Sanctum by Madeleine Roux

From Goodreads:

"In this haunting, fast-paced sequel to the New York Times bestselling photo-illustrated novel Asylum, three teens must unlock some long-buried secrets from the past before the past comes back to get them first. Featuring found photographs, many from real vintage carnivals, Sanctum is a mind-bending reading experience that blurs the lines between past and present, genius and insanity, perfect for fans of the smash hit Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.

Dan, Abby, and Jordan remain traumatized by the summer they shared in the Brookline asylum. Much as they'd love to move on, someone is determined to keep the terror alive, sending the teens photos of an old-timey carnival, with no note and no name. Forsaking their plan never to go back, the teens return to New Hampshire College under the guise of a weekend for prospective students, and there they realize that the carnival from the photos is not only real, it's here on campus, apparently for the first time in many years.

Sneaking away from sample classes and college parties, Dan and his friends lead a tour of their own—one through the abandoned houses and hidden places of the surrounding town. Camford is hiding a terrible past, and the influence of the asylum runs deeper than Dan ever imagined."

Goodreads - Sanctum

I read Asylum a few weeks ago and absolutely fell in love with it.  I was worried that I wouldn't like the suspense and horror filled book, but I was enthralled in the series.  I was in the middle of a few other books when I finished Asylum, but I didn't hesitate to pick up Sanctum and start reading.

Sanctum picks up a few months after where Asylum left off.  Dan, Abby, and Jordan have all been having nightmares from what happened during their summer at Brookline.  It turns out that Abby and Jordan have received a ripped photo that starts to really creep them both out.  Dan in turn is asked to visit Felix because Felix keeps asking to see him.  Felix gives Dan the other portion of the ripped photograph and a list of coordinates.  The three come up with an elaborate story to go back to Brookline to hopefully end the nightmares and find the answers that Dan is searching for.  The three are only in Camford for a few days and they have to immediately delve into searching for clues and answers.  They eventually find that there is a cult that the Warden was involved with and that is still very active on the campus.  The story of course ends, but not before there are a few deaths and questions still in the air, which leaves room for the third book Catacomb to answer.

This book had the same exciting format with pictures sprinkled strategically throughout.  I really wish that there had been pictures included of the Scarlets and their strange world.  I also feel like they should have had some kind of special emblem or insignia besides a skull.  I just felt that since they were taking the "we are a prestigious organization" approach that they would have had a prestigious insignia that would have looked more professional than a skull.  I thought the cult approach was an interesting turn of events.  I kind of saw it coming after Dan and Jordan saw someone looking through the window while visiting Lucy.  On that same note I was expecting Lucy to be somehow involved with the Scarlets.  Even though she had had a lobotomy, it would have been a crazy turn of events to see that she somehow had a role in the Scarlets.  As for Cal, I think we all saw his involvement from a mile away.  He was sketchy and unstable.  He was bound to be involved with the Scarlets.  I hope we get some kind of update on Cal in Catacomb.  

Micah is a little bit of a different story.  He had moments where he was very nosy as to what Dan, Abby, and Jordan were up to.  I was really expecting him to turn on them while they were out house hunting the night of the carnival.  When the Scarlets showed up the book said that Micah was very white in the face.  This is great and all, but he didn't panic like a normal person would have in those circumstances.  At that point I knew that he was on their side and that he was going to "sacrifice" himself so they could get away, when in reality he was on the same side as the Scarlets.  It was very unfortunate what happened to him, and quite unexpected, but I expect that we will hear from Micah again in Catacomb.  The fact that he was dead and waving to Dan as he left just left that unfinished business feeling.

This book was absolutely phenomenal.  I don't think I enjoyed it quite as much as the first book, but it was still very good.  There were a few times where I went back and reread a chapter because I wanted to make sure I collected all the facts that I could while I was reading.  Some of my questions were answered, some were not, and I have come up with a few new questions that I'm hoping will be answered in Catacomb.  This was a 343 page read with pictures dispersed throughout the book.  I have no complaints about this book and I give it 5 stars for its ability to keep me engaged and interested.