I love a YA small town, creepy mystery. So that and the cover of this really drew me in. I really enjoyed it. From the generational curses, to the eerie town, to the friendships, this was jam packed full of action and atmosphere. This is Peyton June's debut book and it is very well done.

The book is told from multiple POV's; Iris, Gum & Aidan. Though Iris's sister, Glory, often haunts the narrative. Glory died last year, whilst the families were all on vacation in Bad Creek. Iris doesn't understand why her mums brought her back this year, but she's certain there is something weird surrounding her sister's death. She plans on investigating and getting the truth no matter what. What Iris discovers changes everything she and her friends knew about this town.

Glory was a very outgoing person with a loud and confident personality, she often overshadowed every other character. So it was really interesting to read about the group trying to find their feet without her. The first half of this book felt very slow, It took me a while to get fully immersed in the story. I felt like Glory overpowered so much of the beginning. I get that in a small town, something like that is going to be horrific and a very big thing for everyone. However I did feel like we couldn't really grasp everyone's personalities properly, hence the difficulty connecting. Despite that, the characters developed really well and really came into themselves. I really loved the development of Hudson's character and of course the romance between him and Iris.. As a bisexual girl it was cool to have the main character be bisexual. This book is full of inclusivity, I loved that about it.

The horror definitely ramps up towards the end of the book and I really enjoyed that part. The images were really well descripted and they genuinely gave a chilling vibe. The mystery stayed super twisty and developed in a way that was hard to predict. One thing I will say is that I was often confused. As this features generational curses and stuff like that, there were so many names being thrown around that I often couldn't think of who was who and what family they were in, or their relation to the story. I think in the first half somethings could've been better explained, so that I spent less time being so lost. Whilst I was often lost, there was still something about this book that kept me reading on. Ultimately I went on to really enjoy the book, the last 30% being my favourite. The suspense ramped up, the mystery got twistier and the main characters really came into themselves. I also think the ending had a satisfying conclusion. I wasn't left feeling empty or with any unanswered questions.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. I will be looking out for more books by this author in their future career.

Bad Creek confronts the intersection of religion, sexuality, and feminism. A fun romp with queer teens enjoying one last nostalgia at summer camp with a splash of cosmic horror and coming to terms with monsters born and made.

**Thank you to NetGalley and Norton Young Readers for the eARC of this title!**

While the nostalgia was fun in this one and I think there’s a lot of promise, the characters didn’t read much younger than their assigned ages in a lot of cases and I found it distracting.

The story has good bones and I think for a debut this shows a lot of promise. I just couldn’t stop asking myself “wait, how old is this character again?!”

I will give this author a try in the future because they clearly have good ideas and a solid foundation for horror writing!

This is possibly the most creepy and atmospheric book I've read in a while. I was totally hooked from the start and absolutely loved the atmosphere that June builds. The american summer camp vibes alongside the found family, mysteries and ghost was perfect for me. If you're looking for a summer camp ghost story with a couple of twists and a dark depth to it I'd 100% recommend Bad Creek!

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I really liked the atmosphere in this book, and for a debut it was really good! I look forward to reading more by this author :)

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
A YA horror filled with teens solving a mystery, family secrets, and a good old hit of religious trauma. Serving the fictional vacation town of Bad Creek, Michigan, we are introduced to Iris Garren. Her family has reluctantly returned to their yearly vacation destination despite their oldest daughter drowning last summer. But Iris doesn’t believe it was an accident, especially after finding her sister’s journal. Together with her friends, self labeled as the “Disasters 2.0”, they work to find out what actually happened.
I saw some of the authors promo on TikTok and I was very intrigued. So of course I went to request an ARC immediately. I implore you to check out some of her posts about behind the scenes of the book as well. I honestly couldn’t tell what was going to happen until the last third of the book, but after that it became a bit predictable. At least for someone who has seen a fair bit of media in this genre. I also felt like the friend group really wouldn’t have been friends outside of their situation, which may have been somewhat of the point.
Overall I had a good time with Peyton June’s debut and I look forward to seeing what more comes in the future.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the atmosphere, though I did have to keep reminding myself that it was a lake in the summer because all I kept picturing was a dark foggy lake, which feels like its own character.

I felt on edge the whole time and my suspect list changed constantly, I genuinely couldn’t decide who to trust at some points! While I should have figured out what was going to happen, I didn’t!

