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You're Invited to a Creepover #9
No Trick-or-Treating!: Superscary Superspecial
Halloween is more than haunted in this superscary superspecial addition to Spotlight’s popular tween horror series.When Ashley McDowell’s parents first told her they were moving from the big city to a one-stoplight farm town, she was convinced that she was going to hate living in Heaton Corners. But to Ashley’s surprise, she loves it. Everyone is super welcoming, especially her new friends. Plus, it’s October and there’s the town’s Harvest Festival, and, of course, Halloween. But when Ashley starts making plans for Halloween night, she is shocked to find out that her new friends are forbidden to go trick-or-treating. Ashley convinces them to sleep over at her house and go trick-or-treating anyway, but she soon discovers that Halloween in Heaton Corners isn’t like Halloween anywhere else. For one thing, everything seems so much more real...too real. Ashley can’t help but think that maybe Heaton Corners doesn’t need tricks and disguises to be terrifying on Halloween night…. This exceedingly scary superspecial features a glow-in-the-dark cover and bursts through Level 5 on the Creep-o-Meter.
138 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 7, 2012
24 people are currently reading
624 people want to read
About the author
P.J. Night
44 books158 followersP.J. Night Revealed
Revealing Questions
Q. How would you describe your life in only 8 words?
A. Reading, writing, and scaring up new ideas!
Q. What is your motto or maxim?
A. There are mysteries everywhere . . . you just have to know where to look.
Q. How would you describe perfect happiness?
A. Sitting with my cat on my lap and reading a book I just can't put down.
Q. What’s your greatest fear?
A. Flowers and teddy bears :)
Q. If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you choose to be?
A. At some very old and very haunted place. Transylvania or the Tower of London, anyone?
Q. If you could acquire any talent, what would it be?
A. Psychic powers
Q. If you could be any person or thing, who or what would it be?
A. A black cat
Q. Who is your favorite fictional hero?
A. Nancy Drew
Q. Who is your favorite fictional villain?
A. The Wicked Witch of the West
Q. What’s your fantasy profession?
A. Ghost hunter
Revealing Questions
Q. How would you describe your life in only 8 words?
A. Reading, writing, and scaring up new ideas!
Q. What is your motto or maxim?
A. There are mysteries everywhere . . . you just have to know where to look.
Q. How would you describe perfect happiness?
A. Sitting with my cat on my lap and reading a book I just can't put down.
Q. What’s your greatest fear?
A. Flowers and teddy bears :)
Q. If you could be anywhere in the world right now, where would you choose to be?
A. At some very old and very haunted place. Transylvania or the Tower of London, anyone?
Q. If you could acquire any talent, what would it be?
A. Psychic powers
Q. If you could be any person or thing, who or what would it be?
A. A black cat
Q. Who is your favorite fictional hero?
A. Nancy Drew
Q. Who is your favorite fictional villain?
A. The Wicked Witch of the West
Q. What’s your fantasy profession?
A. Ghost hunter
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 40 reviews
May 20, 2020
Trick or treating actually gets real and dangerous in this fun and spooky read, perfect for Halloween (or when you are in the mood for something spooky and can't wait for Halloween).
I just love that I have the chance to read all these books again, or well those that I have. This series is just such a delight, despite being for kids it is still pretty creepy and spooky.
In this our MC moves to a brand-new town and finds out that Halloween is something that is not done, is not celebrated. No trick-or-treating. No nothing. Of course she isn't amused by that as Halloween is also her birthday. I could totally understand her feeling, a new town and the one thing you are looking forward to is banned? Forbidden? Not allowed? I could imagine that she would rebel and just ask her friends to go out and trick or treat.
I do feel that if the town, if the people, had been more open and honest on why Halloween is not allowed, maybe less kids would have disappeared for eternity. Now there are warnings and foreboding stuff happening, but really, do you think a teen would listen to that if they don't get much explanation following that? You should really talk to them honestly and openly.
In the end we do learn of the origins of what the curse is about and I was pretty horrified. I would have liked some way to break the curse, but I guess the town is cursed forever. Until all eternity.
