Reviews

Slaughter at Seabridge by Cassidy Frost

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stephaniieemoon's review

5.0

Book Review✨ Slaughter at Seabridge by Cassidy Frost

Donna can’t wait to leave her small town and follow her dreams of being a famous singer. But before leaving her extremely religious father in the dust, Donna plans to attend one last get together at her friend Jeff’s cabin. Little does she know that someone or something lurks deep inside the woods watching… waiting and ready for blood.

Slaughter at Seabridge is fun, fast paced and gruesome. I’m always on the look out for a good slasher book and Slaughter at Seabridge delivers.

I love the campy dialogue and the dynamic between Donna and Frankie. I particularly enjoyed that there are two LGBT+ badass characters/final girls. I always applaud authors for diversity in their characters.

The amount of gore is perfect and satisfying. There is a supernatural mystery in this book as well that helps the atmosphere feel even more creepy.

The ending was surprising and original with a shocking twist that sets this tale aside from other slashers and tropes. Cassidy Frost is an excellent writer and I look forward to reading more from her in the future.

kitkatmn's review

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dark

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

The writing was bad, the plot was awful, and it didn’t tie in together as a cohesive whole- this was one of the worst books I’ve read this year. No.

dustin_frueh7921's review

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Rereads have always been very rewarding, for as a dedicated bibliophile, I have a tendency to either forget certain details, or else I simply didn't pick up on some nuances the first time through. Slaughter at Seabridge, however, was an altogether different experience because I reread it, pretty much back-to-back (the exception being an audiobook still in progress,) and I'd never done that before. I went that route mostly for clarity.

You never knew what people could get away with in Seabridge.

***
DISCLAIMER: the author and I have been following one another for a couple months now. Shortly after I joined Instagram in July, 2022, Cassidy was one of the first individuals I really connected with. I consider her a friend. I'm reviewing her book of my own volition. My opinions are my own.

In Slaughter at Seabridge, Cassidy Frost subtlety toed the line between the macabre and the fantastical; between young adult and unsullied horror. The combinations were sophisticated, and the finer points were made more evident when things became increasingly intense. And although
her prose would have benefited from additional revisions, two ingredients were abundantly on display: her reverence of the horror genre, and the delicate nature in which she writes.

In her novella, the year 1990 was more than the time it took place, and more than mere backdrop for her isolationist, cabin horror. Actually, despite my longing for a more fleshed out world, it said more about society at large and the repressed state of that time than anything fictional. In turn, it also communicated a lot about Frost's primary character. Those similarities were profound. Not unlike the time and place itself, recent high school graduate, Donna Conrad, was someone who inexplicably intuited that the ways of the world (as she knew them then,) were rapidly evolving into a reality that not many talked about. Not openly, at least, because it was too taboo. Add to the fact that she was the eldest daughter of zealot preacher, Bill Conrad, and the implications of the New Age–sexuality, identity, and what eventually became the LGBTQ+ community– and it was easy to understand and sympathize with her plight.

Gone were the days of pretending that her feelings didn't exist. Or that they were somehow irrelevant. She sure as hell wouldn't conform to the world by condoning conversion therapy. She'd rather die than be someone untrue to herself.

Water hugged his skin, chilling him to his core. He shivered, sitting up and sinking his hands into wet sand. His midsection was submerged by the incoming tide. Looking around, he saw his family standing by, their feet wading in the water. Reaching out to him, they called his name, but he couldn't find their comforting arms, only the inevitable feeling that his skull would burst.

Although Donna's forward trajectory was significant, and unimaginably difficult, I went into Frost's debut hoping (maybe even expecting) to read about a protagonist's realities being centered around more than attraction to the same gender, or the inherent stakes of stepping "out of the closet." Essentially, I really wish Frost had gone beyond the norm; that it had explored Donna's personal journey in a non rudimentary manner.

Out further the waves became larger, and she could see them frothing with power. This water was unforgiving when it wanted to be, and the wind had picked up just enough for an angry concoction. Below her the water looked dark, trailing out in a line that ran below and beyond her with no visible end.

If I'd published my review as I'd initially written it, my overall opinions of the characters would've been significantly different, and for that reason alone, I'm happy to have reread it. For instance, I would have denied myself the pleasure of getting to know Donna and Elmer, and to a degree, Shelly Sinclair and "The Prisoner." I particularly loved reading about the close-knit friendship between Donna and Elmer. I thought that was very well-done. The scenes centered on them, when they were alone, were some of my favorites. Angie's characterization was decent, but I wanted more.

