thrilling, exciting, and horrific- and you're going to LOVE it!

Malicia follows four teens as they travel to an amusement park that has been long abandoned after a terrible tragedy years before. Each teen has a different reason for coming to this haunted and horrific site, but as motives are explored and devious actions taken, none of them will be the same by the end of the experience.

This was such a fantastic read. Steven dos Santos really crafted something dark and evil, but yet so full of culture and it just felt so realistic. I found myself transported in the midst of the action when this novel started and I found myself glued to the page as I tried to learn how it was going to all end. Each character was so unique. The characterization that Steven dos Santos was able to pull off from the start, was really something. I felt like I had a good grasp of each character, so as the story progressed, I had my assumptions challenged one by one and that was something that kept me reading.

Another aspect of this that I really enjoyed is that it was unapologetically queer. As someone who follows Steven dos Santos on TikTok I knew that his writing was LGBTQiA+ and when I got to experience it firsthand in Malicia, I loved it. The romance was expected, but then it evolved in a way that I never saw coming. I have a sneaking suspicion that some readers might not like it, but I really liked it!

Overall, check out this story. It is great! Perfect for fans of Kiersten White's Hide, and FantasticLand by Mike Bockoven!

Horrifyingly thrilling & Hauntingly murderous! Malicia is one heck of a ride!🔪🎢💀

This was an absolute blast of a read! Malicia had me on the edge of my seat the entire time! From the blood curdling imagery to the heart pounding action, I couldn’t put it down! 📸 Picture this: 4 friends journey to an abandoned theme park that was the sight of a grizzly massacre - only to discover something even more horrific than its history lives within its walls! 🙀

🎢 Haunted Theme Park
🎃 Halloween Weekend
🔪 Mysterious massacre
👻 Paranormal Activity
📖 YA Horror
📹 Documentary
🌪️ Twists & turns
🩸 So much blood
💀 Possession
🙀 Screamtastic
🔮 Supernatural

Malicia by Steven dos Santos was a terrifyingly spooktacular read! Thank you so much to TBR & Beyond Tours & Page Street YA for for the gifted copy! 📚