I did love that our MC was able to make friends so easily and they quickly took her in their midst. I even loved that she found a cute boy. Despite having to move so far and to such a small town, she is having a great time.
I had a laugh that the girls in the town didn't know about Halloween or trick or treat at all. Then again, given how the parents and adults of the place are I guess even the smallest references are banned. I do wonder do they even check tv/shows/books? Because that is where I got my knowledge from trick or treating/halloween from. It was quite fun to see our MC take them under her wing and explain everything about Halloween and what it was about.
The ending, and especially the epilogue had me feeling so sad. That poor girl.
All in all, a great book and I am glad I got the chance to re-read it. I would recommend this one (and others from the series).
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
I just love that I have the chance to read all these books again, or well those that I have. This series is just such a delight, despite being for kids it is still pretty creepy and spooky.
In this our MC moves to a brand-new town and finds out that Halloween is something that is not done, is not celebrated. No trick-or-treating. No nothing. Of course she isn't amused by that as Halloween is also her birthday. I could totally understand her feeling, a new town and the one thing you are looking forward to is banned? Forbidden? Not allowed? I could imagine that she would rebel and just ask her friends to go out and trick or treat.
I do feel that if the town, if the people, had been more open and honest on why Halloween is not allowed, maybe less kids would have disappeared for eternity. Now there are warnings and foreboding stuff happening, but really, do you think a teen would listen to that if they don't get much explanation following that? You should really talk to them honestly and openly.
In the end we do learn of the origins of what the curse is about and I was pretty horrified. I would have liked some way to break the curse, but I guess the town is cursed forever. Until all eternity.
I did love that our MC was able to make friends so easily and they quickly took her in their midst. I even loved that she found a cute boy. Despite having to move so far and to such a small town, she is having a great time.
I had a laugh that the girls in the town didn't know about Halloween or trick or treat at all. Then again, given how the parents and adults of the place are I guess even the smallest references are banned. I do wonder do they even check tv/shows/books? Because that is where I got my knowledge from trick or treating/halloween from. It was quite fun to see our MC take them under her wing and explain everything about Halloween and what it was about.
The ending, and especially the epilogue had me feeling so sad. That poor girl.
All in all, a great book and I am glad I got the chance to re-read it. I would recommend this one (and others from the series).
Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/
November 15, 2020
Ashley and her parents move to a rural town called Heaton Corners. Getting used to the countryside after living in the city is strange at first but she soon makes friends who help her settle in at school. Halloween is fast approaching and as Ashley starts to make party plans she finds out that Heaton Corners doesn't do trick or treating! Adamant that she get to enjoy the holiday she goes ahead anyway... and finds out the reason why!
This was a super cute and spooky read, perfect for the Halloween season. Ashley was likeable and relatable; the story was well-written and well-paced. This is aimed at 8-12 year olds but it never felt like the author was dumbing anything down for a young audience. The direction the story took and the ending (no spoilers!) was really interesting and really quite dark, especially for a 'kids' book. I would recommend adding this one to your Halloween TBR!
This was a super cute and spooky read, perfect for the Halloween season. Ashley was likeable and relatable; the story was well-written and well-paced. This is aimed at 8-12 year olds but it never felt like the author was dumbing anything down for a young audience. The direction the story took and the ending (no spoilers!) was really interesting and really quite dark, especially for a 'kids' book. I would recommend adding this one to your Halloween TBR!
October 22, 2022
This was a fun book to read in-between all the adult horror & thrillers I've been reading. Plus it takes place on Halloween night.
October 26, 2021
Our penultimate Halloween read is from a series I've been curious about. This is a series from the 2010's that seemed to go for a fair few entries from 2012-2017 or so. As the title of the series suggests, it seems to revolve around sleepovers. From the summaries, they play pretty loose with it over time, which is good as there's only so many scary stories you can fit sleepovers into. They are credited to PJ Night but once again it's a pen-name for ghostwriters. This one is Ellie O Ryan, whose credits are mostly of media tie in books from what I can see.
There's a camp book I can cover next year but for now here's a Halloween one that is marked as a special edition, meaning 191 pages instead of like 140. That made me interested. The series seems kinda typical but some of the summaries sound pretty interested. I had hopes going in but didn't expect too special...and what I got was a pleasant surprise.
