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16th out of 107 books
—
105 voters
Project 17
High atop Hathorne Hill, near Boston, sits Danvers State Hospital. Built in 1878 and closed in 1992, this abandoned mental institution is rumored to be the birthplace of the lobotomy. Locals have long believed the place to be haunted. They tell stories about the unmarked graves in the back, of the cold spots felt throughout the underground tunnels, and of the treasures fou...more
Hardcover, 248 pages
Published
December 18th 2007
by Hyperion
(first published 2007)
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Oct 17, 2009
Anastasia
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
high school students, the easily scared
Shelves:
personal-collection
A group of unlikely teens join up and explore a haunted asylum before it's destruction. Add typical characters, typical plot, throw in a gripping ghost story for good measure and you've got Project 17.
The characters seemed quite cliche. There's a comic relief, strong & attractive lead man, attractive brainiac, goth girl,and and the two theater kids )who were very annoying).
What gripped me the most though was the underlying story of a girl haunting the asylum. I HAD to keep turning pages un...more
The characters seemed quite cliche. There's a comic relief, strong & attractive lead man, attractive brainiac, goth girl,and and the two theater kids )who were very annoying).
What gripped me the most though was the underlying story of a girl haunting the asylum. I HAD to keep turning pages un...more
This was some seriously creepy shit, right here. It freaked me the fuck out. I can't be bothered writing a whole review, so I'll give you five pros and five cons.
Pros:
1. Mimi. I love her.
2. Mimi and Chet. Chet's a douchebag, but he and Mimi make a good pair. It should also be noted that the reasoning behind Chet's clownish and defensive behavior is a serious and quite poignant one.
3. Christine Belle. Oh, damn. That thing with the chair and the voices and... Oh, my blood chills. I won't say why....more
Pros:
1. Mimi. I love her.
2. Mimi and Chet. Chet's a douchebag, but he and Mimi make a good pair. It should also be noted that the reasoning behind Chet's clownish and defensive behavior is a serious and quite poignant one.
3. Christine Belle. Oh, damn. That thing with the chair and the voices and... Oh, my blood chills. I won't say why....more
I didn't realize that the author of this book was the same one who wrote the Deadly Little Secrets Series, if I had known I wouldn't have picked this book up.
Her writing style is alright it keeps you reading but it is very juvenile and really needs a better editor.
I love the concept of teenagers spending the night in an abandoned and condemned mental hospital, one of my favorite episodes of Supernatural is set in an abandoned mental hospital, as is one of my favorite shows Bedlam (which totally...more
Her writing style is alright it keeps you reading but it is very juvenile and really needs a better editor.
I love the concept of teenagers spending the night in an abandoned and condemned mental hospital, one of my favorite episodes of Supernatural is set in an abandoned mental hospital, as is one of my favorite shows Bedlam (which totally...more
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I think that this book is awesome. I loved it. I choose this book to read because it was interesting. It is a fiction book and it is at the Denvers state hospital is where the setting takes place. The main charecter is Liza she is outgoing, funny, and smart. The summary is Liza, Derik, Mimi,and Chet are all best friends they go into a hospital to look around and see if anything is going on in there. The hospital is haunted they lost mimi's doll that she carrys around her everywhere she goes. The...more
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The reason why I chose Project 17 is because I am into books that are mysteries, crimes, all those kinds of book. The Genre would probably be mystery or horror because it gets really scary and in some spots they were trying to figure out what was going on or how things were happening. The setting is dark, old, dusty, and scary! The main character is Derik; he is a teenager trying to win a contest so he doesn’t get stuck working at his parent’s diner for the rest of his life. He is tall black hai...more
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Have you seen the movie Session 9? Did you like The Blair Witch Project? If so, you need to read Project 17.
Derek wants to be a film maker and he has come up with the perfect subject for a movie. He is planning to enter his film about teens spending the night inside the haunted Danvers State Hospital into a contest. The only thing he needs now is a cast.
