Summer Camp for Slasher Victims

De: Matthew Mercer

Narrado por: Marina Craven

Welcome to Camp Safe Woods, a summer camp dedicated to repairing the spirits of those who have faced the unimaginable. Through tailored programs and a supportive community, we empower young hearts to rewrite their stories and unlock the potential for a future unburdened by fear, allowing kids to rediscover joy, hope, and the freedom to embrace life to the fullest.

Annie anticipated a life-altering journey, aiding trauma survivors at her grandfather’s camp as a counselor, but her expectations shattered against a macabre reality. Unveiling the tragic pasts of her fellow counselors and the campers under her care, she stumbles upon a world more chilling than her darkest fears. As the summer descends into a terrifying spiral and the camp’s serenity crumbles, they discover that a killer driven by a sinister secret is lurking among them. While those around her are forced to relive the worst experience of their lives and the camp is turned into a hunting ground, Annie faces a haunting uncertainty—will she fall victim to this deranged killer, or will she defy the odds, emerging with her very own survival story, worthy of a proper inhabitant of Camp Safe Woods.

©2023 Matthew Mercer (P)2024 Matthew Mercer

Disappointed

I was looking forward to a more interesting engagement between the killer and the veteran survivors. Apparently survivors are easier to kill than someone who's never experienced an attack before. There could have been all kinds of cool face offs but nope.... just teen drama before standard slasher set pieces. I would give this author another shot if he does a sequel because the set up isn't half bad, but I think there was a lot of interesting characters whose potential was wasted by focusing on the most boring character of Annie. Kinda reminds me of Twilight, tons of interesting characters and events but we focus on two blocks of wood.

Solid story for Slasher Fans

"Summer Camp for Slasher Victims" had a premise that truly hooked me, promising a thrilling ride, and while it delivered some enjoyable moments, it ultimately fell a bit short of being a truly great read.

The concept of a summer camp specifically designed for those who've survived slasher incidents is brilliant and ripe for both horror and dark humor. The author did a good job of setting the scene and introducing the characters, building a sense of unease and anticipation. However, my main critique lies with the pacing. It felt like it took almost the entire book to really get to the heart of the action. The build-up was extensive, perhaps a little too much so, making the initial chapters feel a bit drawn out.

Once the action finally kicked off, it was intense and engaging, but then, perhaps due to the long lead-in, the resolution felt rather abrupt and quick. After such a prolonged wait for the "slashing" to begin, I was hoping for a more sustained and intricate unraveling of the mystery and peril.

Despite these pacing issues, the writing was solid, and the characters were distinct enough to keep me invested. It's a fun concept that just needed a bit more balance in its execution. If you're looking for a unique take on the slasher genre and don't mind a slow burn with a quick resolution, you might still find this an entertaining read. It was good, but with a few tweaks to the structure, it could have been truly fantastic.

The narrator on the other hand had a pleasant voice and given time I'm sure will do great work but this wasn't it.

wasnt bad

very predictable and the killer had no real motivation. now to fill out the rest of the review to meet the 15 word review policy thing.

Okay

The book itself was super slow in the beginning with no character development, then at the end; it went crazy! We didn’t get a chance to figure out who the killer was.

Gateway Slasher

Thanks to the author, Matthew Mercer, for the free audiobook (I won via the gram)!
Oookay, so I had very different expectations when I saw this cover (5 stars) and read the synopsis. I was thinking this would be an all out bloody, gorey, slasher. However, it's more slasher-lite and teen drama/relationships heavy. SCFSV feels more like a young adult book, which Inoften enjoy. So with some adjustments to my original expectations, I felt this was a solid story. The pacing felt a bit slow going due to so much of the story revolving around getting to know the characters and their trauma versus actively slashing and causing trauma... not to worry, there is some slashing though I felt it wrapped up much too quickly.
Overall, I think this would be great for YA readers interested in getting into slasher books and movies.
The narration was good, though it sort of sounded similar to myself, or most anymore, reading a story out loud. 😁

Good story if you’re just looking for a book just to kill some time.

I really like the story but I feel like the narrator could have done a better job. She definitely tried and got better as the story went on but I can’t over look the number of words she mispronounced. To an avid reader it was like nails on a chalkboard. I’m not sure why these mispronunciations weren’t caught by an editor. I feel that in time and with good direction the narrator will definitely get better.

Inessential fun hampered by poor narration

If you’re a fan of slashers, I’d call this inessential fun. Be aware that, aside from prologue and last ~20% there’s no scare or drama whatsoever. It’s just..people camping. My biggest issue was the narration. The narrator didn’t change the tone of her voice for any character so it was very hard to be immersed in the story. Additionally, there was a constant background hum to the narration. I think this would be a fun but not life-changing read, but I would recommend reading it versus listening to it.

Movie-worthy concept with B level characters and dialogue

Totally a movie worthy concept with B movie level dialogue and character development. I’m not claiming I could do better. The reader can just tell this is an author with a great idea and not a lot of experience making it come together. Lots of characters which made it hard to know who to care about. I felt like I was watching a movie rather than listening to a book. That sounds like it should be a positive but the author moved the characters around like toy figures: he went there and did this. She said this and then did that… it’s not the best writing you’ll ever hear but it’s enjoyable overall. The narrator is sometimes tough to listen to as she mispronounces words on occasion. One example is the word “enveloped” which is consistently mispronounced as the past tense of envelope somehow…

Good story bad narration

The story is what kept me listening. The narration is the worst I’ve heard so far. Every character sounded the same and audio quality was not good. Good story though so I’ll defiantly be buying the book.

Underwhelming narrator

The narrator repeatedly mispronounced common words throughout the story. It was distracting and took away from the story.