Clown in a Cornfield 3: The Church of Frendo

2024’s Bram Stoker Award Winner for Superior Achievement in a Young Adult Novel!

The thrills and chills are far from over in the third novel from Bram Stoker Award winner and master of scare, horror legend Adam Cesare.

Quinn has just survived yet another bloody run-in with the murderous clown Frendo, but somehow still she knows this won’t be the last. Tired of being hunted and seeing innocent people hurt, Quinn believes the only way to beat the horror is to take justice into her own hands--and stop the Frendo followers herself. Little does she know that this path will take her across cornfields and state lines, to where she will have to face the most dangerous and bloody menace yet: True believers.

It’s an all-new tale in this terrifying trio series about the villains inside us all, from the master of slashers and suspense, award–winning author Adam Cesare.

• Perfect for Halloween Reading
• For teens who love dark and scary stories

I’ve stated before that Clown in a Cornfield gives me Children of the Corn vibes, but with the third installment, that’s changed. The Church of Frendo gives me The Village by M. Night Shyamalan and The Wicker Man vibes.

This installment features Quinn Maybrook, but she’s not with Rust or Cole (though they are mentioned and do appear). She’s on her own, and she’s tracking down the people who participated in the previous Halloween’s massacre in Kettle Springs – the one year anniversary of the first Kettle Springs Massacre. She’s not fooling around either.

Enter in a new character – Johnny D. I loved this one. He was funny, and he refused to just let Quinn go off on her own and do what she wanted. Nope. Once she picked him up, she was stuck with him. And I loved that. Another character I was somewhat fond of was Tabitha – although at first, I didn’t quite understand what was going on.

Now we come to where I say that it reminds me of The Village – because all of a sudden, we are thrown into an early-American town. At first, you might think they’re talking about the early days of Kettle Springs, Missouri. Trust me, they aren’t. And this is as weird and creepy as The Village is – especially when you realize who the church in this town worships!

The leaders of this town are trying to lure Quinn to their town to get rid of her once and for all. The question is – will they succeed?

At first it was difficult to follow the switching scenery – at least the time periods for the switching scenery, but once a few clues came in, it was much easier. The plot for this one was interesting and it kept me on my toes, wondering what exactly the people in New Kettle Springs were plotting and why.

I have to say, the ending was sad, but a small tidbit given in the epilogue gives me a twinge of hope… not telling you what happens, obviously, but… a twinge of hope.

I gave this four stars and I can’t wait for the 4th book to come out in August!!