Today I am so excited to be reviewing Camp Death by Jim Ody and published by Question Mark Press. Thank you to Zoe-Lee from https://zooloosbookdiary.co.uk/zooloos-blog-tours for organising this tour and to Jim Ody and Question Mark Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.
Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Camp-Death-Question-Mark-Horror-ebook/dp/B0999JVT1F
Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/Camp-Death-Question-Mark-Horror-ebook/dp/B0999JVT1F/
Synopsis
The place had a gruesome past that nobody wanted to talk about…
Camp Deathe is now a great place to spend the summer. Ritchie soon finds a group of outsiders like himself. Teenagers who ignore the organised activities, and bunk off in the old abandoned cabins deep in the woods. The cabins that have a history.
The campfire monster stories were meant to just scare them. Nobody expected them to come true. Then one of the teenagers disappears in the middle of the night.
Something is watching them. It hides in the woods and hunts at night.
Ritchie will have to uncover the secrets of the camp and understand his own problems in order to survive.
Camp Death is Book 1 in a new series brought to you by Question Mark Horror. For fans of Point Horror, Christopher Pike & Nicholas Pine.
Check out Book 2 – Ouija by Zoe-Lee O’Farrell
My Thoughts
A short while ago I kicked off this tour reviewing Ouija and now it’s time to help close it with my review Camp Death.
I must say that if you have teens who love horror but aren’t ready for the full-on adult novels yet, this pairing is a must for them. Or maybe you are an adult who likes milder horror or a bit of nostalgia. Either way, these books are sure to give you some goosebumps and scares along the way and a whole heap of fun.
Camp Death cleverly uses the common horror trope of a Summer camp but unusually in the UK and the parents are close by. Like most Summer camp stories, there are stories about monsters and murder in years gone by and this time it’s the tale of a ravenous, murderous beast haunting the woodlands looking for its next feed. I love how the intensity is built by using drunken, campfire stories, confused teen tension and then snippets of what may (or may not) be the beast’s noises, footsteps, breathing etc without actually describing what he looks like. I love horror that plays on the imagination. I’m not normally scared by things I can see but the chills are formed here from what we cannot see which certainly raised the goosebumps on my arms.
The camp itself is really atmospheric and a classic setting for a teen horror. I loved the mystery around the previous events and I think this is likely to portray holiday camps in a realistic light and what teens may get up to when out from under the watchful eyes of their parents. When the night falls the camp becomes a different place and small but vivid descriptions change the whole atmosphere of the setting perfectly.
Teens are complex creatures and in a short time Ody manages to sensitively portray a lot of teen angst and the different way in which it manifests. As an adult it’s easy to gloss over a lot of the feeling and thoughts faced by teens or to label then arrogant, cocky etc but thinking back to that age and it’s the most confusing time. Ody captures that well.
Very different from Ouija but equally as entertaining, nostalgic and creepy, Camp Death is a great throwback to teen horror such as Point Horror etc. and such a fun read. Highly recommend but I’m off to read something fluffy now to shake off the heebie jeebies.
Author Bio – Jim Ody
Jim writes dark psychological/thrillers, Horror and YA books that have endings you won’t see coming, and favours stories packed with wit. He has written over a dozen novels and many more short-stories spanning many genres.
Jim has a very strange sense of humour and is often considered a little odd. When not writing he will be found playing the drums, watching football and eating chocolate. He lives with his long-suffering wife, three beautiful children and two indignant cats in Swindon, Wiltshire UK.
Follow him at:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/JimOdyAuthor
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jimodyauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Jim_Ody_Author
Amazon : https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jim-Ody/e/B019A6AMSY/
Herding Cats 