Thank you so much to the publisher for sending me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
YouTube ghost hunting stars, Zach and Lucas, disappeared at an undisclosed location several months ago. Iris – who heads up her own unsuccessful channel with co-hosts Byron and his girlfriend Molly – is obsessed with the duo, and has been searching for the location ever since. Then, she stumbles across long-abandoned Thornhanger House. The trio set aside their toxic love triangle when they find Zach and Lucas’s abandoned equipment inside … complete with their last day of filming. As they watch the footage, a horrifying truth whatever came for Zach and Lucas is coming for them too …
Channel Fear was a thrilling and wild ride right from the start and kept me on the edge of my seat. If you are a fan of ghost-hunting videos on YouTube then this is definitely one for you and it is perfect to read at this time of year!
YouTube ghost-hunting stars, Zach and Lucas, disappeared at an undisclosed location months ago. Iris, who runs her own unsuccessful channel with Byron and Molly is obsessed with the duo. When she stumbles across abandoned Thornhanger House, the trio travel there to find Zach and Lucas’ abandoned equipment inside, along with their last day of filming. They must try and work out the truth.
This book features a lot of the tropes you would expect to find in a found-footage horror book. It has creepy dolls, house in the middle of nowhere and rocking chairs moving on their own. But, it manages to bring its own twists to what you would expect and leaves you feeling unnerved.
I liked that this book shows us little snippets of Zach and Lucas’ visit to Thornhanger House which makes the story even creepier and tense. I enjoyed the main characters we meet in this book. But, throughout I had a feeling that we couldn’t fully trust any of them but I couldn’t tell you why!
I enjoyed the commentary this book also has around the parasocial relationships people create with those we see online. It shows just how wrong those relationships can go and how a lot of people try their best to use other people’s fame.
I think I would have liked this one more if we got to see more of Zach and Lucas and if the ending had felt more rounded. It felt like towards the end of the book things got rushed and I didn’t feel fully satisfied with the way it ended. I think it does set up well for a sequel though.
Overall, I would certainly recommend Channel Fear if you are looking for a YA horror centring around found footage, then this is one for you. It leaves you on the edge of your seat and has you questioning everything.
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