Aside from the mystery I also really enjoyed the underlying theme of the kids trying to figure out who they are as people, trying to look past this idea of them that they’re all trying to meet to please other people. I spent a lot of the book feeling angry on their behalf!

My only critique was with the climax: when the threat is finally revealed, the resolution felt a little too quick and easy. I would have loved to see a bit more struggle or tension in that final confrontation. That being said, it may have been a conscious choice to keep it accessible for a younger YA audience, and it didn’t take away from the overall impact of the story. I ended up crying into my pillow once it was over.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

While this was a super predictable book, I really enjoyed the story. As a debut, it was very well done and the horror elements were good. I always enjoy a strong friend group and Iris, Gum, Aiden, and Glory were so sweet together. I can understand Iris being so sad after the death of her sister and how she wanted to cling to normality and her friends. This was a really good summer mystery with a nice little twist of horror fantasy elements.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy

Bad Creek by Peyton June is a third person multi-POV YA horror set during summer vacation. Iris, Adrian, and Gum have been friends their whole lives, in part because their parents are friends. Glory, Iris’ sister, died last summer and no one seems totally sure exactly what happened. But Bad Creek can’t hide everything forever.

Of the three POVs, the one I preferred the most was Iris’ POV. There’s complexity in how she feels about her sister’s death, the way her mothers are responding to it, and her growing feelings for Hudson, Gum’s cousin and someone she’s never really considered a romantic option yet is suddenly becoming one. Iris also has conflicting feelings over her longtime friends and the things that they aren’t telling her, which drives some of the conflict between them.

This is what I would call ‘Dead Girl Media.’ Glory is haunting the narrative, her death drives the narrative, her death has caused damage to so many relationships, and nobody who loved her is over it. It’s very realistic. When you lose someone who has a significant portion of your life, they do haunt you no matter what your relationship was and it’s worse the younger they were and the more sudden it was.

The horror elements build slowly over time, first with suspense and then we get into the more supernatural elements. The supernatural elements don’t play a very big part overall and I think some of the narrative is more Iris finding out what happened to Glory and why and who was involved. We also get a lot of flashbacks that help to further contextualize the relationships of Gum, Adrian, Iris, and Glory (many are between Adrian and Glory as they were a couple before Glory’s death). The story does move at a fairly brisk pace, but the revelations are more on the slower end.

I would recommend this to fans of horror who love stories where a young woman is haunting the narrative and readers of YA looking to try a horror

3.75 - I’m rounding up to 4 stars.
Murder families? Missing girls? A Monster? I love the dynamic of the disasters 2.0. This was fun. This is exactly my kind of summer read. I didn’t take this too seriously.

My only complaint is it ended a little abruptly. Like the final showdown lasted like a single page and then it was happily ever after.

Thank you W. W Norton & Company for an earc of this in exchange for an honest review!

A Gripping Blend of Supernatural Horror and Social Commentary

Bad Creek by Peyton June is a haunting debut that masterfully intertwines eerie supernatural elements with poignant explorations of grief, identity, and societal pressures. Set in the small town of Bad Creek, Michigan, the story follows Iris, Gum, and Aidan as they return to their annual summer retreat, only to confront the lingering trauma of Iris's sister, Glory, who drowned in the lake the previous year.

The novel excels in its atmospheric tension, drawing readers into a world where the line between the living and the dead blurs. The eerie presence of Glory's ghost, combined with the town's dark secrets, creates a palpable sense of dread that permeates the narrative.

Beyond its supernatural elements, Bad Creek delves into deeper themes of religion, sexuality, and feminism. The characters grapple with personal demons and societal expectations, offering a nuanced portrayal of adolescence and the complexities of identity.

While the novel is compelling, some readers may find certain plot twists familiar within the horror genre. However, the strength of the character development and the rich thematic content more than compensate for this.

In summary, Bad Creek is a chilling and thought-provoking read that will resonate with fans of supernatural horror and those interested in stories that tackle complex social issues. Peyton June has crafted a narrative that is both spine-tingling and emotionally resonant, marking a strong start to what promises to be a promising writing career.

Three friends, Iris, Gum, and Adian are vacationing at Bad creek like they do every summer, but Iris's sister died at the lake the year before. they all have guilty feelings about the last interaction they had with her.

