ARC REVIEW, thank you so much to Carlyn Greenwald, Sourcebooks Fire, and NetGalley for this ARC. My review is not influenced by receiving an ARC. This is an honest review!

An amusement park with history soaked in conspiracy theories and now blood. A new world in this theme park is Murder Land, based on victims of real California murders. 

We follow Billie and her friend group on opening night. She allows her friends to ride on a new attraction. Once they get off, she notices one of her coworkers never left. It looks like a heart attack, but when she leaves to get help and comes back, his neck is snapped. She could've sworn it wasn't before. Now she has to clear her name.

I think this YA murder mystery was so well done. I love the literary device of mixing present moments and video essays. 

I think the pacing was off in the beginning, it got better as the book went on. 

I think the blurb saying it is like Holly Jackson's books is a fair comparison because at some points this book reminded me of both 'A Good Girl's Guide to Murder' by Holly Jackson and 'Sadie' by Courtney Summer. 

I adored the diversity in this book. For example, Billie is a Jewish bisexual.

This felt very disjointed to me. It was fast paced which I usually enjoy, but I think that added to the disjointed feeling of it and the characters made some bizarre decisions. I can get on board with a far fetched plot, but too much of this book relies on convenience for me (ie, the hotdogs)

I have read and enjoyed YA thrillers before but this didn’t hit the mark for me unfortunately

THOUGHTS

This book is exactly what you'd think a book called Murder Land will be. It did what it promised. It didn't underdeliver. It also didn't overdeliver. It just did what it said it would.


PROS
Bi Rep: Any time there's explicit bisexual representation on the page, it is a good thing. So many books dance around the word, the label, and that just contributes to a sort of bi erasure (even in, you know, bi representation). So it is refreshing to have a book where the main character calls herself bisexual, and where she's crushing on a boy and a girl in the same book. It's nice to see.

Theme Park Conspiracy: There's something inherently creepy about animatronics, and this book really plays into that. This is the perfect book for anyone who has fallen into a YouTube rabbit hole about abandoned places, behind-the-scenes theme parks, creepypastas, and corporate cover-ups. It's a lot of fun.

True Crime: You know what's crazy? Having a theme park designed around true crime. Like, cold cases and brutal murder as your attraction themes. That's a crazy idea... and I can see people being into that. I wish more of this book had dug into the newly-opened Murder Land part of this park, but the idea at least was there. Before, you know, the actual deaths started happening.


CONS
Quick Transitions: This book moves so quickly, in a bad way. Billie's just so quick to move on. To move on from people dying. To move on from one crush to the next. To forgive and forget (even when she hated someone at the beginning of the book). I don't know. Maybe you shouldn't be contemplating going out with someone before the body at your feet has even gone cold. Maybe try at the very least waiting for the police to arrive first.

Unclear Motivations: Billie really, really, really wants to keep this job, and I was really, really, really not sure why. It isn't that great a job. Sure, it's fun, but she's headed off to college in a few months anyway. She's already got it on her CV. She can't possibly be making much more than minimum wage. If she gets fired for getting tangled up in this onsite death, well, she can easily replace the money with something else that pays minimum wage for the summer. I just wasn't sure why she felt the need to independently investigate. She cited keeping the job, but... do you really need it? Do you really want it?

7 Stages?: Going through all the stages of grief to wind up in the acceptance phase by the end of the night is crazy. This timeline is so crunched, there's not really any time to adjust, to contemplate, to figure out who one might be now in this new reality. And there really isn't enough blood splatter to warrant needing to move on so quickly. Less than five people die in this book (which, frankly, is a bit of a letdown for a book titled Murder Land). Without all that bloodshed, there should be a bit more time to sit and think about what's happened instead of just giving up, moving on.


Rating

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5/10
Fans of Kathryn Foxfield's Come Out, Come Out, Whatever You Are will like this new murderous amusement park. Those who enjoyed Eva V. Gibson's Frightmares will love following this new minimum-wage-worker-turned-witness as she investigates.

