You Will Be Mine

by Natasha Preston

Overview

Love turns to deadly suspense and horror in this "fresh take on a murder mystery thriller" (VOYA's Teen Perspectives) from Natasha Preston, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Cellar

ROSES ARE RED

VIOLETS ARE BLUE

WATCH YOUR BACK

I'M COMING FOR YOU

Lylah and her friends can't wait to spend a night out together. Partying is the perfect way to let loose from the stress of life and school, and Lylah hopes that hitting the dance floor with Chace, her best friend, will bring them closer together. She's been crushing on him since they met. If only he thought of her the same way…

The girls are touching up their makeup and the guys are sliding on their coats when the doorbell rings. No one is there. An envelope sits on the doormat. It's an anonymous note addressed to their friend Sonny. A secret admirer? Maybe. They all laugh it off.

Except Sonny never comes home. And a new note arrives:

YOUR TURN

A deliciously twisty thriller, You Will Be Mine is perfect for readers looking for

• masterful young adult suspense novels
• heart-stoppingly good horror books
• unputdownable murder mysteries for teens

More teen thrillers by Natasha Preston:

The Cellar

Awake

The Cabin

The Lost

The Twin

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781492654322
Publisher:	Sourcebooks
Publication date:	02/06/2018
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	17,003
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.00(d)
Lexile:	HL600L (what's this?)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Natasha Preston is the New York Times bestselling author of The Cabin and The Cellar. A UK native, she discovered her love of writing when she shared a story online—and hasn’t looked back. She enjoys writing romance, thrillers, gritty YA, and the occasional serial killer. Visit natashapreston.com.

Editorial Reviews

03/12/2018
Themes of betrayal and jealousy dominate Preston's (The Cellar) romantic thriller. With Valentine's Day only days away, Lylah is in no mood to celebrate since it's also the second anniversary of her parents' unexpected death. She was 17 and her brother, Riley, was 21 when their parents' car crashed. Finally, her life has regained a sense of normalcy—she's a media student attending college, living off campus with five housemates and even crushing on one of them. But everything changes when an envelope addressed to Sonny, one of her housemates, arrives at their doorstep. Next, Sonny is murdered, his heart removed. Fear and suspicion set in as the police begin investigating the crime, and Lylah fears she could be the next victim. Horror fans may relish the grisly details of the crimes, and Preston is skilled in building an atmosphere of paranoia and claustrophobia, yet readers do not gain a full understanding of character motivations and, as a result, may not be fully invested in their fates. Ages 14-17. Agent: Jon Elek, United Agents. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

"Preston has penned another nail-biting thriller with You Will Be Mine.... If you’re looking for a book that will make you skeptical of any valentines you may receive, then You Will Be Mine is the heart-stopping suspense Cupid ordered." — RT Book Reviews

"Preston’s thriller vibe throughout is excellently sustained. A great addition to the thriller shelves. Recommended for fans of Stephen King, Jennifer Barnes, and Ally Carter." — School Library Journal

"Preston’s latest mystery reads like an homage to a nostalgic Fear Street novel… An enjoyable blend of mystery and horror." — Booklist

"Preston offers great potential for young adults with You Will Be Mine, particularly high school students. The emotional traumas her characters face allow teens to relate to them as authentic...a fresh take on a murder mystery thriller. Rich with plot twists and suspense, readers will not want to put it down." — VOYA’s Teen Perspectives

"Preston is skilled in building an atmosphere of paranoia and claustrophobia." — Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

02/01/2018
Gr 9 Up—The author's latest keeps readers on edge as they are immersed into the daily activities of a group of college students who are dealing with social life, relationships, and a murderer on the loose. The story opens two weeks before Valentine's Day—a holiday Lylah hates because it marks the anniversary of her parents' death. Lylah, Chace, Sienna, Charlotte, Isaac, and Sonny are second-year college housemates who start to receive mysterious letters addressed to certain members of their group. Within a few chapters, two of the friends have been targeted and killed, while the remaining three are fearful for their lives. Lylah is convinced that the murderer is a former spurned lover of hers, and works with her housemates and the police to lure him into a trap. As the murderer becomes more bold, another character is dispatched, prompting Lylah to do whatever it takes to confront the killer. As the story concludes, a final twist wraps up the plot nicely, and readers will be satisfied with the results. The characters in this accessible and engaging read do not disappoint; Preston's thriller vibe throughout is excellently sustained. VERDICT A great addition to the thriller shelves. Recommended for fans of Stephen King, Jennifer Barnes, and Ally Carter.—Ruth Stiles, Hammondsport Central School, NY

School Library Journal

2017-12-03
A serial killer terrorizes a group of university friends in the weeks leading up to Valentine's Day.White university student Lylah has complicated feelings about Valentine's Day, as it marks the day her parents died two years prior. Though she has adjusted to her new life at school, where she lives with five friends and housemates, old anxieties arise when her housemates begin receiving mysterious, threatening notes a few weeks before Valentine's Day. What is initially dismissed as a sick holiday prank becomes deadly serious when one of them is discovered brutally murdered on campus. The police become involved, providing rather ineffective security to the group of friends as they are stalked and hunted around town by an unknown murderer. Lylah and her friends jump to a hasty assumption about the killer's identity early on and begin referring to the killer by the name of a former friend whom they suspect, improbably convinced that it must be him, excluding any other possibilities in the process. Classic slasher tropes are invoked frequently and repetitively, to highly implausible effect. The result of these unlikely plot developments, combined with flimsy dialogue and weak characterization, requires so much suspension of disbelief that it renders the story more comical than horrifying.An unconvincing attempt at a holiday-themed thriller. (Thriller. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews