Book Review: The Lost Boys of Barlow Theater by Jaime Jo Wright

The Lost Boys of Barlow Theater - Jamie Jo Wright - 4.5 Stars 

Wow, Jaime Jo does it AGAIN! This is a haunting and intricately woven novel that seamlessly combines elements of mystery and suspense. We have richly developed characters and a storyline that spans generations. This book is going to keep readers engaged from start to finish! 

Set in the eerie backdrop of the Barlow Theater, this story is told through dual timelines - one in present day and one in the early 1900s. In 1915, we see Greta Mercy, who is skeptical of the theater as her brother died there in an accident during its construction. When her younger brother goes missing after breaking into the building, Greta hopes the local police can help her solve this mystery of where he is. Plus, early on in the story, Greta caused quite the uproar when she says she saw a child fall from the theater balcony during one of the productions...yet no child was found. Was she seeing things or is there more to this theater than meets the eye?

Decades later during present day, we follow Kit Boyd, whose best friend Madison goes missing at the Theater when TV ghost-hunting host and skeptic, Evan Fisher, is there with their crew filming episodes of their TV show trying to catch secrets of the theater on film. Evan and Kit work together trying to piece together the puzzle and find Madison before it's too late. 

I am so glad I read this! It explored so much in both timelines and Jaime Jo always weaves the timelines and generational families together SO well! I can't say which timeline I liked better because I genuinely wanted to keep reading both! There were some parts that dragged a little for me but this is truly a 4.5 to 5 star read and I think if you are looking for a good, gothic fall read, this is for you! The content was not triggering for me in any way, the opening is a little unsettling with the thought of a possible child that fell from the balcony, but we soon question if that even truly happened or not. 

I loved Evan and Kit together most of all - he was just an awesome guy and I loved how he combated the "medium" or "psychic" in this story and explained how the supernatural world we "think" of today is most likely an illusion from the devil making us see what we think we want to see and how many of these things are things God doesn't want us even dabbling it - preach it Evan! The faith in this book is also weaved in very naturally and isn't preachy - it's beautiful to see how Evan reminds Kit that God hasn't abandoned her yet and he still won't. Jaime Jo may have had some details with psychics and mediums in here but she made sure to debunk what they were doing and point it back to God!

In conclusion, The Lost Boys of Barlow Theater will grip readers as an engaging and eerie fall read and I highly recommend! Thank you to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a copy to honestly read and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Goodreads Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5882194710
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3tqWLsJ
Baker Book House: https://bakerbookhouse.com/products/516373
Vlog and YouTube Review Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rt-U-nf5HX8