With Friends Like These

by V.S. Lawrence

Girls camp can be hell.

Camp Red Moon was supposed to be a fresh start for Kenzie — a summer of fun and new friendships — but the remote camp has quickly turned into a waking nightmare. When the camp leader heads into town, leaving the group isolated in the high Uintah Mountains, a seemingly harmless prank to summon a demon unleashes a terror beyond their worst fears.

As tensions boil over and the bodies begin to pile up, Kenzie finds herself questioning who to trust. But the deeper the campers descend into chaos, the closer Kenzie comes to uncovering a truth more horrifying than anything she could have imagined — one that will leave no soul at Camp Red Moon untouched.

Genres: Horror, Young Adult, Thriller, Summer, YA Horror, Demons, Ebooks

326 pages, Paperback

Published April 15, 2025

About the author

V.S. Lawrence grew up in Utah being scared of everything. Now, she puts her fears on paper, writing spooky books that feel like Scooby Doo chase music. When not writing, she can be found buried in a horror novel, wandering aimlessly, or cuddling her dog, Rigby. She is still scared of everything.

Reviews

[kayleigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was a fun read! i liked the vibes of it all – the slasher, camp setting, and i enjoyed v.s. lawrence’s writing. it was easy to read and get through, albeit a bit simple. it was definitely a young adult horror/thriller, but it was still a lot of fun regardless.

the plot ↠ for the most part, i really did enjoy the plot overall. it was obvious where the story was going, and while lawrence lost me by the end, the build up was enjoyable to read. while i don’t mind those type of stories, i don’t think it was done super well here and ended up feeling really over the top.

the characters ↠ on the other hand, i loved the characters. except for the overuse of like and literally in a very stereotypical teenage girl way, the characters were really well written. i liked kenzie (despite how naïve and sheltered she was, which did get on my nerves a bit) and hannah, and i thought their friendship was sweet. the other characters sufficiently got on my nerves like they were supposed to. the characters definitely carried the story in their own ways.

all in all, a good little YA horror. i’m interested in getting to more of v.s. lawrence’s books soon.

3.5 stars

[julia ☆ [owls reads] · Rating 3 out of 5]

An okay read with a bit too much religion for me.

[Vonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one! Even though I saw it coming, it was still a super fun Summerween read! I adored Kenzie and Hannah's friendship—I’ll be thinking about these two (or should I say three? Bahaha!) forever!

[Rebecca White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ahhh Camp Red Moon. That alone doesn’t sound sinister, right? 😂

I never had the (dis)pleasure of going to a sleep away camp. Maybe my mom watched too many horror movies and decided it wasn’t the best choice? So I missed out on that fun but this read made up for it!

VS Lawrence has an incredible knack for writing the most believable characters. From dialogue to inner thoughts to subtle nuances, each character in this book was fleshed out and reminded me of someone I’ve met in real life. I personally loved Kenzie, our main character, the most because I felt like her inner dialogue is something most of us can resonate with.

But enough of the mushy stuff! We want blooooood! And damn does this book deliver. Once the bodies start piling up, they don’t stop. And the carnage at the end? So satisfying in the sickest way.

Thank you to the author for the ARC!

[Amanda Hopwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

gives that camp nostalgia

Nothing like a creepy camp ghost story turned into a book!! Kenzie is home schooled and just wants to make friends for the first time . But now people are being killed and no adults are at the camp!! Perfect for a spooky summer read.

[K D Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

The prologue of this story draws you right in. A dying girl.

Kenzie’s off to Camp Red Moon for the summer. She’s worried about fitting in. But that soon dissolves.

A camp councillor takes kenzie under her wing and shows her something on a hike that no one else knows about. She shows her bunk mates and awakes the next day looking like sh*t.

Things start to take a turn. The camp leader doesn’t come back from town. The phone lines go down and a girl goes missing!

Things heat up even more when that missing girl winds up dead! Fitting in was the last of Kenzie’s worries.

If you’re looking for a light summerween slasher then this is the book for you!

[Hooterbby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went into this thinking it was literally just a slasher, WOW WOW WOW. The religious cult of teenagers forming together really had me seething. I loved some characters and really hated others. I was holding my breathe waiting to see my most despised character die, with fingers crossed it was going to happen. I of coarse was racking my brain with all these assumptions on who is behind it all. I personally think this is a perfect summer horror read if you're looking for one!

