Two transgender teens end up in a small, isolated town, where they must escape the locals who plan to sacrifice one of them to an ancient monster that only eats girls.
Trans horror has always felt so raw in a way that other horror doesn't and this book was absolutely raw, tense, and filled with heart and terror.

Raw. True. Heartfelt. This story held so much of the trans experience within it, with such a strong focus on being trans in a small and conservative town. This book was painfully raw and there wasn't a single chapter that didn't have me absolutely hooked. Normally I wouldn't be a fan of stories that spend entire chapters as flashbacks but in this story it actually added so much depth and insight into the characters that helped me understand them and their motives behind their choices so much better. Truly an emotional and amazing story of trans pride, love, and survival. I could probably go on for ages about just how wonderful both main characters were and how there were times I was just as annoyed with them as I was in love with them.

2.65 stars. This is a book with good characters and good representation but a bad plot. I didn’t have much fun reading this story. I’m not a huge fan of monster in the woods that’s not really that explained but looming over the plot type things. I would’ve liked more explanation and involvement. Idk the character writing was good and I enjoyed the trans rep, but the story itself was hard to read.

4.25/5 stars

Old Wounds is an atmospheric slow burn that strikes the perfect balance of creepiness, horror, and social commentary.

Kisner effectively explores Max and Erin’s different journeys with their transition and how each journey can drastically differ from another. He also was able to perfectly show how the real monsters of the world are not the ones that you can’t see, but the everyday bigots that freely roam around.

The first third of the book is mostly exposition to set up the latter 2/3. However, I found myself so enthralled by the Kisner’s writing and the characterizations of Max and Erin that it never felt boring. The horror scenes were also striking and Erin especially gave me 80s/90s final girl vibes.

I do wish we got a bit more on the cryptid and more on a particular person that was brought up, but overall this was an amazing debut and I can’t wait to read more from this author!

Everyone should read this FANTASTIC queer horror story! I loved the trans representation and was legitimately creeped out by the spooky elements in the book. The transphobia was at least as scary as the big bad, but everything was written so well!

I think the author did a great job fleshing out these characters & making us care about them. Perfect read for Halloween! Thanks to NetGalley, Logan-Ashley Kisner, and Random House Children's for the chance to read and review! My opinions are my own.

I absolutely love the trans rep and viewpoints. I always want to hear those voices and educate myself. What an important book for the young generation.

Unfortunately, I found myself getting bored... wanting more horror elements.

thank you to netgalley for the arc! ahhh i don't know why this review took me so long!! i really enjoyed this take on horror and gender & it was cool to see a story where they explicitly have a happy ending as opposed to a lot of queer horror that ends ambiguously. I can't lie i love an ambiguous ending but it is also SO important to have queer happy endings in darker books

they do overhype berkeley. berkeley is pretty boring

A spooky read with suspense and realistic trans* & mental illness representation.
A good balance of a creepy story while also bringing light to real-life issues & challenges. I felt both intrigued by the story as well as moved by the characters' experiences and challenges. I laughed at their sass, teared up at their stories and challenges, and celebrated the growth they both made throughout the story.
Thank you so much, Logan-Ashley and Netgalley, for the eARC of this wonderful book!

Reviewed on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon (pending), Barnes & Noble, and Instagram.

The infusion of queer and transgender themes into horror cannon made me so happy. This feels like a natural progression of queerness explored through this genre. It wove trans experience so well into the small town monster plot masterfully.

This is a story showcasing how the reality of living as a transgender person in America can be infinitely scarier than an actual monster in the woods, ready to devour you. I also liked the question of what happens if you need to sacrifice a girl but your victims aren't cisgender? Does a monster care? What makes someone a girl?

I loved reading this in October for the creepy elements, but this would be a great read any time if you're looking for a queer horror story with a hopeful ending.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Delacorte Press and NetGalley for the copy.

Truly horrifying story of two trans teenagers, a cryptid, and a bunch of men from a small town with a small town mindset. Recommended for older teens and above.

Old Wounds
Logan-Ashley Kisner

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for this ARC eBook in exchange for my honest opinions.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I felt it said some important things, and featured representation that's needed for so many marginalized groups in today's world, and that we're now thankfully seeing so much more of.

Once the book picked up steam, I found it to be a really entertaining story... with a very interesting element that comes into play. (I didn't read the summary. I rarely do.) So, going in blind was a fun experience.

My only critiques concern its length, The first half of the book sets us up for the second half. I don't know exactly what it was... Maybe it just felt too stretched out for me.

I feel like there's an amazing 200 page novel here.
But it comes in at 336 pages.
And I felt those 136 pages.

Beyond that, there's a great story here. One that I'm beyond thrilled exists for the teens and young adults of today.

I'd have been so thrilled with a book like this when I was coming up (and coming out) in the mid-90's...

All the queer horror that we've seen emerge, just within the last five years, is truly special.
And important.

