This book is completely nuts—in the best way possible. It's called The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre, and yes, it's exactly what it sounds like. Think: a bloody slasher movie, but set in a retirement home, and the main characters are sassy old people who absolutely do not have time for anyone's nonsense.
You open it expecting a cozy, maybe-creepy little mystery in a quiet retirement home and BAM-you're hit with chaos, carnage, and senior citizens who could probably take you in a fight.

The main character, Rose, is a savage old lady who's got more sass than your great aunt after two glasses of sherry. People around her start dying-violently—and instead of waiting for the police or, you know, dying of natural causes like a normal retiree, she decides to Nancy Drew her way through a full-blown geriatric murder spree. And she does it in slippers.

Basically, if you ever wished your grandma starred in a slasher film, this book is for you.

This was a thrilling and tense slasher novel with satisfyingly thought-provoking themes of aging, independence, parental guilt, looming fears of Alzheimer’s and dementia and the invisibility of the elderly. And in typical well-crafted slasher fashion, glimpses of humor, satire and heartbreak.

Rose and her friends are making the best of their twilight years choosing sheltered independence in a retirement community. Until people start dying in curious “accidents.” This is Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple in a Final Destination movie.

Fracassi gives us the same sympathetic and finely drawn characters as his terrifying novel Boys in the Valley, while, again, making us truly see those people that society has shelved, be it orphans or our elderly parents and grandparents.

But Autumn Springs is also a slasher, with all the blood, violence and snarky humor you’d expect. Rose is a gotdam pip, who we all hope to be in our 80s.

This was a dark yet FUN read. Well-crafted, introspective yet entertaining, clever and sad yet honest and hopeful.

This book was so spectacular that I had to kill one of my writing ideas. It was filled with the necessary heart and soul of a story set in a retirement community. I loved nearly every minute of it, with my only qualm being that the book could have been even punchier with about 50 fewer pages. All in all, so thankful for the opportunity to read it before release, and would love a physical copy to own if they can send me one.

Mr. Fracassi… you have officially been added to my favorite horror author list. I will forever read anything you write.

I gotta tell you guys, I’ve turned into a senior thriller and horror lover. Something about old people in novels just fascinate me. They always have the best dialogue!

Someone is terrorizing the nice community of the Autumn Springs Retirement Home. One by one, they are being killed off to look like natural deaths or accidents that are common with seniors.

Miller, her male friend, and Rose team up to find out just what’s going on. Could this be an inside job?

Rose is a character you LOVE to root for! I loved her ability to be a compassionate and a strong woman. She is a warrior! She’s a phenomenal character. In fact, she is now one of my favorites.

Don’t let the title fool you, it’s definitely on the thriller side versus horror. Thriller lovers will enjoy this one too! This release is just in time for spooky season! Add it to your TBR!

5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Expected publication date - 9/30/25

This book has everything I love in a slasher: a creative twist on the genre, an endearing cast of meddling kids (at least kids at heart), a badass final girl, poignant commentary, and stunningly creative narration.

Fracassi seamlessly cycles between chilling kills, heartfelt character development, and brilliant mystery writing for a story that kept me glued to the pages. The cast of characters feels so incredibly real, which makes their fates (as characters in a slasher) even more hard hitting and evocative. Rose DuBois feels like someone I have met before, maybe a grandmother's friend or a distant aunt, and the commentary that Fracassi makes through her on mortality, aging, family, and death comes across more like a conversation with a friend than a lecture. All in all, Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre is a stroke of genius and an electric read.

“For the residents of Autumn Springs Retirement Home, death isn’t a horror movie. It’s an inevitability. Sometimes, it’s even a comfort. Sometimes, it’s a friend.”

Five star horror books don’t come around often for me, but neither do nearly 80-year-old final girls – and Rose DuBois is one for the books.
Rose lives with her friends at the Autumn Springs Retirement Home. It’s a comfortable place, where everyone has their own apartments and community space, filling their time with movie nights, puzzles, cards and dinners on repeat until it’s time to move over to the medical center for more around-the-clock care.

