The Laws of the Skies by Grégoire Courtois

Maybe I’m a sick person. Maybe there is something wrong with me. Because when I read the book’s tagline, “Twelve six-year-olds and their three adult chaperones head into the woods on a camping trip. None of them make it out alive,” it skyrocketed to the top of my to-read pile. When I read the rest of the blurb that promised a child on a murderous rampage, I got even more excited to read it. “Part fairy tale, part horror story” – it seemed perfect for me. Unfortunately, what I got instead was a bit of a mess. The book does deliver on its promises – everyone dies, it has a fairy-tale flavour, it’s definitely horror – but the way the deaths play out felt forced and even at times, ridiculous. The balance of the tale shifted widely. Some of the deaths were almost slapstick in their delivery, while others were quite gruesome. There is one death right near the end that is particularly disgusting and drawn out far too long. I think even hardened fans of gore may struggle with this one, a...