Daniel Stalter's Blog, page 10

99 FEAR STREET: THE SECOND HORROR

99 Fear Street: The House of Evil #2:
The Second Horror

   

Spoiler-Free Review

The second outing of the 99 Fear Street trilogy brings a few new things to the mix, but not as much as I had hoped. I enjoyed the addition of Brandt’s character, and the ending was one of Stine’s better WTF moments. This is to say that my favorite parts of the book had very little to do with the titular house. Most of the haunting elements felt like a tired rehash of the first book, and we didn’t learn anything new ...

99 FEAR STREET: THE FIRST HORROR

99 Fear Street: The House of Evil #1:
The First Horror

   

Spoiler-Free Review

The First Horror is a really solid kick-off to the trilogy. It also works really well as a stand-alone novel, and I almost wish that it was. There were some genuinely creepy and brutal moments. It definitely scared me as a kid. I had forgotten the order of things, but I had very distinct memories of several of the scenes. I think this might be where my fear of rats originated from. The sibling rivalry between Cally a...

REMEMBER ME 2: THE RETURN

Remember Me 2: The Return
by Christopher PikeSpoiler-Free Review:

I’ll start out by saying that I have yet to give a negative review to a Christopher Pike book, so this will be my first. While Remember Me is rightfully celebrated as one of his best (and scariest) books, Remember Me 2 was a problematic mess. Its existence stands as a testament against making unnecessary sequels, even if the fans and publishers really want one. The book goes back and forth between the story of Jean Rodriguez, a...

IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SINK

Goosebumps #30: It Came From Beneath the Sink

 

Spoiler-Free Review

It Came From Beneath the Sink has a great title, a solid concept, and a unique monster. Unfortunately, it never managed to raise the stakes high enough for any of that to really matter. The characters are fine, the plot is technically fine, and it doesn’t rely on faulty villain logic to explain itself. Kudos to Stine for another great dog name; the cocker spaniel named Killer was a great touch. The book’s biggest crime is that i...

MEET ME IN OUTER SPACE

This post is a direct sequel to my September 2018 post The Apollo Mixes, which is a direct sequel to my 2014 post What Started as Whisper Slowly Turned Into a Scream.

Meet Me in Outer Space was the title I gave the second mix I ever made for Blair. It comes from the opening lines of “Stellar” by Incubus. We had just recently used the big L word for the first time, and the mix was a way for me to express that. It wasn’t the first time I had ever been in love, but it was the first time that the id...

THE BABYSITTER II

The Babysitter II
by R.L StineSpoiler-Free Review:

The Babysitter II was a very middle-of-the-road sequel. The characters were solid and by far the strongest part overall. But for every element I liked, there was something of equal measure that I didn’t. The book had some very dated depictions of mental health, which were hard to look past. I hated Jenny’s psychiatrist from the jump. It was immediately apparent he was a bad fit for a traumatized teenage girl. I suppose he sucked in a believabl...

MONSTER BLOOD III

Goosebumps #29: Monster Blood III

 

Spoiler-Free Review

Monster Blood III is the sort of sequel you get when you start with a shoddy concept and then stretch it beyond any reasonable length. The Monster Blood books boast more sequels than any other in the original Goosebumps run, and it’s slightly baffling when you realize how none of them is particularly good. My theory is that the badass-sounding title and beautiful Tim Jacobus cover art of the first Monster Blood drove the book to best-seller...

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER

I Know What You Did Last Summer
by Lois DuncanSpoiler-Free Review:

I Know What You Did Last Summer is better known for its late 90s slasher movie adaptation, but have to say I think the book is a whole lot better. Originally published in 1973, Los Duncan’s book is a slow-burn thriller with a really compelling premise. There is no man with a hook. Instead, the four teenagers from a pact after they accidentally kill an 8-year-old boy on his bike. The book makes good use of its dynamic cast of ch...

I’LL NEVER BE READY

Nine and a half years ago, I made a rash decision to adopt my friend’s dog. I had just moved to New York City and was struggling with the post-traumatic stress of my partner’s death only a month earlier. I was living paycheck to paycheck and was not financially ready for it by any means. But a dog I knew needed a home, and deep down I knew that it should be with me. That’s how Coeus ended up with me in Brooklyn. There are plenty of things I regret from that period of my life, but this was not on...

THE CUCKOO CLOCK OF DOOM

Goosebumps #28: The Cuckoo Clock of Doom

 

Spoiler-Free Review

The Cuckoo Clock of Doom holds the distinction of being one of the sillier Goosebumps books, and yet it pulls off one of the darkest endings in the series that I’ve read so far. I was reminded of Groundhogs Day at more than a few points throughout. Michael was a frustrating main character, but it was fun to watch him struggle as the book took him through an endless series of ridiculous events. Stine is rarely kind to his characters, ...