Thanks so much to NetGalley and Sterling & Stone for an ARC of Camp Lanier by Sylvester Barzey in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 5/5

The best type of horror isn't just scary for the sake of it; it sheds light on important societal issues, and Camp Lanier does just that. Some of the most terrifying and unsettling parts of this book are the ones that feel all too real.

This book evokes both fear and sadness, driving home the idea that the events depicted could be taking place anywhere in the world.

If you enjoy movies like Friday the 13th and Get Out, I highly recommend this book. I'm grateful to have discovered Barzey's work and I am definitely looking forward to reading more from them.

I thought the concept for this book was so interesting and would make for some great summer reading. I didn’t really vibe with the very casual writing style the author had, but to be fair it’s YA.

Basically Taylor is doing community service working the summer at Camp Lanier after getting caught shoplifting, when she starts seeing spooky apparitions that aren’t actually there. Something is up with Camp Lanier and the racist Hudson family that owns it. Taylor is going to find out, but it won’t be particularly interesting or terribly well executed.

I did like that in the author note, Barzey touched on the actual history, I honestly would’ve loved more of that!

This YA horror novel was so good and deeper than expected. And the cover! Just look at it!

Taylor tries to fit in with her new rich white "friends" and follows along with their game of shoplifting for fun. When Taylor is caught, she is sent to work community service at Camp Lanier, a lake that is rumored to be made by forcing an all-black community off of their land. Within hours of arriving to the camp, Taylor realizes something is not right. She starts to see and hear things and as workers start to disappear she know she has to find out why. There is something in the water!

This is a super fast, creepy read with campy, slasher vibes and some supernatural elements thrown in. I loved Taylor. She is such a strong character but you get to see her softer side when she faces her past tragedies. This is not only a great horror story but the story is much deeper as it deals with racism, classism and bring in the history of Oscarville. The Author's Note at the end of the book was a real eye opener. Once I realized this was based on real events, I had to start researching for more information.

Thank you Sylvester not only for the splentacular story but also the education. I will definitely be reading more from this author.

The characters were fairly standard for this type of ghost story with racial undertones, leading to them becoming stereotypes. However, the underlying story of the lakes history is sadly very plausible and not unlike actual historical events, leading this to be a good mix of slasher and paranormal horror splashed across a backdrop of horrifyingly realistic Lore.

2.5 stars

Let's start with what I enjoyed. The premise is not unique, but it's fun and that counts for something. I also thought the writing was decent and kept a decent pace.

Now for what I didn't enjoy. The story was incredibly flat. Had the racial aspect been explored more thoroughly and done properly this would've been a lot better. The only thing that worked about the story is the campy nature that you find in shows like Scream Queens and the classic camp slasher movies. I think that was decently done here, though I wish that it leaned into that a bit more heavily.

The characters feel like caricatures, but that tracks with the obvious inspirations, so I don't see that as a problem. Once again I just wish the author had really doubled down on these characters, but alas.

As such, I cannot give this book a positive rating, because despite the few things that it did (almost) right, this fell short of being good.

I've always been intrigued by the lore of lake lanier. it was exciting to read a book about it. this book was fast paced, but i felt satisfied by the end.
it gave creepy summer camp vibes, and a bit of history as well.
Really great book that i think is perfectly targeted for the YA genre.
4.5 stars.

Encompasses everything you could want in a book: horror, summer camps. supernatural. A very fast read!

This is a great YA BIPOC Horror book!
You've got:
Ghosts
Psychic visions
Urban legends
A Serial Killer
A lake that kills

Even with the fun and scares, this author also incorporated:
Black history
Racism in the 50s & racism today
Societal ignorance/social class bias
The horrors white people inflicted on black people that were deemed acceptable
Familial Racism
The value of belonging and true friendship

So, while this book was fun and scary, it was also terrifying and infuriating in a very real way.

I gave this 4.5 stars rounded up to 5⭐️.

As always, thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to have an advanced ebook copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I am not usually a big fan of horror or young adult novels, but this was a good one on both counts. I knew I would want to read this during the summer when my full-on summer reading mode came on and it did not disappoint.
We meet Taylor, a teenage girl who falls in with the wrong crowd in her private school where she is on scholarship. We have all been there: wanting friends, sometimes becoming a little desperate to belong. Taylor tells the story and I like her voice. She is very vivid and a bit funny and sassy, exactly what you would expect from a teenager. Her "friends" throw her under the bus and she is sent to a work release program at Camp Lanier, a camp for rich kids. Weird things happen. You will have to find out the rest for yourselves because I am no spoiler.
A couple of things that could have been fleshed out a little (this was a relatively short book). I thought Taylor's parents were interesting but were a bit flat and could have been a little less so. Another was the division in the camp between the work release kids and the rich kids which paralleled Taylor's school. I think the author alluded to this but I would have liked to have seen this explored more. Nevertheless, this was a fast and enjoyable summer read.
Thanks to NetGalley and to Sterling & Stone for providing with an advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review.

Going into this I didn’t realize that it was a ya story. It definitely reads young. There’s nothing wrong with that just not my genre. It was a solid story, but it could definitely have been a longer one. It needed more back ground on Oscarville and the lake itself. I did go looking for more info on that though and encourage you too as well. Taylor was a solid main character who I feel got what she needed even if it almost killed her.

I loved this book, I found it to be a creepy read overall which kept me reading as I love horror and feeling the chills in books.

