"But he flopped on that too, as all efforts to divide queers eventually do."

Your Lonely Nights Are Over is like a modern times Scream (I know, I know, Scream isn't old! But sadly it is old, and so am I). In YLNAO, a serial killer from a popular docu-series has returned to resume his murderous rampage decades after his last victim. He's still hunting lonely people but this time his focus seems to be exclusively on the LGBTQ community in a small, Midwestern town. The viewpoints alternate between gay best friends, Frankie and Cole. Both characters are likable yet realistic, and sometimes hilarious. I'd love to see this turned into a slasher-esque movie one day.

Marketed as Scream meets Clueless, I immediately requested this book. I was so excited to read this and hopefully add it to my high school classroom library, but it just wasn't as thrilling as I had hoped.

The beginning of the book was really slow, and I found myself skimming, which I rarely do. It was almost 200 pages before anything started to happen, and that just isn't acceptable for me. I do have to say that once the plot picked up, things were very fast-faced until almost the end.

Overall, the book was just too long for my liking. While I did enjoy the second half, it really took a long time to get me interested. I won't be buying this for my classroom library, but don't let my review dissuade you!

Thank you to NetGalley and Viking Books for the early read. This book is out now.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

Dearie and Cole have been best friends for years but they aren't very well-liked by other people. When a serial killer begins targeting people in their LGBTQIA club, they become the main suspects. Can they find the real killer before it's too late?

I flew through this book. It was just a fun read perfect for the Halloween season.

Your Lonely Nights Are Over is a bleakly, darkly comedic and campy horror, but do not be fooled—this is a book up to its elbows in guts, gore and grimly accurate social commentary.

Adam Sass caught me utterly off guard with just how funny this book was. It was exactly the type of meta, knowing horror comedy as seen in the Scream universe, but also the dark comedy that comes from staring into the void and the void looking back. The dialogue sparkled and shone, fizzing with energy and life. Right from the start, I recognised the several queer stereotypes embodied by these characters and their respective horror ‘types’ as well. Sass sends that high school cliqueness and the in-fighting within the LGBTQ+ community, but through a loving lens. This is definitely a case of laughing with rather than at. Of course, this deft characterisation and set-up allows you to fall in love with characters, just to have the rug pulled from under your feet as the horror begins. This is a looming dread over the course of the book, with death marking the group from very early on. You get the sense of the walls closing in on you, as the killer grows bolder and bolder.

Make no mistake, this is a book unafraid to go into the gory details. It is true horror – full of blood and guts. The deaths are creative and their sequences are spine-chilling. Sass keeps the pacing at a quick speed, not allowing you to draw too many breaths. However, there is still time given for characters to develop and grow, which I adored. In particular, the tangled dynamic between Dearie and Cole is one that I fell in love with.

Also, I loved the way Sass transformed the tropey backdrop of the serial killer gone dormant that previously terrorised the community. There is a fantastic through thread around true crime narratives, particularly through a documentary that features heavily in the book. You get the sense of a community trying to build itself back up, only to have the horrors of the past seemingly re-emerge. With the specific targeting of the LGBTQ+ community, it makes a bold statement about the demonisation and targeting of the community – speaking far too closely to current day sentiment.

I also really enjoyed the way Sass blends in insightful social commentary. There is a keenly focused spotlight on loneliness and the way romantic relationships are seen as pinnacles of success. Of course, this is not any way to define a life. You miss the joy found beyond those relationships and the person themselves, happy within themselves. Also, the way people try to deflect death from their path is fascinating. Sass intersects this with the depiction of LGBTQ+ relationships, internalised homophobia and the rising wave of hate crimes against marginalised communities, is nothing short of heart-wrenching.

Sass ensures to adequately warn readers, with a comprehensive trigger warning list at the start of the book. I also appreciated the author’s letter talking about the way race impacts the story, particularly in terms of dealing with police, harassment and injustice. This is included at the beginning, allowing readers to prepare themselves. There is also a sensitive portrayal of abusive relationships at the core of this book. It shapes key journeys within the narrative and is a sickening look at gaslighting, emotional manipulation and the way abusers can make you destroy your self-worth.

Your Lonely Nights Are Over balances heavy societal topics with dashes of camp horror, truly terrifying sequences, and characterisation that truly sings. Adam Sass is an author to watch and I truly recommend him as an emerging scream monarch of YA horror.

3.5 stars

What better way to kick off the fall season with a fast-paced horror thriller? Your Lonely Nights Are Over is gruesome and bloody, yet surprisingly fun for a book about a serial killer. It’s unique format makes you feel like you’re watching episodes of a TV show rather than just reading a book. Even though the characters aren’t that likable, which they’re already known for, I was hooked on seeing how they would clear their names as all evidence points to them as the killers. There were also some great underlying themes about discrimination, teen relationships, and friendships, which were naturally integrated into the story instead of seeming forced. A super campy, queer slasher book that will get you in the mood for Halloween!

Fun slasher young adult story. There was nothing inherently bad about it but I was kind of bored even with people dying left and right. I guess I just wasn’t invested but I seem to be the outlier.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book!