It's flawed and I can see it not vibing with everyone but it won me over and ended up being pretty good. Anyway, plot; Ashley McDowell has moved from Atlanta to the small town of Heaton Corners. It's the kind of small town where everyone knows each other and Ashley is at first upset that they moved like this.
But soon she makes it home here, as everyone is pleasant, from her new friends Mary Beth, Stephanie and named I forgot, to this boy Joey she has a crush on. However, she notices this weird symbol in certain places, basically a infinity symbol with a snake in it. (Turns out that symbol has a proper fancy name, the more you know).
Then as Halloween approaches, she finds out they don't do that around here. Mary Beth's mom especially doesn't want them trick or treating. No one really knows why this is, and Ashley loves Halloween so she has them to go out on Halloween. And of course things go wrong and they figure out why this ban is in place...
So this one is a slow burn for sure.It takes a while for horror to really kick in, and when it does, it's not as big as you may expect. There also isn't technically a big climax although it ends up being for an interesting reason. I can see some not being big on that and I do think this could have been a normal length one, and still accomplish the same stuff.
It doesn't help that Ashley is annoying at first, with her whining and stuff. But eventually that vanishes as she grows to like the small town and she becomes fairly likable with her knack for Halloween and her dedication she has by the end. For other flaws, there are things to nitpick, like one thing Ashley gets that is first thought to be important but is just a red herring. The details of exactly what is going on is a bit weirdly specific and complicated although the nature of it and the impact it has makes up for it.
So the flaws do have positives, mostly, or they make up for it in some way. At first I was liking it fine but figured it may be a decent but it got better as the true nature became clear. The writing is good, a few clunky bits but there's good description, and once again good use of vocab words.
I quite like the small town feel here. I usually do when something has that and I liked it, mainly the thing with everyone being pleasant to each other. There's no bully character really, and all the friends are good to her. There is one part regarding this mean nick name given to Joey, but while it's weird, it gets dropped and isn't important. The parents are very sweet, and Ashley even gets along with her older sister. It's such a rarity for things like to be so nice but it really helps give it a feel good quality, even as things go wrong.
It has a really good fall feel, it just feels like Autumn and when Halloween kicks in it, it does that well too with spooky decorations and the trick or treating stuff. The scares are effective when they appear as well. When things go wrong, there's good sobering moments as things seem helpless and Ashley blames herself for what goes on.
The nature of what is going on is quite interesting. The thing with people in town wanting to hide something gives it a bigger feel and the backstory is pretty interesting when we find out. There's a understated mess here about how ignoring a problem only makes it worse, which is a good one for sure. The backstory has class watch going on which is also worth noting.
And then there's the ending, which is what really cemented this book for more. Without giving anything anyway, it's a different type of ending from what I usually see in these and it works really well. It's very effective and ended things on a different type of note. It does something very interesting and ...bittwesweet I guess although it leans more towards one direction on the scale.
It elevates this book. Before then, I did like it as it got over some flaws with it's small town feel, solid feel and pleasant characters but that ending really puts it in a different league than the usual. It's still not great, as it has it';s faults and I can it being too slow at times for some but stick with it, and you'll get an ending that is very solid and effective.
It's not perfect but had more than I was expecting by the end. It has no awesome aunts sadly so it's no Carnevil, but managed to be pretty good. I'm pretty curious about the rest of the series, in the least Ellie O Ryan has some chops it seems.
Btw, on the back there's this "Creep-O-Meter" which gives the book a scary-ness rating, and I love how some are lower than 5 or low, admitting some aren't that scary. This one supposedly is so scary it broke the meter...eh, sure guys. Also, this is another series with surprisingly long chapters, with 191 pages there are only 12 chapters and an epilogue, Spinetinglers and Spooksville are like that, I haven't mentioned it before but yeah, neat.
Next time, we wrap up the Halloween reads with my first Non-Stine Point Horror, s that should be interesting. See ya then.
There's a camp book I can cover next year but for now here's a Halloween one that is marked as a special edition, meaning 191 pages instead of like 140. That made me interested. The series seems kinda typical but some of the summaries sound pretty interested. I had hopes going in but didn't expect too special...and what I got was a pleasant surprise.