[Brittany Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was honestly fun?? I read it so fast! There is ALOT of religion buttttt it’s pretty vital to the plot. The shock I got at how unserious the book became at the end with the demon took me out though 😭😂😂😂😂 talking about demons getting time off 💀💀

[Mallory McCartney · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was a bloody good time from start to finish! your perfect summer-ween read and Lawrence delivers

[Marcus · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one has everything you could ever hope for in a horror book set at a summer camp—archery, canoeing, marshmallow-roasting, and one murder after another. I was pleased to find that there were some creatively gruesome kills; one of which will make you see the cover of the book in a new light.

It has what makes the Scream series so appealing—a sense of whodunnit throughout until finally the penny drops. It will keep you turning the pages until the very end, wanting, nay needing, to find out with lots of nice surprises along the way. I found it delightfully descriptive and most of all a great example of the many complexities of social navigation. The insight within was clearly gathered by someone who has experienced the many quirks of friendship and communication from authority figures to our best friends. In that way it’s not unlike our past at school. Where there may well be fond memories, there are also undoubtedly a number of challenges that made the experience difficult at times and all of that comes through in vivid clarity.

There are many charming and amusing aspects to Camp Red Moon from the friendship between Kenzie and Hannah to the sense of humor throughout. But like so many things, there’s something dark lurking beneath the congenial, pine-scented surface; reminding us that the true horrors of life stem from those around us and whatever odious motives drive them. There was a pleasing sense of nostalgia in a way that’s seamlessly woven into the story. You almost forget when it is set until there is mention of a Discman or one character tells another to “Chillax.” There was also, to my ever-present alacrity, an aspect of religious horror to it that meshed well with the rest of the story. It’s rife with themes of mob mentality and the power of suggestion in a way that reminds me of stories like The Crucible or The Mist. Don’t want to spoil things by saying too much but there were lots of layers to things, especially in the climax.

This may make for a perfect summer read, but there’s no point in the year in which it wouldn’t fit. For anyone looking to start out with horror this would be a great place to start. I think you’ll find it both familiar and fresh all at once.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a sleepaway camp of nightmares, where mean girls and cabin politics and demonic possession intersect in a summer-time slasher, the girls of Camp Red Moon are in for a bloody, hellish ride they will never forget. V.S Lawrence perfectly captures what it means to be a teenage girl desperate to fit in, creating her distinct, well-rounded characters in a unique and compelling voice. There were so many unexpected twists and turns and uses of popular horror tropes that underscored the plot - between religious, cultish thrills and obscene, gory kill counts, all building up to a dramatic third-act climax. With Friends Like These was an unputdownable, heart-racing read, perfect for the summertime, fusing mean girls social hierarchies and all of the nostalgic, pulse-pounding terror of Friday the Thirteenth. The first 85% of the novel was a solid 4 stars, but it was the ultimate reveal and lacklustre ending that lost me; I was hoping for a far more satisfying twist true to the summer camp slasher sub-genre and felt that the set-up didn’t quite meet the shocking turn the author decided to take in the last twenty pages. Nevertheless, a fun and exciting read with plenty of gut-punching gore! 3.5 stars.

[Felicity 🍒 · Rating 4 out of 5]

super fun and an absolute blast to read, it's perfect for a spooky summer read, it kept me guessing throughout, just when i thought i figured it out, it took a swerve, i didn't see that ending comin' at al 😱

[bookmarksandbarbells · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very quick and fun read. The writing is addicting.
Camp slasher vibes with a hint of demon possession. 👌

[Kenny Kemper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow this book had me hooked from the very beginning. Following the journey of Kenzie a home school girl going to Camp Red Moon for the first time. Nothing goes as expected to say the very least. Her #1 mission was to find new friends and after all the mind blowing twists and turns she leaves with just that and says she feel like for the first time she feels like she is not alone. You have to read this book to see what happens but I’m telling you now to buckle up!!

[Trina 🖤 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went to Summer Camp once growing up in the 80s. Reminiscent of old school slasher movies, Camp Red Moon brought back memories and ignited nightmares!

Get your campfire roaring and grab the s’mores! Mean girls, revenge, bloodshed and horror. So much horror!! This was a fast paced, thrilling, gruesome and bloody story of Summer camp gone horribly wrong. And ironically about true friendships…’you accept the whole person - demons and all.” Sometimes that is literally true!

I thoroughly loved this book!! Definitely recommend if you want all the gory Summer Camp vibes with vibrant characters, evil twists and of course, a serial killer on the loose!

[Kiirstyannee.reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you VS Lawrence for this read!

This was everything my camp slasher heart needed. Perfect for fans of Friday the 13th where one by one people begin to be picked off! The deaths are gory and the friendships of our characters begin to bloom as everything else starts to fall apart!

There were lots of suspects in this and the ending truly surprised me! I didn't expect the author to take the plot this way but it was such a great finish.