Great creepy read about friends who gather at Bad Creek every summer until one of them--Glory--drowns in the creek. Now they are worried as she was a good swimmer and her death was sudden and unexplained, Now they gather again to reminisce and try to solve the mystery. But what strange things lurk in the creek and can they be stopped? May leave you with shivers!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

Thank you NetGalley and W. W. Norton & Company for the opportunity to read & review this book.

Bad Creek follows Iris and her group of family friends who return to the same summer vacation destination every year to take part in long standing traditions. This year, it's different. Why? Her sister drowned in the creek last year, thought to be an innocent accident...but was it?

Think The Summer I Turned Pretty with a paranormal twist. A bit slow to start with a lot of character and info dumping, by the second half I was thoroughly freaked out, getting up to close my back door and being hyper aware of the creaks in my floorboards.

The description of the setting gave me small town creepy vibes with a dash of that melancholic nostalgia that I'm never sure feels good or bad. I didn't feel a huge attachment to the characters, the focus feeling more on the feel and atmosphere of the story.

Despite highlighting my way through the book, I didn't predict the twist. I did however feel like the book could have been finished much quicker after the fact, so I guess for me the pacing felt a bit off and could be more engaging by being a bit shorter.

Overall I enjoyed it and I would recommend it for anyone looking for a easy to read, creepy paranormal murder mystery.

This gave me Pretty Little Liars x We Were Liars x Scooby Doo vibes. Teens poking around secrets they probably shouldn’t, in a town that’s hiding way too much.

It’s more creepy than scary, with themes around grief, queerness, and religious trauma woven through. The undercurrent of control and belief systems gave the story a tense, uneasy feel. The pacing wasn’t super tight, but it didn’t drag. The slow build suited the story. It’s labelled as horror, but it didn’t really feel like it. More of a paranormal or psychological thriller with emotional weight and a quietly unsettling vibe.

Still, I really enjoyed it and didn’t guess every twist, but once revealed I could see the breadcrumbs. Easy read, didnt want to put it down after about 60% through and had a satisfying end.

Thankyou to NetGalley and the publisher for a free ARC copy of this in exchange for an honest review.

I'll be honest, I requested solely based off the cover, but Bad Creek did not disappoint me in the least! Surprised at how truly creepy this YA horror novel was! Fantastic!

Imaginr a life where your best friend group in shattered by loss and lies. My heart can't Peyton June has crafted a soft and wrenching story. I wanna hug all the Disasters.

I really enjoyed this book, and love the multiple peoples view through the book. The writing is amazing and I can’t wait to read more from Peyton June, her writing is beautiful. And the art work is incredible

Thank you to NetGalley and W.W. Norton & Company for the ARC! I’m giving Bad Creek 3 out of 5 stars.

In Peyton June’s YA mystery Bad Creek, the lakeside town—once the perfect setting for “The Disasters” annual Fourth of July—now feels haunted. Iris has returned to Bad Creek for the first time since her sister Glory drowned here last summer, certain it wasn’t an accident. Reuniting with her childhood friends takes dark turns when Gum begins seeing Glory’s ghost and Aidan grows distant, desperate to escape the guilt that binds him to the town.

June wisely spreads the spotlight: Iris’s relentless search for closure, Gum’s struggle for acceptance amid unsettling visions, and Aidan’s tortured need to leave all collide against the town’s eerie backdrop. At times I wished their voices were more distinct and the flashbacks clearer, but the core mystery—rituals, sacrifices and restless spirits—holds strong, evoking Friday the 13th and Fear Street chills.

Hudson, the polished cousin everyone adores, proves unexpectedly magnetic, while Aidan’s lack of sympathy for Iris’s grief feels frustratingly cold. As the supernatural stakes rise, Bad Creek itself becomes a character—the creaking docks, shadowed woods and whispered legends lending a lingering unease.

Bad Creek is a cozy, fast-paced debut that balances mild horror with themes of trauma, friendship, sexuality and family. It doesn’t always dig deep into its characters, but it delivers a fun, suspenseful summer read.

Bad Creek by Peyton June is a perfect mixture of YA and horror themes with queer characters navigating a summer vacation. Some portions of the plot were at times confusing, but overall, a great debut for this author. Lovers of YA nostalgic horror will enjoy this read.