What does it mean to be a final girl? Can it really be as straightforward as staying alive until the sun rises? Picking up the knife, the machete, the abandoned gun and putting down the killer? Or is it something more? Could it mean stepping into a position of power and fighting for something larger than yourself? Or risking your life for the people you love? Could it be that anyone who bravely stands against an unstoppable force has final girl blood running through their veins?

Jennifer “Jade” Daniels has never seen herself as a final girl. When we first meet the teenage outcast in Stephen Graham Jones’ My Heart is a Chainsaw, she’s lurking on the fringes of her her small town and educating her teachers about the slasher lore. She knows everything there is to know about this bloody subgenre, but it takes a deadly twist of fate to allow the hardened girl to see herself at the heart of the story. In Don’t Fear the Reaper, the weathered fighter returns to the small town of Proofrock, Idaho hoping to heal. But a stranger emerges from the surrounding woods to test her once again. The final chapter of this thrilling trilogy, The Angel of Indian Lake, reunites us with the beloved heroine as she wages war against the Lake Witch for the soul of the town. She’ll need all the strength her many scars can provide and the support of the loved ones she’s lost along the way.

Today, Shelby Novak of Scare You to Sleep and Jenn Adams of The Losers’ Club: A Stephen King Podcast sit down to chat with the award-winning author about the concluding chapter in his bestselling Indian Lake trilogy. Together they discuss the origins of Jade’s beloved nickname, life in a small town, complicated villains, and all those horror references that made the first two novels fan favorites. Jenn reveals how many times she cried while reading (spoiler: a lot), Shelby geeks out over the novel’s emotional structure, and all three weigh in on their favorite final girls and which entry is the best in the Final Destination franchise.

Stream the heartfelt conversation below pick up your copy of The Angel of Indian Lake, on bookshelves now. Bloody Disgusting‘s Meagan Navarro gives the novel four-and-a-half skulls and writes, “Proofrock has seen a copious amount of bloodshed over three novels, but thanks to Jade, an unprecedented number of final girls have risen to fight back in various ways. The way that The Angel of Indian Lake closes that loop is masterful, solidifying Jade Daniels’ poignant, profound legacy in the slasher realm.”