Jade Daniels returns to Proofrock after her conviction is overturned to seek out escaped serial killer Dark Mill South. Dark Mill South is after revenge for a 1862 hanging of 38 men. Who will be the “final girl” ending the blood bath in Proofrock? This book kept me glued to its pages, bringing up references to past horror movies. You don’t want to miss this one.

While I wasn’t at all crazy about My Heart is a Chainsaw, I thought I’d give the second book in this trilogy a chance. In my opinion, Don’t Fear The Reaper is a far better book,

The book continues the story four years later. While it’s helpful to have read the first book, it’s not at all necessary to have read it. While the plot can get convoluted, it was much easier to me to follow than it was in the first book, and the events made much more sense. The characters are much better developed, and Mr. Jones really shines in making the setting come to life. Yes, the book can get gruesome, but not nearly as bad as other horror books can get.

While not a fan of slasher films, I can see that the author just lives the genre, and it’s reflected in his writing.

My thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for providing an ARC of the book.

This blood-soaked sequel hits the ground running at a breakneck speed and doesn’t slow down until its devastating conclusion. It is strong enough to stand on its own without needing “My Heart is a Chainsaw” as a crutch, and it feels like it tells a complete and satisfying story, neither of which are typical in the second installment of trilogies. That said, it picks up where Chainsaw left off in a great way. The characters and writing all feel more mature, and the weight of their scars is actually felt. The setting provided the perfect cover for the story—all contemporary slashers need to reckon with the way contemporary technology can serve as a total plot-buster, so setting the whole events of the book over a frantic 36-hour period in the middle of an overwhelming snowstorm is really smart. It allows a desperate sense of urgency and place, that cold sinking into my bones chapter by chapter, and also gets rid of pesky cell phones and internet communications.

The novel maintained the pseudo-epistolary structure, with chapters of action being supplemented by chapters which are in the form of history essays written to fulfill a class assignment. Unlike in “Chainsaw,” however, these are not written by Jade (who goes by Jennifer now, four years out of lockup) but instead by someone else who isn’t revealed until later in the story. Similar to the last book, these are a useful literary device, allowing for some content/narrative dumps that would have been incredibly unwieldy as character dialogue, while also breaking up the action and extending the tensions from the real-life peril in the other chapters. Another real welcome change to this book was that, outside of the essays, we are not only following Jade’s point of view. The narrator moves between characters, and this is done well and really helps build out the story and some of the characters. We still spend the most time with or around Jade, and her character has definitely matured and developed. However, there are a lot of ancillary characters—a good slasher needs cannon fodder, after all—and while we get some good development regarding a few secondary characters, it is nowhere as fulfilling or complete as with Jade. So being able to move through other characters and get inside their heads is a nice way to give us little details making all of them real, not just simply caricatures.

I won’t give away any of the plot twists and turns, except to say that it does a great job leading you along and then pulling the rug out form under you, simultaneously following and upending the slasher genre tropes that it revels in. There are enough red herrings that are sneaky enough that you feel like this might be an actual dangling thread you’re pulling on, only to find it doesn’t go where you expect. Yet, similar to “Chainsaw…,” the final reveal/explanation doesn’t feel forced or manipulative, just a smart way to get you looking in all the wrong directions. With that said, this is the one place the book feels the clunkiest, right near the end as the body count is nearing its final tally and the curtain is pulled back. I think the plot mechanics regarding the final reveal make sense, but the reveal itself is a little confusing. I had to read through a second time to make sure I was actually clocking what was going on. There was something in the way the reveal was, well, revealed, that felt a little muddy. But this isn’t enough to diminish the joy and excitement I felt through the whole book, nor did it diminish the satisfaction of the actual ending. It isn’t a case of feeling cheated by an ending, just a case where I think parts of it could have been made a little clearer during the ultimate denouement, but that is a minor complaint in a novel that has so many moving parts and does a great job juggling them all.