Add this one to your TBR if you are anything like me and crave a super fast paced, gory, camp based slasher any day of the week!!

4.5/5

[Robert King II · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much. It kept me guessing throughout—just when I thought I figured it out, it took a swerve. It was super fun and I couldn’t wait to pick it back up after I had to take a break. Also, if that’s how teen girls are irl, I’m glad I grew up a boy haha

[Chloe-Mai · Rating 1 out of 5]

what the hell is everyone else reading to be giving this 5 stars

[Matthew Mercer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another new author for me, and another pleasant surprise. I first heard her name when her debut novel 80s ghosts showed up in basically every single one of my book recommendations, and yet I somehow never got around to grabbing it. Then, through a mutual, I was offered an ARC of this one, which I accepted and never read. Once I discovered it was on Kindle Unlimited, I finally gave it a shot and I am so glad I did.

The main character, Kenzie, is a sheltered girl who seriously lacks friends thanks to being homeschooled growing up. She yearns for that missing piece of social connection and receives it in the form of an all-girls summer camp. Upon making those friends she always wanted, she tries to scare them as one does at summer camp, and things go wrong from there.

I loved the way each character was written, especially the counselor Robin, who did very well at pissing me off. This book has a very well-done helpless, almost claustrophobic vibe about it that is done so well. Oh, and it's a summer camp slasher, which obviously just gives it bonus points. The camp setting was well depicted, and the kills were great. Heavily recommend this one, and I cannot wait for her to write more.

[Sharron Joy Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Camp Red Moon, high in the mountains and isolated, it’s Kenzie’s first camp and she is excited to make new friends. But when a prank to summon a demon goes wrong all hell breaks loose and you really find out who your friends are.

A camp based slasher in the woods with no way to escape and with the phone lines down, I mean, what can go wrong right! This is a fast paced horror with a supernatural twist that ups the gore to eleven (a showing my age reference there lol).

It’s a story of teenage friendships and finding yourself with a dose of zealous christian righteousness from one of the counsellors thrown in to amp up the paranoia. The kills are pure feral brutality and the fear from the girls and the counsellors is palpable.

Honestly why were these camps so popular? Bitchiness, rivalry, forced fun, uncomfortable beds and crap food, so glad these were never a thing in the UK, sounds horrific without the serial killer stalking the campers!

But has a read, this is set in the 90’s and is fabulous slasher nostalgia, a blood soaked summer horror that is such fun!

[Jonathan Pongratz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a lot of fun with this YA slasher!

It's the late 90s, and homeschooled Kenzie is nervous about Camp Red Moon. When she arrives she struggles to make friends with her lacking social skills. But after she does something daring to impress her cabinmates, something drastically changes at camp. Girls start to go missing, and without a clear killer in sight, Kenzie and the other campers will have to get smart if they want to survive.

I love a good burst of nostalgia, and this book had that in spades. I loved all the subtle 90s references, and it was very convincing. The writing was sharp and easy to read.

Kenzie was an interesting MC. She's socially awkward, which I resonated with, but she has a good heart that really makes you root for her. She had some nice progression from an awkward homeschooled girl to someone more sure of themselves, and I also really enjoyed Hannah's character. Scrappy and sassy characters always win me over.

After a nice buildup, things really move fast at Camp Red Moon, and I liked how many twists and turns they were that kept me on the edge of my seat. The big reveal may not have hit me quite as hard as I'd hoped, but this was an extremely solid read and perfect for summertime. I can't wait to read more from this author!

[Ale Yárrito · Rating 2 out of 5]

With Friends Like These by V. S. Lawrence had so much potential... and then it decided to become every horror movie ever made.

Possession? ✔️
Religious fanaticism? ✔️
Cult vibes? ✔️
Slasher? ✔️
A little "what in the Catholic trauma is happening?" ✔️

Instead of picking one lane and doing it well, it swerved across the entire horror highway. Every time I thought I knew what kind of story I was reading, another trope showed up like, "Surprise! I'm here too!"

Nothing really had time to breathe because there was so much going on. The atmosphere was decent at times, but the plot felt overcrowded, and by the end I wasn't scared, I was just tired.

It's not the worst horror I've read, but it's definitely one I'll forget pretty quickly.

[Therese Nilsson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Författaren har verkligen lyckats fånga känslan och upplevelsen som ung tjej att hitta sin plats bland redan etablerade grupper på kollot Red Moon. Hur människorna beter sig är det mest skrämmande än det övernaturliga.

