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 Ever since I read Heather Brewer's The Chronicles Of Vladimir Tod series, I've been a hardcore minion and so, I was eager to read The Cemetery Boys. Brewer really knows how to recreate the feel of a small town with a spooky atmosphere and write an awesome YA horror novel. Though I'm not a fan of the romance in this novel and predicted the ending early on, I really enjoyed it. 
 When Stephen's dad loses his job, he is forced to take him and his son to Spencer, the place he always longed to escape. Stephen quickly gets sucked into the small town politics and does his best to fit in with the "cemetery boys," a local group of guys who are looking for some fun. The problem is that the boys believe in the local legend of "the winged ones" and trouble is brewing. 
 I empathized with Stephen because he's an outcast trying to fit in the world and desperately wants to be accepted. Though Stephen takes questionable (read: stupid) actions, I didn't blame him and truly felt bad for him and his position. I felt the tension that he was feeling because of his mother and Brewer really writes excellent male protagonists (as always). 
 Spencer is a terrifying place that almost feels like a character in The Cemetery Boys, it's an omnipresent figure that looms over the reader. This wasn't just a setting, it had so much more layers to it than that and I applaud Brewer for creating such a dynamic locale. Spencer has its own personality and readers will look forward getting to know this ominous presence. 
 I really wish this novel was longer because there was just so much I wanted to see more of. I wanted more character development for Stephen and Cara and also for his relationship with his mom to be explored further. What Brewer did give me the reader was excellent, but I do feel that this book was too short and that many aspects of this book deserved more attention. 
 The romance in this one never really thrilled me and I found myself unsure why Stephen actually liked Cara. I know Stephen was lonely, but Cara just didn't seem like a great choice regardless of his situation. Their relationship lacked any sort of connection and I was shocked how they acted like they'd been together much longer than they had. I'm not sure if the short length of the book affected my enjoyment of the romance, but it certainly didn't help. 
 The plot of this book was pretty predictable, but I did enjoy seeing Stephen try to figure out what the root of the evil in the town was. I had a good idea of who the culprit was pretty much from the start, but it certainly was an interesting twist regardless. It was awesome seeing a character using a LIBRARY for research in the age of the internet, yes I'm incredibly geeky and excited by this. Sans the big twist, I was satisfied by the way this one ended and it was a relief to read a stand-alone for once. 
 The Cemetery Boys is a solid stand-alone from one of my favorite YA authors and I look forward to reading more from Heather Brewer. She really knows how to capture what being an outsider is and the mysteries that lie within a small town. Readers looking for a solid YA horror novel, should definitely check out The Cemetery Boys and discover Spencer.