2⭐️. "Fear and Loathing" for the next generation. This fast-paced novel, was surprisingly slow and boring (?). Besides all of the rampant drug use, all of the characters were extremely unlikable and the plot just fell apart at the end.

I was really invested in what was happening in this type of book, it had that element that I was looking for and enjoyed the characters in this. The characters had that element that I was looking for and had that feel that I was looking for. Zee Carlstrom wrote this perfectly and that this was a realistic concept.

I would give this like 3.5/5 stars but this doesn’t let me do half stars. The book was fast-paced and really dramatic. It was like having a front row seat to a breakdown. I liked that there were so many diverse characters.

3.5 stars rounded up. "Be gay, do crimes," substance abuse and mental breakdowns are romanticized in queer culture, but it doesn't always make them interesting to read about. Those were, however, the vibes of the book.

Make Sure You Die Screaming was a short, frenetic read following a wild trip (literally, they're both drug-addled drunks) as the unnamed newly out genderfluid, pansexual (I think, it was never explicitly stated, but I really wish people would say bisexual or pansexual in the text instead of making us guess, an irritation from this bisexual, but I digress) narrator escapes Chicago in their abusive ex-boyfriend's stolen car to travel to Arkansas with their young friend who's hiding secrets to find their missing, estranged father. Along the way, the unnamed narrator is grieving their dead best friend from their fancy corporate advertising job that they quit/were fired from in a violent outburst.

Despite these dark themes and the relentless pace, this book also was quite cozy with low stakes and not much happened. It almost reminded me of a sitcom with the prose and interiority of a literary novel. I found myself getting bored at times because I don't glorify glitterpunk addicts who do crime as a side hustle. But the narrator is a morally gray anti-hero on a quest for radical honesty who is nevertheless a good person despite their fuckups and glorified rudeness, so that made them interesting.

I also appreciated seeing the representation of an AMAB nonbinary person coming to a gender awakening as they're tearing themselves out of the gender binary after being forced to include their pronouns in their email signature at work and getting confused, thus setting off their current exploration. I've only ever read AFAB nonbinary characters and sometimes I think people have the misconception that being nonbinary is just woman lite. It's not. (like that annoying allegedly inclusive phrase "women and nonbinary people"...)

This reminded me quite a bit of the dark, weird absurdity of Chuck Palahniuk or Melissa Broder, particularly her work Death Valley. It just kept getting weirder and weirder as the unnamed narrator lost their mind in the weirdness of rural Arkansas. It was kind of shallow in exploring the ways that intelligent people who vote for Democratic candidates become radicalized into far-right ideologies, treating them like parodies in a way, but appropriate for what this novel was trying to do. It wasn't trying to philosophize the narrator's break from their dad or their dad's break from mainstream society, they were just along for this crazy ride.

In the end not much really changed but that's also life too. It ended on a sort of hopeful note but I wasn't sure if the narrator would be okay, figure out their gender or wanted to sober up, but this was a slice of life into their zany mental breakdown. I do hope they'll be okay, because they seemed like a good person who made some terrible choices.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance review copy. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

frenetic and really well written work about identity and self, and also nothing in particular. is it a thriller? is it a comedy? 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

"Make Sure You Die Screaming" is a darkly funny and thought-provoking novel that will stay with you long after you finish reading. Carlstrom's unique voice and the unforgettable characters make this a must-read for readers seeking something different.

First and foremost, I'd like to thank Flatiron Books and NetGalley for providing me with an eARC for an open and honest review.

Secondly, I'd like to thank Zee Carlstrom for this book, because it was so many things, but so many things that kept me reading and interested the whole time. It is not often that I feel like a generally unlikeable main character is executed well, but in this case I think that Carlstrom knocked it out of the park. It is painful to read as someone continuously self-destructs but it is painful in the best way. Yivi as a secondary main character provided a fantastic foil, as well. I do think that the book can stray too far into the shenanigans and hijinks at times, which makes some of the emotional core fall flat, but I think that it is generally well balanced. It is an absolutely wild story, but thoroughly entertaining, and worth a read for a journey with a character that is very good at denying, repressing, and escaping.

A unnamed nonbinary protagonist with a wildcard friend take an emergency roadtrip south after they receive a call from their mother informing them their politically radicalized father is missing. Protagonist is grappling with guilt, questioning their gender, and substance abuse. Despite these hefty subjects this book made me laugh out quite a few times. Carlstrom held me captive by the fast-pace of this book and the main character’s witty, snarky narration. This narration together with their misanthropy and the current political climate actually made this xennial feel seen ( even though I’m pretty certain the protagonist is much younger than me).

I really enjoyed this and will keep an eye out for future titles by Carlstrom.

I unfortunately DNFed this book. I started it with really high hopes based on the description — it seemed right up my alley. But the main character’s Holden Caulfield-esque “everything sucks” view on everything, the lack of love or positive features in any of the relationships, the rampant DUIs, the unclear goal of the book…. I couldn’t get past it. I tried to overcome my urge to DNF a few times but I found myself rather bummed out by the book. I gave it 2 stars because you definitely aren’t *supposed* to like the characters, but I really really didn’t like them.