Murder Land plays on our fear that something might happen to us when we go to an amusement park. Billie, an employee of the park, decides to partake in a new ride with her coworkers while on duty and one coworker ends up dead. Billie and her friends spend rest of the book is spent trying to solve the murder, but more people end up dead. This is a pretty tame thriller aimed at YA readers. It does its job but might miss the mark for older readers who want more explanation for bad decisions.

A big thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire for this amazing ARC!! I loved everything about this book!! The tension, the nervous feeling I had while reading it, the adrenaline I got while reading it!! There were some parts of the book where I was terrified at what would happen next, and I can’t believe that I actually figured out the villain in the story!! I was 100% right!! I was usually always wrong when it comes to books like this. This book had me reading it so late into the night I did not want to stop. I wish there was a Murder Land 2 sequel in the works!! Because I would definitely be reading that too!! This book just flew by because of how fast I read it!! I’m like, 246 pages were not enough!! I gobbled this book up and loved the creepy amusement park vibes!! Especially at night!!

I really thought this would be a book I'd enjoy a lot. A theme park based on true crime stuff where someone gets murdered and now we get to spend all night trying to solve it? It sounds like a lot of fun, in a scary, thriller kind of way, right?

First of all for being "Murder Land" there wasn't a whole long of murder going on. There was a couple PG bloody bits but it all felt very off camera like. Even though the deaths happened in front of the main character, it felt very disconnected still. All the characters were odd, not rational from the very first page to the very last one. The first death was just a random co-worker, these kids could've just gone home and all been fine. It doesn't make sense that the main character had to investigate, and really doesn't make sense to drag her friends along. There was lots of traveling around the theme park, to all the different areas, and it was hard to keep track of where we were and where we had to go and for what. The only really detailed thing was all the compilated feelings of the characters. They're teenagers so yeah, they feel things hard, but these kids were all over the place and it really took me out of the actual story. The killer reveal wasn't much of a surprise, the book had been talking about how bad everything at been at the park since before it was even built.

Overall, this wasn't a horrible idea of a book, just could've been a lot short with a lot of extra nonsense cut out. I don't know who I'd recommend me this for. It was a quick read, even though it was really drawn out. The dialogue isn't great but has some humorous quips (again, angsty teens 🤷‍♀️). Maybe it's just a YA book that doesn't translate so well to actual adults. If you're looking for creepy, whodunnit thriller, this isn't it, sorry.

I don’t necessarily think that I am the target audience for this book, but there were still elements of it that I enjoyed. The premise and set up a really fascinating – a murderer themed theme-park, an amusement park that has a dark and mysterious history, and a series of murders, unfolding slowly over the course of one night. There was a sense of tension and doom that grew throughout the story, and there were some genuinely surprising twists. All in all it was a solid, fast paced, quick read.

Thank you to Netgalley for the arc. This book was crazy. It had so many twists and turns and had me confused at first then had me very entertained and at the edge of my seat. I highly recommend reading this one.

‘Murderland’ is told by Billie who works at a theme park and basically has the worst night of her life after one of her co-worker suddenly dies and things just go from bad to worse. I was very into the premise of this book and kind of expected a take on the 90’s slasher genre all based within a theme park but it ended up being more of a mystery than a horror. I didn’t mind though because Greenwald has created an interesting cast of suspects and Billie is a really engaging narrator. I did guess the culprit early on but the twists were totally unforeseen and I enjoyed the story because I was kept engaged and invested from beginning to end.

This book starts off slow, but give it a minute and it will have your attention. I stayed up way too late because I had to have answers!!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.
I was extremely excited when I found out about this book, seeing as I am a HUGE theme park enthusiast as well as a thriller book lover. And I do think that the history behind the fictional theme park in this book was intriguing to read about. However, there were some flaws with the book.
Firstly, the book was predictable. I immediately figured out who the killer was after the first death, and I pretty much spent the rest of the book waiting for Billie to figure it out too. I also was not a fan of the relationship that comes about later in the book, although I cannot describe that without spoiling one of the deaths. On a brighter note, I liked Billie as a character, and I found the mystery surrounding the theme park to be super interesting. The book was also very easy to read, despite the writing being a little bit repetitive. Overall, l'd give this book a 3.5 star rating.

