Frankenstein's Dog

Goosebumps Most Wanted #4

by R.L. Stine

The infamous, Most Wanted Goosebumps characters are out on the loose and they're coming after you! Catch them all undead or alive! "Pure, Goosebumps-style terror-by-formula, polished through use to such a high gloss that it slides along frictionlessly." -KIRKUS REVIEWS

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Middle Grade, Childrens, Young Adult, Fantasy, Thriller

160 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2013

About the author

Robert Lawrence Stine known as R. L. Stine and Jovial Bob Stine, is an American novelist and writer, well known for targeting younger audiences. Stine, who is often called the Stephen King of children's literature, is the author of dozens of popular horror fiction novellas, including the books in the Goosebumps, Rotten School, Mostly Ghostly, The Nightmare Room and Fear Street series.

R. L. Stine began his writing career when he was nine years old, and today he has achieved the position of the bestselling children's author in history. In the early 1990s, Stine was catapulted to fame when he wrote the unprecedented, bestselling Goosebumps® series, which sold more than 250 million copies and became a worldwide multimedia phenomenon. His other major series, Fear Street, has over 80 million copies sold.

Stine has received numerous awards of recognition, including several Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards and Disney Adventures Kids' Choice Awards, and he has been selected by kids as one of their favorite authors in the NEA's Read Across America program. He lives in New York, NY.

http://us.macmillan.com/itsthefirstda...

Reviews

[Josiah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Most Goosebumps books feature a villain of R.L. Stine's own creation, but Frankenstein's Dog is a bit different, and I like that. When twelve-year-old Kat Parker is sent by herself to a faraway country to visit her Uncle Victor Frankenstein (great-grandson of the notorious doctor who brought Frankenstein's monster to life), she has some idea that the vacation won't be a normal one. She's enjoyed spending time with her scientist uncle whenever he's visited her family, but Kat is a little spooked by the idea of staying alone with him in a castle-like manor built several hundred years ago. The villagers are on edge and don't exactly greet Kat with warmth and cordiality, but Uncle Victor tells her not to worry. The people may still hold his great-grandfather's reanimation experimentations against him, but Kat is perfectly safe as long as she doesn't wander far from the house.

Like the original Doctor Frankenstein, Uncle Victor is interested in animating lifeless matter, but his expertise is artificial intelligence, particularly advanced robotics. Victor has invented state-of-the art robot assistants to help him in the laboratory, robots that look, sound, and feel exactly like humans. Kat wouldn't even know that Victor's main assistant, a robot named Frank made up to look like a young man, isn't human if Victor hadn't told her. But cutting-edge artificial intelligence can be difficult to keep from getting out of hand, and as Kat explores her uncle's mansion with a local boy her age named Robby, she finds things that cause her to worry that Victor may not be as in control of his experiments as he wants her to believe. Could his robots be on the brink of breaking free from their creator's control and terrorizing the village as Frankenstein's monster did three generations ago? With robots all around that are nearly indistinguishable from people, it becomes challenging for Kat to discern who is human and who is merely masquerading as such. Will she ever figure out who's who in Doctor Frankenstein's modern house of horrors?

Frankenstein's Dog is a good concept, though I wonder why it was given that title. I'd give the book one and a half stars, and if the ending were more clear and concise, I probably would have rounded up to two. I like that R.L. Stine continued innovating after so many years writing for kids, creating new books to please young readers who prefer their stories with some zest. Like most Goosebumps novels, Frankenstein's Dog has that zest, and I had fun with it. Nothing hits the spot for juvenile horror literature like a Goosebumps book.

[Austin Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

In honor of the Goosebumps books birthday (The first book Welcome to Dead House was published in July of 1992), I decided to return to these and read the rest of the Most Wanted books in my collection.

