Review Detail
4.9 3
The Dead of Summer
Featured
Young Adult Fiction
517
An Atmospheric, Monstrous Horror
(Updated: June 04, 2026)
Overall rating
4.3
Plot
4.0
Characters
4.0
Writing Style
5.0
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
N/A
An action-packed horror novel, THE DEAD OF SUMMER, follows Ollie as he returns home to Anchor’s Mercy after a year. Between his mom now being cancer free and his old best friends thinking he abandoned them, Ollie is dealing with a lot. His situation is only made worse when a storm descends on the island. Are his saviors actually there to help? What secrets does the island hold? And can Ollie stop what is coming for Anchor’s Mercy?
What I Loved:
This novel is written from Ollie’s perspective, but it also includes bits from other pieces of media. Audio transcriptions and letters. Those details add a new level to the story. Instead of just one perspective, one person telling the story, it allows readers to see what else was happening and what other people thought.
Ryan La Sala has a gift with crafting chilling stories without making them outright horrific. Anchor’s Mercy is an island where the people in town tend to get sick. It’s not something that should be scary, but with what Ollie discovers as the events unfold it becomes something truly horrifying. It feels all-encompassing, surrounding readers and dragging them down to Anchor’s Mercy alongside Ollie.
This book was more emotional than I had expected from a horror novel. I expected fear, I did not expect such a profound feeling of worry and grief. The grief that Ollie experiences is honest and true, striking a chord with readers who have experienced anything even slightly similar.
This is not a plot that readers will fully relate to, because it deals with mystical horrors that aren’t real. But that doesn’t mean it’s not relatable. Ollie’s emotions are showcased in an honest way that twists around the readers and lingers. There’s always something that readers may find themselves relating to.
Final Verdict:
An atmospheric queer horror dealing with resilience and grief and illness, THE DEAD OF SUMMER is creepy and disturbing in the best way. With additional ways of storytelling and high stakes, it drags readers in and keeps them wanting to know more and more.
What I Loved:
This novel is written from Ollie’s perspective, but it also includes bits from other pieces of media. Audio transcriptions and letters. Those details add a new level to the story. Instead of just one perspective, one person telling the story, it allows readers to see what else was happening and what other people thought.
Ryan La Sala has a gift with crafting chilling stories without making them outright horrific. Anchor’s Mercy is an island where the people in town tend to get sick. It’s not something that should be scary, but with what Ollie discovers as the events unfold it becomes something truly horrifying. It feels all-encompassing, surrounding readers and dragging them down to Anchor’s Mercy alongside Ollie.
This book was more emotional than I had expected from a horror novel. I expected fear, I did not expect such a profound feeling of worry and grief. The grief that Ollie experiences is honest and true, striking a chord with readers who have experienced anything even slightly similar.
This is not a plot that readers will fully relate to, because it deals with mystical horrors that aren’t real. But that doesn’t mean it’s not relatable. Ollie’s emotions are showcased in an honest way that twists around the readers and lingers. There’s always something that readers may find themselves relating to.
Final Verdict:
An atmospheric queer horror dealing with resilience and grief and illness, THE DEAD OF SUMMER is creepy and disturbing in the best way. With additional ways of storytelling and high stakes, it drags readers in and keeps them wanting to know more and more.
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