I thought this story was PHENOMENAL! I always enjoy a "meta" twist to a story, so when Devon, her twin sister Drew, and their friends find themselves being stalked by a demon, I thought that it was very clever that they recognized they were being targeted according to "horror movie rules". Devon's plans to have the Best Summer Ever with her twin sister Drew is derailed after a Ouija board at Drew's friend's party unleashes a demon. Self-proclaimed horror nerd Gael explains that the demon is hunting them according to horror movie rules - the blonde dies first, then the queer, minority kid, then the asshole, the nerd, and the "independent girl." They attempt to use this knowledge to defeat the demon. It's a rather heartwarming story, where family and friend relationships are stressed, and the kids find out that just because you think that you're, for example, the blonde, doesn't mean that you can't also be the Final Girl. It's a reminder that you never have to fall into just one box, and you CAN change the ending of your story. I think that this a wonderfully suspenseful novel with a unique meta twist, and I would fully recommend to fans of YA novels.

Thank you to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC. I really liked the characters in this but the plot itself was just alright.

2.75 rounded up

The Blonde Dies First, to me, is like the equivalent of Stephen Graham Jones and the Indian Lake Trilogy. Both of these stories have these characters who are going through horrors and thrills with a meta lens on horror and thriller conventions, tropes, and patterns. It's like they know the script of what is supposed to happen. Yet both of these books don't feel formulaic and there's plenty of surprises within the conventions. The Blonde Dies First is about who we are going to be and who will be there with us.

In The Blonde Dies First by Joelle Wellington, a thrilling blend of horror and dark humor propels readers through a suspenseful summer adventure with a twist. The novel follows Devon, who is always overshadowed by her brilliant twin sister, Drew, but dreams of one last perfect summer together before Drew leaves for college early. However, their plans for a carefree break are shattered when a Ouija board summons a demonic presence that turns their summer into a nightmare straight out of a slasher film. With a demonic killer picking them off in classic horror movie fashion, it’s up to Devon and her friends to outwit the monster and rewrite the rules of their gruesome game. Wellington's sharp, engaging narrative and inventive plot make The Blonde Dies First a captivating read for fans of horror-comedy and suspenseful thrillers, offering a fresh and entertaining take on the slasher genre.

I am a massive fan of Joelle Wellington - Their Vicious Games is one of my favorite books from 2023. The Blonde Dies First is a very different book compared to TVG - I enjoyed this book however I was expecting a little bit more. I love a good slasher book but didn't love that it involved a demon who did most of the killings.

The Blonde Dies First is a story about a group of childhood friends who while at a party are involved in summoning a demon who is focused on taking them out one by one following the rules of a horror film in their world. Each of our main characters in the core group of friends is assigned a trope - the blonde, the queer-coded character, etc including a final girl.

It was a very fast-moving book and I loved how the characters worked together to help protect themselves and fight back against the demon however the twists and the ending were kind of a letdown - there were only a handful of antagonists in this book which made it very easy to narrow down the suspects.

It was a fun read though which I would recommend saving for the fall season

A group of friends accidentally summon a demon while using an ouija board and they come together to get rid of it. Devon and Drew are twins but Drew has graduated and gone on to college earlier so Devon is trying to make it the best summer ever while they’re still together which is kind of difficult with terrifying encounters happening left and right!! The characters were diverse and I love the relationships. I am not the target audience which I took into consideration but I really think 15 year olds and up would love this. I personally struggled with the pacing. I was really into the attacks and action scenes and then struggling in between. I became less and less invested in the characters as the book went on which is not what I thought would happen after such a strong start. Overall, it was a good read and probably better for a younger crowd!

Thank you so much to Netgalley, Joelle Wellington, and Simon & Schuster for providing this free ARC. This is my honest review! This will publish on July 30th.

I have posted my review on Goodreads, my Facebook book club, and will make a TikTok to post before the pub date!

