I wanted to like this one, but I just couldn't. Sorry.

It's a story driven by revenge, in the list of my favorite plot themes that's like second. I loved it from the very beginning; falling deeper into Cassidy's mentality and feeling her loss of control.

It's a horror story but I think what makes it so great, is that the truly horrific part is all too real in this world.
Maybe 'great' is a weird choice of words to describe it, when I put it that way but what I mean is the scary part and ideas that would keep me up at night already existed, and isn't something that is 'just your imagination.'

It's real and Baker does not shy away from it. Putting it in the horror category is simply one way to tell the story. This very well could have been straight fiction.

I've no doubt that some might say that the context of this book was merely another 'plot point' just used to sell a story but I doubt that too.
It's something that needs to be acknowledged and not swept under the rug. Baker makes that obvious.

Somethings just hit where they were suppose to and you never can tell if there is a real villain. At no pint in this did I find myself feeling sorry for the victims. Or should I say "the boys that go missing...that Cassidy never wanted to think of again." (They're victims of something- feelings of self entitlement- but nothing to feel bad about.)

I really admire how she managed to make a very important point in an equally entertaining story. It's an amazing story that you never know where it will go or how it will end, or even what will happen at the end of the chapter. I was so absolutely caught up in it, I couldn't get enough.

There are a couple good things about Chandler Baker's new novel, Teen Hyde: it's pretty readable, even if you have not read the series first book, Teen Frankenstein, and it's also pretty short at less than 275 pages. I wanted to enjoy this adaptation of Jekyll and Hyde with teen girls but outside of the story's basic premise, there's not much new or memorable about this modern retelling. Cassidy has a few moments where she stands outside the YA milieu of protagonists but on the whole, she is as been-there-read-that as the rest of this story.

There's a basic plot that anchors Cassidy's actions in Teen Hyde. Her blah boyfriend cheated on her, friends have died, and Cassidy is not handling it well -- memory loss included. There's so little depth given to her as a character or to her relationships, that the inciting incident has no emotion or involvement on the part of the reader. I didn't care about Cassie because she never felt real or dimensional, though Marcy did from early on. There are a few plot elements in play that are obviously tied into the events of book one -- Sunshine for example -- that didn't make any impact on me, or would on other new readers. Still, this was modestly entertaining... if shallow and forgettable.

I was excited to find book two of this series. It has been a year since I read Teen Frankenstein and I was looking forward to see what would happen next. Needless to say, I was not disappointed by this book.

It's been several months since the events of book one and the main character is that of Cassidy Hyde. In the wake of Adam's death, Cassidy's life has spiraled out of control. Her family and friends know that something is wrong, but what they don't realize is that Cassidy has a secret. The secret is weighing heavily on Cassidy and when she's given her first taste of Sunshine, she finds herself losing time as her vengeful side steps forward.

I think the author did a great job incorporating a very real modern problem and incorporating into this modern day twist of Dr Jekyl and Mr. Hyde. For the sake of not spoiling the book, I'll be careful not to give away what has happened. But what I can say is that I think the author did a good job addressing this problem. I also felt the handling of Cassidy's Jekyl and Hyde sides were done quite well.

The only thing I was disappointed by is the lack connection to the previous book. Yes, Cassidy mentions Adam and Tor, but I wish there would have been more clarification on what happened to Tor. Last we saw, she's lost her best friend and is all alone. Hopefully, she'll make an appearance in a later book. Maybe she'll continue making monsters. As for Cassidy, I look forward to seeing how her story leads into the next and which classical horror creature will be featured.

Reading books in the YA genre is a guilty pleasure of mine, but it is not one I would think of turning to if I was looking for a book with a strong element of horror. Written with a younger audience in mind there's no question as to why, even in a horror book, the fear factor and level of terror is kept at a minimum. However, what authors like Gayle Foreman did for YA romance or Veronica Roth did for YA fantasy is what I believe Chandler Baker has done for YA horror through her High School Horror Story series.

Not unlike Baker's earlier classic retelling, Teen Frankenstein, Teen Hyde does an excellent job of recreating the classic it was painstakingly based on. It is a creative, modern day reimagining of Robert Louis Stevenson's well known Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but in this version our monster is a gorgeous high school specimen. Cassidy Hyde has the perfect life, one she worked so hard to construct for herself. But when her beautiful world begins to crumble, Cassidy finds herself spiraling down into a deep, dark depression. Which is why she quickly, and with little conscious thought, accepts the offer of a small burst of sunshine that can so thoroughly pull her from her funk and set her back on the right track. Only, even after the most sunshine filled day, the darkness of night must return. And as Cassidy finds out, what happens in the dark might seem to go away when the new dawn approaches, but the stains the darkness can leave on you, well... they don't just disappear quite so easily.

Teen Hyde definitely hits the mark as far as horror goes, YA or otherwise. It's frighteningly good with a side of gore that had this horror fan squeamishly wriggling in her seat. Well done, Ms Baker!

Thanks to the author, publisher, and to NetGalley for this review opportunity. I've had the pleasure now of reviewing both books in the series and I look forward to hopefully having the opportunity again when the next book comes out.

Thanks to Fiewel & Friends and Netgalley for a copy of the eARC in exchange for a fair review.



Disclaimer: This is book 2 in the High School Horror series, well it's not completely needed to understand events and references are made to Teen Frankenstein book 1.


Cassidy Hyde isn't dealing with things all that well. Since Adam cheated on her with a nobody and was killed the night she was crowned Homecoming Queen things have been hard. She just can't shake the sadness so she agrees to go to the party even though she isn't really feeling it. While she on the verge of having a Britney Spears moment, Liam bursts into the bathroom and before he leaves he offers her this little pill called Sunshine.


When Cassidy wakes up in the morning she feels great despite the fact that she can't remember anything passed dancing with Liam. Maybe a little memory loss is okay to feel better in the end. As as the days go by, Cassidy becomes more and more aware of the fact that she is doing things at night and can't remember what is going on. When Lena a sophomore calls her Mercy she knows something is wrong, but she just can't quite figure it out.


Until the morning she wakes up with blood on her hands, Cassidy knows that she has to figure this out and stop herself. Will she come up with a way to save herself? Will she be able to admit the truth?


This is was interesting, twist, on Dr.Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Like Teen Frankenstein a gender switch, but not only that there are underlying secrets Cassidy is keeping. They get revealed in a way as the story goes on. I say in a way because it isn't expressly spelled out. You have to kind of guess with no real confirmation.


I have to say that Cassidy is the kind of main character I wouldn't normal like, but in a way she was as light as her other half, Marcy was dark. They fit together and while neither character was very likable you could relate to them. I was half afraid I wouldn't like this because it features different characters from Teen Frankenstein although it is set in the same town. In fact, both mc's attend the same high school. That being said I loved this, I read it as fast as I could and now I am really sad that I have to wait a long time for book 3 to come out. So if you like retellings that aren't fairy tales... You should totally check out this series!