It's flawed and I can see it not vibing with everyone but it won me over and ended up being pretty good. Anyway, plot; Ashley McDowell has moved from Atlanta to the small town of Heaton Corners. It's the kind of small town where everyone knows each other and Ashley is at first upset that they moved like this.
But soon she makes it home here, as everyone is pleasant, from her new friends Mary Beth, Stephanie and named I forgot, to this boy Joey she has a crush on. However, she notices this weird symbol in certain places, basically a infinity symbol with a snake in it. (Turns out that symbol has a proper fancy name, the more you know).
Then as Halloween approaches, she finds out they don't do that around here. Mary Beth's mom especially doesn't want them trick or treating. No one really knows why this is, and Ashley loves Halloween so she has them to go out on Halloween. And of course things go wrong and they figure out why this ban is in place...
So this one is a slow burn for sure.It takes a while for horror to really kick in, and when it does, it's not as big as you may expect. There also isn't technically a big climax although it ends up being for an interesting reason. I can see some not being big on that and I do think this could have been a normal length one, and still accomplish the same stuff.
It doesn't help that Ashley is annoying at first, with her whining and stuff. But eventually that vanishes as she grows to like the small town and she becomes fairly likable with her knack for Halloween and her dedication she has by the end. For other flaws, there are things to nitpick, like one thing Ashley gets that is first thought to be important but is just a red herring. The details of exactly what is going on is a bit weirdly specific and complicated although the nature of it and the impact it has makes up for it.
So the flaws do have positives, mostly, or they make up for it in some way. At first I was liking it fine but figured it may be a decent but it got better as the true nature became clear. The writing is good, a few clunky bits but there's good description, and once again good use of vocab words.
I quite like the small town feel here. I usually do when something has that and I liked it, mainly the thing with everyone being pleasant to each other. There's no bully character really, and all the friends are good to her. There is one part regarding this mean nick name given to Joey, but while it's weird, it gets dropped and isn't important. The parents are very sweet, and Ashley even gets along with her older sister. It's such a rarity for things like to be so nice but it really helps give it a feel good quality, even as things go wrong.
It has a really good fall feel, it just feels like Autumn and when Halloween kicks in it, it does that well too with spooky decorations and the trick or treating stuff. The scares are effective when they appear as well. When things go wrong, there's good sobering moments as things seem helpless and Ashley blames herself for what goes on.
The nature of what is going on is quite interesting. The thing with people in town wanting to hide something gives it a bigger feel and the backstory is pretty interesting when we find out. There's a understated mess here about how ignoring a problem only makes it worse, which is a good one for sure. The backstory has class watch going on which is also worth noting.
And then there's the ending, which is what really cemented this book for more. Without giving anything anyway, it's a different type of ending from what I usually see in these and it works really well. It's very effective and ended things on a different type of note. It does something very interesting and ...bittwesweet I guess although it leans more towards one direction on the scale.
It elevates this book. Before then, I did like it as it got over some flaws with it's small town feel, solid feel and pleasant characters but that ending really puts it in a different league than the usual. It's still not great, as it has it';s faults and I can it being too slow at times for some but stick with it, and you'll get an ending that is very solid and effective.
It's not perfect but had more than I was expecting by the end. It has no awesome aunts sadly so it's no Carnevil, but managed to be pretty good. I'm pretty curious about the rest of the series, in the least Ellie O Ryan has some chops it seems.
Btw, on the back there's this "Creep-O-Meter" which gives the book a scary-ness rating, and I love how some are lower than 5 or low, admitting some aren't that scary. This one supposedly is so scary it broke the meter...eh, sure guys. Also, this is another series with surprisingly long chapters, with 191 pages there are only 12 chapters and an epilogue, Spinetinglers and Spooksville are like that, I haven't mentioned it before but yeah, neat.
Next time, we wrap up the Halloween reads with my first Non-Stine Point Horror, s that should be interesting. See ya then.
September 24, 2021
Like Goosebumps for Girls. This was actually really good. The writing and story flowed easily. The town that doesn’t celebrate Halloween and its people were interesting. I wonder if every book in the series has to have a sleepover in it?