Stephen Graham Jones has taken his deep love for slashers and turned it up a notch, with a book that felt even more gruesome and meta than its predecessor. It is fast-paced, almost dizzying at times, and is a great homage to the genre while elevating it in a way that novels can do but 90 minute movies often can’t. I really enjoyed every page of this, and blew through it in two days. While the meta-awareness and commentaries on the tropes and trivia of slasher films is actually elevated, in terms of plot reasons, from the first novel, it still may feel too cutesy for some readers’ tastes, which I suppose I understand, but it felt fitting and thematic to me, I was there for it all the way. And while there is still a lot of places Graham Jones can go for the final entry in the trilogy, no part of this story felt like it was just serving as a bridge to that final entry. I am excited to see where this story goes, as we continue to follow the characters growth and development as they navigate the clearly cursed town of Proofrock, which can’t seem to outlive the uncountable sins of Indian Lake.

I want to thank NetGalley and Gallery Books / Saga Press, who provided a complimentary eARC in exchange for an honest review.

e-arc provided by Netgalley!

This series is really for people who love/appreciate the Horror Genre. That's not necessarily me, I did like parts of this but I also found parts to be really confusing. Overall not my favorite series but I will be continuing along

Thanks a million to NetGalley for the ARC of my most anticipated book of next year!

Happy to say that this was a worthy follow up to my favorite book of last year. It honors its slasher heritage through and through and readers can feel how much fun the author is having, especially in the middle acts. While Graham Jones’ writing can murky and ambiguous to many, however withstanding the relatively straightforward narrative of the trilogy, to me this is how to pull of a sequel: it doesn’t hold your hand, and delivers on a new mystery that brings up as many questions in the form of fragmented, broken characters as answers in the form of bodies in the snow,

I loved My Heart Is a Chainsaw so of course I had to read the sequel as soon as I could get my hands on it. In most slasher movie franchise, sequels have to be more terrifying, more action-packed, and more bloodthirsty than the original, while also taking us back to the original scene of the crime and reminding us why we cared about the story at all. And this book certainly fulfills all of those requirements.

Jade, now going by Jennifer, is trying to put the bloodbath of five years ago behind her and move on with her life as much as she can. But the universe has different ideas. When serial killer Dark Mill South escapes into the mountains of Proofrock, Idaho during a freak avalanche that takes out his entire prison transport team, Jade finds herself once again coming face to face with an evil maniac determined to wreak havok on the town.

Jones is an incredibly gifted writer. He's the master of showing and not telling, and his development of not only Jade but several of the peripheral characters made this book a real treat to read. The bonds between Jade and Letha, between Jade and Sheriff Hardy, between Jade and her former history teacher Mr. Holmes, even between Letha and her new family, make this book stand heads and shoulders above just about any other horror novel out there. This book has a lot of fun with slasher tropes. Whereas Jade was the Cassandra of the first novel, futilely trying to warn deaf ears of the horror that was coming, everyone in this book is fully on board from the get-go.

That said, this is a book that took me a long time to read. There's something about Jones's unique style of prose that at times made me unsure whether I knew what was happening on the page. I don't know if I was just reading too fast, but it's not always clear what's going on. This is also a book jam packed full of deep metatexual references to a wide variety of horror films, and as someone who isn't really a die hard horror fan per se, I did feel like I was missing some pieces. But I really enjoyed this book and can't wait for the final installment!

Oh, yes - this is the continuation that I craved after finishing My Heart is a Chainsaw.

We pick up back in Proofrock four years later, where kids have grown up and loss has reshaped the community … but some things never change, do they? There will always be a killer lurking around the corner, ready to hunt down unsuspecting locals.

Jade Daniels - who goes by Jennifer now, thank you - is returning to town for the first time since the events of the first book. With this new distance from her home & trauma, Jennifer has reframed her point of view a bit and no longer sees the world exclusively through the lens of slashers (as she once had to for her own protection) - but that doesn’t mean she’s left her great depth of knowledge behind.

And when the power & phone line goes down and a serial killer escapes his convoy … Jennifer & Letha have to team up once more to save their town.