The Blonde Dies First by Joelle Wellington is a teen slasher about a core group of six friends that all surround twins Drew in Devon Harrison. The twin Drew a.k.a. Andrea is super smart and so her parents paid for her to go to school where she would be better educated without telling her twin Devon, she now is graduating a year earlier than the rest of their gang. This is how Drew, Devon, Yaya, Lila Gail and Malcolm find their self at a graduation party with Andrea and her friends from private school in there playing with a Ouija board. Yaya‘s rosary that she always wears brakes, a candle blows out, but the only one who notices is Devin and everyone else is just annoyed and creeped out that their smart discerning friend Andrea would go along with this. Devon just wanted to get closer to her twin sister and give her the best summer ever before she leaves but the next day at work Devon knows they will be lucky if they even survive till the end of summer.
I love a good hard-core campy team slasher and that is definitely what the story is an aid it up I could read books like this all day every day and be a happy person I think the author did a wonderful job making very likable characters in at a time where most lead characters are truly unlikable the author has written six very likable and even lovable people to route four. I do want to say however no time in the book do I remember the author saying what ethnicity or race the core group was but I noticed whenever a “white“ person entered the story she made certain to announce that as if there were some underlying message she was trying to convey. Because when telling a story and the only race you mention is one and not everyone else’s that really says more about the author than it does about the person reading the book… I don’t know what it says but nothing good having said that I still enjoyed the story and not the micro aggression racism but that is an issue for people smarter than myself. So what I am saying is despite the fact the author seems to have something against white people I still recommend this book as I enjoyed it and would definitely read more from them in the future. Because my mother may she rest in peace always said happy people don’t hate anyone and so now when I see someone who has a dislike for a certain race religion ET see it just makes me feel bad for them so let’s everyone be nice to each other and promote good relations between everyone.#Simon&SchusterForYoungReaders, #NetGalley, #JoelleWellington, #TheBlondeDiesFirst,

*Thank you to Simon Teen and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review and to Simon Audio for the gifted ALC*

Joelle Wellington is an amazing horror author. And even more than that, she wrote a fabulous queer horror novel in The Blonde Dies First. We've got creepy Ouija seances, a terrifying demonic entity, and a B-movie whose plot formula keeps playing out in real life. I liked how Devon came into herself as a character - from "the blonde" to something way more powerful. I also enjoyed how they metagamed the horror tropes and turned the genre on its head a bit.

I do think I missed some nuance to the whole demon thing, so the ending got a little confusing. But honestly? Sounds like I need a reread!

When I tell you I have never pre-ordered a book faster! I am in love with this! I love that we're getting more black horror books and we aren't just a sacrifice in the first page! I could not put this down the story was amazing and I'm definitely reccomending it to everyone I know!

I absolutely loved Their Vicious Games and was thrilled to get approved for this ARC. Let me tell you, it did not disappoint! Fans of campy horror, subverted tropes, and diversity rep in horror (where they dont all immediately die first!) - you want this on your list! Wellington is an auto-buy author for me for sure.

The Blonde Dies First is a teen horror that follows a group of childhood friends into absolute supernatural chaos featuring a diverse group from different backgrounds —Black, white, and Latino, and also queer representation.

Nothing good comes from messing with a Ouija board at a party and now there's a demon after them. I love how meta this book is and fans of YA horror will enjoy the twists and scares this book has to offer. Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher.

Thank you to the publisher & NetGalley for providing me with this arc.

The Blonde Dies First is nothing like Wellington’s debut Their Viscious Games. However, her writing doesn’t miss!!

This YA thriller/slasher is the perfect mashup of Stranger Things with its’ supernatural elements & Scream. Joelle takes us on a wild ride through the streets of Brooklyn with a friend group who is determined to have the best summer ever at the hands of Devon Harris. Those plans are ruined after the group comes in contact with an Ouija board that has unleashed a demonic force. The crew spends their summer days and nights following the horror movie formula trying to kill the demon that is targeting them.

What I enjoyed most was the homage this story gave to the original Scream franchise. Also, I loved the inclusion of a diverse friend group made up black, Latino and white characters with queer representation. I personally didn’t relate to any of the characters but I did enjoy the sisterly dynamic between the main characters and watching their relationship blossom.

The author does a great job at highlighting gentrification and classism, while reminding us that these things can exist in our own neighborhoods from those who look like us.

I rated this a 4 star only because it took a minute to get into the plot in the beginning and I found the ending predictable. However, I think others would absolutely enjoy it and potentially be a 5-star read.

Joelle Wellington has done it again! I absolutely loved her last book and this one didn’t disappoint! This was the perfect campy horror book that takes you on a ride. I loved the characters and I can’t wait to read more from
This author!

This book lacked world building for me. I’m all for diving right into the action, but it has to make sense, and in this book, it didn’t really make sense to me. We were seemingly in the world we live in and then all of a sudden there was a demon and the teens just accepted it as normal. It was just odd. I also found the plot to be utterly predictable because of how it was laid out. To me it was like the author wanted it to be predictable and did this intentionally though I could never figure out why. When the reveal came at the end, I wasn’t surprised, I was more confused as I don’t think sufficient details were given as to the cause.

