Candy Cain Kills: 2 (Killer Vhs) Paperback – 14 Nov. 2023

This was the perfect Christmas slasher for me – gripping, brilliantly crafted, plenty of the horror tropes I love presented with imagination and cleverly used, and a lot of heart beyond the gory details.I loved:• The gruesome, really imaginative deaths• Dark small-town religion vibes; a dark history and an isolated setting• The dastardly delusional sheriff• Engaging characters, especially Fiona: a sparky, gritty, determined teen protagonist (and hurrah for good disability representation)• The use of a video tape for telling the backstory• A killer who I should condemn for her vicious crimes but who I ended up rooting for to survive• The very visual, film-like storytelling. I can totally see this being adapted for film – a Candy franchise would be pretty awesome😊

The second installment of the Killer VHS Series is dark Christmas tale that brings together holiday cheer and unsetting horror - instead of sweet Santa Claus you get a relentless, bloodthirsty monster."Twas the fright before Christmas..."Austin and his sister Fiona are spending the holidays with their parents in a quaint, secluded cottage in the countryside. What should have been a cosy family retreat takes a dark turn, as they start to uncover the cabin's sinister past. Enter Candy Cain, a vengeful killer straight out of an urban legend, and suddenly, it's a fight for survival drenched in blood and gore.Sure, the haunted/cursed house premise is a familiar one, but this story is anything but boring or predictable. Brian McAuley's writing played like a proper scary movie in my head - great pacing, heavy dread, keeping me flinging throughout. The family dynamic and struggles also added some emotional depth into the mix.Candy Cain Kills is exactly what you need if you love darker Xmas stories and bloody slashers.

Excellent slasher fun, definitely one to read at Christmas! Can’t wait for the second book.