We have a massing scattering of perspectives here, and things aren’t always told in a linear fashion. It’s fascinating but can also feel disjointing - I struggled a bit at times to recall which characters and pieces of information were a continuation from the first and which were brand new.

Jones has such a unique bite and style of writing. It’s gory and horrifying and then unexpectedly emotional - and each narrator’s way of storytelling is distinctive, even those who only get a few paragraphs to shine.

However, I did miss Jade. She’s here, and she shines, but the focus is split so much that I was left wanting more from her arc. We’ll see where the third book goes.

The pace is much faster than the first, and I found myself catching breaths alongside the characters’ brief reprieves. There’s more guts and more gore. There’s identical twin mindbenders and chilling scenes with elk and monsters that were painfully human.

There’s a great blend of slasher nods and winks and references alongside horrifyingly creative all-new kills. I’ve seen my fair share of slashers but I’m sure there were also clever & specific references that went right over my head - Jones does a nice job of explaining just enough.

I personally preferred Chainsaw for its deeper emotional story and focus on Jade - but Don’t Fear the Reaper was still a wonderful sequel. And if you found Chainsaw to be too slow … you won’t be disappointed here.

CW: murder, death, gore, blood, child death, animal death, animal cruelty, body horror, pedophilia, adult/minor relationship, drug use, abuse, gun violence, self harm, chronic illness, mental illness, medical trauma, cultural appropriation, racism, classism, vomit

Stephen Graham Jones returns to the town of Proofrock, Idaho in the follow up to his 2021 novel, My Heart is a Chainsaw . Without spoiling any of the events of Chainsaw, I will say this one picks up four years later. Some things in the town have changed, but history has a way of repeating itself. And once again, a killer is on the loose and wreaking havoc. Which 'final girl' will be the one to take down the killer this time?

I love SGJ's brand of horror. It's much more human, much more unpredictable than other writers in the genre. It's also written in a more literary style which I admire. There's no denying he is a master at writing slasher-style kills in a way that makes my skin crawl. Reading some of the descriptions in this was so unsettling and unique; it really sets him apart as a horror writer.

I also love Jade as a main character. She's the emotional glue that keeps this book together, and ties into the first book, of course, and I can only assume will continue into the third and final book of the trilogy eventually.

However, this one felt a bit long and convoluted at times. Plot-wise, I was confused for a good portion of the book. Even in the end, I'm not totally sure what exactly happened. I wish things had been explained a little more clearly. And this book sits at nearly 500 pages and feels like it. It expands the cast of characters even more than the first book in the series, and while I appreciate it did something a bit different with these people, I would've liked a bit more focus and attention on Jade in the end. I think it could've been edited down a tiny bit to keep things streamlined, but that's just my preference!

All in all, I will continue following SGJ in whatever he puts out. He's such a compelling, original writer that I am happy is so prolific!

I’m tearing myself apart trying to decide how to rate this latest installment of the Lake Witch Trilogy by Stephen Graham Jones because, in the movies at least, the sequel rarely stands up to the first one. There are arguable exceptions, of course. Aliens over Alien tracks for me. The Empire Strikes Back, for many a Star Wars fan (although my #1 will always be A New Hope, and Rogue One comes out ahead of Empire for me…). The Godfather Two, apparently, although the one I remember best is the first. That second Lord of the Rings, I guess…

But I'm going down a rabbit hole, and siting examples that aren’t technically in the horror genre to boot. Except for the Alien franchise. I should site Jaws, because it’s relevant to this story, and there isn’t one Jaws sequel that compares to the original. And Predator, well…the recent prequel Prey is the only one to best it, imo—and it surpasses the original by far.

Anyway, back to this review. It's a fast paced, non-stop slasher fest, more so than the first one, because that's what sequels aspire to do; there's that need to top that previous installment with more explosions, more car chases—or in this case, more splashy ways to bring out the guts and gore.

