Ultimately rewarding and wholly satisfying for close and patient readers.
Eerie episodes abound in this tightly plotted sequel.
Following Tales To Keep You Up at Night (2022), this carefully crafted follow-up introduces Gilbert Campbell, who, after receiving a cryptic message from his brother, Antonio, learns that Ant has been in a terrible accident and is in the intensive care unit. In the message, Ant warns Gilbert, “don’t listen to the tapes”—but a mix of worry and curiosity gets the better of Gilbert, and he listens to the 13 ominously titled tales. As Gilbert settles down with the cassettes, which he finds alongside a vintage yellow Walkman, the line between reality and fiction starts to blur. Spanning a wide spectrum of topics and including a spooky susurrating seashell, a maniacal mannequin, an alarming amusement park, and an insidious ice cream truck, the stories explore both new and classic horror tropes. The early entries feel somewhat underbaked, some concluding with a frustrating abruptness or seemingly not wrapping up at all, but it is imperative for readers to continue. Poblocki weaves an intricate yarn, cleverly mixing the two narrative threads with an adept hand. Reading like a mashup of Goosebumps and The Twilight Zone with a healthy dose of Black Mirror, this series (which begs for both installments to be read together) is a surefire hit for horror aficionados. Expect the shivers to last long after the final page is turned.
Ultimately rewarding and wholly satisfying for close and patient readers. (Horror. 8-12)Pub Date: Aug. 15, 2023
ISBN: 9780593387504
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Penguin Workshop
Review Posted Online: May 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
Funny delivery, but some jokes really miss the mark.
An animal ghost seeks closure after enduring aquatic atrocities.
In this sequel to The Incredibly Dead Pets of Rex Dexter (2020), sixth grader Rex is determined to once again use his ability to communicate with dead animals for the greater good. A ghost narwhal’s visit gives Rex his next opportunity in the form of the clue “bad water.” Rex enlists Darvish—his Pakistani American human best friend—and Drumstick—his “faithful (dead) chicken”—to help crack the case. But the mystery is only one of Rex’s many roadblocks. For starters, Sami Mulpepper hugged him at a dance, and now she’s his “accidental girlfriend.” Even worse, Darvish develops one of what Rex calls “Game Preoccupation Disorders” over role-playing game Monsters & Mayhem that may well threaten the pair’s friendship. Will Rex become “a Sherlock without a Watson,” or can the two make amends in time to solve the mystery? This second outing effectively carries the “ghost-mist” torch from its predecessor without feeling too much like a formulaic carbon copy. Spouting terms like plausible deniability and in flagrante delicto, Rex makes for a hilariously bombastic (if unlikable) first-person narrator. The over-the-top style is contagious, and black-and-white illustrations throughout add cartoony punchlines to various scenes. Unfortunately, scenes in which humor comes at the expense of those with less status are downright cringeworthy, as when Rex, who reads as White, riffs on the impossibility of his ever pronouncing Darvish’s surname or he plays dumb by staring into space and drooling.
Funny delivery, but some jokes really miss the mark. (Paranormal mystery. 8-12)Pub Date: May 4, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-7595-5523-5
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: March 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2021
Offers a hauntingly truthful view of secrets and strength.
A tale of survival, friendship, and the strength that comes from overcoming fears.
Middle schooler Jac is dealing with the fallout of a real-life nightmare: childhood cancer. But it’s not just the fear of recurrence that she has to handle, but the reality of surviving and carrying the burden of her mom’s constant worry. When Jac discovers a large house that wasn’t there before looming at the end of a street in her suburban New Jersey neighborhood, she worries it’s a hallucination, which could mean a recurrence of her illness. But after her best friend, a boy named Hazel, sees the house too, her sense of adventure takes over. Provoked by a couple of bullies who dare them to enter and then follow them inside, Jac and Hazel explore the house and are met with surprises—like a key with Jac’s likeness on it—that suggest her connection to this strange and terrifying place is personal. Before long, the kids realize they are trapped inside. Shocks follow with every new door they open as they search for an exit and discover ever increasing frights. Delightfully nightmarish visions chase Jac, offering the feel of a thrilling game with twisted and terrifying imagery, as she navigates the house, seeking to understand her connection to this unusual place in this emotionally resonant story. Characters seem to default to White.
Offers a hauntingly truthful view of secrets and strength. (Paranormal. 8-12)Pub Date: Aug. 16, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-06-313657-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 9, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
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