There is little fanfare when Rose’s friend dies alone in her apartment; after all, the coroner is a frequent visitor to Autumn Springs. But then, when the deaths keep happening in more shocking ways, Rose and her friends have to wonder: Is someone - or something - stalking the elderly residents of their retirement home? And when the police keep blowing off their concerns with an ageist shrug, Rose knows it’s up to her to find out who has been picking these seniors off in ever gorier ways.

“The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre” by Philip Fracassi has a lot of heart (particularly for a book with the word “massacre” in the title). Rose and her gang of friends are smart and gutsy without appearing like caricatures. And a dual POV puts us in the mind of a truly creepy villain who kept me guessing until the very end.

If the “Thursday Murder Club” skipped through Bangor, Maine, the result would be this gem of a book, unsurprisingly published by Tor. Don’t miss it when it publishes Sept. 29.

Unfortunately I had to DNF. I'm sure it's a fantastic read and I loved the idea of the premise, but I found it too close to home and depressing to get past the initial 15%. My books are to escape and hearing the inner thoughts of the elderly as they die, the dementia, the sad loneliness just was too much for me to continue.

3.75 stars

When I saw that Philip Fracassi had a new release this year, I HAD to get my hands on an ARC. So thank you to Netgalley, for the ARC. Much appreciated!

The title of this novel says it all. This is a slasher set in a retirement home. Rose Dubois is living out her golden years in the Autumn Springs retirement community. It has everything one would need for each stage of our latter years. There aren't too many surprises at this stage in life, but when Rose's friends start dying in close succession, she becomes more than a little suspicious. Rose is determined to find out what is happening to her friends, and isn't going to accept the excuses that "these things happen at this age".

I love a novel that has a more mature character. Rose Dubois may be older, but she is still sharp and a bit feisty. While I enjoyed this book, I wasn't completely blown away. I probably have a higher standard for this author, especially after reading A child alone with strangers. This felt a bit more like horror-lite, or that Fracassi was trying to expand his audience by writing something that was a bit more palatable to the mainstream readers. I felt like he was holding back, and I wanted that extra spark. It's not a bad story....but I know he has more to give.

At face value this is a ‘cozy’ slasher with a side of gore. Reading between the lines, it’s a commentary on how society views the elderly as dispensable. Fracassi brings humanity to all of his characters regardless of whatever vicissitudes of life they are suffering. It was an enjoyable read all the way through and Rose made for one of the better written ‘Final Girl’ characters I’ve read.


Thanks to NetGalley and Tor for the opportunity to read this eARC!

I'd like to think that in ten or twelve years' time, someone is going to make The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre into a movie starring Jamie Lee Curtis as Rose DuBois. Because, well … duh. Don't get me wrong, I'd be perfectly content if it happened sooner, but Curtis is still a decade+ too young and looks incredibly good for her age, so there's going to need to be some heavy duty makeup involved. And, I mean, you should really probably just call me, John Carpenter, because we've got lots of details to discuss. You've got my number.

Anyway, this was fun. It's got lots of spunky senior citizens, some murdery bits, a tiny bit of gore, some romance, some humor, a few witches, and just a tiny, tiny hint of the supernatural. It's suspenseful and funny and sad and heartwarming, and the final girl is pretty badass for being a septuagenarian. It perhaps requires some suspension of disbelief, which isn't entirely surprising considering the subject matter, but it's certainly entertaining. The mystery (who is doing all the killing?) is well-done and I had no idea who the Big Bad was until near the end. I did have a couple of suspects in mind and I'm actually a little disappointed that it wasn't one of the two (either would have made for a more shocking big reveal than the actual killer did for … reasons), but overall I have no real complaints.

I do wonder where the LSD in this story came from, though. I have a … friend (he lives in Canada, you wouldn't know him) who has only seen it on blotter paper for years but somehow unsuspecting senior citizens are just casually getting (what are presumably) microdots?? My Canadian friend is super envious and would very much like to know the name of your drug dealer, Philip Fracassi. I, uh ... he might be on the phone with John Carpenter when you call, so just leave a message if necessary and he'll get right back to you.**

Ahem.

