Time for my tour stop with MTMC Tours to talk about Prom House by Chelsea Mueller!
This is a YA thriller set over the course of 24 hours — where a group of teens are celebrating school graduation in a fancy rented house…only to realise one of them is a killer. A vicious oncoming storm traps them in the house and they have to figure out who is the murderer and stay alive until help comes. It’s a bit of a whodunnit because the killer isn’t jumping out from the shadows — they are one of the group. One of their FRIENDS. So it’s time to question everyone’s loyalties and whereabouts.
And of course, putting everyone in this high-pressure, traumatic situation means tempers are frayed and hates and resentment come out. Friendships fracture as accusations are slid around. It makes guessing who-hates-who very hard 👀👌🏻 And a lot of the teens are just a litttle unlikeable so you are reading thinking, “Is it THEM. Or is it THEM?!” Because after a while everyone has motive.
Did it count as survival if we weren’t the same people afterward?
Kylie is the narrator and she’s a rather calm, level-headed person and the terror of the night brings out a real leader in her. She doesn’t mean to take charge, but suddenly she’s the person speaking sense.
I definitely suspected everyone 😂 I am ultimately suspicious when reading thrillers like this.
Overall, it’s a fast-paced and tropey thriller, and so hard to put down! It’s a whodunnit, with lots of sexual tension, teen-angst, plot twists, suspicion, and betrayal. Time to question how well you know your friends.
Head over to my instagram for the intl giveaway for a signed copy of Prom House!
Aesthetic photos from Unsplash, free commercial usage.
A KILLER AFTERPARTY . . .
When Kylie walks into the gorgeous beach house, it’s a dream come true. She still can’t believe she talked her parents into letting her spend the weekend down the shore with her boyfriend, Liam, after prom. Kylie, Liam, and their friends have rented the most amazing party house—and it’s all theirs. Prom was awesome, but this is going to be even better.
Except there’s a little problem. A violent storm hits the beach and the power goes out—with no sign that it’s coming back anytime soon. Roughing it with candles and camping lanterns isn’t the vibe they were going for, but everyone wants to make the most of it. Until people start disappearing . . . and turning up dead. Kylie is terrified. Is somebody’s prom date a killer?
Amazon | Book Depository | Indiebound | Blackwell’s | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chelsea Mueller writes gritty contemporary fantasy and thrillers for adults and teens. She founded the speculative fiction website Vampire Book Club and blogs about TV and romance novels for numerous websites. She loves bad cover songs, good fight scenes*, and every soapy YA drama Netflix can put in her queue. Chelsea lives in Texas, and has been known to say y’all. For the latest updates, join her email list at ChelseaMueller.com or follow @ChelseaVBC on Twitter and Instagram. Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads
Hi Chelsea! Thanks for chatting with me today about your novel, Prom House! Can you tell us a little about your publishing journey and how your book went from idea to finished novel?
Thanks for having me! I started my publishing career writing urban fantasy books. My adult debut was BORROWED SOULS centered on a heroine who is blackmailed into becoming a repowoman for people who don’t return rented souls!
As much as I loved writing magic and murder, I was so eager to dive into YA with both feet with PROM HOUSE and go full-force into pulpy thriller fun. The story came together through brainstorming sessions with my editor, and once I had my cast of characters together there wasn’t much stopping me with PROM HOUSE.
Definitely an excellent intro into YA! Did you know how Prom House was going to end before you started? Did it surprise you in any way?
I started this book knowing who the killer was, but not how we were going to figure it out. Once the characters were locked in the house, their interactions let their secrets begin to spill for me. There was a big surprise to me in a character backstory reveal, but if I told you, it’d be a major spoiler. 🤐
Lips are sealed here 👀👌🏻But I enjoyed all the reveals! Favourite part of the writing process?
It changes with every book, but with PROM HOUSE it was crafting those *gasp* chapter endings. Finding just the right way to twist our expectations and cast doubt on another character with every passing chapter is part of what made writing this book so ridiculously fun.
And it made the book compulsively readable for sure! Soooo….can you give us a secret hint about what you’re working on next?
I have another YA thriller coming soon that should give you healthy doses of Heathers and Veronica Mars vibes. 😈 …and anyone who follows me on Instagram knows I just finished the first draft of a fantasy novel that centers on three caretaker warriors, a forest of secrets, a sentient ocean, and the nightmare who could ruin them all. (I’m very excited about this book. Does it show?)
Oh this all sounds so exciting! And lastly! Was any chocolate harmed in the making of this novel? 😉
I was pregnant when I wrote PROM HOUSE. So it was more like copious strawberry shakes were harmed in the making of this book. 😆
Thanks so much again for chatting with us, Chelsea!! And congrats on the release of Prom House!
MTMC TOURS Schedule
September 13
@thereaderandthechef – Bookstagram + Book Blog
September 14
@monikasbookblog – Bookstagram
September 15
@paperfury – Bookstagram + Book Blog
September 16
@readerofthewrittenword – Bookstagram
September 17
@emmesbooks – Bookstagram + Book Blog
September 18
@jenniaahava – Bookstagram
September 19
@booknerd_1993 – Bookstagram
September 20
@dreaminginpages – Bookstagram
September 21
@paperbacksandpen – Bookstagram + Book Blog
September 22
@mabookyard – Bookstagram + Book Blog
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