Overall, this is a book I wanted to enjoy because I liked the authors debut, but it just didn’t work for me.

This is an excellent follow-up to Joelle Wellington's debut novel, Their Vicious Games, and has solidified her as an author to watch. As you may be able to guess just from the title, this book follows a group of friends who find themselves in a real-life horror movie, and they are trying to escape death from a monster that seems to follow certain rules.

But this book also has DEPTH. There is a messy sister relationship at the core of the story that I absolutely adored, as well as commentary on gentrification. It was fast-paced as well. Once the story gets going, it gets GOING, and I think that is perfect for this type of book.

There was an extreeeemely stupid decision from one of the characters that everyone should have called out as dumb, and that bothered me a bit. It's true to that character, but I didn't feel like it made sense for the other characters not the call them on it. That's horror movie tropes for you, I guess.

I am so glad I decided to pick up this book. I know this author is going to keep bringing amazing books to the table.

Devon and Drew, sisters till the end, until Drew’s advanced IQ finally propelled her into a special private school in middle school. As graduation approaches, she scoffs at her sister , Drew who says “you want to hang out with my friends” and this is where our story truly begins.

Twins who have grown apart, last summer together and Devon wants to spend her last summer finding out who her sister is now and what she wants to become. But an ouija board gets pulled out and you can guess what happens from there.

As much as I loved Their Vicious Games, this book could do no wrong. As usual, the characters are fun and interesting. This definitely had a slower start to the action- I would not consider it fast paced. And it had a little too much predictability for me. Once the ending hit, it rushed through it too quickly and needed a little more detail. Currently I’m seeing it as thriller genre and really hope it gets marketed as young adult horror.

I might be biased (ps, I definitely am) but as long as I had fun with this one, I knew I was going to enjoy it. If you’re looking to dive into Joelle Wellington, I would start with Their Vicious Games. But she does write a great ensemble! I would round up to 3.5 stars

As a lover of campy, bad horror movies I absolutely loved this book! This book was simply made for people who love bad horror movies and social commentary, our cast of characters literally get sucked into a shitty horror movie!

I loved our main cast of characters, even when they were being annoying (when are teenagers not annoying know it alls?). Each one of them fit the horror archetype they were made to so well, it was so obvious who they were supposed to be but they all had their own little twist on the character. I really enjoyed being in Devon's head the entire book, she was so witty and quick thinking.

While this is a horror novel and follows the slasher/demon horror movie formula, at its core <i>The Blonde Dies First</i> is a love letter to community, friends, and found family. Readers watch these teens who care about each other and where they grew up more than anything in the world fight to protect that. We watch them tackle gentrification of their beloved neighborhood, dealing with changing friendship dynamics as people start to graduate and get ready for what comes after high school, and so much more.

The relationship between Devon and Drew is so special, twin relationships always make me tear up in books, and Joelle nailed how complicated and special the relationship you have with your twin is. You get each other better than anyone else but also never get the other at the same time.

While the book is predictable I still had a lot of fun with it! I think some of the pacing fell off a little bit but when it did it very soon after was back on track and my attention was captured again. This is the perfect book for people who like
-slasher & possession horror movies
-coming of age stories
-strong friendships

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this eARC!

Thank you Simon, Schuster and netgalley for this arc!

YA, LGBTQ and a thriller novel. What's more to love!

Set in new York City. Teenagers on summer break experience a summer they will never forget.

Honestly I loved this book. It grossed me out in the best way and scared me so much that I had to sleep with the lights on. But also had me laughing until tears. All the greatest things wrapped into one book.

Second book I've read by this author and will be tuning into more.

This was fun lol. A good 2nd book for JW. Following your horror movie trope - a group of friends trying to survive. I like when books don’t go as you expect, when you think you know what’s going to happen, who’s going to get bumped off - love these diverse books. Keep them coming!

Thank you Netgallay & Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for my first early arc.

Perfect summer read. Everything from the beginning to the end. It show the basic rules like those of a horror movie. Fun and the balance it gives everything.

Devon was everything. I love it 😋 also it was a fun action/comedy thriller read 😱😉.
The other characters / her and drew friends was a rowdy bunch they all have different personality and feels throughout the book. Especially the girls.

The final girl. 😈

The Blonde Dies First is perfect for any horror sapphire lovers.