A review by babewithabookandabeer
Midnight on Beacon Street by Emily Ruth Verona

medium-paced

5.0

Thank you Harper Perennial for my Netgalley copy of MIDNIGHT ON BEACON STREET by Emily Ruth Verona, out 1/30/24!

I requested this book because it said it was a love letter to vintage horror movies and had major Halloween vibes (a babysitter protecting the two children she’s babysitting when strangers come knocking on her door). 

It takes place in 1993 on one night, in one house with one dead body. Single mom Eleanor goes out for a date night, leaving her six-year old Ben and twelve-year old Mira in the hands of her sitter, Amy. Amy has an extreme anxiety disorder who uses horror movies to calm the panic that threatens to constantly overwhelm her. 

You know Ben ends up in the kitchen standing in a pool of blood, but don’t know who it is until the very end. There’s definitely some twists and a lot of tension built up with different characters potentially being the one who is killed. It’s figuring out the why that takes its sweet time to deliver.

This book was fun and and a fast read, but it didn’t do anything that wowed me. It reads more like a YA novel than an adult read, which took me out of it a bit. I finished it in around a day and a half because the constant horror movie references were my jam. The way the POV’s were displayed, I figured Ben would be a more titular character but that wasn’t the case.

The ending was underwhelming. I wouldn’t call this lavish literature, but if you’re looking for a little dose of nostalgia and you love horror flicks, it could be a fun read during spooky season followed by a movie marathon of your 80’s slasher favorites.