The Cemetery Boys by Heather Brewer Review!

Title : The Cemetery Boys
Author : Heather Brewer
Pages : 288
Published : March 30th 2015
Publisher : HarperTeen
Source : Edelweiss
Purchase : Amazon/ Book Depository/ iTunes

When Stephen is forced to move back to the nowhere town where his father grew up, he’s already sure he’s not going to like it. Spencer, Michigan, is like a town straight out of a Hitchcock movie, with old-fashioned people who see things only in black-and-white. But things start looking up when Stephen meets the mysterious twins Cara and Devon. They’re total punks–hardly the kind of people Stephen’s dad wants him hanging out with–but they’re a breath of fresh air in this backward town. The only problem is, Cara and Devon don’t always get along, and as Stephen forms a friendship with the charismatic Devon and something more with the troubled Cara, he starts to feel like he’s getting caught in the middle of a conflict he doesn’t fully understand. And as Devon’s group of friends, who hang out in a cemetery they call The Playground, get up to increasingly reckless activities to pass the summer days, Stephen worries he may be in over his head.
Stephen’s fears prove well-founded when he learns of Spencer’s dark past. It seems the poor factory town has a history of “bad times,” and many of the town’s oldest residents attribute the bad times to creatures right out of an urban legend. The legend goes that the only way the town will prosper again is if someone makes a sacrifice to these nightmarish creatures. And while Stephen isn’t one to believe in old stories, it seems Devon and his gang might put a lot of faith in them. Maybe even enough to kill for them.
Now, Stephen has to decide what he believes, where his allegiances lie, and who will really be his friend in the end.

My Thoughts : 

I had such high hopes for this but unfortunately I ended up only liking it. I think for this review, I'll list my likes and dislikes. Let's get the dislikes out of the way.

My main problem was that I didn't like any of the characters, not a single one. Stephen is the MC and he was so hard to like. He was so sullen and came across as selfish and mean. I know he is a teen and supposed to be sullen but I just found him to be a trouble maker. I wanted him to have his own mind, but unfortunately he follows the pack. 

I really didn't like how Stephen ends up with the group of "bad" kids. He goes drinking with them each night, they beat people up, they smoke, and they are the type of group that makes you afraid of passing. It was really off putting.

I didn't like how immature Stephen was either. He blindly follows Devon, despite not knowing anything about him. He couldn't make his own decisions, which annoyed me. I wanted to tell him to grow a set!! 

What I liked.

I enjoyed the plot. It was creepy and tense. Stephen ends up having to live with his grandmother, which he never met, in a small town. The town is tight and they have their beliefs. Its the type of town where everyone knows everyone. So even before you begin reading you can get a sense of the creepiness. 

I liked how dark it was too. It has such a twisted darkness that it's hard not to like. 

I enjoyed the suspense and the big reveal. It's a tense and thrilling read and I know that a lot of people will love it. I just couldn't get past the characters!! 

I enjoyed that the book was told from a male POV. Heather Brewer did an awesome job of writing his voice. 

I loved the mystery surrounding The Winged Ones. The author kept us in suspense about them the whole way through!! 

In all, The Cemetery Boys was a good read. It had plenty of twists and turns, a fast paced plot that will keep you reading and enough suspense that will leave you guessing.