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October 31, 2024No Trick or Treating
Ashley McDonald isn’t thrilled about moving from Atlanta to a farm on Heatron Corner. Ashely gets her first scare when she’s told by her mother to put her bike up because it’s about to rain. When she tries to put it in the barn she steps on something that moves around her ankles and she thinks it’s a snake nest. Only to find out from her father (who hears her screams and investigates) it’s just snake skins.
The first day of school, Ashley is introduced to Mary Beth Medina (whose dad sold him the house) who gives her the run down of the school and escorts her to home-room. Everything goes well! Everyone treats Ashley like a celebrity. Mary-Beth introduces her to her friends Stephanie and Danielle. She instantly finds herself crushing on Mary-Beth’s cousin Joey. All of a sudden even the farm seems to look better. But when looking at the mailbox, there’s a weird symbol carved in it-a sideways 8-. That night, Mary-Beth’s mom and she come by with a casserole. When they leave, Ashley notices Mary-Beth’s mom pause by the mailbox and frown.
At school, joey tells her about “Harvest Days”-a celebration of October and the harvest. When she gets home, a man helping with the farm has covered it up with paint. She tells her mom about it-who hasn’t seen it-.Ashley’s mom also tells them about the upcoming events. When she hears her nephew told Ashley already she starts talking ish about his tepmom. She doesn’t make it secret she doesn’t approve of her brother remarrying someone outside Heaton. Someone she feels that doesn’t fit in. She doesn’t know when to leave well enough alone she says. Before she leaves she talks Mrs. McDonald into bringing a cake to the festival-even tho she can’t bake-.
Ashley’s mom makes a cake that resembles a graveyard and it looks amazing. But when she takes it to the carnival the two woman over the cake auction, don’t seem to think it’s appropriate. When she meets up with her friends and Joey and asks where the haunted house is, she finds out that don’t do Halloween in Heaton Corners. Ashley tho says she still plans to go trick or treating and they can come with her. Joey strangely objects but Mary-Beth tells him they can do what they want.
After finding out her mom’s cake isn’t in the auction she confronts Mrs. MedinaThey tell her (her) mom’s cake “had an accident” and this things happen. Ashley wonders what she’s leaving out and starts to think there’s something wrong with Heaton Corners. Her mom says they must have figured out they bought it, but Ashley thinks its more than that.
At school, her friends seem hesitant about Halloween and tick or treating, but Mary-Beth admits she’s seen kids doing it and it looks like fun. She wishes her mom would let her. Ashley says she’ll get her chance but they have to figure out how. Later, on the way home she tries out a store to look for her favorite Halloween candy (chocolate, marshmallow, pumpkins). The store is owned by a lady who introduces herself as Mrs. Bernis. She has several black cats. The lady tells her she would NEVER sell Halloween candy in her shop (quite adamantly).
One of the cats knocks over something and Ashley goes to find something to clean it up. Inside a broom closet she finds a secret room with names on paper tacked to the walls. Then she feels someone behind her but when she turns around there’s no one there. Before she leaves Mrs. Bernis warns her (with her full name that she didn’g givr her the last one) not to go trick or treating in Heaton Corner.
The Haunted Mansion is full of poltergeist having fun and pulling pranks. He finds the Mad Doctor on the top floor and the piece in a flying machine. He flies away in the machine with the piece. Ashley finds out from her sister Maya that the symbol is called lemniscate and it’s an infinity symbol.
The next day Ashley gets a apple in her locker and knows it’s from Joey. She and her friends talk about Halloween again. Ashley has come up with a plan and invites them all to spend the night at her house. It’s also her bday. They won’t have to tell anyone about trick or treating. The others can just say they’re coming to her party. Joey hears them tho and threatens to tell.
At the party, Ashley is careful not to put out any decorations where Mrs. Medina can see them. She makes Mary-Beth promise not to go trick or treating. There’s a moment when she looks like she’s about to turn around and tell Ashley’s mom to forbid them from trick or treating but she just picks up a package and gives it to Ashley. It’s a present for Ashley from Maya -that turns out to be the Infinity symbol in the shape of a snake eating it’s on tail. They eat and then put on their costumes. Mary-Beth is a vampire. Ashley uses the snake skins in the barn to be Medusa. Danielle is a skeleton. They help Stephanie transform her sisters prom dress into a costume for a murdered, ghost, bride.
