I received this book for free from the author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Resthaven by Erik Therme
Published by Thecker Books on April 12, 2016
Pages: 220
Format: eBook
Source: the author
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The last thing Kaylee wants to do is participate in a childish scavenger hunt--especially inside the abandoned retirement home on the edge oftown. When she finds a bruised, deaf boy hiding inside one of the rooms, she vows to lead him to safety . . . only to discover the front doorsare now padlocked, and her friends are nowhere to be found. Kaylee isabout to learn that not everything that goes 'bump in the night' isimaginary, and sometimes there are worse things to fear than ghosts.

**Please Note: I marked this book as being from the publisher (and included the FTC Disclosure) despite buying the book because, initially, the author DID reach out with a review request.**

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I finished this book over a month ago and I’m just now reviewing it because… Well.. I’m still not sure how I feel about it. I was approached by the author to review it and it sounded SO GOOD, I went ahead and just bought a copy on Amazon. In the book’s defense, I’m very particular about mystery/thriller/supernatural books. I’ve been dying for a “creep me the f*ck out” book and I haven’t succeeded in finding a book that actually creeps me the f*ck out yet – But I’m also not easily scared, so…

So, I had SUPER high expectations for this book. But… First of all, it has NO chapters and – if I recall – no page breaks. This was pretty frustrating. I’m the kind of person who HATES stopping in the middle of a chapter, but this didn’t HAVE chapters, so it was hard to find places to break. The writing was also a bit bland in the beginning, though this improved as the book progressed. There also wasn’t much of a feeling of suspense. I never had those heart-pounding, edge-of-your-seat moments.

I couldn’t stand ANY of the characters in this book. These girls were very cliche and very immature. They’re all supposed to be around 15, but they were acting like they were 11 or 12 – so that’s exactly how I pictured them. But maybe that’s just because it’s been a long time since I was 15 and have forgotten how 15-year-olds act…? I don’t know, but they were all so MEAN and NASTY to each other. It felt contrived, done only in a way to easily explain them separating from each other in this creepy place. It could have been done in a better way. Not ALL girls are catty bitches to each other.

This book was also pretty predictable. I had the ending figured out before I was even half-way through. That – coupled with the lack of suspense and no chapters/page breaks – made it VERY hard to get through this book. It was especially hard to read the second half – it was a bit of a let-down and I feel like I still have SO many questions. Also, it was a fairly short book but it still felt WAY too long.

So why did I give this 3-stars, despite all the complaints above? Well, I’m worried my desire for a “creep me the f*ck out” book has me being extra harsh with books labeled as such. Overall, it was still an intriguing book and, even when it slowed down, I never felt the desire to DNF. And it still had some intriguing moments.

Would I recommend it? Maybe. If you’re easily scared, it definitely might creep you out a bit! Or if you love mild thrillers. But if you’re looking for something that will keep you awake at night, you won’t find that here.