This was a great book to read leading up to Halloween (aka Spooky Season). It was also a fast read, so I enjoyed being able to knock this off my TBR in less than a day. Although some YA books can be rather frustrating with certain aspects, this book didn't make it seem that way. The characters were interesting, and you knew they were still figuring out things.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the author for the arc of deadstream! Totally up my alley with the multimedia and found footage vibe, This is one for the books with suspense, horror and a dash of mystery. 5 ⭐️ no doubt.

The premise of this book sounded promising (if not somewhat similar to the movie 'One Missed Call' or 'Pulse') but I found myself kind of struggling to get through it because of the very confusing way in which it was written. The point of view was sometimes first-person, sometimes third-person -- sometimes the audience was in the driver's seat and it left me fighting to keep up with the plot.

All of it also felt very rushed as the book takes place in the span of just a few days, not giving time for the main character to really build up that sense of fear and paranoia that I think perhaps they should have been feeling. I did finish reading the book, and the epilogue at the end also just felt lackluster.

In all, I think I'd pass on reading something by this author again if this is their writing style.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Deadstream by Mar Romasco-Moore is a third person-POV mixed format YA Queer horror about social media, trauma, and how debilitating PTSD can be. Teresa is still recovering from a traumatic car accident that resulted in the death of her best friend, refusing to leave her room and using the internet as her main point of contact with the outside world. When a shadowy figure appears in a popular steamer’s video and the streamer later goes live in an unresponsive state, Teresa knows something weird is going on even if everyone else thinks it’s a hoax.

Due to the pacing and the use of group chats, DMs and Reddit posts, this is quite a fast read. It never feels confusing as everything is formatted exactly how it would be on the website or on most devices, but does move at a fairly brisk pace, which is great if you’re not a fan of slower reads or need something to read in a couple hours. All of the pieces slow together and it does follow a fairly logical flow while leaving a bit of mystery for the reader to discover along with Teresa or having their suspicions confirmed or denied.

One thing I really liked is how we open the story with Teresa still in the Questioning phase of their gender identity. It’s not a focus of the novel, but we do get her considering what feels good and why it does but she’s also not entirely ready yet to be they/them offline. This reflected the experiences of several friends of mine and my own, as there is something that feels safer about being they/them online rather than in public even if the culture in many places is moving in a positive direction. Teresa’s crush and closest friend, Ozma, is a transgirl who helps Teresa during some of the more difficult parts of the story, but also is so happily herself that it does make Teresa think about her gender more.

The fact that so many people assumed Brick, the streamer who went catatonic at the beginning of the book, was making things up and then accused Teresa of making things up felt extremely realistic to me. There are so many people online who will create increasingly bizarre situations in order to get clout and attention and some of them veer into territory that I think most of us can agree shouldn’t really be veered into (such as pretending to be stalked). The inability to look away from Brick’s streams despite the fact he is obviously unwell and the hate Teresa got for doxxing Brick (even if she had good intentions) also felt like something I have seen a million times before in real life so I would have had a hard time believing the story if they weren’t there. It’s probably one of the more realistic depictions of the dark side of the internet I’ve seen that goes beyond the fear mongering that does seem to dominate these kinds of stories.

Content warning for death threats and mentions of suicide

I would recommend this to fans of YA horror looking for a story about social media and streamers and readers who grew up watching streamers and are looking for a horror story

I really enjoyed how tense this was and how it blended paranormal and online streaming to tell a horror story. I really enjoyed the overall concept and how everything worked with the streaming element. The characters worked with the story and was engaged with how strong the tension was in this atmosphere. I was invested in what Mar Romasco-Moore wrote and glad I got to read this.

Struggling with grief over the loss of her best friend, Teresa finds herself unable to leave her room. The only thing she finds comfort in are her online friends and streaming. One night while watching another streamer she, along with the other viewers, see a shadowy figure in the background. Soon that streamer starts acting strangely until he dies on screen. Teresa then sets off to figure out what the mysterious shadow figure really is as it starts appearing in with other streamers.