While they’re out trick or treating, they come across someone in a devil and bat costume. The devil is carrying a pumpkin with a realistic grimace. There’s smoke coming out of its eyes that chock Mary-Beth, Danielle, and Stephane (and scare them silly). The girl with the bat’s mask is wearing the most realistic “mask” Ashley’s ever since. After they move on the others look like they’re going to cry. Ashley’s promises them that’s not what it’s all about. They wonder if they’ll get sick from the smoke. But Ashley says it was probably just a stink bomb (The devil also starts to dance around them in circles.
They continue on trick or treating but none of the houses seem to be occupied and they find the candy on the poarch in a bowl. When they reach for it all the lights go off. So, they come to a school were there are a lot of tirick or treaters. They approach a witch, a zomie, and a werewolf. The werewolf’s face is too life like. The zombie really does smell dead- Ashley recognizes the scent from a dead mouse they found back home-. The witch says they don’t know them. They don’t go there. Her skin is papery and a spider (real) falls from her “costume”. They ask have they gone to any good houses. Noone’s been around. The Goblin says “Tonight they can go anywhere.” The witch touches Stephanie’s veil and says she likes soft pretty things. They declare them freaks. Stephanie says she doesn’t think they were kids.
They decide to go to Joey’s but when they do.. I’m not even sure I can describe or make sense of this. His face has the infinity symbol on his cheecks and well let me take it from the book. “It was a face Ashley barely recognized. It wasn’t just the lemniscates that had been painted on his cheeks with painstaking detail; even without looking closely, she could see the greenish glitter to the snakes’ scales; the red drops of blood, falling as the snake devoured itself, that stood out so strangely against Joey’s unusually pale skin. No, what really struck her was the horror in his eyes; they were an empty void of cold, black fear that made Ashley feel like her throat was closing up.” After this they decide they’ve had enough trick or treating.
Back at Ashley’s they decide to play “Light As A Feather”. Stephanie is the chosen one. It works but she begains to rise to high and Ashley has to get her down. After this Stephanie mysteriously disappears. Her friends don’t seem all that concerned and say she probably got scared and ran home. Then they play hide and seek in the barn. While looking for Danielle, Ashley encounters something that’s head comes off. Ashley screams hysterically until Mary Beth points out it’s a scarcecrow.
When they find Danielle, she’s in a impossible position-yet she says not a gymnast-. Also her bones are cracking loudly. Ashley and Mary-Beth go to the bathroom to find her something to take the pain away-that she says she has- but when they return, she’s gone. Ashley can’t understand why she’d just leave. Mary Beth says maybe she was just in so much pain she wanted to go home. She says it wasn’t cool for either her or Stephanie to leave like that but says they can still enjoy her birthday. Ashley offers to clean up although Mary Beth says she shouldn’t have too.
After this they start to watch scary movies. Mary Beth says she’s thirsty so Ashley goes to get her some soda. But she says she’s thirsty again so Ashley goes to get her some water. When she drinks it Mary Beth says it taste sour. She keeps saying she’s thirsty over and over. She doesn’t want Milk, Cider, or Orange juice, but that’s all they have. When Ashley brings her some of each she spits it out and says it taste bad. Only to Ashley it tastes fine. Ashley cuts her thumb and finally finds something that quinch’s her thirst. Ashley thinks yep. Time to get the hell out of there. But Mary Beth blocks the steps. She convinces her she’s just going to go upstairs a minute and get something.
The ”something” is her mother. She tells her there’s something wrong with Mary-Beth but when her mother gets halfway down the steps she realizes this might not be a good idea so she tries to stop her. Her mother goes anyway, but Mary-Beth is long gone. She’s left a bloody print on the doorknob. Ashley’s mom wants to call the other girls parents but Ashley convinces her not to. Upset she decides to turn in. Before she does she trashes her costume and the candy-which doesn’t even taste right-.