Anyway, there's not really much more to say about this one. It's a slasher story filled with elderly people and it's super entertaining. If you've ever watched Halloween or Friday the 13th and thought “this movie would be a lot more enjoyable if Bea Arthur were the final girl,” this is almost certainly the book for you.

4.25 stars, rounded down.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Tor Nightfire for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review. Its expected publication date is September 30, 2025.


** This whole paragraph is a joke. Really. Please don't call the DEA on me.

Wow! Must say I really enjoyed this novel! It’s very unique or different in the fact that it takes place in a retirement home, a cast of very active, addicting, and sweet older people, and the fact whether they are major or minor characters, they are all deep, well written, have back stories, and you get to fall in love with them. The pacing is good. I never was bored and I had to stop myself several times from rushing the book or reading too fast because I was just excited for what came next. Great twists and turns, and kept you wondering who was the villain…the ending was not predictable at all and took me by surprise. I love how the author written the cast of older people…they are active, crazy, sweet, and all in between. 5 of 5 stars and I’d love to read this again…that’s rare.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ — A Gory, Glorious Slasher With Heart, Humor, and a Retirement Home Full of Suspects

The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre by Philip Fracassi is a wickedly entertaining blend of slasher horror, dark comedy, and whodunit mystery—all set in the most unlikely of battlegrounds: a retirement home.

Rose DuBois is not your average final girl. She's in her late 70s, quick with a comeback, and sharper than most people half her age. When fellow residents at Autumn Springs start dropping dead, Rose and her best friend Miller dig into the mystery with all the grit and sass of seasoned sleuths.

This book felt like Scream met Murder, She Wrote, but set in a retirement home where nearly every character is over 65—and it works so well. The kills are creative, the pacing is tight, and the banter is genuinely funny. I did eventually guess who the killer was, but it took me a lot longer than usual—which speaks to how well the tension and misdirection were handled.

I haven’t found a book to get me out of a reading slump since I read The September House last year, but this one did the trick. I’m finding that I truly love stories with unconventional lead characters, and this book lives up to that expectation. Every character felt fully fleshed out, and I even found myself mentally casting them. (Sam Elliott would make a perfect Miller.) This book is now one of my top favorites.

What really stands out, though, is the heart. Amid all the carnage, Fracassi delivers poignant moments of friendship, aging, and resilience. Rose and Miller’s dynamic is the beating heart of the story, and by the end, I was cheering for Rose as if she were family.

If you're a fan of slasher films, cozy mysteries with a sharp edge, or just want something wildly original, this one's for you. Rose DuBois deserves to be a horror icon.

I never knew I needed a slasher book where the main character is an elderly lady but damn… this one was a wild ride and I absolutely loved it! This is my third book by this author and certainly won’t be my last.

Horror with a hearttttttt!!! How many times do I need to say it?? It’s the best!! Give me a cast of characters to root for, in this case a group of tenacious elderly folks, and give them complex and compelling personalities. THEN put them through Hell. But don’t let that Hell crush their spirits. No, in fact let the Hell strengthen their resolve to fight like hell and live. Could a lady ask for better?

This book was fun, tense, heartbreaking, scary, graphic, and WILD. My heart was racing, I was clutching my pearls, and I often felt like I was living the nightmare with these folks. I loved Rose so much, I could feel her as though she were a tangibly real person in my actual life. I also can say from nearly a decade of experience working in a facility much like Autumn Springs that the author knows his stuff and captured the personalities and spirits of dozens of people I had the privilege of loving and caring for over the years. Solid work. Can’t wait for everyone to read it!

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor for providing a review copy in exchange for my honest opinions.

