Deadstream – Mar Romasco-Moore

The first book, outside of the blog tours, that I finished up this month!

Thanks to Penguin Teen for the gifted copy

DEADSTREAM – Mar Romasco-Moore (Released April 1st, 2025)

Book Description:

Rear Window meets The Ring in this sinister YA thriller, in which a teen girl witnesses the livestreamed murder of a popular online streamer by a paranormal entity . . . and could be its next victim.

After surviving a car accident that claimed the life of her best friend, Teresa is now terrified to leave the safety of her bedroom. Since then, her only solace and window to the outside world has been the online community she found through streaming.

But one night, the safe world Teresa created starts to break down. A shadowy figure appears in the background of her favorite’s streamer’s video, and his behavior mysteriously changes over the next few days before he dies in front of thousands of viewers. Teresa finds herself at the center of a life-and-death investigation as the world tries to figure out what or who this figure could be . . . especially as it begins appearing in the other people’s streams, compelling them to “open the door“ and let it in—including Teresa’s own. In order to save herself and the rest of the internet from this relentless entity, Teresa must venture outside of the mental and physical walls she’s created. But will she be able to conquer her fears before anyone else loses their life?

My Thoughts: 4/5 stars

I feel like when books are compared to popular movies or other books, it sets a high bar. This one, in particular, is compared to Rear Window and The Ring. Big expectations. This YA horror novel did bring a modern social media twist to those stories. I do like the more updated take on The Ring’s video tape – who knew watching a livestream could put your life in danger? 

After a traumatic car accident, Teresa is agoraphobic and suffers from PTSD. Her connection to the world outside of her bedroom? The internet, of course, and the community she found in the streaming space. All of that is put at risk when her favorite streamer starts acting off when a shadowy figure appears in his stream. After he dies, live, and in front of thousands of viewers, people who witnessed it are starting to experience the very same entity. Teresa is determined to get to the bottom of what this entity is and what it wants before it’s too late. 

I’ve always loved books that have mixed media forms to tell the story, if done well. I applaud the author for how they captured these online spaces. From livestreams, to forums, to chats and how things authentically are across all forms of social media and existing online. You could almost hear those notifications coming and the live reactions as they happened. This was incredibly accurate and really added to the immersive experience of the story. 

I would also compare this to elements of Smile. You witness the death of someone, and it begins to haunt you until it consumes you. Oh, and if you aren’t comfortable with bugs, buckle up for a scene that will 100% make your skin crawl (pun intended, I think). I was satisfied with the ending, and for a YA horror, this had a decent amount of creep factor. If you want terrifying, this will be on the tamer side, and this is geared towards a younger audience. I’ll definitely look for more from Mar Romasco-Moore in the future.