#Murdertrending by Gretchen McNeil

Now this was a pleasant surprise. I honestly didn't expect much from this book. The blurb is kind of insane-sounding and while I've enjoyed a previous book from Gretchen McNeil, I also found it pretty standard YA horror fare. There is nothing standard about #murdertrending and that's honestly why I kind of love it?

This book has one of the most unique plots I've ever seen. It takes place in a world where a reality star has become President *cough Trump dig cough* and has transformed the capital punishment system into entertainment for the masses. Now people convicted of serious crimes get put in a prison where they could be attacked by any one of eight professional murderers as they go about their daily business. Our main character Dee finds herself in this situation and is accidentally catapulted to fame when she kills one of the professional murderers in a trap meant to kill her. The rest of the book is about her trying to prove her innocence whilst escaping the clutches of the murderers.

The main reason I was so surprised by this book is that I find the blurb a little misleading. It doesn't really explain how the executions work, which is that prisoners live their daily lives and get randomly attacked/kidnapped by one of the murderers, each of which has their own niche theme. This is the most creative and fun aspect of the book (as weird as that sounds) and it's a shame it isn't pushed more on the blurb. They range from a murderous hipster, a cannibal, someone who dresses their victims up as princesses, someone who kills through crafting hobbies and several others. Almost all of them stand out in some way and it leads to some very gripping and humorous horror scenes. One of the main strengths of this book is that it handles its insane premise excellently, never becoming too serious but also not failing to bring some truly disturbing and engaging moments as well. It hits the perfect balance which is impressive considering how easily this could have become just a big joke or unaware of its own silliness.

There are some weak spots that prevent this from being perfect. The characters are entertaining enough but just shy of feeling like real people (maybe due to the insane situation they're in). The plot gets very convoluted at one point and there are some 'twists' which either fall flat or just confuse the story briefly. This all happens in the third quarter of the book, with the final quarter being the best part of all (in my opinion) so it's not enough to detract massively from the story.

Compared to the previous book I read by this author, #murdertrending is a big improvement. This is great for anyone who enjoys the camper side of horror but still appreciates that darkness and attention to detail that prevents it from being a 'so bad it's good' read. I know I'll remember this book even years from now thanks to its unique and creative tone, and I look forward to more from Gretchen McNeil in the future.

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