Murderland follows Billie, who has been given her dream job as a ride operator at Murderland, a true crime- themed section of a larger park. However, when a joyride goes bad, Billie finds her job in danger… and eventually her life.

I really wanted to enjoy this book, and I was really invested for the first few chapters. But the premise took a few hard to swallow turns and Billie made so many hard to understand decisions. Although I didn’t have all the details, I did figure out who the killer was pretty early on as well, then found myself kind of finishing the book just to finish it. That being said, a few of the side characters are likable, and the book is very atmospheric- it’s also a fairly quick read. I’m sure this will appeal to many people, even if it wasn’t for me.

I can't get enough of murder mysteries at theme parks, and there are a surprising number of them. This one is for a YA audience and the teenagers are well written, and it's particularly fun because the theme park rides and exhibits are based on real historical murders. The action takes place in one night, so the suspense never really lets up. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

I was super excited to receive this ARC as I love thrillers and amusement parks alike. Overall the writing is good, but I felt like it wasn’t as suspenseful as I’d hoped. It’s a good YA book, and there are some moments where the characters drove me nuts, but they are also young characters. I did enjoy the book and would recommend it!

“Murder Land” is a well-paced YA thriller with a varied cast of characters. The initial investigation of the first murder struck me as a bit crazy after a potential killer candidate showed up with a knife, especially considering that Billie’s life seemed a bit more valuable to me than her job. However, the investigation and the events that follow are a major driving factor for Billie as the story progresses. My favorite part of this novel was the inclusion of ThemeParkConfidential transcripts. Mixed media elements, for me, help to provide a pause in the narrative to provide information you may not have had otherwise. I enjoyed the theme park setting and was excited to experience Billie and her friends’ journey. This is a great addition to YA thriller options.

To say I am obsessed with this book is an understatement. Murder Land is perfect for anyone who is obsessed with dark Disney history or creepy theme park lore. The park was a character itself and I wish it were real (minus the murdering part). The mystery was twisty and suspenseful, and I genuinely didn't see some of the twists coming. This is such a unique entry to YA horror/thrillers!

Thank you, SOURCEBOOKS Fire for providing the copy of Murder Land by Carlyn Greenwald. What an engaging book! I loved the theme park setting and the shenanigans the staff get up to after hours. The first death wasn’t as interesting as learning about Murder Land, but as the murders continued the story got more intriguing. The characters were great and I can see how teens would love and possibly relate to them. I liked the writing style, but a couple of times I had to reread sentences to understand them. I had a feeling who the villain was early on but I loved being right and the final confrontation was well-paced. This is a fun book and even though the causes of the deaths weren’t explained very well, it was a wonderful read. 4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

This mystery/thriller is incredibly enjoyable and entertaining. If you're a fan of theme parks, I highly suggest you check it out! It's a great read that combines excitement with a captivating plot.

Murder Land follows young theme park worker Billie over the course of one night trying to solve a mysterious death that happened on a ride she operates. I really enjoyed this story. The author’s passion for Los Angeles history shines through and she created fun and interesting lore throughout the world-building. The pacing was fast and the young heroine sometimes made very questionable choices that brought the YA feel of the novel to life. After one of the major twists, I could not put the book down. I had to know whodunit.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for providing me with an Advanced Reader Copy of this book.

Enjoyable fast-paced YA Thriller, I binged this book cover to cover in one reading session.

I think this book would be a great fit for anyone who enjoyed reading Fear Street or R.L. Stine growing up, between the atmospheric Theme Park setting and locked room mystery it definitely gave me that vibe.

I'd recommend checking this one out!

Thank you Carlyn Greenwald, Net Galley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with an ARC of this book.