Thanks to Usborne for sending an early copy of this to my library for review!

Erin and Max are exes, trying to escape their town in Ohio after graduation due to the anti-trans laws in their state. When they end up stranded in a small town in Kentucky, one of them is going to be offered as a sacrifice to the local monster. The thing is, the locals need a female for the sacrifice. For Erin and Max, the question becomes: how do monsters consider gender?

This book comes out in September, and fall/spooky time will be the perfect time to read it. If you enjoy stories with cryptids and spooky small town legends, this checks all of those boxes. Though the beginning is a bit slow, once you get to that small town, the book is nearly impossible to put down. Kisner paces the chase so well that you are going to be desperate to see what happens to Erin and Max.

There is quite a bit of telling at the beginning of this, but I think it's necessary to understand Max and Erin's backstory, which factors in a lot as they are fighting to survive. I will say, be wary of the trigger warnings included at the beginning of this book, because in addition to the horror aspects, Kisner deals with a lot of heavy issues surrounding trans teens. All well done, but be wary if that's something you might not be in the mindset for it.

All in all, definitely keep this horror in mind when it comes out this fall!