Her friends aren’t in school Monday. (I forgot to say Ashley threw soda in Mary-Beth’s face so she could get past her. Now she’s worried she’ll never speak to her again). The teacher says that Danielle, Stephanie, and Mary-Beth moved over the weekend. When Ashley gets home, she sees a pair of really nice brown boots from her sister. Then it hits her she didn’t give her the necklace. She goes to Joey’s and he tells her about the curse on Heaton Corner. Whenever people go trick or treating they disappear at midnight. He says he was the one that gave her the necklace-for protection-. He also gave the other girls one but their parents fear the symbol so they must have intercepted it. He was also the one that put the symbol on the mailbox.
Ashely doesn’t accept this and rushes off to find someone who might know more. He comes with. They go to Mrs. Bernice who takes them to the secret room and shows them the three new names on the wall (Mary-Beth, Stephanie, and Danielle). She says she does it to remember. She gives them a book and lets them read how the curse started with a girl named Charlotte who bragged too much about her wealth so some kids decided to get revenge on her. Her costume was a snake dancer and they slipped her a real snake. Only it was poisonous. Long story sthort the only thing Ashley can do is try to reach her friends on Halloween and remind them of their humanity. They will have turned into the costumes they wore and many have become evil. Especially if you forget to leave the candy out for them. At the end of the story Ashley hears Mary Beth (I think) whispering she misses her.
My Thoughts:
Not bad! I liked that there was no “solution”. Mary-Beth, Stephanie, and Danielle are just GONE! Or either as strongly suggested they’re spirits roaming around that appear on Halloween. This wasn’t too scary. I think the scariest moment for me was when Mary-Beth started getting thirsty. I thought she was going to turn on Ashley and then Ashley’s mom. I wasn’t sure what was going on with Joey. I thought he’d turned into a snake. All in all this was good for a short, quick, read.
Rating: 6
Ashley McDonald isn’t thrilled about moving from Atlanta to a farm on Heatron Corner. Ashely gets her first scare when she’s told by her mother to put her bike up because it’s about to rain. When she tries to put it in the barn she steps on something that moves around her ankles and she thinks it’s a snake nest. Only to find out from her father (who hears her screams and investigates) it’s just snake skins.
The first day of school, Ashley is introduced to Mary Beth Medina (whose dad sold him the house) who gives her the run down of the school and escorts her to home-room. Everything goes well! Everyone treats Ashley like a celebrity. Mary-Beth introduces her to her friends Stephanie and Danielle. She instantly finds herself crushing on Mary-Beth’s cousin Joey. All of a sudden even the farm seems to look better. But when looking at the mailbox, there’s a weird symbol carved in it-a sideways 8-. That night, Mary-Beth’s mom and she come by with a casserole. When they leave, Ashley notices Mary-Beth’s mom pause by the mailbox and frown.
At school, joey tells her about “Harvest Days”-a celebration of October and the harvest. When she gets home, a man helping with the farm has covered it up with paint. She tells her mom about it-who hasn’t seen it-.Ashley’s mom also tells them about the upcoming events. When she hears her nephew told Ashley already she starts talking ish about his tepmom. She doesn’t make it secret she doesn’t approve of her brother remarrying someone outside Heaton. Someone she feels that doesn’t fit in. She doesn’t know when to leave well enough alone she says. Before she leaves she talks Mrs. McDonald into bringing a cake to the festival-even tho she can’t bake-.
Ashley’s mom makes a cake that resembles a graveyard and it looks amazing. But when she takes it to the carnival the two woman over the cake auction, don’t seem to think it’s appropriate. When she meets up with her friends and Joey and asks where the haunted house is, she finds out that don’t do Halloween in Heaton Corners. Ashley tho says she still plans to go trick or treating and they can come with her. Joey strangely objects but Mary-Beth tells him they can do what they want.
After finding out her mom’s cake isn’t in the auction she confronts Mrs. MedinaThey tell her (her) mom’s cake “had an accident” and this things happen. Ashley wonders what she’s leaving out and starts to think there’s something wrong with Heaton Corners. Her mom says they must have figured out they bought it, but Ashley thinks its more than that.
