It was a fast-paced, quick read. I liked the main character, she was relatable and her character development was empowering. Victoria was very funny, definitely my favourite character.
I really liked the story, I had a great time reading this book. That being said, some of the pop culture references felt weird and the book was not horror (scary) enough for me.
3.5 ⭐️ rounded up

Tag-lined as Get Out meets Friday the Thirteenth and in some ways it fit that mold.

However, all the characters felt very 2D. More so Taylor the main character, all the other characters felt like they meshed together as one. I could not tell who was who. Taylor was great and I was hooked until the 50% mark. Which is crazy because that is when the horror part of the story actually started......50%?!?!?! I really thought it would happen WAAYYY before that.

I also spent most of the 2nd half of the book confused. Confused about the setting, the reason there was missing people and spooky stuff happening. It felt like the book was missing pages and would drop me into a random scene.

This gave me Jordan Peele vibes and I like it!!! It was scary in more of an eerie way. I appreciated the setup of the story.

Really loved the concept going on here. Slasher mixed with paranormal. I tried to get into it but it ended up just reading a little too YA for me and my liking. However I enjoyed the creepy atmosphere & storytelling.
Felt the ending was a little messy and rushed.

Okay first of all....this COVER! I am definitely now kicking myself for waiting so long to pick this up, and look forward to my next read by this author! I really enjoyed my time with this one and it had so many elements that I love in YA horror: racial commentary, summer camp setting, a creepy lake, hauntings by dead kids, and characters that you couldn't help but like. I pretty much binged this in just a few sittings as the story moved along quickly and I was invested pretty much from the start to see what was happening at Lake Lanier.

Highly recommend picking this one up if you enjoyed any of these reads: You're Not Supposed To Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron, The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager or,. Camp Slaughter by Sergio Gomez. Huge thank you to Sterling & Stone for my review copy!

I could not put this horror down! Part ghost story, part slasher. Filled with suspense, a twist I did not see coming, and true historical events, Camp Lanier is a must-read! The horror kills are perfectly executed (yes, pun intended) and the ghosts are terrifyingly haunting. The story is fast-paced with no lulls, and everything is tied together for a full circle ending. I recommend for any horror-lover!

While the premise was nice, the writing was... not what I expected. I wanted more from the characters because I felt that what was on the front cover and the front flap was not what we were given.

Unfortunately this book was not for me.
I was exited to read a horror book since I don’t read this genre very often and thought the YA genre would be a perfect way to start my horror journey.
This book just was not that for me.
I thought the writing was too juvenile and the MFC was insufferable.

The plot could have been grate it just didn’t hold up.

Camp Lanier was just the thing I needed after a long reading slump. What more could one want…..a creepy summer camp, a dark lake that no one dares approach for fear of being taken below the waters, ghosts that stare, scream, pound on doors and catch fire….and if that’s not enough there’s a knife wielding killer in a Halloween mask. Oh, and there’s something off about the owner of the camp….he seemingly has no use for black campers other than using them for grunt work and making the, camp on the other side of the woods in tents. Yes, racism and segregation is thriving at Camp Lanier.
Camp owner and bigot Mr. Hudson meets his match when Taylor is sent to camp by the court system for minor shoplifting. Circumstances allow Taylor to be a junior counselor and stay in an actual cabin even though she is black. Taylor soon discovers that she is also sensitive and can see and hear the spirits that haunt the camp and those that were massacred in Oscarville, Georgia so that the white men could steal their land.
Camp Lanier is a spirited thriller with a well developed protagonist that you really, root for. There’s a nice twist that remind us to be careful who we trust.
I also recommend that you read the author’s Afterword to learn the real history about Camp Lanier and Oscarville, Georgia and to understand more about the evils of racism. Thank you #netgalley for allowing me to read #CampLanier.

Being from Georgia myself, and not far from lake Lanier At All, I HAD to read this book. It kept me turning pages all through the early hours of morning. Highly recommend. Loved the hero so much.

I wasn't very interested in this book. I suppose it just wasn't really my kind of thing unfortunately.

This one is close to my heart because guess where I live?! 10 years here and Ive heard all the stores about the sunken town and how they haunt the lake. I haven’t seen or heard a ghost yet but, every summer we must catch a body a week on the lake! Something is up! So the creepy vibes were right on track as far as Im concerned!
Our main character, young black teenager, gets caught shoplifting and is shipped off to bootcamp for rehabilitation. Once there, she starts seeing strange things and hearing bloodcurdling screams. Her and her new camp friends have to figure out what is going on or they will become victims of the lake.

This was a short, fast paced read that I enjoyed.

Such a great read I enjoyed it! A lot of twists and turns. I could not put it down. I would definitely recommend it

I think this is a great entry point for horror, especially for those on the younger side! It wasn’t particularly scary (more eerie/creepy!) and I think some of the twists will have more reaction for those who aren’t as seasoned in the genre.

I LOVE a summer camp slasher, they’re always a ‘fun’ time but I think I need my stories to have a bit more actual horror.

Would recommend for those wanting to dip their toes into horror but don’t want to be too scared!

I wasn’t able to read and review this book before it’s publishing date. However, now that I have read it I gave it 2.5 stars.

Camp Lanier first caught my eye because of the spooky, unique cover, and the story did not disappoint. Creepy campground horror meets hard-hitting social commentary in this ghost story, and it is a fun and thought-provoking read. I hope we'll see more from this author moving forward!

back blurb

When Taylor, a Black private school student, gets tangled up shoplifting with her wealthy White classmates, their parents paid for them to stay out of jail. But Taylor's only option is a community service program that takes at-risk youths and employs them at Camp Lanier. The camp sits on a manmade lake the state constructed in the 50s. Urban legend says an all-Black town was forced out to create the lake and that deep in its waters lies homes, a school, and even a church, but that's just a story to scare kids, during swim class, right?

That's what Taylor thinks as she starts working as a camp counselor for the summer. The jobs are broken down by offenses or a thinly veiled class system. Since Taylor goes to private school, she's deemed good enough to work around the kids and main staff but offenders like Liam and Mia, who are from the College Park area, have grounds duty, picking up trash and fixing minor issues. Everything is fine except the crying that only Taylor hears at night. Then there's that one camper that no one seems to know, who is always sitting by the lake. And we can't forget the Atlanta Ripper, running around the woods looking for another victim. All totally random things, right?

When Mia goes missing and the owner reports her as one of the many runaways they've had throughout the years, Taylor and Liam start to think that maybe these stories are real and that maybe they'll be next if they're not careful. Taylor and Liam team up to solve a mystery from the past and figure out why have kids been "running away" from Camp Lanier for the past 52 years in a story that's like Get Out meets Friday the 13th, based on the urban legend of Lake Lanier in Georgia.

Camp Lanier offers an intriguing premise, blending mystery and suspense with a coming-of-age narrative. The setting of the camp is vividly described, and the writing captures the tension and drama of the story well.

However, some aspects of the plot feel predictable (especially the plot twist), and a few character motivations are underdeveloped, leaving certain parts of the narrative feeling less impactful than they could have been.

This was a good book and quite creepy at times. We have all heard rumors about Lake Lanier and so this is just a feeder for that. I thought it captured my attention quicky and kept me attention!

Loved the camp setting, themes and the Oscarville legend, but I couldn't get past the judgemental attitude that every White person is a no good racist.