There's just something about an abandoned amusement park that makes it the perfect backdrop for a horror novel, & Kiersten White truly hit it out of the park with Hide!

The initial setup does require a little bit of patience - there's a pretty large cast of characters (14 competitors alone including Mack, the MC), & while I was initially worried about keeping track of them all, White did a really fantastic job of making sure each had their own, distinct personalities. There was some great character development for such a big cast & a shorter book, you really came to care about (& loathe) a handful of them by the end - Mack, Ava, LeGrand & Brandon (my favorite) were truly the stars of the show.

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I won't even lie, I actually teared up a little bit when Brandon died, & I just thought Mack's entire backstory with her dad & sister was so, so effective. Ava's was definitely effective, too, but I wish we got a little more out of hers, especially since she was one of our two queer MCs!

This isn't the type of book that grants you answers right away - you're kept in the dark as to what's going on for a majority of the time & there aren't any actual reveals as to what's really happening until you're over halfway in, but I found that to be incredibly effective. Trust me when I say it's worth the amount of times you'll be asking yourself "what the hell is going on?"

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I mean, a Minotaur?! I sure as hell didn't see that coming, I knew they were being eaten by something but a Minotaur?! I'm not well versed in Greek mythology though, so take that for what you will, lol. Rich white people making sacrifices to keep their wealth & prosperity in tact just really isn't far off from some of the vibes we've got going on in 2022, that's for sure.

& while this does go into full-blown horror territory, I wouldn't say this is too scary by any means for those who're hesitant to pick up the genre - there is some gore though, so fair warning! I would've liked just a little bit more out of the ending, but all in all I was really satisfied with how everything wrapped up.

This was highly original & I just had so much fun reading it from start to finish - I've really got to make it a priority to dive into White's backlist, & I can't wait to see what she comes up with next! Thank you so much Kiersten White, NetGalley, & Del Rey Books for providing an ARC in exchange for a honest review!