5 stars

Omg!!! This is exactly the trope I’m always o. The hunt for. Senior horror hahaha
They are so hard to find, and even harder to find good ones. Fracassi knocked this out of the park! I loved the mystery/horror blend. The lovable characters, and that I was guessing until the end!
*chef’s kiss*

Rose DuBois is the best final girl my pea brain could have ever imagined, and if you don't believe me- hit me up after you've tried this one for yourself. Rose and her friends are residents at The Autumn Springs Retirement Home when suddenly, there is an overwhelming amount of patient deaths. Miller and Rose decide to investigate the goings on, questioning the detective on the case and other members of the home. For a place intended to allow you to live out the remainder of your golden years in peace, this one certainly does a great job of painting a picture of suspense and disquiet. The feeling is in stark contract to the drab walls of the retirement home community in itself, a place where residents are ignored by those who would rather be on their phone or making more money in glamorous jobs elsewhere. I think this book by Fracassi perfectly displayed a real dilemma alongside fear- the very possible reality that our loved ones live their lives and will end up discarded and ignored regardless of status beforehand. The gory tidbits were so fun, and my emotions were so invested and inevitably destroyed because hello, this is a horror novel- a slasher one, at that. Vibes are truly all over the place, and this book is stellar to the extent I'll never erase it from memory. Long live Rose, and thank you so much to Fracassi and Tor Nightfire for the eARC!
#tornightfire #theautumnspringsretirementhomemassacre

More Agatha Christie than Wes Craven, this story has a wonderfully unique premise, lovable characters and a rock solid plot. It’s more mystery than slasher, but it works! Leans more Grady Hendrix than Stephen Graham Jones. Is that enough comparisons? I enjoyed this one a lot. I think SGJ set the bar for slashers so high (in my book, at least), that it’s virtually impossible for anyone to reach that level. However, if you compare it to The Final Girl Support Group, it holds up well. Not my favorite Fracassi entry, but one I’m glad exists and would recommend widely among horror readers.

Slasher + Retirement Home = wild ride.

Fracassi takes the typical slasher trope and drops into a community of seniors who reside at Autumn Springs. And oh boy, it's a crazy good story.

This cast is a far cry from the typical crew you'd find in any other horror novel and you'd never expect the final girl to be the feisty Rose DuBois. This novel shines a light on the lesser seen members of society - the elderly - and brings their struggles front and center. It's a concept that's not explored but the author did a great job bringing those issues to light.

If you're a fan of the traditional slasher tale, check this one out. You'll be pleasantly surprised.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Nightfire for providing me the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Rose DuBois is in her late 70s and is frankly tired of everything but her daughter and her grandson. As a resident of the Autumn Springs Retirement Home, she's seen her fair share of friends pass on. When one friend dies alone in their apartment, she isn't all that concerned; that is until she sees the face of the Retirement Home Director. While the death may look like an accident, the next several in a row are questionable.  With the police refusing to take it seriously (old people die, right), Rose and her surviving friends begin to investigate. The more people that die, the more Rose realizes this isn't an accident and she could be next. 

Admittedly, Rose DuBois isn't your typical final girl, but she is an absolute delight of a character. Author Phillip Fracassi shines with his cast of characters. In the Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre, you'll find three witchy sisters who might be raising a demon, a conspiracy theorist convinced the aliens are finally coming for him, a patient with Alzheimer's waiting for his long dead dog, and a sugar-obsessed man deeply in love with Rose, despite her regular rejections of his advances. Of course, this also means that as the characters you love start to die off, it can get pretty jarring. 

The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre is a quick read, but one that will keep you guessing.  Only you can determine whether or not the ending is satifying for you.

The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre is available September 20, 2025 from Tor Publishing.

Fracassi gives his readers a unique and interesting take on the slasher genre by setting it in a retirement home with a fantastic lead protagonist and final girl in Rose Dubois. The core cast of characters, altogether, really give the book depth with a wide range of sympathetic portrayals of elderly life. The book is quite suspenseful with well written action scenes and inventive deaths (assisted by a standard trope of the genre: the clueless cops). While the main protagonists all have depth and excellent character development, if there is one disappointment in the book, it would be the reveal of who the central villain was in the book as well as the fairly anti-climatic showdown. So while Dubois might rank up there with Sydney, Laurie, and Nancy as some of the best final girls, the villain doesn’t quite ascend to the ranks of Jason, Freddie, Michael, or Ghostface in slasher lore.