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Content snapshot
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Violence
Very heavy
Graphic slasher violence: multiple brutal kills with significant gore; genre-intentional and unflinching
Language
A lot
Strong language throughout in Jade's authentic voice
Sexual Content
Some
Adult relationships and some sexual content
Substance Use
Some
Teen drinking and party culture; Jade's difficult home circumstances include substance abuse
Emotional Intensity
A lot
Trauma from a neglectful home, Native American identity and dispossession, obsession as both escape and lens
What this book is about
Jade Daniels is a Native American high school misfit in a small Idaho lake town who has encyclopedic knowledge of slasher film lore — and uses it to escape a difficult home life. When real killings begin that match the exact patterns she's studied, Jade becomes convinced a slasher cycle is beginning and she's the only one who can name the rules. Stephen Graham Jones's meta-horror is a love letter to the genre and a serious examination of Native dispossession and survival.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
graphic slasher violence and gore
strong language throughout
teenage trauma and neglect
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