This book was so fast paced. It pulled me in and I didn't want to put it down. You get the chats, the texts, the chat groups, forum articles so things can move quickly. Having her experiencing agoraphobia and seeing the shadow appear in the doorway gave off just enough creepiness. The other horror imagery - ants crawling over her, maggots, etc I felt were just enough horror for a YA novel and didn't take it too far. There was another scene that had me gasp- I just wasn't expecting what happened to that driver.. Exploring her grief and moving forward without making a huge jump, showing it takes time to heal I think. was handled really well.

Thank you to NetGalley, Mar Romasco-Moore and Penguin for the ARC!

This was such a great, twisted, dark and crazy unique book! Incredibly well written and like nothing I’ve read previous! Amazing job!

2.5

This had so much potential but I just felt like the writing was bad. I also felt like I had no reason to care about what happened in this book.

Y'all, this was BAD.

When Teresa's best friend Becks is killed in a car accident, Teresa becomes a shut-in, staying in her bedroom all the time, watching livestreams, building her social media channels, and doing a bit of livestreaming herself. When livestreamers start to become catatonic and die, she suspects a paranormal entity is at work...

This had potential, but the execution wasn't that great. I wasn't crazy about a lot of the characters, especially how so many of them were ~LGBT~. Honestly, that's probably realistic, considering how trendy that is nowadays... but it got old really quickly.

I also didn't like the whole romantic relationship with Ozma at the end... like, what?! I thought they were just good friends. Ozma wasn't a replacement for Becks, but that friendship allowed Teresa to see that her life could go on without her best friend. All of a sudden, when Teresa and Ozma met in real life, they were making out and in love? Seriously?! That was just gratuitous and stupid.

Overall, this one was a stinker! Hard pass. You can find much better stories elsewhere.

NetGalley provided a free copy of this book in exchange for a review.

Deadstream by Mar Romasco- Moore
Received as arc. Teresa/ Replay a young woman isolating herself in her room after a car accident. Living on her computer in streaming chat rooms. She and others see another chat guy die online. Now the stalking is happening to her but it is all via the chat room page camera. Now she has to stop this cyber killer from getting her and others. But breaking out of her self created digital and physical prison of a room to safe herself.

Quick nobody move!

Following a tragedy Teresa has locked herself away in her room with her streaming being the only connection to the outside world and when one of the most popular creators stages an elaborate stunt with an invisible door and a grinning ghost the views don’t stop pouring in but is it really all for show or is something more sinister at play?

This was an interesting read. For starters I was a big fan of The Ring growing up so a book that takes some of that and brings it into a world where we all have access to a screen was very exciting but the overall execution of this left a lot to be desired.

I think the characters were ok we have our typical group of popular streamers and some not so familiar all vying for the same attention and going to great lengths to get it which couldn’t be more accurate to what we see every day with Teresa on the cusp of something great but burdened by her anxiety and PTSD following an accident. I think the portrayal of that struggle was very authentic and helped further isolate a character that was at the same time reaching out in the only way they knew how for support and real human connection.

My biggest struggle was the plot , while the mental health aspect worked the actual conflict and villain so to speak was rather flat. I think the scare of it was lost a bit when you have something be so stationary and once we get through to this bigger reveal the solution is something I will leave out for spoilers sake but has always been , at least in my experience with social media, a giant joke which sort of made it more comical than impactful which I don’t know was the overall intent.

This is a tricky one because the idea is perfect and one I think would make for a great new backdrop for horror if done right and this just missed the mark.

**special thanks to the publishers and netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**

The cover for Deadstream instantly caught my eye and made me want to read this book - it's so spooky and ominous. Thankfully, the story within was just as amazing as the cover - if not better! I loved the format of this book; it was filled with reddit-like threads and showed what chat was saying as certain characters live-streamed, and I thought that was such a unique part of this book that really aided the story a lot. If you are into gaming, live-streaming, and YouTube, I HIGHLY recommend this book! It tipped it's cap to mainstream games throughout the novel, and I thought that was such a fun touch, kind of like little easter eggs for the reader to find. Such a fun and chilling read!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher

Deadstream was a great book for a spooky Halloween read, I couldn’t put it down I flipped those pages so quickly I needed to know what was happening. The story was fast paced and I enjoyed the mix media as it made you feel as you were online with the characters. I thought the supernatural elements were done well and it was thought provoking. I had a great time!