This book was amazing. It definitely gave me chills!!! I love to read queerness in horror. I highly recommend this book.

The DRAMA! Wonderful display of being queer in high school. I especially loved the clear sexual identities of Dearie and Cole, the two gay main characters. Friends for years, supportive of each other, casual hookups occasionally, traveling to the next town for hookups. Loved it - realistic, and wonderful for young readers to see.
The Mr. Sandman killer is back - decades after his last kill. And he's targeting the queer group at the local high school.
Some great humor, dark and just everything! Loved it!

This has been described as Scream meets Clueless and I couldn't agree more!

This is the perfect book to start off the fall season. I had to actually get myself a physical copy as well.

This book follows two gay teens, Dearie and Cole. They are members of the Queer Club at school and there happens to be a serial killer on the lose that is targeting the members.

This tests their friendship.

This is a funny YA book and I would suggest it!

And the cover is amazing!

A special thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this book for an honest review. The best way I can describe this is Queer club meets Scream. I really love slashers and this did not disappoint! Just when I thought I predicted some things, I was proven wrong. This book did surprise me with a couple twists I didn’t see coming and I always love when I can be caught off guard. Thoroughly enjoyed this, and if you love slashers, I would give this a read for sure!

Okay wow wow wow. I am highly impressed with YOUR LONELY NIGHTS ARE OVER by Adam Sass, who is a new author to me.

The story follows Frankie Dearie and his bestie Cole Cardoso as a mythical and terrifying killer tries to off them and the Queer Club, one by one. (That’s really reductive, but yes. 😉)

My favorite thing about YLNAO is how deliciously queer it is. From the fashion to the vernacular, Adam Sass is givinggggggg all that needs to be given. And let’s be real… what’s more queer than horror?

I absolutely adored Cole and Frankie and their friendship. They are ride or dies in the best way possible. I loved how they constantly built each other up while still grounding each other when needed.

When YLNAO was described as <I>Scream</I> meets <I>Clueless</I> I knew I was going to be in for an incredible ride. And it was true! Reading a slasher hasn’t ever been so fun. It kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. I was constantly second-guessing everyone! I definitely didn’t expect the twist or for everything to play out the way it did. I was SHOOOOK.

YOUR LONELY NIGHTS ARE OVER is an incredible way to get into the spooky season. Just make sure to read it with someone else… or… to paraphrase Ms. Spears, “Your lonely nights are killing you.” Literally.

What a perfect way to start off the autumn season as we get closer to Halloween! I thoroughly enjoyed this romp of a slasher and literally could not put it down!

The book follows Dearie and Cole, two best friends, who are trying to figure out who is picking off the members of the Queer Club at their high school one by one! Swipe right for the blurb!

One of the things that I really loved is how comfortable the characters were with their queerness. If only I had been as confident as half of these teens in high school, it would have been a different experience altogether. Sass does an exceptional job of creating and allowing the MCs to be their most authentic selves who don’t have to hide or worry about being who they are. I loved every second of it.

The book was fast paced and started right off the bat, which I appreciated so much. It constantly left me guessing and trying to figure out who could be behind the mayhem!

This book has it all: a serial killer, high school drama, LGBTQIA+ representation, humor, twists, and an awesome message! You should pick it up if you like ANY of those things.

I want to say thank you to NetGalley and the Penguin group for providing me with an eARC. I received it last minute, so I know this book has already been published! You should get it today!

This book was a wild ride and I had a great time following along. First, I loved how queer positive the story is and that it showed friendships and relationships in a different way. There's no slut shaming between the main characters and they are comfortable in their own skin. I would like to see more books with characters written this way.

Secondly, there's a murderer on the loose who's story goes back fifty years. I thought the interspersed documentary clips were entertaining and helped give backstory to the old murders. I will say that I did guess the killer, but things were written in a way that made me feel like it couldn't be possible. I don't love when authors do that, but it kept the mystery intriguing.

This is fairly gory and features a lot of queer character deaths, so be warned before you start.

I thought this was a perfect intro into the spooky season and definitely recommend if you're looking for a slasher story!

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Viking Books for Young Readers and NetGalley for the copy.

What an ABSOLUTE treat. I was convinced I knew who Mr Sandman was; well guess who was wrong? This is such a smart story. I love it so much! I immediately demand a film adaptation. I laughed, audibly gasped, and found myself playing detective working out who Mr Sandman was. The friendship and queer found family in this book locked me in. @theadamsass is sooooo good at writing believable characters. I have the strongest urge to watch Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer now.

