Killer Summer by Wendy Dalrymple 
Mad Axe Media (May 12, 2026)
Reviewed by Adam Allen
2026 is the year of slashers written by women, and pink horror pioneer Wendy Dalrymple is here to get the party started right with Killer Summer. In this fast-paced and gloriously gruesome novel, we follow Dani as she survives attack after attack from a stalking killer. In Dani, Dalrymple delivers a final girl worthy of the title and then some, and there are multiple moments that will have you cheering as she refuses to play the role of victim to the circumstances around her.
The book follows a split structure, starting in 1998 and then continuing 25 years later in 2023. In the first section, Dalrymple skewers the nostalgia of video stores and other late 90s trappings by making them the site of some seriously brutal and shocking murders that come fast, furious, and out of nowhere. The way Dalrymple is able to set up her characters and relationships so quickly, then unleash the mayhem that is Matt Vickers, is extremely impressive. Speaking of Matt Vickers, this slasher is unique in that the reader knows exactly who he is: the killer. Because this isn’t his story; it’s Dani’s. It’s about her relentless fight for survival. I really enjoyed that this slasher is not an anti-hero. You will not be rooting for him whatsoever. He is a terrible human being, period, and Dani has to go to some extremely dark places to get through this part of her life. She learns that the only person she can really depend on to keep her safe is herself.
Flash forward to 2023, and Dani is now a professor living a new life with the events of that horrible year behind her. Matt Vickers has been in prison for 25 years, but she still has to deal with the memories of it, mostly because in the era of social media and “alternative facts,” some guys in the manosphere have decided that Vickers is actually the victim, and Dani is somehow responsible for the killings. And then bodies start turning up again. Is Vickers back? Is there a copycat? Or is something even more insidious happening?
Dalrymple’s setup is exquisite, and the 1998 section is a no-holds-barred onslaught of gore and death. She barely gives the reader time to come up for air during this section before the next attack begins. It feels like the kind of story or movie you think a slasher will be before you’re actually old enough to watch one, it’s just that good.
The 2023 section begins much quieter. Here, we really get to see the effects of trauma. Dani’s entire life has been changed in so many ways, and Dalrymple does such a great job of showing how every aspect of Dani’s life is dictated by the thought that she could be a target at any time. The unfairness of how she is portrayed on the internet, the unfairness of her parents and the love of her life taken from her because of the selfishness of one man, and the unfairness of her having to completely upend her life and change her name, is on full display here. It’s not hard to
make connections between what Dani has gone through and what so many women have to face every day because of predatory men, and that makes the way Dani fights back and refuses to be a victim again so very satisfying. Dani has to face another killer summer, and if she has anything to do with it, she’ll be the one doing the killing this time.
Should You Read It?
Fire up the grill, blow up the pool floats, and get the sparklers ready, because Wendy Dalrymple’s bringing the slasher fireworks. If you are a slasher fan, Killer Summer belongs on your TBR.
