Another thoroughly enjoyable YA from Susan Dennard! You can't help but fall in love with how earnest and determined Freddie is in this book, and with an intriguing murder mystery plot line to follow I was hooked throughout

This is my favorite – FAVORITE – version of 90s nostalgia & summerween-vibes in book form!
Susan Dennard picked a niche and delivered!
I fell head over heels for the characters, the atmosphere of City-on-the-Berme and the high school rivalry. I can easily see myself reading this book every year, like a slightly spooky version of Gilmore Girls. If I could visit City-on-the-Berme in real life I would! I loved that the setting in the late 90s meant that technology wasn't as advanced and fast, that research was more than a quick scroll on google and made finding clues that much more satisfying.
I can't even say what my favorite part was, because every element worked so well together and the conglomeration of it all is what makes this story so incredibly special. I loved being inside Freddys head, learning about her family, her friends and her values; how she didn't stop because it got hard or when people didn't believe her, she is a lovable, headstrong, stubborn character.
The plot moves quite fast, I was bound to my ereader and did not want to leave this world behind. The last 40% went crazy, I was under as much stress as Freddie, my heart was pounding like my life depended on her solving this as well. I slept only 5 hours before heading to work but I could literally not put the book down because it was so tense. My heartbeat was still wilding after finishing and falling asleep was kinda hart. Which is to say that I loved every second of this.

3.5

I loved the vibes of this book, it was very autumnal/halloweeny/campy! I'm trying to embrace summerween and I think this was just the book for that (note- I read this in July 2025).
I loved all the comfort show references sprinkled throughout too.
I've seen a few people mention they didn't enjoy the prank subplot but I actually really enjoyed it. I didn't connect with Freddie as she actually came across much younger than perceived, when it mentioned she was 18 soon I was quite taken aback.
Overall, a good fun read which is perfect for summerween/spooky season.

Freddie gets popular overnight by an accidental prank on rivaling school Fortin Prep High. She joins the Prank Squad, makes some new friends, and gets tossed in a supernatural murder investigation.

This book could be loads of fun for the right person, but that right person wasn't me.

I feel like there are some issues with the targeted audience here. The characters are all teenagers in the 90's, hence this book being marketed as YA. Fair? But since there are so many 90's references, it feels as if this book was written for milenials. Not for teenagers. I am 25, and I struggled through all the references clearly not meant for me. I feel like this book would have done better were the characters college students, and the book marketed as Adult.

Freddie was a little exhausting at times, being one of those teenagers trying to be quirky. And the actual story could have been better fleshed out. It all wraped up very quick without a decent explaination.

So yes, not a bad book at all for the right person. But not for me! Thank you NetGalley for the eArc!

I really enjoyed this book, the plot was well paced and the characters were well written. I look forward to reading more from this author.

Now this was a fun read and I still can't stop thinking about this book. It was just so well done and put together beautifully. It was intense, mysterious but hilarious and exhilarating at the same time. Honestly, this book surprised me so much. Susan Dennard is a new author to me, but I will be checking out her other books now from this because I just loved the writing style, the character development and she just had a knack for intriguing the audience that you couldn't put the book down.

4.5 stars!

‧₊˚✧ 4.5 ✧˚₊‧
I wasn't aware when I requested this ARC that this author had quite a slew of published books already. I also did check out the book's ratings beforehand, bad of me I know, but I had high hoped for this book before starting it and I'm glad to say my expectations have been met.

This story is told from a third person perspective. We read mostly from Frederica 'Freddie' Gellar, but throughout the book we also read from Theo Porter's perspective, which were definitely interesting chapters.

We come along with Freddie, a teenager with obviously teenager brain, but I have to say it was really entertaining. The way Freddie is written is so fun all around, from her quirks to her crushing on boys. The writing sometimes even had a 'duh' tone, which fit the story and the character of Freddie really well in my opinion.

The story did keep me guessing for the most part about who the culprit was, although I have to say I clocked the person who did it at some point, so they were definitely on my suspect list.

I really liked the romance layered inbetween the story as well. You either love it or hate it and I loved it in this story. Even though the timeline in general was fast, the way it was told made it believable for me, so it passes my instalove test this time.

All in all I was pleasantly surprised by this story and loved reading it. I will definitely recommend it to friends and followers when it published for real.

And to end of course a warm thank you to Netgalley, Daphne Press and Susan Dennard for providing me with an eARC copy of this book. This review was given freely and this is my personal opinion, as always. I hope to see this book do really well in the near future!

Honestly another can't put down book by the legendary Susan dennard. Had me on the edge of my seat the whole time.