This one was just okay. Like some of the other Most Wanted books, it closely resembles some of the older books, this one being a mash-up of Stay out of the Basement and I Am Your Evil Twin. I do mean that quite literally, also. This book feels like a cross-over of those two, borrowing ideas and plot points from them very directly.
I did have some fun with this book, though. It wasn't bad, even though the title and cover art are both misleading. (The dog is a normal dog, not zombie-like as portrayed on the cover, and he's not even the center of the story).
But overall this one wasn't really that memorable either. Out of the Most Wanted books I've read so far, this one probably falls in the middle for me. Definitely better than Planet of the Lawn Gnomes but not nearly as good as Wanted: The Haunted Mask or Here Comes the Shaggedy.

2 / 5

[Tarissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this Goosebumps Most Wanted book! Perhaps it is the literary inspiration behind the plot, or just the super cool elements that Stine infuses into the story... but it's a fun read!

Herein we find a modern day Victor Frankenstein who doesn't create monster creatures (even though the angry villagers believe that he's up to the same tricks that his ancestor was)... No, not at all! He's a knowledgeable computer scientist who is into AI technology... He builds robots! Totally different than monsters. Unless, of course, the robots turn savage?!

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have resorted to reading my younger sister's books.

[Randall Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book with my daughter before bed each night and we looked forward to it each time. It was kind of our special time and that may be why I rated it a little higher than I normally would. The story was a little lacking in suspense and those twists I come to expect from Stine, though the ending was pretty good. It was titled Frankenstein's dog, and the dog didn't really play much of a part until the end. It was mostly about robots, which can be cool sometimes, but didn't seem very unique. I am a big Goosebumps fan. I read the original series up to about number 42 or so, and enjoyed the television series. This one just didn't have the same feel as those ones did. My daughter thought it was just okay too, though there were nights where she would want me to read the next chapter cause she was so into it and didn't want to end.

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

My boys liked the suspense, and I did as well. However, Kat is an idiot and entirely too naive.

[J.D. Estrada · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you're a fan of R.L. Stine, odds are you'll like the book. I've taken on reading quite a few of his books, and when he nails down a scene or most of a book, it's a treasure. But then you get books like this one that are harmless enough, unlike Frankenstein's creations. At times lazy and formulaic, the decisions of characters more often than not make you wonder, what are they thinking and when something doesn't feel believable it kind of takes me out of it. There were plenty of instances where our protagonist was in dire straits at the brink of doom...yet had the opportunity to say 6, 7,or 8 lines...it's like, what type of slowburn danger are we talking about? Not to mention that the whole resolution of the book kind of happens in about a page and a half.

As always though, easy to read and something to share with your kids though definitely not among my favorites.

[Sanyam · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is just full of robots, I don't appreciate the plot. It was only interesting in the middle part when they go around exploring the mansion.

[Alayoubi Iconic · Rating 4 out of 5]

khafeef hilo

[HenrySherman]

In this book the main character is Kat. She doesn't want to go to visit her uncle, Vic Frankestein's house because of the rumors about him. The rumors are that he is a bad person, and is like Frankenstein. He lives in a big dark mansion. Vic is really a nice man who likes to build things like roborts. He has a small white dog. Vic does things to the dog in his lab and the dog turns mean and does bad things.

[Ulises Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muy buen libro, divertido y entretenido, solo el título nada que ver, pudo tener mil títulos diferentes y estaría bien, no tiene que ver el título con la trama .

[Tiffany Spencer]

Frankenstein’s Dog (Goosebumps Most Wanted)
Kat Parker is going to visit her uncle Victor Frankenstein, She’s written him because she’s had a project idea but didn’t tell him in the letter so it would be a surprise. Her plan is to record a video blog of his work. It’s a school project but also something she’s wanted to do for a long time. He’s not there to pick her up so she goes inside a bakery to ask for directions. When the lady hears who her uncle is she tells her not to go up there. He’s crazy just like his great grandfather. He builds monsters.

