NO ONE SAVES THE WICKED
Holy smokes! This story grabs you as if the Grim Reaper reaches out from the story, forcing you to keep reading, while showing the glint from its scythe as a warning for those moments you feel like stopping to catch your breath. It’s Coming For Me by Jessica Blade is a horror story with an 80s vibe full of all the fright and suspense needed to make it a page-turner. From the prologue onward, the story compels you to find out how this all connects to Cole Benson, hoping he defeats those that abuse and haunt him. You’ll be rooting for Cole until the earth-shaking end.
The following in-depth book review does not contain spoilers, and the page numbers for the quotes may vary since they are from the eBook.
After finishing reading this thrilling young adult horror novel, there were so many cool things I could write about, but I had to narrow it down to one. The prologue! The intensity trickles in, making you pissed at the parents, but then it gets crazier, pulling at your heartstrings as if some dark being is dragging your eyes to keep up with the tension forcing you to read the pages as fast as possible, so you keep up with the pace. Then it pulls you up to its highest point like a soaring hawk taking a punk crow to its death, introducing the parents, making you hate them and wish you could reach inside the book to save the protagonist.
THE BOY
At the start of the prologue, Ms. Blade sets the time period: “Fall of 1972” (2). Next, she immediately makes you feel for the narrator because the narrator is “five years old and all alone in the house” (2). Now, I don’t much about the 70s life, but it definitely feels wrong that a 5-year-old has been left alone by his parents, especially when you add in that he’s been brainwashed to believe he can’t move from the couch for any reason, and that “it’s been an hour since they left, and they won’t be back until midnight” (2). My heart hurt for the kid when I read the next sentence: “That’s two more hours. I have to go to the bathroom. I think I can hold it” (2). This made me read the page as fast as possible.
On page 3, you’ll learn the child is a boy who ran as fast as he could to the bathroom. But the sounds of the monster become a new obstacle and terrify him from entering the bathroom until this happens to him: “Pee trickles down my leg. I blink back tears” (3). The monster sounds intensify, making the boy wonder where they’re coming from. He starts seeing everything as being transformed into its evil version: “I see the stove…It doesn’t look like a normal stove anymore. It looks like a bloody, toothy grin staring back at me. I race into the living room…The black and gold flowers on the wallpaper watch me with upside-down evil faces” (3). Tension builds as you get to page 4 because the boy’s more terrified than ever. He starts contemplating which of his neighbors can help. But then Blade has him realize, “The growling grows bigger and scarier…I cry, and the tears splat against my cheeks. I’m not supposed to say anything. I’m not supposed to cry or scream, but my heart is pushing into my throat…’Help me!’ I scream” (4). This scream pulls your heartstrings through your eyes, forcing you to read the page to get to the next one to find out what’s next.
THE PARENTS
It just gets worse for the boy on page 5. He’s too small to reach the front door’s knob, and then “a howl…echoes all through the house” (5). The boy proceeds to hide behind a couch until Ms. Blade decides to have him narrate, “The shrieking stops. I stay still for a long, long time. Finally, I peek around the armrest. No monster” (5). Phew. However, you can’t help but feel for the kid as he forces himself to pay full attention to the Scooby-Doo movie on the television, hoping “the monster will go away” (5). Soon it’s midnight, and his parents aren’t home yet! Then the boy continues, “I yawn. But I can’t fall asleep. What if the monster gets me? On the TV, Scooby and the gang stop the vulture. I stare around the living room. I wish I could do that. Make the bad thing disappear” (5). As he hides under his blanket, you can’t help but think how sad, the boy desperately wants to make the monster disappear. But just as you want the scene to calm, Blade chooses to bring in the parents, who you can’t help but despise for leaving him home alone past midnight.
Then the boy narrates, “The front door bangs open. I gasp and peek out through the blanket. Mommy and Daddy come into the living room” (6). He tells them about the monster, and his mother reacts, telling him that he’s a mistake, making him remember his teacher has him get rid of mistakes; he wonders if she’s going to get rid of him. The boy tries to tell his father, but his father sees it as an opportunity to further scare him: “Daddy grabs me by the wrist and yanks me off the couch. They each take one of my hands and walk me down the hall. Mommy shoves me inside my room and slams the door. The locking thing clicks. There’s only one way to lock the door…From the outside” (6). Damn. Deep breathe. Then you add in the mother’s threat: “If you say a word about us to anyone, Cole, your monster will kill you and anyone you tell” (7). I couldn’t help but slowly turn the page, hoping it gets better for the boy.
CAN ANYONE HELP COLE?
Cole’s backstory of childhood abuse doesn’t calm there. Nope. The father intensifies it: “That’s right, little boy… The boogeyman waits under your bed when you sleep. If you disobey us, the boogeyman will grab your ankles and rip off your toes” (7). This leaves Cole shaking in his room, staring at his bed, and “they laugh as they walk away to their bedroom way down the other end of the hall” (7). Cole wishes for his parents to return. He forces himself not to cry. His only salvation is a drop of hope: “I run to a small chair near the window and sit there for a long time, staring at the other houses. Can anyone help me?” (7). The only answer Cole receives is the monster starting to growl, ending the prologue as he realizes, “It isn’t hiding underneath my bed, like Daddy thinks. It’s high above my bed. Up inside the attic” (7). The prologue expertly sets up the story, preparing you for the hellish ride Blade wants you to enjoy with a side of fear while forcing you to experience the ensuing pain.
BEFORE THE PAIN HEALS
The prologue’s intensity is merely a glimpse of the exponential rise of tension happening until the end. By chapter one, Cole’s 17 years old, and it’s time for him to buckle up for the ride to survival because the pace of the novel is unrelenting, unforgiving, and action-packed like a classic 80s horror film that’ll make you jump out of your seat after the slightest surprise. Right away, it’s evident his childhood trauma has affected him majorly. It’s heartbreaking to read how this has influenced his life, and he doesn’t know anything different. It’ll make you wish you could’ve reported the parents to child protection services when he was 5. If the awful parents weren’t enough, he also has two popular football players who relentlessly bully him at school. You can’t help but feel for Cole; he can’t catch a break from bullying or abuse anywhere. The monster! Cole also starts hearing it everywhere. It’s insane how he’s being tortured by three versions of evil.
The chapters throughout the read ended so well, it was hard not to continue reading the next one, finishing the book in one sitting. Many of them end on an ominous tone, making you want to keep going. One of the best parts is how many of them roll into each other, maintaining the novel’s page-turner effect. The author does a great job fleshing out the characters, building them into realistic 80s teens.
There are so many intense scenes throughout the story. Once the Halloween decorations go up, it just gets eerier and eerier, making it more unputdownable than ever. You’ll definitely feel the “time’s running out” tension throughout this part of the book because of the heart-pounding pace. Overall, It’s Coming For Me by Jessica Blade cuts like Jason’s machete, slicing through flesh, using drops of blood to reveal the path to salvation; it’s a must-read for horror fans, especially if you love the ones from the 80s.
Thank you for reading our in-depth book review about It’s Coming For Me by Jessica Blade. We are not affiliated with the publisher, but here’s the link to pick up a copy.
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E. R. Sanchez is the author of Fried Potato Press’s first young adult thriller, Petaco Dreams, which will be released in November 2025 after the rewrite, new title, and new cover. He also has poems and stories published online and in print. If you’d like to read his work that was published online, please click here to go to his Stories and Poetry Section.