“I know Black history. It’s not my fault it reads like a horror novel. I’m surprised ya’ll never heard about all this.”

I enjoyed this and would highly recommend it to horror readers. I could not put it down once I started reading.

It was creepy, mysterious, and based on historical events and urban legends surrounding Lake Lanier in Georgia, which are horrible and fascinating to learn about.

It was a short, quick read with great pacing and fantastic characters (I loved the friendships that developed).

Thank you to Sterling & Stone and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

As if having the worst friends in the world isn't enough, Taylor finds herself forced into a summer of community service at Camp Lanier. As she begins to hear and see things no one else does, Taylor thinks she is losing her mind. Then her friends begin to disappear... What is really happening at Camp Lanier? Is it supernatural, or is it real?

"I know black history. It's not my fault it reads like a horror novel."

Camp Lanier is a fast faced, YA horror book. For only being 200-ish pages long, I felt like the story was very cohessive and complete without being rushed. The author did a wonderful job of combining fiction with real-life places and historical events, like
what occured in Oscarville. I was prepared for bloody ghosts and nightmares. I was not prepared for how deep this book went. The author shed a light on the real horror today-racism. Taylor helped me experience, in some small way, the struggles of a POC. The discrimination, the targeting, and the blame all broke my heart for this teenage fictional character. Taylor was determined to be bigger than her struggles, and she was determined to make a difference, no matter what.

If you love haunted campgrounds and slasher stories, support this BIPOC author and make this your next spooky summer read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sterling and Stone, and Sylvester Barzey for this ARC.

I often cannot understand how people can make another group of people be perceived as a worthless, bad group of people. The lengths these people went to so that another group of people could be eradicated is just mind blowing. These people were just evil. Because African-Americans were successful and were able to do well for themselves this made another group of people resort to violence, killing and torture to take what they wanted. It can only be called evil. Taylor was just the person to give the restless spirits a voice, therefore making the atrocities brought forth into the light. The Hudson’s were a truly depraved group that got what they deserved. I found this to read more of a thriller with some horror elements yet got home the point of how bad racism continues to be.

So, this book was such a great horror novel while also being a critic of the current prison and justice system? It'll make you feel so many feelings, from anger, rage, despair, all while keeping you afraid from turning off the lights. I can't wait to read more by this author.

We need more BIPOC characters in horror that aren't just there to die.

Camp Lanier was such a spooky ride. I absolutely adored the main character. She had so much personality and literally had me giggle at points. This is summer camp I would never want to be at. The author pulled off a spooky summer camp so well. I would highly recommend this one to anyone who loves summer camp horror.
3.5/5 Stars

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for sending me an arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Interesting concept, and loved how the author mixed urban legend, supernatural elements and actual historical moments into the story.
That being said, it read too young for me. It was very soft on the horror, a bit predictable and the ending a bit messy.
I did enjoy the campfire creepy vibes, the eerie atmosphere, the ghostly sightings. I also found very interesting the actual history of Oscarville the author included at the end.
An overall interesting read, but more for the historical aspects than the fictional and horror ones.

Lake Lanier in Georgia is a real and very crazy place to learn about. Supposedly it is super-duper haunted with a lot of crazy history behind it. Knowing what I do already about Lake Lanier I was SO excited to read Camp Lanier; it DID NOT disappoint!

I read this book in one setting and found the characters to be engaging and the story to be paced perfectly. It was a little spooky, a little bit of a thriller, imaginative and truly an enjoyable read.

Thank you Netgalley & Sterling&Stone for an eARC ♥️

As a die-hard horror fan, I was consumed by this book's eerie atmosphere and terrifying plot. Taylor's descent into the abyss of Camp Lanier is a heart-pounding ride that will leave you gasping for air.🔥

Taylor, a Black private school student, is sent to Camp Lanier as part of a community service program. But the camp has a dark history, built on the site of a man-made lake that forced out an all-Black town in the 50s. Legend has it that the lake hides the remains of the town, and the camp's sinister intentions are revealed when Taylor's friend Mia goes missing. Taylor and Liam must race against time to uncover the truth behind the camp's dark secrets and the mysterious forces driving campers to "run away" for decades.

This book is a chilling reminder that some legends are better left unspoken, and some secrets are too deadly to uncover. Read at your own risk, but don't say I didn't warn you...

Holes meets Ghost

Thank you to NetGalley, Sylvester Barzey, Sterling, and Stone Publishing for providing me with an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book is a gateway to the fascinating history of Oscarville/Lake Lanier. It skillfully piques the reader's curiosity, compelling them to delve deeper into the town's past. Even if the reader chooses not to explore further, the Author's Note serves as a comprehensive history lesson for anyone who's read the book.
The premise of this book was fantastic. A young black girl falls into the wrong crowd and feels the need to prove herself. She finds herself in trouble and is allowed to do community service for a summer at Camp Lanier instead of going to jail. Taylor almost immediately learns her time at the camp will not be a walk in the park, and not only is there somewhat of a class system with the workers, but she also begins to hear and see things that aren't there. Could it be the ghost stories about Camp Lanier aren't just stories?
I enjoyed the book. However, there were times when I felt the writing seemed immature, and there were a few grammatical and continuity errors (I know it really doesn't matter, but did Victoria and Taylor eat turkey sandwiches or meatloaf?!?!?!). A young adult or teen would enjoy this book, and it is an excellent start for someone considering reading horror books.