As a major fan of the Scream franchise and its impact on the horror genre, anytime a slasher comes across my desk it becomes a must-look. Not to mention one that mentions Scream in the solicitation, so Dollface by Lindy Ryan was a must-read. It was a fun reading experience with some clever twists and turns.
Horror author Jill has just moved to suburban New Jersey, hoping to fit in with the new PTA moms and maybe not weird everyone out with her Final Girl coffee mug. You know. Make some real friends.
But then a plastic face-masked serial killer begins slashing their way through town, one overly made-up mom at a time. The police are incredulous. The moms are indignant. And Jill is slowly wrapped into a killer’s murderous spree, until she might just be the last woman standing.
The best thing about the horror genre is the ability to interweave multiple genres into the horror story to create a unique reading experience that keeps you gripped to the pages. Dollface is a sort of blend of horror, thriller, and mystery that has its moments in each individual category but didn’t blow me away overall. It’s one of those books that was super fun to read, but didn’t really have any moment that hooked me to the point I wanted to scream around recommending it to others.
As I mentioned off the top, Dollface was compared to the iconic Scream in the solicitations, and it’s my own fault by putting too many eggs in that basket, but just because a story is considered a slasher, doesn’t make it comparable to Scream. While the feature film is iconic and was game-changing for the genre, it’s not fair to put them on the same level by raising my expectations to said level. When you take away the comparison, you find a quality slasher with a good amount of twists.
Speaking of twists, I did have this book rated a bit lower when I thought I had figured out the killer early on in the story. However, I was then thrown for a loop which made me happier that I didn’t know what was happening, to all of sudden be tossed back to my original guess. This back and forth was better than just knowing from the outset, but ultimately just frustrated me a bit. In the end things turned out better than I had anticipated halfway through the book.
There are plenty of quality moments that had you guessing, along with some gory and intense moments, but was hoping for a bit more blood and guts. While I wasn’t able to connect with the PTA theme of the book, I understood the inner workings and the cliques that form in groups like these. This part of Dollface made the story that much more enjoyable.
Dollface by Lindy Ryan is a solid horror story for those looking for a slasher with a unique plot. However, the book feels like a good entry point for those looking for a slasher without diving deep into some gruesome horror. While not exactly what I had hoped for, and believe me I wanted to love this book, it was a fun experience.
Dollface hits bookstores everywhere on February 24, 2026 from Minotaur Books. The audiobook, narrated by Stephanie Németh-Parker, is available at Libro.fm!