Mimi is a goth chick. She begins helping Derek plan by drawing story boards for possible scenes and showing him the ways to get into the hospit...more
Derek wants to be a film maker and he has come up with the perfect subject for a movie. He is planning to enter his film about teens spending the night inside the haunted Danvers State Hospital into a contest. The only thing he needs now is a cast.
Mimi is a goth chick. She begins helping Derek plan by drawing story boards for possible scenes and showing him the ways to get into the hospit...more
Ages 11+ (some mild language) The Breakfast Club meets the Blair Witch Project, blandly. Not scary enough, and the supernatural elements are never clearly stated. (Was there really a ghost/haunting? Or wasn't there?) On the level with Lois Duncan, maybe not enough for high school horror fans.
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I'll say to start that I didn't find this book overly original. But the setting, the length, and the mystery quickly make up for this!
Derik is a high school student aspiring to do more than work in his parents' diner. So he decides to enter a film competition. When you've got Danvers State Hospital in your backyard and it's about to be torn down, where else could you set it? He gathers a group of other high school students and they trek up there to spend one night filming.
I really picked this up...more
Derik is a high school student aspiring to do more than work in his parents' diner. So he decides to enter a film competition. When you've got Danvers State Hospital in your backyard and it's about to be torn down, where else could you set it? He gathers a group of other high school students and they trek up there to spend one night filming.
I really picked this up...more
Project 17 is about a senior in high school named Derik who does not want to follow in the family’s restaurant business. To get out of it he decides to enter a filmmaking contest. He enlists the help of five other teens who include: a brainiac, two theater nerds, the comedian, and the goth. For his video, Derik wants to spend a night at the Danvers State Hospital, the abandoned mental institution that is about to be demolished. The teens break in and find a world that was just left behind one da...more
I like one-night-changes-everything type stories. There's something cinematic about them—the idea that it only takes the space of a couple hours, or two hundred pages, or a night in an abandoned insane asylum to seriously change people. It works well with the written word.
Project 17 is a short, creepy little book—not groundbreaking, but entertaining. The development of all the characters (with the exception of Tony, whose characterization is still bewildering me), as well as their relationships...more
Project 17 is a short, creepy little book—not groundbreaking, but entertaining. The development of all the characters (with the exception of Tony, whose characterization is still bewildering me), as well as their relationships...more
I found this book a good book to read just to pass the time. It had a few scary scenes in it that made me frightened while reading it. I loved all the characters! They were so funny and interesting to read about! I really enjoyed the variety of personalities. Everyone had their quirks and that’s what made it unique. Tony and Greta had a few funny moments and same goes for Chet. By the end of the novel you felt like you really knew the characters and what made them tick. That’s hard to accomplish...more
This was a horrific thriller. It was the perfect combination of horror and teen fiction. The whole time I was reading the book I literally could not put it down. I finished it in one night, and even though it was a creepy book, it didn't give me nightmares, and I appriciate that very much. The whole time I was reading this book I had no idea where it was going, and kept reading to try to figure it out. The whole night included finding out each other (and each teen was different) and trying to ge...more
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I'm going to give this caution right at the beginning: If you're creeped out easily (like me) don't read this book. If you're creeped out easily and STILL decide to read this book, don't read it when it's dark outside (like me). Hey, they say you learn from other people's mistakes, right?
Derik doesn't want to spend his life running the third generation family diner, but his grades won't get him into college. The last chance he has left is entering a film contest held by Reality TV on making a do...more
Derik doesn't want to spend his life running the third generation family diner, but his grades won't get him into college. The last chance he has left is entering a film contest held by Reality TV on making a do...more
Think Are You Afraid of the Dark? – you know, that show from the good ol’ 90s – crossed with reality. Danvers State actually existed, and Stolarz conducted research for the novel. It’s still a fictional story, but the essence of Danvers has been incorporated.