And I envision Jones standing there before the challenge, much Iike his main character Jade, giving his audience a curt nod of the head that says, "Bring it on, man. Bring it." But don’t expect to dive into this book without reading the first one. It's easy to get lost even if you have read My Heart is a Chainsaw. In fact, I’d say it's mandatory reading. Regardless.

What I like about Don’t Fear The Reaper:

1) Dark Mill South. He's big. He's an admirable addition to the list of horror slasher icons, and his back story teaches us a little bit about that Native American history our U.S. education system likes to gloss over (or ignore). And the hook for a hand, well… any basic horror fan should know what that is a nod to. You don’t have to say his name, we know it.
2) Jones' strong suit is his ability to put us inside a character’s head—inside their skin, I guess. A suitable way to say it here, especially. It's not only Jade's eyes we're seeing through this time, and that can get tricky. But Jones is great at it. He's proven time and again, for me, that he knows how to give depth to his characters.
3) The creative, slashery ways people die is right on the mark, and the "rules" involving who dies and who doesn’t keep with the slasher tradition while playing with if there even should be rules, Scream style.
4) The beginning of this sequel gives clarity to the ending of My Heart is a Chainsaw, something I really needed. Also, the relationship Jade has with her mother—or lack of one, is addressed. Thank you! And the ending to this book is more satisfying, more complete for me

There is a lot going on in this book though. There's the slasher story, the revenge story, the ghost story, a spirit animal story. They all overlap, and it can get confusing. It’s that frenzy of making the sequel something bigger to outdo the first story, so be prepared. I feel like My Heart is a Chainsaw had more heart, it focusing on Jade and Jade alone. In Reaper, she no longer has that massive chip on her shoulder. She’s grown. What makes this story its own is the way the traumatic experience from Chainsaw has settled into the rest of the survivors, changing them forever in the wake of yet another slasher gone wild. Except this time, the slasher has a clear identity…or maybe not.

Yeah, it’s still a 5 star read…Maybe a 4.6. And Yes, I’m still looking forward to the final book. Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read the ARC.

SGJ has done it again. Don’t Fear the Reaper is worth all the emotional labor it takes to get through My Heart is a Chainsaw, the sequel takes an already amazing first book and makes this a fantastic series.

I love Jade Daniels. I loved getting to see her after the events of the first book, and I loved watching her transformation into Final Girl once again. This definitely started a LOT faster than the last book, and is not for the weak of heart--but it was a wild ride from start to finish.

Anyone who liked My Heart Is a Chainsaw will want to keep going with Don't Fear the Reaper. If you haven't read the first book of the trilogy, it's worth doing so (partly because it's great, and partly because you'll need that story to full appreciate this one, even if Reaper is mostly self-contained).

Reaper gets going much quicker than its predecessor (almost immediately, really), with some of the characterization more built into the action sequences. One of the joys of the book lies in catching up with the main characters four years later, noting how both they and their contexts have changed.

Jones continues to play with the tropes of the slasher genre, and this time around there's some slight deconstruction going on. Jade has tried to put some of these ideas behind her, which means we largely follow the story with a certain skepticism, rather than her wild faith-in-genre from the first book. It helps add suspense to the narrative while causing us to question the form of the whole system.

The book peaks with another wild finish, pulling together quite a few strands. It does have a clear ending, but knowing that Reaper is the second part of a trilogy means the denouement feels a little tentative even if it has emotional resonance. The book doesn't quite have the weight or impact of Chainsaw, but that probably speaks more to that book than to this one, which is another excellent piece of the story.

This sequel to My Heart is a Chainsaw is everything fans of the first book want: Jade, a serial killer, a traumatized cop, a massive snowstorm, and lots and lots and lots of gore. The story moves fast, the twists move faster, and the blood flows...well, you get it. Good for fans of horror, horror movies, and friendship.

