How on earth did I let this one sit on my TBR pile from February all the way to July? Unforgivable. Adam Cesare’s latest offering marks his first foray into young adult horror fiction and has sparked a lot of discussions about what that label means, so let’s put a few things right at the top to avoid seeing the words “young adult” and subsequently dropping Cesare’s (arguably) best book like a hot potato.
Many people, this list formerly including myself, assume that the gore they signed up for when they chose a horror book will be PG-13’d in a young adult book. Not so. Cesare does some truly horrifying things to some of the characters in this book that wouldn’t be out of place in any of his other works that are not marketed toward younger readers. Misconception number two, if you like gritty language in your horror, this book may be a little too toned down for you. Again, absolutely not true. Adam Cesare has no fucks to give because he threw them all into Clown in a Cornfield just for you.
What makes this a young adult novel is the focus on a teenage cast, primarily on Quinn Maybrook, a Philadelphia transplant now living in Kettle Springs to help her and her father move on after the death of her mother. A few things to note here. Society has the tendency to label junkies as losers, many times books and movies follow suit. Adam gives us a very personal, but not excessive narrative showing the steps that turned Quinn’s mother from a person who had an accident and would really rather not have any pain pills to someone who becomes dependent to an overdose victim. It is positively heartbreaking in its simplicity and honesty, and though it only takes up a few of the 352 pages this book bolsters, it really stuck with me.
Early on Cesare makes it clear that the mother’s death derailed the father’s life even more than Quinn’s and that she is shouldering bigger responsibilities than should fall on a teenager. This is set up beautifully, but if I was left with one complaint I would’ve liked to have seen a little more payoff for the masterful building Cesare does early on with these elements. Still, it serves to create a main character we invest in and root for from page one.
I’d leave most of the elements of how Frendo the clown figures into the story for the reader to discover. Suffice it to say, it all lends a pretty unique element to the way this story goes about fitting into the slasher genre. There are some things you may guess at early on, but I’d wager there’ll be others that throw you for a loop. Here’s the lovely part though. Even if you’re that person that can’t be surprised, sees every twist coming (I am decidedly not), I can all but guarantee you a fun, fast-paced time with this book.
Having Harper Collins promoting your book doesn’t hurt, but I don’t intend to act surprised if this title does big things for Mr. Cesare. Perhaps some well-deserved notoriety and a movie deal? I can highly recommend this book to fans of slasher horror and well-developed kick-ass female leads. Again, please don’t let that YA label keep you away from this stellar read.

I was given a digital copy through Edelweiss for review consideration.