Project 17 is thrilling, entertaining, and has a nice pace that keeps the suspense building. Essentially, the six characters fulfill some stereotypical role, but in a way that’s neither annoying nor boring; in fact, the stereotypes work well...more
Project 17 is thrilling, entertaining, and has a nice pace that keeps the suspense building. Essentially, the six characters fulfill some stereotypical role, but in a way that’s neither annoying nor boring; in fact, the stereotypes work well...more
Dec 16, 2010
Christina
added it
In Project 17, a group of kids get together for Derik’s video project late at night in the abandoned insane asylum before it gets torn down. They go through multiple obstacles in the asylum that you wouldn’t even expect. What was supposed to be poking fun turns into a night of terror and on-the-edge-of-your-chair-suspense. Derik and his friends find themselves among the haunting of Christine, a deceased patient’s journal and other ex patient’s belongings left in the building before they passed....more
I'm not sure what I was expecting when I began this novel, but I have to say, it didn't impress me that much. Maybe it's because I'm a huge horror/psychological thriller person to begin with, but I just didn't find this book to be scary. Every time it was starting to get interesting, it turned out that it was one of the teens just pulling a prank or being stupid.
I think the idea of the novel was really good, and I think the novel would've been better through the patient's eyes, like what they ha...more
I think the idea of the novel was really good, and I think the novel would've been better through the patient's eyes, like what they ha...more
Project 17 was a very perspective book. Every chapter it talks about a different character expressing their feelings because the characters are a group of people who is trying to make a film in a haunted hospital. Near Boston at high stop Hathorne Hill, Danvers State Hospital built in 1878 and was shut down in 1992. It's an abandoned mental Hospital. People are planning to knock it down or break it down since it's no use anymore. But six teens break into the hospital and spent a night there to...more
This book was seriously creepy. I discovered it at Barnes and Noble last night and had to read it. It's about the Danvers State Institution in Massachusetts. This asylum is famous for inventing the practice of the lobotomy, among many other "treatment" horrors. It was eventually shut down in 1992 and was the subject of one of my favorite movies, Session 9. Okay, so maybe I have an unhealthy interest in the place, but when I saw this book was about Danvers, I had to read it. Five teenagers break...more
Laurie Faria Stolarz‘s Project 17 is about six teenagers breaking into a mental hospital who is said that spirits of those who lived in the hospital still remain. Once the six teenagers enter the hospital, they realize that they cannot leave without completing a mission: helping a spirit to find the Debbie doll.
After reading this book, I was disappointed that there are not enough suspense and horror elements. The story took too long to escalate and, to an extent, the ending was predictable. I di...more
After reading this book, I was disappointed that there are not enough suspense and horror elements. The story took too long to escalate and, to an extent, the ending was predictable. I di...more
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I finished it just minutes before climbing into bed, and I couldn't sleep for about an hour, just twisting and turning under my covers. Flashes from the book were just materializing in my brain and I could not fall asleep. I was that freaked out. But then again, I'm the type of girl who can barely watch a mediocre scary movie without screaming at less thrice, so just about anything scares me. Still, I couldn't get that image of the Debbie doll on a noose, wailing, "Debbie wants to die," out of m...more
This novel had me turning the pages so quickly I'm surprised a fire didn't start under my fingers! The suspense, the twist and turns, and atmosphere of the story had me on the edge of my seat the whole time I read it. If you want a good read, pick up this book.