Thank you @netgalley for the ARC of Don’t Fear The Reaped. This is the sequel to My Heart Is a Chainsaw. If you liked the first book, you will like the second. Jade is released from prison and there is a serial killer on the loose that escaped from prison. I find the writing to be a little scattered and hard to follow at times. However, the story is a good play on slasher movies. I do like how Jade actually has a head on her shoulder and makes reasonable decisions unlike the characters in these movies. The first third is a little slow with setting the scene and reviewing the back story, but the last third is fast paced and gripping.

Thanks to Gallery / Saga Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

It was only when I finished Stephen Graham Jones' sequel to 'My Heart is a Chainsaw,' 'Don't Fear the Reaper' that I realized how much I enjoyed it. I felt bereft.

The action happens about four years after the events of the first instalment in the trilogy and Jennifer Daniels, the 'Jade' of the first novel returns to the scene of the crimes with a once in a generation winter storm approaching.

Although the first section of the book proved a little more resistant to engagement than the first novel once it gets going it really gets going. Jones cleverly and skillfully weaves in main characters from the first book, brings more fringe characters front and center, and introduces brand new ones - including a new freakish slasher - while instead of engaging in a 'previously on' approach to it, all the time gracefully reminding us of what happened throughout the previous massacre.

As with the first book, I'd imagine if you're au fait with the slasher genre you'll especially enjoy it but as someone who's seen only the original 'Halloween' and 'Friday the 13th' it didn't hinder my enjoyment. As long as you understand that there are a series of slasher tropes/rules then that's all you need, the narrative does the rest.

Finally, a word about the author's afterword/acknowledgements, so genuine, insightful, and evocative it's as rewarding as the book itself.

Can't wait for the finale!

Review of uncorrected advance reader’s eBook proof

Four years have passed since the Lake Witch carnage; Jade . . . now Jennifer . . . Daniels has had her conviction overturned and is released from prison. With a wiser perspective, Jennifer is determined to remain free and so must stay out of trouble.

Jennifer returns to Proofrock, Idaho just as Indigenous serial killer Dark Mill South, seeking revenge, escapes during a prison transfer. A winter snowstorm complicates searches; it also brings down the phone lines.

It doesn’t take long for the bodies to begin to pile up.

=========

The veneration of the slasher film trope continues, first appearing in “My Heart is a Chainsaw” and now continuing in this compelling sequel. Pulling the reader into the telling of the tale from the outset, the gritty plot isn’t the least bit shy about bringing a significant amount of gore into the story. Chapters cleverly titled after horror films, keep the apprehension building while slasher trivia abounds.

With well-developed characters, a strong sense of place, and a firm foundation from “My Heart is a Chainsaw,” the gripping narrative is sure to keep readers on the edge of their seats. Along with the never-ending grit and gore [and some Proofrock history], a student is once again writing for a teacher, providing explanations; readers are offered multiple points of view as the unfolding narrative keeps the good folks of Proofrock struggling for their very survival.

The pace is relentless; the plot takes some surprising twists along the way to its satisfying denouement. Horror fans are sure to find much to appreciate in this intriguing yet reverential homage to the horror genre.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Gallery Books, Gallery/Saga Press and NetGalley
#DontFeartheReaper #NetGalley

I had read My Heart is a Chainsaw (from here on abbreviated to MHiaC) and I really liked it. First time I rated it 5 stars, eventually brought it down to 4 after more thinking. But overall I thought it was wonderfully written.

So when I was approved for ‘Don’t Fear the Reaper” I was both surprised and also scared that I wouldn’t like it as much. And for the first half the book I was a bit hesitant because I wasn’t sure where it was going. The thing is: Don’t Fear the Reaper, while distinctly a Stephen Graham Jones book, is different from MHiaC. This is a slasher story from the start whereas the first book in the series is slow burn. The slow burn here comes at the halfway point and revolves around the entire cast of characters instead of just Jade, like in the first novel. And that is where the main difference lies.

This is a story that hinges on a full gang of people. And that changes the motives, the reasons, the lines of where morals are for some characters. Everything that happens in ‘Don’t Fear the Reaper’ is because of someone’s choices. Whether that’s just or not. And that works incredibly well.