Kat tries to explain that he’s a scientist but the lady says no one is safe with him in town. She tries to leave but is surrounded outside by a crowd of young and old people. They all start chanting “Go home! Go home! Go home! We don’t want you here! Your uncle is a monster maker! Your family isn’t welcome in this village!” A set of twins grab her by the arm. They let go and she’s rescued by a boy named Robby that says her uncle sent him.

They reach the house, and two ferocious dogs come toward them. Robby has a whistle to control them, but he drops it on the ground. They leap! Luckily Kat is able to get the whistle and call the dogs off just as one has Robby on the ground. Kat is greeted by Uncle Victor and welcomed by his terrier Poochie. Uncle Victor says he wants to introduce her to his monster (Frank) who he created because they’re going to take over the world.

Kat is just starting to think the villagers might be right when he says just kidding. He thinks all the things they’ve said about his great grandfather are a riot! He’ more interested in artificial intelligence. Frank turns out to be a robot. Victor has created a synthetic skin that’s self-warming. Frank can also make choices and plans on his own. Something knocks on the other side of the door. Victor says its where he keeps his failures. He then offers her a purple liquid in a beaker and tells her its like grape juice. When she drinks it, he says its turned her invisible.

Another joke. Then he demonstrates how Frank works. There are still some kinks in Frank. (He thinks his name is Kat). He also squeezes Kat’s hand so hard that he starts to break it. After her uncle unclamps his hand, Kat wonders if he did it on purpose. He says sometimes he gets confused and then sometimes he acts angry -even tho he didn’t program him with feelings-. He warns her to be careful around him and always make sure the lab door is closed. He’s not ready to leave the lab.

The next day, Robby and Kat explore the mansion. Kat shows Robbie the lab and Frank. Robby convinces Kat to power him on. Robby asks Frank to give them a tour. He says sure. He even offers to show them what he can do with chemicals but Kat is getting uncomfortable and says they should turn him off before Victor gets back. Only when she tries, he dodges and escapes and runs off down the hallway.

Frank makes it outside, but the guard dogs scare him. Kat is able to turn him off, but the whistle is in her room. The dogs are about to leap but Poochie barks and the dogs slump and collapse. Then they trudge away. They return Frank to the lab. Poochie comes into the lab and starts to sniff at a dark spot on the floor. Kat tries to get him to leave the lab, bumps the table, and a green liquid spills all over Poochie. The dog then starts to grow.

They try to wash the gunk off. Kat gets some on her and starts to panic but she doesn’t grow. He starts to shrink. Kat thinks this will be amazing for her blog and runs for her phone but the glass is cracked. Not only that the phone is destroyed. Uncle Victor (and Robby) says no one else is there. The house keeper is away. He says it must have slid off the bed table. But how did he know. He says now she won’t be able to do her video. Suspicious? She says she’ll go to the village and get a new one. He says not a good idea and excuses himself to his lab. Before he goes he says don’t ever leave her room at night. He says he brings the guard dogs in at night and they might think she’s an intruder. That night, Kat hears a thumping and scratching and when she opens her door sees a man half hidden in the shadows. He says he’s Victor Frankenstein.

He was lanky like my uncle. And his face was serious and dark-eyed as my uncle’s face. But he didn’t wear the black, square-framed eyeglasses. And his dark hair was bushy and unbrushed. Not like her uncle’s thinning brown hair. He wore white lab coat over dark pants. His shoes were heavy-looking with raised heels. Not at all like Uncle Victor’s worn black shoes. He tells her to get away from there while she still can. Then Uncle Victor appears and he apprehends the man. He finds the power switch and turns it off. He says its one of his failures. He apologizes and says he doesn’t know how he got out. Kat wants to know why he said Victor was his name. He says he gave him his name as a joke. Then he carries him away to the failure room. He tells her to be sure to keep her door closed.