4 / 5

An old story with a new twist.
Two friends, exes, go on a road trip. Car breaks down and they get stuck in a small town on the way. While there they are hunted and attacked.
We get the story from the perspective of both Max and Erin, so we get to know both of them through their own thoughts allowing us to understand their motivations, feelings, and actions from beginning to end.
Both of our leads are relatable characters even if Max was less likable in my opinion—I’m sure others will think the opposite.
The book had a good set up to the story and good character development so that you were invested in the two mains. At first the locals are only a little bit odd, telling tales and either being overly friendly or just plain mean, but as is expected this spirals out of control and Max and Erin enter into the longest night of their lives.
My biggest issue with this book was the end. I understand why it went on as long as it did after the events of the night, but that just isn’t what I look for in horror stories like this one.

This debut story was incredible; the social elements woven throughout the subplot were both thought-provoking and poignant. It was a much heavier read than I expected with a YA-Horror novel, yet it was executed perfectly. I found myself getting attached to both Max and Erin, feeling worried for them, excited for them, and hopeful for them - the author did an excellent job of making these characters realistic, and full of emotion and depth.

This was a debut book by this author, and after reading this they're DEFINITELY on my radar - I can't wait to read more!

Definitely recommend.


Thank you to NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book was *chefs kiss* 🤌🏻
I really have no notes besides I wanted a slightly different ending. The story had me hooked from the very beginning and what a rollercoaster of emotions it was ! I can’t wait to read more by this author.
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FYI: on a 5-point scale I assign stars based on my assessment of what the book needs in the way of improvements:
*5 Stars ~ Nothing at all. Chefs kiss. No notes.
*4 Stars ~ It could use some slight adjustments here and there but pretty solid overall.
*3 Stars ~ Adjustments need to be made and rewriting needs to be done. Good but could be a lot better. I read it once and don’t need to do it again.
*2 Stars ~ This book needs a lot of work. Whether it be rewriting the plot, characters, style or ending. Something or everything needs to be changed.
*1 Star ~ Dumpster fire

This one was truly horrifying and impossible to put down. Glad to have read it during the season I did and before it is published. Definitely recommend this!

This was spooky and scary and heartbreaking at points. I don’t know what it was missing but I just wanted MORE. I wanted to understand the monster more, I wanted something a little more satisfying as far as backstories went. It was a good read, it just wasn’t as engaging as I had hoped.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an arc. Terrifying (just in time for Halloween) and not just because of the monster. I need MORE of these characters and their thoughts. It was so powerful reading a trans story about survival.
This book came at a perfect time for me.

Old Wounds by Logan-Ashley Kisner
ARC via Netgalley
3/5

I love reading about topics I won't ever experience because, even if it's fiction, there's still enough to help me with just being a more understanding person, whatever the situation/lifestyle/mindset is.

Having said that, I enjoyed Old Wounds, however there was one thing that just really frustrated me with the book and kept me from possibly enjoying it more. I don't know if this is a me thing due to being unable to understand fully the lives of Max and Erin and everything they went through in their lives. Max was almost insufferable at times, making it very hard to like him. Don't get me wrong, I don't have to like a character to enjoy the story, but he was just so frustrating! Is it likely due to things you find out about as the story goes on? Absolutely without a doubt. However, the way he treated Erin and the jealousy towards her really bothered me. Again, this may be due to my lack of understanding, but it made me dislike him some when I was supposed to feel sympathy. I did at times; his mom and her boyfriend were horrible. There were times I wanted to hug him. But there were moments where I just wanted to shake him and yell that it's not a competition.

Erin, however. Oh, I adored her. She was bad ass even when she was scared. She was put through hell and was ready to fight the entire time. She was a bloody vengeful goddess. She also stood by Max even when he vanished from her life, and still cared about him. I. Loved Her.

One thing I did appreciate with this, is that it was a trans horror book but also it was just a horror book. It wasn't pushy, it wasn't suffocating, and it wasn't hate-filled like I feel can happen. This was just a horror book about two people who happen to be trans, and that isn't shoved in your face but is part of the story - if a Cryptid kills females, how does that work when a person is trans? Nonbinary? What will it hunt? That was such a clever idea, one I've never thought of or come across, and I had a lot of fun with what Kisner did with that.

I really did enjoy this, but I think Max's attitude just frustrated me a lot to where moments I found myself wanting to just move on and get more to Erin.

Read if you like: Cryptids and monsters, trans horror, a kick butt strong female, gruesome comeuppance

I was really excited about the premise of this book, but was pretty let down in the actual execution of it. The whole first 40% of the book was just back story and making sure the readers understood the dynamics of being transgender. The rest of the story was just thrown together about halfway through, and by that point, I was just exhausted by all of the over explained background.

Rather than “show, don’t tell” - this whole novel was just telling.

Thank you, #NetGalley and #DelaCortePress, for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was a fun, creepy read where the human villains were worse than the monster. I liked and felt for both leads. This wasn't exactly a happy book, but it was suspenseful and the trans element really added an interesting twist to the monster's hunt.

I read an ARC of this book from NetGalley. All comments are my own.