Wow. This was for me an extremely entertaining summer read. But any season will do if you enjoy entertaining fantasy. Freddie our main character and narrator is so much fun. Teenager living in a small American town, finding out who she is and who she likes, while hunting for the answers to a string of murders. No one is safe from her wit and gumption. The neighbouring school as they prank, or some Feds (with dark glasses? - don’t think we are told.) On that note I hope that the author isn’t nearly finished with Freddie’s life adventures. Thank you to Daphne Press and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

4.5 Stars A fun and thrilling read.
This story follows Freddie as she tries to solve a series of murders and mysteries both past and present that all link to a poem.
The story started off a little slow but by the 25% mark I was hooked.
There’s teenage angst, a Romeo and Juliet style romance, pranks, gore and creepy suspense.
I loved Freddie and Theo’s relationship, their back and forth banter and ever growing attraction. It was fun to try and solve the mystery alongside our characters and work out what was real and what wasn’t.
Overall I really enjoyed this book.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and Susan for a copy of this arc.

A little bit of a slow start, but once it got going, wow!

This follows the story of Freddie, who has spent her life finding the answers to questions no one else can. And then she finds out about the executioner three. A curse that has haunted the town for years, and one her Dad died before he could solve.

What follows is a murder mystery, where the prank squad have to try and solve it before it is too late!

Fantastic plot, characters and a really good pace to the story. I really enjoyed this one!

The Executioner’s Three is just another reason for me to absolutely adore the work of Susan Dennard! Once again she has crafted a story that will have you on the edge of your seat, jumping at the slightest bump or noise, that also pulls you emotionally back to the emotionally fraught, overwhelming and truly tingling sense of your teens, when friends, reputation, music and all the challenges of boys are truly the core of your focus! This homage to all our teenage selves truly delivers a raft of 1990’s pop culture references, crushes, teen banter and those best-friendships that last for a lifetime or just that school year!
Freddie Geller is 17 and at the cusp of the school year unexpectedly finds herself enmeshed with the cool crowd at school and their ongoing prank war with the neighbouring school! All she did was call 911 when she heard screaming in the woods and now not only is she involved in this ongoing feud, but she is also their enemy’s pivotal target. If only that was all Freddie had to deal with, it would be easy but, there’s also a complete ‘Nancy Drew’ of a cursed, spine-tingling mystery and murders for her to solve.
This is where Susan Dennard truly shines, she takes what could be a pretty generic teen story and transforms it into an spine-tingling, nerve wraking mystery that has it’s routes in ancient myths, legends and a poem about those unspeakable things that hide in the dark woods, lurking and watching from the shadows to catch you unexpectedly.

This book is an absolute delight, delivering jump scares and that jittery feeling you can’t quite shake, ramping up your heartbeat and adrenaline with jaw-dropping twistiness and supernatural monsters, whilst also squeezing your heart with the sheer damned cuteness of Freddie and the intriguing Theo. This combination of truly adorable characters, a great plotline and delivery straight out of Buffy is absolute genius!

Come for the mystery, stay for the vibes, the great characters, the cursed small town and the totally engrossing read that will have you ‘just next chaptering’ all the way to the end!

Thank you so much Daphne Press, Titan Books and Netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Firstly I want to thank Netgalley and Daphne Press for approving me to read the arc.

I’m familiar with Susan Dennards work, she wrote The Luminaries trilogy which I devoured. So when I saw this book up as an Arc I just knew I had to request it and pray I would get accepted.

Freddie’s status changes overnight after she accidentally gets the students from a rival school arrested. She finds herself making new friends and being involved in the “prank wars” between the rival schools. But what she doesn’t anticipate is the mysterious murders that take place and how it links to the past. And as she’s somewhat obsessed with x-files (and Lance Bass) she turns detective to try and figure out what is happening in her small town.

I would label this book as paranormal, with spirits and blood oaths in the mix, this story is set in the 90s and it made me feel a little nostalgic, it also gives Stranger Things vibes and I’m all for it. I was pleasantly surprised by how engrossed I became into the story and how much I liked the main characters in the book. And fear not folks the story has a conclusion and there’s no doomed cliffhanger in sight.

I think it’s safe to say that Susan Dennard has created yet another compelling and gripping story and has made it onto the list of auto buy authors for me.


I will post my review on TikTok and instagram on the 25th august the day before it’s release in England

4.5/5

I wholly adored this book! It was an absolute blast! I honestly laughed out loud multiple times! It’s giving ‘Stranger Things’, early seasons of ‘Riverdale’ and ‘Gilmore Girls’ and I am completely, 100%, here for it!