After this, Kat hears more scratching at her door when she’s in bed. The next morning, Kat tries to get Victor to let her go to the village to mail a letter to her parents to send a new phone. He offers to take it. She decides to go anyway in disguise (just to explore). Outside in an over turned trash can, she sees her letter ripped in half. Robby and Kat decide to go back to the basement. They find out Frank has been programed to guard the lab for intruders. Frank grabs Kat (and says his name is Victor Frankenstein) Robby dives at Frank trying to free Kat. Kat tries to turn off the switch but its stuck.

Frank is angry at this act of violence as violence goes against his programming. Kat has an idea to dump the beaker with the green potion over herself so she can grow and defeat Frank. Only again it doesn’t work on her. Uncle Victor finds her and powers the robot down. He tells her what she poured on herself was hand soap and shows her where the growth potion is. He gives her a brief lecture and says he warned her about Frank. Kat says she and Robbie were trying to find out what was going on. He says she should have just asked. He’ll tell her everything and also about the big plans he has for her.

Victor shows them his spy room and reveals he saw the incident with Poochie. He’s always keeping an eye on everything that happens in the lab. He explains that he created some robots that had a copy of his brain waves but they started to think they actually were Victor and became too smart for their own good.

They tried to take over his life and while he was able to lock them up, some have escaped like the one Kat saw in the halls. Some even made it to the village, which is why the villagers fear him. Victor then tells Kat he has plans also to turn her into a robot. Kat says she doesn’t want this but he says she’ll just feel a buzz and he’ll be more careful so they won’t try to take over her life. He’s drugged her with cookies and she passes out. Her last thought is this can’t be my uncle. He wouldn’t do this to me.

She wakes up to see that there are wires attached to her and what will be her clone. One of the “Victor’s” escapes from the failure room. He and the other Victor fight over which is the real one and ask Kat’s help to get rid of the other one. Kat decides to let Poochie tell who his real master is. Poochie tugs at the pants leg of the first one and Kat takes this as a sign that he’s saying he’s the real one and throws the other one back in the failure room, but in actuality he’s putting at the switch on his ankle.

She throws him into the room, but they can’t locate the Victor that they thought was real among all the other Victor robots claiming to be the real one. The real Victor comes home and had forgotten this was the week Kat came. He’s been in France all week and has cloned Poochie-showing Kat the clones-. He locks the door and says he’s done with robots he can never get them quite right. He says he’s moved on to cloning and asks Kat teasingly if she’d liked to be cloned.

My Thoughts:
Yet another Goosebumps spin-off I found on my tablet. Even though this cover is strange this one wasn’t so bad. And when I thought about it-not sure if this was coincidental- the little white terrier’s name is Poochie. In the 80s (90s) there was also a white dog named Poochie. The Frankenstein- Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde elements really worked for this plot. As well as the slight alteration for Victor to create robots (AI). I remember last year doing a little searching into AI (and robots) and I was extremely fascinated at some of the capabilities and skills of the AI robots I saw on You Tube. The most impressive to me was a robot that actually prepared meals. I thought it was a nice touch to play with them in this scary setting by making them have memory glitches -and thinking they actually were Victor- and escaping the failure room and just have them lurking around in the hallway (and shadows) at night.

Rating: 6 and a half

[Dalilah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this in 5th grade (it came in a double pack with the Creature Teacher book and some glow in the dark slimey eyes) and it was my first Goosebumps book. That being said, it’s kinda mid tbh. I think this was a precursor to my (later) obsession with Frankenstein. Who would have known?

[Barb (Boxermommyreads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book a lot cuter than my first choice. Kat is off to visit her Uncle who is a descendant of the original Victor Frankenstein. When Kat arrives, she learns that her uncle is creating robots with artificial intelligence. She starts exploring his old home and soon finds some things that don't make sense. Victor's dog Poochie immediately warms to Kat and really plays a few key roles in the entire plot. Will Kat be able to find out what is going on or will she become one of her uncle's experiments herself?