This book was SO GOOD! It’s exactly what I’ve been waiting for from YA horror. It disturbed me. I even cried. But it also has a message of hope and a main character who’s so relatable. Plus, it features a queer plot with a healing ending. DEADSTREAM lit. me. up. 10/10 recommend. Anyone saying differently? They’re wrong.

I really enjoyed this book. It did a good job of building tension and suspense, and the characters felt authentic. As someone that frequents places like Twitch and Reddit, the book's versions of those types of text felt genuine, and like something I would read in chat and on a message board. I think this book will have a great amount of appeal because of that. We often pin our kids as not being readers in the traditional sense, but I think this texts use of different styles of text will appeal to many young readers. This book also gave me House of Leaves vibes, from the use of darkness and hallways and the uncertainty within.

I personally had a bit of trouble getting into this book due to the writing style; chat-room heavy books don’t personally resonate with me, they feel a bit dated somehow. However, they may resonate with other readers.

ARC Review: Deadstream by Mar Romasco-Moore

This review is 100% my own and is my honest opinion.

I really tried to love this book but i couldn't. The blurb drew me in and I was so excited but unfortunately that didn't last.

I was not a fan of the format at all, I had contacted support about the format to discover that the book was actually supposed to be like that. I decided to move past this and after reading halfway I had to DNF the book.

The premise of this book had me so intrigued but with the writing and format feeling juvenile it put me off completely.

However, I did like the themes that were explored and how the author portrayed them as well as the backstory we were given.

I hope there are people out there that love this book but unfortunately it just wasn't 't for me.

I gave an average rating. I do think this is more for early highschoolers. The chats and time conversations would definitely catch the attention of a young teens but I am in my late 20s so I don’t really connect with YA books. If you’re into YA you’ll like it! Thank you for the ARC read!

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. The base idea of the story was good. It felt very modern, and I feel like a lot of people in the 13/14 and up group would understand it. I wish there were trigger warnings at the beginning. I understand that the synopsis states the mc survived an accident in which their friend did not. I feel there should still be a trigger warning before starting the first page, just as a reminder. The writing itself was a little hard to follow. It went from "I" statements to "we" and then to "she/they" all in the same paragraphs, and it was all referring to the mc. Having an ARC means it isn't fully formatted yet so, hopefully that is something that can be clarified.

As for the story itself. This was a journey. There were a few predictable twists and turns and a few not so predictable. The story starts with the mc being alone and full of anxiety. As it progresses, it's obvious they are sinking further into their mental illness until they catch an event on livestream that seems like a joke. Being alone means the mc notices many small details about the things they encounter. Once they figure out the pattern, the mc starts doing research better than an FBI friend. They accidentally on purpose doxx another streamer, and that is where the adventure starts to take off. It leads them through some self-realization and self-preservation. I liked that it was a new take on an old story, but it felt like it was a bit rushed in some parts. The way things were laid out in the beginning with details and information didn't continue through once it was just beyond halfway. I felt the beginning was a little slow to build, but that isn't necessarily bad. When I got to the 75/80% mark, it felt almost as if I had just read 2 different books with a similar theme. I loved the mystery and suspense of finding out who the ghost was and the interactions he had with the mc, but at times, it felt like the chat sections were just an interruption. I would have liked to see more building of Kyle's character since he was an important part to the story. Overall, this was a really good read. It isn't something I normally pick up (YA) but it was worth it. I think with formatting tweaks and a bit more consistency on point of view, it would be a great book.

A spooky take on the connections we create on the web and the pieces of ourselves that become echoes after we're gone. This novel has great LGBTQA+ rep and explores agoraphobia, anxiety, and grief.