My Summary: It all began with a reality film contest and a deserted insane asylum. Derik, the handsome popular guy known for getting around, recruited some of his fellow classmates to star in his video entree. Meet Mimi, the girl who alway...more
My Summary: It all began with a reality film contest and a deserted insane asylum. Derik, the handsome popular guy known for getting around, recruited some of his fellow classmates to star in his video entree. Meet Mimi, the girl who alway...more
Derik is scared that his future life will be taking over his father's diner...a future he does not want. So, in desperation to find something else, he decides to make a film and enter it into a national contest. His uncle has always told him he has a "cinematic eye". For a theme, he decides to get a group of friends together and film a night in the supposedly haunted abandoned mental institution. The five teenagers who agree to participate are: Mimi, a wanna be goth outsider who secretly wants t...more
'Project 17' is about what you'd expect it to be: a story more about character evolution than horror. Unfortunately, it's pretty trite. It has all the stock characters you'd expect from a young adult horror novel: the good-looking dumb guy, the fool, the goth girl, etc., etc; and the things the characters learn about themselves are also standard fare. The novel is without any genuine horror and it's purpose, of providing the characters with an opportunity (one including tame supernatural manifes...more
Instead of reading this book, turn on the sci-fi channel and save yourself the trouble. The blurb on the back of the book reminds me very much of a sci-fi movie (Death Tunnel was the name, I believe.)
It's not that this is a bad book. The ending is satisfying, the humor is aimed for teens (so as a teen, I was amused), and the plot is enticing.
However, it was very disappointing. I kept waiting to see some sort of ghostly presence or feel a sense of danger for the cliche-characters, but I didn't. I...more
It's not that this is a bad book. The ending is satisfying, the humor is aimed for teens (so as a teen, I was amused), and the plot is enticing.
However, it was very disappointing. I kept waiting to see some sort of ghostly presence or feel a sense of danger for the cliche-characters, but I didn't. I...more
Project 17 is about a bunch of teenage kids going into a crazy asylum. Each teenager in this book has a different personality, and strength. Having different personalities and strengths help you visualize the book better, and understand it through different people’s eyes. The teenager’s names are Derik, Liza, Chet, Mimi, and Greta. You may wonder why these kids are going to an insane asylum. The reason is this, Derik needs to get out of the restaurant business his parents expect him to enjoy, an...more
Project 17 by Faria Stolarz tells a story about six teens. It focuses on these six teenagers that are making a movie that is taking place at Danver’s State Hospital (an abandoned mental hospital).
Derik works in a hamburger place that is owned by his mom and dad. He plan isn’t to flip burgers all his life like his parents want him to do. He is more in to directing than his parent’s dream for him. Tony and Greta are boyfriend and girlfriend. They are always all over each other. Liza is all into...more
To be completely honest, the expectations I had for this book were completely shattered. I had expected this book to be extremely scary and terrifiying - I was not, in the least bit, scared while reading this, rather, I was preoccupied with thinking "this is weird".
There were a few things that really bothered me and, ultimately, made me give the rating that I did.
1.) When I realized that the chapters were broken up by each character's point of view, I got really excited. I figured that it would...more
There were a few things that really bothered me and, ultimately, made me give the rating that I did.
1.) When I realized that the chapters were broken up by each character's point of view, I got really excited. I figured that it would...more
A switching POV (that is noted with the character's name at the start of each chapter) that chronicles mainly one night in an abandoned state hospital about to be torn down. Each teen has a reason for being there--from dreaming of being an amatuer filmmaker, to being a star, to finding out about their grandmother--each character stands out.
The story gets creepy midway through when it seems that the hospital is still haunted by ghosts of former patients. It's at this point that "Project 17" turns...more
The story gets creepy midway through when it seems that the hospital is still haunted by ghosts of former patients. It's at this point that "Project 17" turns...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| thoughts on the book | 2 | 16 | Jan 19, 2012 01:04pm | |
| Excellent YA thriller | 1 | 12 | Mar 06, 2008 11:32pm |
Laurie Faria Stolarz grew up in Salem, MA, attended Merrimack College, and received an MFA in Creative Writing from Emerson College in Boston.
Laurie Faria Stolarz is an American author of young adult fiction novels, best known for her Blue is for Nightmares series. Her works, which feature teenage protagonists, blend elements found in mystery and romance novels.
Stolarz found sales success with he...more
More about Laurie Faria Stolarz...
Laurie Faria Stolarz is an American author of young adult fiction novels, best known for her Blue is for Nightmares series. Her works, which feature teenage protagonists, blend elements found in mystery and romance novels.
Stolarz found sales success with he...more
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