Disclaimer: I received an arc and e-arc of this book from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: It Looks Like Us
Author: Alison Ames
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 5/5
Diversity: Asexual MC with Anxiety Disorder, Asian character, Gay character
Recommended For…: young adult readers, horror, science fiction, thriller, LGBT, queer
Publication Date: September 13, 2022
Genre: YA Horror
Age Relevance: 14+ (gore, death, grief, cursing, panic attacks, violence, drugs, suicide)
Explanation of Above: There is a lot of gore, involving burns and blood and body parts, and violence involving weapons in this book. There is death and grief mentioned and shown in this book. There are 3 instances of panic attacks shown on screen. There are some slight mentions of drugs and suicide/suicidal ideation.
Publisher: Page Street Kids
Pages: 277
Synopsis: Shy high school junior Riley Kowalski is spending her winter break on a research trip to Antarctica, sponsored by one of the world’s biggest tech companies. She joins five student volunteers, a company-approved chaperone, and an impartial scientist to prove that environmental plastic pollution has reached all the way to Antarctica, but what they find is something much worse… something that looks human.
Riley has anxiety–ostracized by the kids at school because of panic attacks–so when she starts to feel like something’s wrong with their expedition leader, Greta, she writes it off. But when Greta snaps and tries to kill Riley, she can’t chalk it up to an overactive imagination anymore. Worse, after watching Greta disintegrate, only to find another student with the same affliction, she realizes they haven’t been infected, they’ve been infiltrated–by something that can change its shape. And if the group isn’t careful, that something could quickly replace any of them.
Review: This was such an amazing book! I loved it from start to finish. The book reminded me a lot of The Thing due to the setting and how the monster worked a bit. I loved the twist at the end, even though I had already guessed it near the beginning. The book did so well with world building and character development. I loved every moment of the book and, I’m probably wrong, but is Asha from this author’s other book To Break a Covenant? Is everything set in the same universe given the same cover palettes being used? Is there a monster multiverse from Alison Ames? I’m not sure but I’m here doing my impatient dance for her next work of horror.
The only issue I had with the book is how predictable the book was. I felt like it was a bit too obvious for a twist, but I loved it nonetheless.
Verdict: It was so good! Recommending for Halloween Recs!
Book Info:
It Looks Likes Us by Alison Ames
Genre: Young Adult Horror
Publishing Date: September 13, 2022
Synopsis:
The remote terror of THE THING meets the body horror of WILDER GIRLS in this fast-paced Antarctic thriller.
Shy high school junior Riley Kowalski is spending her winter break on a research trip to Antarctica, sponsored by one of the world’s biggest tech companies. She joins five student volunteers, a company-approved chaperone, and an impartial scientist to prove that environmental plastic pollution has reached all the way to Antarctica, but what they find is something much worse… something that looks human.
Riley has anxiety–ostracized by the kids at school because of panic attacks–so when she starts to feel like something’s wrong with their expedition leader, Greta, she writes it off. But when Greta snaps and tries to kill Riley, she can’t chalk it up to an overactive imagination anymore. Worse, after watching Greta disintegrate, only to find another student with the same affliction, she realizes they haven’t been infected, they’ve been infiltrated–by something that can change its shape. And if the group isn’t careful, that something could quickly replace any of them.
Content Warning: gore and panic attacks
Book Links:
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59808513-it-looks-like-us
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1645676188/
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/it-looks-like-us-alison-ames/1140777503
Book Depository: https://www.bookdepository.com/It-Looks-Like-Us-Alison-Ames/9781645676188
Indigo: https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/it-looks-like-us/9781645676188-item.html
IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781645676188
About the Author:
Alison Ames is a writer based in Colorado. Her debut novel To Break A Covenant will be published in fall 2021.
Author Links:
Website: https://aameswrites.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/2furiosa
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/2furiosa/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19961118.Alison_Ames
Tour Schedule:https://tbrandbeyondtours.com/2022/07/31/tour-schedule-it-looks-like-us-by-alison-ames/
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