However, the developments of Jeff, Tonya, Buster and Frankie were unsatisfactory. I wanted to care about them, but I can't involve my heart if I don't know them in my head. Adding some slightly conflicting personality traits would've gone a long way, because it sets people apart; it gives them a unique quality which belies your typical character in a slasher story. Though to be fair, Frost did provide some really heartfelt reminiscences towards the conclusion, which helped establish the type of individuals some of them were.

Seriously, though, mere words cannot express the love I have for Elmer and Donna, and the agency the author gave them. They were easily my most beloved characters.

Shelly Sinclair wrote her own stories and songs into a little book she carried around. Elmer loved it when she'd read them aloud. His favorite story was about a lonely girl who wished for artistic abilities, so she spoke to the sea, and the sea spoke back. From its depths it presented her a gift: she would be able to sing like the angels, but there was a catch.

The plot itself was good. From its intentionally cryptic and harrowing prologue, the author consistently wove a tightly wound, lightning-quick narrative. It felt almost too fast, though. (Yet, I concede that she didn't want to bore the reader. The desire to plunge the audience right into the action–which was shockingly BRUTAL at times, and the kills were creative– was a valid concern on her part. The challenges of delivering a compelling story in equal parts character development and plot cannot be overstated.

The dread was remarkable. In those really intense scenes, it was efficient, while in the more quieter moments, the author employed lovely undertones of it. The dread permeated the pages, and I couldn't love that element more.

Enmeshed within the plot were a myriad of mysteries that kept me flipping pages– questions concerning the killer's identity, the infamous nature of Shelly Sinclair, and of motive. Personal identity and motive weren't exclusive to the murderer, either. What's more, the author alluded to an evil "rooted deep within" this quaint little town, and those heightened the mystery even more. Nonetheless, the titular town could've been fleshed out exponentially, if only to create optimal clarity, creepiness, and fascination.

In the darkness, Donna's bruised and beaten body pedaled its way through Seabridge. Passing the little neighborhoods and homes she'd driven by countless times, like Ms. Horncastle's house with the yellow shingles, a sweet old woman who'd sit our on her patio watching the birds. Or Mr. Garner's home, his yard littered with broken lawn mowers and one too many signs that read "RESIGN" in large red font.

The ending was my favorite part. After taking this high-octane journey alongside Donna and the others, finishing it on such a high note was monumentally relieving. It wasn't just good in ways that other slasher novels or films are good. The structure and finality was
mind-boggling. I was stunned by its deceptively simplistic approach, and deeply saddened and made proud by the heroism. Its bittersweetness left an indelible place in my mind, as well as my heart. In many ways, the whole novella was sad and not what I'd anticipated, and whenever an author manages that, I'm impressed.

Typically, slasher stories are obnoxious, campy fun, and personally, that's where the enjoyment tends to lie. Cassidy Frost did something different with her debut, though. She accomplished a feat I've rarely seen done, let alone well: she surpassed my admittedly high expectations by making me care about Donna and Elmer, and to an extent, even the killer. The latter's backstory was tragic and reprehensible, thus causing me to sympathize with the killer. That almost NEVER happens. Not to me.

Highly recommended, especially if you like your cabin horror brutal and in your face, pedal to the medal, and no filler.
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harrieteverend's review

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious tense fast-paced

3.5

What an exciting, gory tale from Cassidy Frost! This tells of Donna and her friends who want to throw one big bash before going on to the next chapter in their lives. However, someone out there wants them dead...and will stop at nothing until that is accomplished.

I enjoyed the character development of Donna and Elmer and the journey they go on to get to the bottom of the killings. I feel like some of the other characters were a little one dimensional, but with them getting knocked off rather quickly, it wasn't as necessary to get those details. The end was shocking (definitely wasn't expecting what did happen). Can't wait to see what Frost comes out with next.

sarah984's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I find a lot of books marketed as slashers don't feel like slasher movies to me, but this tale of a supernatural killer stalking teens in '90s era rural New Brunswick really did. The pace was fast, the kills were gruesome and fun, and I liked the main characters. My one complaint is that a few things seemed to happen really quickly, but I think that mostly boils down to the novella length. Overall great read.

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