It has just the right amount of 90s nostalgia, those references were on point! I haven’t thought about ‘Romeo and Juliet’ so fondly in years—we studied it far, far, far too much in school!

This book was cute, cozy and creepy all at once. It has a well developed cast of characters and such a fun spooky mystery to boot!

Thank you to NetGalley and Daphne Press for the opportunity to read this title.

This might be Dennard at her best. Her character and world building is always impressive to me and I am sucked in from the start. I really enjoy a good Halloween/ Stranger Things/ Fear Street type of story and this did not disappoint. Freddie was a great character and I loved following her around as she unravelled the real goings-on.
I love the idea of thinking a party in the woods is something sinister and calling the cops. But when things really do start getting creepy the readers will feel it. This was a really great book, and perfect for an October read when the evenings start getting dark.

🩷 Book Review 🩷
📚 The Executioners Three
✒️ Susan Dennard
💫💫💫💫

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor Publishing for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Moral of the story, don't play pranks on each other!

This book is a mystery thriller, I was on the edge of my seat with suspense and honestly it was so good!
I have been a Susan Dennard fan since I first read Truthwitch (also read that series if you haven't already) and I know how good her writing is.
The world building is incredible. Set at bloody Halloween (how can it get more creepy then that?) we follow Freddie, a girl who thought the simple phone call to report what she thought was something sinister but instead was a party... hey, if I hear shrieks coming from the woods I would call too okay? But there is something else at play here and I kid you not I could feel the creepies crawling up my arms as the Scooby Doo ride started.

Aside from the heebie geebie this book has wonderful banter, realism and kissing (the rest is behind closed doors because this is a YA book despite being dark and mysterious). I was up all hours reading this, I had a light on though because I am not a horror person by any means and loved it!

Susan Dennard’s supernatural horror YA romance creates an adorable world of teenage angst and ‘Stranger Things’ level of supernatural horror in a 90s setting - though I did find it a bit confusing in places in ends in a way I really enjoyed overall.

I’m not someone who grew up in the 90s (well technically I did for a few years but that doesn’t count) and so I was confused by alot of the references involved in that; especially in the early part which made it hard for me to feel engaged and drawn in by the world. I feel like this is a bit of a snagging point when it is a YA novel as I don’t know how many teenagers would get the references either.

However, once I hit the 35% mark I was locked in - with the vibes of Stranger Things, Freddie and Theo’s growing adorable relationship and Dennard’s character work being a real standout for me whilst the sort of murder mystery vibes kept me on my toes throughout. Actually one of the first mysteries I’ve not got or figured out in a while and that surprised me. Very Buffy style action which did all work with the 90s vibes overall.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I loved this book! Spooky vibes fit for any season with characters you'll live and remember for a lifetime

I LOVED this book, I absolutely tore through it. It was so much fun and gave me that spooky autumnal feeling I CRAVE! Freddie, the FMC, was SO funny and I simply just adored her - she was cheeky and fun but SO clever as well and I loved her progression through the book. She's just someone you could imagine being best friends with. I enjoyed the prank wars and teenage drama mixed in with the mystery and murder and more spooky side. I thought it was really well balanced. I also really loved the romance side plot. I was kind of shocked by the twist at the end but I also didn't really understand why our villain was doing what they were doing or maybe more that it seemed so trivial? HOWEVER, I had so much fun and I really enjoyed it. I definitely recommend to read this near halloween if you're looking for a fun scooby-dooesque spooky mystery.

I gave this a 4.5 stars on fable and storygraph (unable to leave half stars here or on goodreads).

Susan Dennard never disappoints—her storytelling is marvellous!

From the very first page, I was completely hooked. The story follows Freddie, a determined and quirky high- schooler investigating a string of gruesome murders. As she digs deeper, she finds herself caught between a rivalry between two high schools and mysterious, supernatural warnings tied to a haunting poem.

This book gave off major Scooby-Doo, Stranger Things, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer vibes—in the best possible way. The 90s references added a layer of nostalgia that made the reading experience even more enjoyable. The small-town setting during a Halloween festival created the perfect cozy and eerie atmosphere.
Freddie was a standout character. Her love for The X-Files, her catchphrases, and her relentless determination made her both endearing and engaging. I appreciated her tenacity and the depth she brought to the narrative.

The rivalry between the schools added humor and tension, elevating the stakes and character dynamics without overshadowing the central mystery. I won’t spoil anything, but let’s just say the twists and reveals were expertly paced and genuinely surprising.

The blend of science and the supernatural was handled cleverly, creating a suspenseful, spooky, and thoroughly entertaining read.