I liked Kat. She was curious and rambunctious and she clearly loved her uncle a lot. And as I mentioned, I also liked Poochie. The book made me chuckle in places and I could actually see it play out well as a kid's animated film. And the ending to this one actually made sense.

Overall, I'm glad I ventured into the world of Goosebumps and while I now see that I really missed these books due to older than the targeted audience when they released, they might be fun to visit from time to time.

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!!!!!What an amazing book this is.The author R.L. Stine put a lot of mystery into the book and trying to make it like real horror.If you read on there will be a spoiler!!!!(spoiler alert)At the begging of the story everything was calm for Kats (fake)uncle.But she doesn't know that the uncle she is with right know is FAKE!!!!!At the end Kat is starting to relize that her uncle is doing strange things to her like take her brain waves and putting it in a robot.Now there was a big mistake Kat wasn't supposed to be there until next week and her real uncle came in rushing so he could prepare everything for next week but then he relized Kat was there and said she was supposed to come next week.Again the author made a really good book.That is my review I will do more when I finish more books!!!

[Christopher Alvarado · Rating 5 out of 5]

I though the book was amazing because it all ways each chapter ends with a cliff hanger and each chapter has a big mystery about something in the book.I love R.L book's because his book's have a part of it when it keeps you on the edge of your seat.Over all I love R.L books and i think you should read it to.

[Derrick Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like it a lot at the end with the surprise.

[Victoria Zigler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent, and kinda scary, addition to the series.

[Georgiana-Laura Gheorghe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review for “Frankenstein’s Dog” by R. L. Stine:

It’s the forth book from the “Goosebumps Most Wanted” series written by the bestseller author, R. L. Stine. The story focuses on a girl named Kat who visits her uncle Victor. She likes to explore his mansion and play with his dog Poochie. She also befriends a boy named Robbie. At first, she doesn’t believe in the rumors and sees her relative as a gentle man with a weird sense of humor and passion for robotics. Weird things started to happen after an accident in the lab. Will Kat be able to find the truth?
The book is similar to Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” with a pinch of humor and suspense which awakens the reader’s curiosity. Mr. Stine attracts his readers through his writing style which is simple and easy to understand. The readers will feel like they’re in the main character’s skin and the novel itself will put their imagination to work, making them decide the ending as it happens in all the author’s books.
There are some references to mythology, fairy tales and sci-fi movies. Kat is similar to Pandora, the character from Greek Mythology whose curiosity made her open the box Zeus had given her as a wedding gift despite the god’s warning to not open it. Just like Pandora unleashed the evil upon men’s world, Kat unleashed her uncle’s monsters despite the relative’s warnings. It’s both Robbie’s and her curiosity that get them in trouble.
The scenes with the door of the room where Victor keeps his failures is similar to the one in the fairy tale “The Diligent Girl and the Lazy Girl” in which the girls are asked by the fairies to sweep six rooms and never open the door of the seventh room. In R. L. Stine’s novel, the children explore the lab forgetting the bad experiences they had before.
Uncle Victor’s robots can be associated with the ones from the “Terminator” movie series in which man’s creation turn against their creator. As they read further on, the readers will enjoy the wonderful mix of mild horror, comedy and science fiction.
Along with Chris Grabenstein, James Patterson, Beatrice Masini, Sir Steve Stevenson, J. K. Rowling, Sophie Audouin-Mamikonian, Mr. Stine is the author who will forever be in his readers’ hearts and who revolutionized literature through his unique style and the world which he created. The Stephen King of Children’s Literature and the Master of Goosebumps are the perfect names for the author.
I recommend this book to readers 12+.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably the most misleading cover-art, title, and back blurb found on any Goosebumps book. The story found within Frankenstein's Dog has almost nothing to do with the titular dog. In fact the setup here feels intentionally like a lie to sell a bland and boring entry to the series.

