Review – How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine

I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

How to Survive Your Murder by Danielle Valentine
Published by Razorbill on August 30, 2022
Genres: Young Adult Fiction / Horror
Pages: 304
Format: Hardcover
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Amazon | Audible | B&N | Kobo | Libro.fm

Scream meets Happy Death Day in this terrifying stand-alone horror novel from YA scream queen Danielle Valentine.

Alice Lawrence is the sole witness in her sister’s murder trial.

And in the year since Claire’s death, Alice’s life has completely fallen apart. Her parents have gotten divorced, she’s moved into an apartment that smells like bologna, and she is being forced to face her sister’s killer and a courtroom full of people who doubt what she saw in the corn maze a year prior.

Claire was an all-American girl, beautiful and bubbly, and a theater star. Alice was a nerd who dreamed of becoming a forensic pathologist and would rather stay at home to watch her favorite horror movies than party. Despite their differences, they were bonded by sisterhood and were each other’s best friends.

Until Claire was taken away from her.

On the first day of the murder trial, as Alice prepares to give her testimony, she is knocked out by a Sidney Prescott look-alike in the courthouse bathroom. When she wakes up, it is Halloween night a year earlier, the same day Claire was murdered. Alice has until midnight to save her sister and find the real killer before he claims another victim.

I found this book to be incredibly entertaining! I picked this book up largely because it has a rather catchy title but I didn’t really know what to expect. I ended up reading the book cover to cover in a single day so I guess you could say that it was a winner for me. I did figure out the big twist before it was revealed in the story but there were still plenty of surprised to keep things interesting. I am so glad that I decided to give this book a try.

Alice knows more about horror movies than anyone else. If you want to know how to be a final girl, she’s the person you need on your side. Unfortunately, her knowledge couldn’t save her sister who was murdered at a Halloween party and Alice is the only witness. Just as Alice is ready to testify against her sister’s killer, she is transported back to the day of the crime and has the chance to save her sister. Alice soon learns that not everything was as she thought it was that day.

This book was rather exciting. I thought that all of the references to horror movies were a lot of fun. I was fully invested in the mystery surrounding the killer and wanted to see Alice stop him. The story is really fast-paced and it doesn’t take too long for the body counts to begin to rise. I loved the time travel aspect of the story and it was obvious how much Alice wanted to change the events of the day that her sister died.

I would recommend this book to others. I had fun with this tale which often felt like a horror film. It was great to see Alice work to make things right. I wouldn’t hesitate to read more of this talented author’s work in the future.

I received a review copy of this book from Razorbill.

Related Posts