What’s happening, bookworms?

Can you believe it’s 2025?! I have so many things I want to do this year, but I’m trying to stay calm and not overexert myself. One thing I wanted to do this year is get back to my roots, and that means more buddy reads!

Today I’m reviewing Melon Head Mayhem by Alex Ebenstein.

I’m buddy reading this one with fellow horror author and reader Iseult Murphy. This is my individual review post, soon to be followed by our buddy read and rant convo in another post.

Iseult and I both love horror, and we agreed that this one sounded fun so we decided to give it a go. Another quick note, each book in this series is written by a different author, so if one doesn’t match your reading style, just try another!

Alright, let’s get this book review started!

Blurb

Have you ever wanted to live inside your favorite horror film? Prove you have what it takes to fight Freddy? Destroy Jason? Mangle Michael?

Cousins Carson and Sophia are in town for their grandma’s funeral and are, unknowingly, about to live out the nightmare that is every horror fan’s dream.

After they find an old unfamiliar VHS tape tucked away in grandma’s house, they figure the worst that can happen is a few cringeworthy moments and 90 minutes wasted. Instead, the video summons the movie monsters—local urban legends called melon heads—into their very real lives!

The destruction caused by the blood thirsty melon heads has Carson and Sophia fighting to survive and sets them on a deadly path to the shores of Lake Michigan, home of the devilish beasts. They vow to destroy every last one of the melon heads and make sure these monsters never get a sequel.

Will they survive? Would you fare better?

It’s a creature feature. It’s a throwback. It’s… MELON HEAD MAYHEM!

GoodReads

Amazon

***Brief disclosure***

I am an Amazon affiliate and earn a tiny commission for purchases made through the Amazon links in this post at no cost to you. It’s a great way to help me keep things running on my blog if you’re already intrigued enough to make a purchase. 

The Review

I had fun with this campy horror novella, but I had some mixed feelings as well.

Carson and his bestie Sophia are back in their hometown to attend Carson’s grandma’s funeral. Late one night, he discovers an old VHS of Critters, but the tape inside of the cover is an unknown horror movie called Revenge of the Melon Heads. Carson and Sophia enjoy the cheesy campy flick, but their lives are suddenly at risk when horror of horrors, melon heads start to appear and attack them. Can they find a way to survive this horrible turn of events?

Okay, so I have to give major props to the cover of this novel. It feels so nostalgic and the blurb really got my attention too.

Carson and Sophia were decent MC’s, but I wanted a little more from them. We get to know their long-standing history together as neighborhood friends and their current lives before arriving in town, but I wanted something to make them three-dimensional and I didn’t quite get there.

I love me a fast-paced adventure and this was just that. There was a lot of campy horror at every twist and turn with some mild laughs, but I wanted a little more buildup before the action started happening. It’s a little ironic given how much I love action in a novel, but it just felt too soon for the chaos to start and I hadn’t really gotten enough from the main characters to care about them just yet, so I wasn’t as invested.

Overall, not a bad novella if you need a quick campy horror read.

That’s A Wrap!

Well that’s it for this book review. I hope you enjoyed it!

Have you read this book? Are there other similar books you’ve read that you simply have to gush about? Feel free to leave a comment. I’d love to start a conversation!

Have a great day!

Join My ARC & Street Review Team | Subscribe

 Facebook | GoodReads | Bookbub | Instagram| YouTube