Full review at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books 
 I think The Disappearance at Devil's Rock really qualifies more as a psychological thriller than a horror novel-the element of terror in this book isn't a known quantity. There's no monster. Instead Tremblay skillfully uncoils layers of dread, forcing the characters and the reader to fear what they glimpse of the corner of their eye and to question their sanity. 
 The conflict is based around the disappearance of a child, 13-year-old Tommy Sanderson. Tommy and his friends, Josh and Luis, wander into Borderlands State Park one summer night. Luis and Josh come back out; Tommy does not. The book opens at the phone call to Tommy's mother, Elizabeth, informing her that her son is missing, and follows the events of the next several days. 
 On one level, this book operates really well as a standard mystery. Why were the boys in the park at night? Was it normal teenage boy shenanigans and bad judgment? What happened to Tommy? Is he lost? Hurt? Abducted? Is he still haunted by his own father's vanishing act and tragic death? 
 One of the things that surprised me about this book was that there are legitimate BOO! moments in it, which I haven't actually experienced in a book before. I found myself startled, deeply creeped out, closing the book then opening it again-kind of wanting to look but also not wanting to. 
 I don't want to reveal too much about the plot because it unravels itself so well, but I will say that there are two layers to this book. There is the THING that happened, that leads to Tommy's disappearance, the THING that Josh and Luis won't talk about. And it's horrible. It's genuinely, heartbreakingly awful. It's also very real. 
 I wish I could talk about the plot more in depth to explain just how well done all of this is, but the best I can do is a series of vague hand gestures and excited noises. If you're cool with scary mysteries, you'll be cool with this. If not, probably best to stay away. 
 Regardless, The Disappearance at Devil's Rock is one of my favorite books of the summer. It's smart, and frightening, and wonderfully written. It's also keeping me from getting a good night's sleep and probably putting my barista at Starbucks through college. 
 - Elyse