The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre
In The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre, Philip Fracassi has brought together the best kind of mystery - the ones that have you flipping back the pages because you realize there was foreshadowing that you didn't quite put together - and the best slasher - strong final girl with a supportive best friend/boyfriend while over the top kills are going on all around them. Not only that, he has flipped the teenage trope and given us heroes who are in their 70s and 80s instead of their teens or 20s which at once fulfils and defies expectations of the trope.
The action starts right away with Rose Dubois finding her friend dead in her neighboring apartment and suspects right away that something is amiss with what everyone else perceives to be an accident. Her suspicions grow as other neighbors start having different - but no less fatal - accidents. The administrators, doctors, and police brush her off. After all, isn't that what old people do? Die?
Not convinced, Rose and her best friend and potential beau, Miller, aren't going to let these "accidents" continue which puts them both in the killer's crosshairs.
The Autumn Springs Retirement Home Massacre by Philip Fracassi is a perfect pairing of a solid mystery with slasher novel vibes including dark humor, gruesome kills, and a charming and relatable final girl - even if (or especially because) she is 50 years older than the ones we're used to.
A note on the audio production: Macmillan usually has strong production value and does so once again. The narration by January LaVoy was strong; in particular, she made the villain sound quite creepy.
Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advance copy. Pub date: 9/30/25
Support your favorite indie bookstore (and me) by using my link to order the audiobook from https://libro.fm/referral?rf_code=lfm60355 OR if you prefer using your eyes to read, support your favorite indie (and give us both 20% off if it’s your first purchase) by using my link at https://refer.bookshop.org/candidanorwood.