Jag var rädd att slutet skulle ta den vändningen som jag befarade. Någonstans vill jag finna en djupare mening av valet av att en människa skulle låta en demon stanna kvar inom en. Den (falska) tryggheten hon upplever, är något som måste arbetas på egen hand. Styrkan att känna sig trygg i sig själv och stå upp för sig själv är något som kommer djupt inifrån som består.

Hellre ensam och osäker en säker med en demon inom mig 😅
Jag babblar på, läs den i alla fall 😊

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars.

I’ve been to camp twice in my life. I went to a very small primary school (one class per grade) so I was lucky when, in Year 6, I was able to go to “writer’s camp” for budding young writers; the only student from my school. My mum was a volunteer parent helper so rather than camp out with the other kids, she and I slept in the back of our station wagon. And then again in Year 10, we had a school camp where I made good use of the flying fox and we all slept in a nice secure cabin.

After reading this, I DEFINITELY didn’t miss out on anything.

This was a fantastic read!! It was fast paced and engaging – I was immediately invested and didn’t want to stop reading. VS Lawrence is great at building characters and atmosphere, and the horror in this, did not hold back. Chanting Latin in the woods at night, GIRL.

I don’t want to spoil any plot points or twists (but let’s just say, if there WAS a twist, omg it was good) and there was a particular kind of mania that spread through the camp that was unexpected, creepy, and a thrilling touch by the author. Not just a camp slasher, it was unique and exciting. I really liked Kenzie, and several of the other characters. The ending was a little too neatly wrapped in my opinion but it was still done well.

Thank you so much to the author for sending the ARC - I had a lot of fun reading this, and I highly recommend it to anyone after 90s-slasher-camp goodness with bonus music playlist at the end (fun!).

[~Kensie~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars! honestly better than expected!! it’s very true to the time period it’s set in, and i mean that in a good way. it just has those 90s camp slasher horror movie/teen girl movie vibes that’s very nostalgic and kinda feel good in a weird way. the ending was a pretty easy to see coming but i contribute that more to it being very 90s horror movie-esque rather than the writing

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fun campy read. Thought it had a summer feel to it.

There was loads to like about this including the main character Kenzie. We’ve all been in Kenzie’s shoes before. There was the Camp Red Moon, maybe it’s just me but it sorta reminded me of Camp Crystal Lake. Gotta love Summer horror.

Although, not incredibly scary. The story offered a lot. Plus themes of friendship were apparent in the story. I read this in one setting, and I just loved the dialogue between Kenzie and the other campers. Knew something horrific was going to happen and the mystery of the story kept me reading. At the end, I was not disappointed.

[Rhys · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5⭐️ woah i loved this!!

[Daria · Rating 1 out of 5]

I‘m sorry, but this was so dumb.

[Kacie · Rating 1 out of 5]

why is everyone so chill after three people were killed? damn they got brutally murdered at this small camp where the killer could be anyone? that sucks :( it’s okay though because we have canoes and hot dogs and s’mores :)

this could have so easily been 200 pages shorter and honestly probably more enjoyable if it explored the relationship between kenzie and her new, built in buddy rather than page after page of filler just to get to a massacre

[Kristin Sheppard · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Kenzie, a lonely, home-schooled girl decides to get out of her shell and make some friends by attending summer camp, she never could have imagined it would be so difficult. She feels like an outsider. She's constantly making mistakes that the experienced campers laugh at her for. All she wants is to belong. That is, until campers start dropping like flies. Now all she wants to do is survive.

Someone, or something, is hunting the girls of Camp Red Moon, leaving a growing trail of blood in their wake. Fear quickly takes a hold of the campers and counselors when it becomes obvious that no one is safe. Darkness stalks Camp Red Moon, and when the truth comes out, it will eclipse even their most vivid nightmares.

With Friends Like These is another five star thriller from author V.S. Lawrence. Summer camp, especially a girls summer camp, has always been a particularly perfect setting for horror. V.S. Lawrence takes the summer camp trope and refreshes it, leaving the reader with a fresh but familiar tale that is impossible to put down.

I'll admit, I pride myself on being an observant reader but all my assumptions about the ending of this novel didn't even come close to the truth. I loved all the twists and turns as Kenzie, Hannah, and the other girls of Camp Red Moon try their best to survive the slasher fest their summer has turned out to be.

Lawrence does a particularly good job of capturing the dynamic of teenage girls. Let's face it, teenage girls are mean. They are clicky and will ban together and prey on the weak to make themselves feel better. One single slip up can leave a person ostracized and on the outside. These social behaviors are front and center of this tale, and are arguably the real horror.

I'm pretty sure I just added another auto-buy author to my list. At this point, if Lawrence writes it, I'm going to read it.