"Summer Rental" by Rektok Ross

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The blurb says "MEAN GIRLS meets SCREAM", and it certainly delivers. "Summer Rental" by Rektok Ross is a nerve-shredding psychological thriller that kept me in suspense right up to the last page.

Riley March and her mean friends rent a house for the weekend of the 4th of July on Palm Key Islands to celebrate their high school graduation. It is their last getaway before they all go to different colleges and part ways. No one talks about the elephant in the room: the death of their classmate a year ago.

All of them have secrets, including Riley, and someone will go to great lengths to uncover those secrets. Riley successfully hides her past to fit in with the rich and spoiled girls: the twins Cam and Val, Blake, and Nia. She is less successful at hiding her crush on another classmate, Sebastian.

Pretty soon the much-anticipated vacation turns into the vacation from hell.  Some of Riley's friends go missing, and it turns out the house has a bloody history. The plot thickens when a hurricane hits the island, preventing them from leaving. To make matters worse, a murderer is on the loose, and they find themselves in his crosshairs.

Haunted house,  spooky atmosphere, and spine-tingling suspense make this an exciting read. I disliked most of the characters except Riley and a couple of others. I found her a bit naive and lacking in backbone, and I was glad she developed one toward the end.

I love books with messages. The themes of bullying and toxic female friendships are woven throughout the pages, enriching the story. Being popular isn't the most important thing; it's just smoke and mirrors. Real friendship doesn't come with a price tag. Real friends don't bully you or make you feel bad about yourself.  They accept you as you are, and this is an important message for young adults to grasp.

I immensely enjoyed the story immensely and highly recommend it. The plot moves along at a good pace, the writing flows easily, and just when you think you've figured out who is the murderer, everything is flipped upside down. The book was a page-turner, and I flew through it - it definitely had the right amount of suspense to keep you wanting more.

* For more info about the book: "Summer Rental" by Rektok Ross

*Thank you NetGalley and (publisher) for the opportunity to read this arc.  All opinions are my own.