by Chuck Wendig
First published 2024
Ethan Pitowski fears everything. His best friends accept this about him, so when their entire class gets invited to watch a forgotten horror movie at the popular kid's house, they convince Ethan to come along. The film bills itself as the scariest ever made. Ethan discovers this claim is terrifyingly accurate when the movie reveals its true nature. This isn't just a film about a monster. The movie itself is the monster. While his classmates fall victim to the cursed videotape, only Ethan manages to escape. Now he faces his worst nightmare: he must conquer his fears to rescue his friends and return their missing heads. Ethan's journey becomes one of finding courage within anxiety and discovering that his unique voice holds power he never knew existed.
Genres: fantasy, horror, thriller, young-adult
Vibes: dark, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, overcoming-fears
317 pages · Kindle Edition · Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Content warnings: anxiety, violence