This book was pretty good! The themes of gender, sexuality, family issues, politics, and greed are prevalent and it makes it both infuriating and inspiring. It was a good combination of issues tied into one. I think that the writer did a good job making it relatable, even though there were some unrealistic things going on.


Thank you to NetGalley, to the author, and to the publisher for this complementary ARC in exchange for my honest review!!!

This roadtrip book follows our unnamed nonbinary protagonist and their friend Yivi as they travel across the American South. This had such a wonderful frenetic pace with some complex main characters.

I personally find the American South just generally terrifying and this just exacerbated that anxiety.

High recommend.

If there’s one thing I can say about this book, it’s that it is definitely a unique, wild ride.

In this book we follow our unnamed nonbinary narrator and their friend Yivi on a road trip down to the American South. The narrator is on a mission to go to their parents house down in Arkansas to find their missing father, and Yivi is on the run from some unknown-but-seemingly-dangerous characters.

This book is mostly a character driven book, less so about the destination of the narrator and more so about what the narrator is going through internally.

What I liked:
This was a really fast paced read, and I finished it quite quickly. This is also a pretty funny book- I have a lot of highlights of lines that made me laugh out loud. I also REALLY liked the ending- bittersweet and quite poignant. I think it was the perfect culmination of what this book was working towards.

What I did not like:
Unfortunately, I hated just about every character in this book in a way that made it not fun to read at points. There is COPIOUS amounts of reckless and drunk driving in this book, and I was just constantly upset at the characters for it. I understand this is intentional- these are very flawed people going through some intense things. But at a certain point, it just became uncomfortable.

I think there is definitely a big market for this book, and it has a lot of positives that some people will love, but for me, it just did not work in a couple key ways.

Overall, 3 stars for an interesting yet sometimes grating journey.

thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Loved the title and cover. This book was interesting. The characters were unique and compelling. I enjoyed both the actual road trip and the personal journey our narrator took in this book. This was a pretty good book.

Zee Carlstrom has crafted something truly exceptional with this novel—a voice so unique that it captures pain, realization, identity, and utter hilarity, often all in the same breath. The protagonist, previously known as Holden, is on a journey not just across the country but into the depths of self-discovery. This character, in a perpetual state of reinvention, is grappling with their past while speeding towards an uncertain future in their childhood home in Arkansas. The sense of urgency and desperation is palpable, and every twist in the road is as emotional as it is literal.

Driving a stolen BMW, the narrator—armed with perhaps the quirkiest, most quotable sidekick ever—takes us along for a journey that is as unpredictable as it is unforgettable. The chemistry between the narrator and their sidekick brings humor that is sharp, biting, and often tinged with sadness. Their banter is endlessly entertaining, but it also reveals the narrator's vulnerability and the search for a true sense of self that lies just beneath the surface.

To go into more detail would risk simplifying the story, which is anything but simple. It may seem straightforward—a road trip back home—but it’s in the nuances, the detours, and the introspective moments that this story reveals its depth. Zee Carlstrom masterfully tackles big themes like gender, class, anger, and family, blending them into a narrative that feels both deeply personal and universally relatable. The exploration of identity is raw and unfiltered, giving readers a rare insight into the journey of someone who is shedding an old skin while searching for a new one.

There are political undertones here—'Trumpy' parents, misguided fathers, and the struggle of reconciling a past that doesn’t quite fit with who you are now. The narrative doesn’t shy away from these complexities; instead, it embraces them, presenting the contradictions, the love, and the tension that exist within families. It’s this willingness to explore the uncomfortable that makes the novel so powerful and affecting.

Zee’s prose is a revelation. Every line feels deliberate, every joke perfectly timed, every moment of pain so vivid that it cuts to the core. The author’s ability to balance humor and heartache, to make you laugh one second and leave you breathless the next, is nothing short of genius. It’s rare to find a book that can evoke such a wide range of emotions with such authenticity.

Make Sure You Die Screaming is an adventure, a coming-of-age story, and an exploration of identity that is as messy and beautiful as life itself. The road trip is wild, yes, but it’s the internal journey that is the most compelling. Zee Carlstrom has created something rare—a novel that’s equal parts exhilarating and profound, one that stays with you long after the final page. I can only hope that Zee is already hard at work on their next masterpiece.

#flatiron #makesureyoudiescreaming #zeecarlstrom

This book was such an amazing read! This book had all of the vibes! An amazing cast of characters, a solid plot, and a very interesting storyline! Ultimately a great debut!

Loud, tragic, funny, and thought-provoking!

4⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Amazing title, story, and characters! Definitely a book that I feel everyone that reads would really enjoy.

Really interesting story and characters. Nice representation and twist. Goes a lot deeper than I expected.

I didn't enjoy this one as much as I was hoping I would. The pacing was off and there were large swaths of the novel that felt as if they were dragging on so slowly (I almost dnf'd this one on three separate occasions). However, the characters and settings were so well-constructed that I could vividly see the people and the landscape. I did love those components. If you like a slow burn, this one is perfect for you. I know a few people who frequent my local library that would enjoy this one, so I'm going to suggest the district acquire a few copies for circulation.