First I want to say that all of what I'm going to write needs to be taken with a grain of salt because I am not LGBTQ+ teen, I'm a straight white woman in her late 20's. Now, that being said I wanted to love this book so much and it just fell short. I'll start with the good; great representation, the idea of it was really fun, and I appreciate the easy platonic love that's shown between our two main characters. Men, even queer ones, are so rarely seen being affectionate with other men that it was great to see that get more or less a whole book filled with it. Now the not so good. Right off the bat I cannot help but articulate the fact that there's a glaringly massive - if not plot hole, plot...unreality. Don't get me wrong, horror stories often include things that stretch the realm of things that are realistic, but for a book that seems fairly realistic otherwise the idea that this serial killer copy-cat/apprentice is able to figure out who the REAL serial killer is based off of what amounts to a Netflix docuseries when NO ONE else was for a good 30 years or whatever, ridiculous. I don't even want to think about the fact that a large portion of the big reveal at the end is managed to remain a big reveal (but really isn't if you know anything about stories like this) because of amnesia. And last but not least our main characters are kind of terrible to...pretty much everyone else. Certainly the other queer characters. They even go so far as to label them all "flops" because they're...part of the queer club? I'm honestly not sure, but while this does change by the end of the book it's more or less this constant stream of "We are so much better than the other queer kids at school" for no discernable reason other than "one of them was mean to us before". We don't even really see the non-queer kids at the school, but I can only imagine that the attitude the two main characters have for them is similar, if not worse. I don't want to say this book was all bad, because there were some good elements of it, but I will certainly not be recommending this to anyone I come across at work and will not be hand-selling it by any means. I was sorely let down by what I was hoping would turn out to be a fun slasher and in all honesty I'm now somewhat hesitant to read Sass's backlist as well as anything he comes up with in the future. But we'll see.

Thank you to Colored Pages Blog Tours for including me on the tour and Penguin Teen for an eARC and finished copy in exchange for an honest review and promotion. All opinions are my own.

Your Lonely Nights are Over by Adam Sass is a YA thriller that follows two gay best friends: Cole and Dearie. It’s been the two of them against the world since they’ve met and the friendship is about to get the worst test imaginable: framed for murder. Mr. Sandman, a dangerous serial killer who was never caught, is back and he is targeting kids at their school. As the mounting evidence continually points to Dearie and Cole, they must find a way to clear their names.

Right from the start the atmosphere of this book is full of tension. Sass sets the stage perfectly: we get invested in both Dearie and Cole as narrators and then the murders happen. The mystery aspect of this was really well done: my first guess was completely wrong (which I’m glad for tbh). I loved seeing all the clues lead us to the killer. I got quite a few surprises from all the connections.

Then we have the characters. Even though Dearie and Cole are supposed to be “unlikeable”, I loved them. Which is pretty on brand for me. I loved how these two were there for each other. Their friendship was one of my favorite parts of this book. And we had a lovely cast of supporting characters from Queer club. I really enjoyed getting to know (some) of them, iykyk.

This one is currently tied with The 99 Boyfriends of Micah Summers for my favorite of Adam's and I really enjoyed Surrender Your Sons! Adam is definitely going to be an auto-read author for me!

My lonely nights have just begun because my time with Cole and Dearie are over! Wow — what a blast it was to read. I’m always a little hesitant when books are advertised as “POPULAR MOVIE/TV SHOW/BOOK” - in the case of Lonely nights, Scream meets Clueless - so color me surprise when Adam Sass totally nails it. Or not too surprised - Surrender Your Sons was great so I knew he’d do a fantastic job with his third novel.

I really enjoyed getting to know the two MCs, their story told through interweaving chapters, and the cast of characters they called friends/flops. I do wish we got to spend more time with some of them before they’re whisked away but it’s a small qualm I have. The other is the third act is too long which is a critique I’d give to even the best Scream film.

Does Adam Sass have a new series on his hand? I definitely would love to see what happens next. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for the ARC.

Overall: 4.25/5⭐️

Many thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Penguin Young Readers Group, Viking Books for Young Readers, and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was fucking amazing, now I gotta take a lap or something. This was an amazing start to my spooky season as I had the absolute best of times with this book. I truly think it's safe to say that I ate this shit up-- the writing was decent, the characters were both unlikeable and lovable all in one, and the suspense was EVERYTHING! I got to play Sherlock Holmes and actually got a kick out of genuinely being able to discover who the killer turned out to be. There were twists and turns both expected and unexpected that I think would be wonderful for people just getting into the thriller/mystery genre. I highly recommend this to anyone new to the genre or who wants a more slasher type of book to add to their tbrs. Loved this!

So, I ALMOST DNFed this book. I am so glad I didn’t. The beginning of this book was very frustrating to me. I thought the characters were being petty and making stupid decisions. I will say by the end it ALL MADE SENSE! This book ended up being a great slasher. My favorite part is that we got MULTIPLE revels so the fun kept going for a while at the end. I am very happy that I kept reading! Thanks so much to penguin teen for the advanced readers copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

As I am writing this review, it is September and I am thoroughly entrenched in my Spooky Season Reading, and this book was the perfect candidate for the horror/thriller/slasher vibe I've been going for this year. I love a good slasher, and the idea behind the killer in this one was fresh and interesting. I did, however, have a pretty decent idea of who the killer was about halfway through the book, which was confirmed as I read on- but that's not necessarily a bad thing. I love being able to pick up the clues and put the puzzle together- it makes me feel clever, and this one wasn't too terribly obvious, unless you make a habit of reading/watching mysteries, as I do.

Overall, this was a fun read, touching on some important topics (the need for queer community! YEESSS, LOVE IT), and I enjoyed it. 3.5, rounded up.