I loved seeing how different Jade is now while maintaining her core personality. She has grown a lot in the four years she’s been away and not only has she done some reflecting, she’s also taken steps to change her behavior that she realized she didn’t like. That was super valuable and important, because she was an unlikable character in the first book, and while that fit the story then, she desperately needed to have some growth in order for us to be able to root for her again. I was surprised by her but never in a way that felt unbelievable. It was seeing Jade become who we as an audience knew she could be.

I’m glad that SGJ continued Jade’s relationship with Hardy in the sequel. They had such a good dynamic in MHiaC and I enjoyed it just as much here. Their relationship was by far one of the most endearing aspects of the book.

I loved the subtle reference to the Scream movies by having Galatea act as the information spreader like Randy. And the references to “supernatural” slashers such as Jason and Michael in the character build of Dark Mill South. This being used throughout heightened the tension and raised the stakes


We also get some great call backs to Jade letters/essays to her teacher via the sections of the novel written be an “unknown” individual to the new history teacher at Proofrock. The amounts of hints, references and head nods felt balanced enough that they never felt to be “too much” and often worked as include information or rehash things we needed to know.

I love this way of sharing additional information that our main characters wouldn’t have access to or necessarily feel the need to talk about. It’s a clever way of sharing exposition without being boring or too on the nose

The juxtaposition of having this set in the middle of a snow storm compared to MHiaC is great as well. It sets a claustrophobic tension from the start. It gives the book the opportunity to avoid the trap of falling into the same premise of the first book. We have a group of main players who already believe and know there is a killer on the loose and who it most likely is, that also plays into the immediate tension and suspense.

The twists here were also full filing and entertaining. I think it’s easy to go “oh well that’s too cliche” but it worked for me.

I feel that if you enjoyed MHiaC you’ll love this addition to the series and if you didn’t care for the first novel, you may end up liking DFtR because of its differences in pacing, style and themes.

I am thrilled to have been the opportunity to read and review Don’t Fear the Reaper. I am a huge fan of Stephen Graham Jones. This was such a great sequel to My Heart is a Chainsaw. I don’t want to say too much about this book, I don’t want to give away any spoilers. If you like the first book you will like this one! If you are into slasher type films you will like this book!

I enjoyed the first book in this series but I had a hard time getting into this one. Enjoyed the writing but ultimately could not draw me in. I did finish it and I would recommend, just not for me. Thank you NetGalley for this ARC

This is billed as part two, or the sequel to My Heart Is A Chainsaw. Don’t all slasher books need a good sequel?

Set 4 years after Jade, (Jennifer) has been released from prison from the initial massacre, she’s back in Proofrock and amazingly there are enough people left to have a second massacre yet underway.

In my opinion, you don’t have to have read Chainsaw in order to enjoy and understand the happenings of Reaper, but you will do yourself a disservice by not getting all of the back story as well as all of the awesome slasher references and carnage.

This is a true horror fan treat, referencing all truly good horror movies from the 70s forward. If you’re a true horror fan, you will love the references and get the subtle nuances laid down in this killer, fast paced novel.

Being four years later, Jade (Jennifer) is no longer in high school, doesn’t believe and live every moment as a slasher flick, and has a new perspective on what’s happening in this quaint, murder filled town. Is this a good thing or a bad? Leaving your childhood perspective for that of an adult … you’ll have to be the judge of that.

I will also say the title of this novel had me hearing Blue Oyster Cult’s hit song of the same name like an ear worm, but the song has nothing to do with the book… unless you no longer fear slashers.

Stephen Graham Jones is the master of horror love affairs and once again knocks it out of the park with this one.

Highly recommended for people that love horror movies / books, thrillers, suspense novels, or anyone who just loves a fun and fast read. This was a 4/5 star read for me and surely one you won’t want to pass up on release day, Feb. 7, 2023.

A huge thank you to #NetGalley, the publisher and author for extending me an ARC in exchange for my honest opinions. My full review will be published on all my blogs and social media sites on release day.