Perhaps the concept of bringing back to life some deceased dog or even a human whether made from body parts or not was the reason for this deceit, deemed too macabre for the young reader base. In any case the story vaguely touches upon the dog in question throughout the story but there is nothing monstrous about it.

The story leans, instead, into a mystery regarding this new age Victor Frankenstein who is behaving outside his typical demeanor. His niece comes to visit and gradually becomes convinced that something strange is happening there.

The plot is a long winding series of events that gradually leads to a largely unconnected climax that resolves on a silly note that almost feels like a joke.
As far as Goosebumps go, this one is a bit of a stinker.

[Tomomi Landsman · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received this book as a free book through Kellogg's promotion.

I knew that any book I get from these promotions is bound to not be very good, but I like to read anything and everything. I had read some of the complaints that the title and cover are incredibly misleading, and it is very true. I wonder why they made that choice and how much Stine had to do with it?

I didn't grow up reading Goosebumps, so I have no idea how this compares to the classics. I think I've read one other, which was about werewolves because as a kid, I loved wolves. I'm sure there are better kids' books out there, but what can I say? I find it hard to turn down a free book.

This book is labeled as for 4th through 6th graders. It's been a long time since I've read a book targeted at this age group, so I'm not sure how appropriate it is, but the text seemed strangely large.

[Sagarika · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the fondest memories of my childhood is sitting by the window of my room with a Goosebumps gripped in my hand - my young mind giving form to R.L.Stine's words. I was always a big Goosebumps fan and have read so many over the years. This book was a disappointment though. It had a good beginning and the entry felt like it was leading upto something really scary. But the whole concept turned out to be very...bland. Firstly, the cover and the title are very misleading. I was hoping for a tacky spin off of the real Frankestien, where the dog was the main antagonist. The story was going very good but suddenly it took a very dull turn. Nevertheless, it was a light and casual read which opened up many gates of nostalgia in my heart. 2.5/5 stars. Will not recommend buying it if the cover looks promising to you too.

[Madison W. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I enjoyed the book, I thought it was a bit misleading. The cover shows a dog who looks like it had a surgery to put it back together. This made me think that the storyline would be about a dog that was brought back to life, like Frankenstein! But it was just a dog that licked up some type of potion, and grew big. The dog did not cause any harm though. And it certainly WAS alive. This would've been five stars if it weren't so misleading.

[Imogen Brand · Rating 4 out of 5]

Frankenstein's Dog is so much fun robots with personality disorders, a science lab with lots of colourful mysterious beakers, a mad scientist, lots of robots it reminds me of a classic scifi movie from when we where kids where the plot was so far fetched it was a laugh to watch. This one is definitely in one of my favourites in my Goosebumps collection.

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ehh...

*******Spoilers(Not an obvious one*******
So, in general this was a pretty good book BUT the story line was almost identical to the book 'Don't go in the basement' also by R.L. Stine. It was an okay book, but only 4 stars, in my opinion, due to the similarities between the two books.

[Haaley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was interestingly titled, considering the dog wasn't really the main focus of the story. I liked the story, none the less. Like R.L. Stine's other Goosebumps stories, there was more than one twist.

[Eliza-May Durdin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Personally I don't think it was as good as the original goosebumps books such as welcome to dead house and others but it's still worth a read and creeped me out a lot
SPOILERS
I would totally be freaked out if an army of robots that look like my uncle tried to make a robot version of me.

[Diego O. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frankenstein's Dog has a perfect amount of action, suspense, and plot twists. The more the story continues, the more things Kat starts questioning everything. This book is just incredible in so many ways.

[David Alexander · Rating 1 out of 5]

Copy and pasting from older Goosebump stories continues here. Also, I don't like inconsistencies, Kat wrote to her uncle to come and visit him but later wonders why he asked her to come. What a rip-off!

[Katie Harder-schauer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the books published after I should have been done reading Goosebumps books, but you know how millennials are about nostalgia. I definitely did not see the twist coming at the end for what it was, so that was nice.