At school, her friends seem hesitant about Halloween and tick or treating, but Mary-Beth admits she’s seen kids doing it and it looks like fun. She wishes her mom would let her. Ashley says she’ll get her chance but they have to figure out how. Later, on the way home she tries out a store to look for her favorite Halloween candy (chocolate, marshmallow, pumpkins). The store is owned by a lady who introduces herself as Mrs. Bernis. She has several black cats. The lady tells her she would NEVER sell Halloween candy in her shop (quite adamantly).
One of the cats knocks over something and Ashley goes to find something to clean it up. Inside a broom closet she finds a secret room with names on paper tacked to the walls. Then she feels someone behind her but when she turns around there’s no one there. Before she leaves Mrs. Bernis warns her (with her full name that she didn’g givr her the last one) not to go trick or treating in Heaton Corner.
The Haunted Mansion is full of poltergeist having fun and pulling pranks. He finds the Mad Doctor on the top floor and the piece in a flying machine. He flies away in the machine with the piece. Ashley finds out from her sister Maya that the symbol is called lemniscate and it’s an infinity symbol.
The next day Ashley gets a apple in her locker and knows it’s from Joey. She and her friends talk about Halloween again. Ashley has come up with a plan and invites them all to spend the night at her house. It’s also her bday. They won’t have to tell anyone about trick or treating. The others can just say they’re coming to her party. Joey hears them tho and threatens to tell.
At the party, Ashley is careful not to put out any decorations where Mrs. Medina can see them. She makes Mary-Beth promise not to go trick or treating. There’s a moment when she looks like she’s about to turn around and tell Ashley’s mom to forbid them from trick or treating but she just picks up a package and gives it to Ashley. It’s a present for Ashley from Maya -that turns out to be the Infinity symbol in the shape of a snake eating it’s on tail. They eat and then put on their costumes. Mary-Beth is a vampire. Ashley uses the snake skins in the barn to be Medusa. Danielle is a skeleton. They help Stephanie transform her sisters prom dress into a costume for a murdered, ghost, bride.
While they’re out trick or treating, they come across someone in a devil and bat costume. The devil is carrying a pumpkin with a realistic grimace. There’s smoke coming out of its eyes that chock Mary-Beth, Danielle, and Stephane (and scare them silly). The girl with the bat’s mask is wearing the most realistic “mask” Ashley’s ever since. After they move on the others look like they’re going to cry. Ashley’s promises them that’s not what it’s all about. They wonder if they’ll get sick from the smoke. But Ashley says it was probably just a stink bomb (The devil also starts to dance around them in circles.
They continue on trick or treating but none of the houses seem to be occupied and they find the candy on the poarch in a bowl. When they reach for it all the lights go off. So, they come to a school were there are a lot of tirick or treaters. They approach a witch, a zomie, and a werewolf. The werewolf’s face is too life like. The zombie really does smell dead- Ashley recognizes the scent from a dead mouse they found back home-. The witch says they don’t know them. They don’t go there. Her skin is papery and a spider (real) falls from her “costume”. They ask have they gone to any good houses. Noone’s been around. The Goblin says “Tonight they can go anywhere.” The witch touches Stephanie’s veil and says she likes soft pretty things. They declare them freaks. Stephanie says she doesn’t think they were kids.
They decide to go to Joey’s but when they do.. I’m not even sure I can describe or make sense of this. His face has the infinity symbol on his cheecks and well let me take it from the book. “It was a face Ashley barely recognized. It wasn’t just the lemniscates that had been painted on his cheeks with painstaking detail; even without looking closely, she could see the greenish glitter to the snakes’ scales; the red drops of blood, falling as the snake devoured itself, that stood out so strangely against Joey’s unusually pale skin. No, what really struck her was the horror in his eyes; they were an empty void of cold, black fear that made Ashley feel like her throat was closing up.” After this they decide they’ve had enough trick or treating.
Back at Ashley’s they decide to play “Light As A Feather”. Stephanie is the chosen one. It works but she begains to rise to high and Ashley has to get her down. After this Stephanie mysteriously disappears. Her friends don’t seem all that concerned and say she probably got scared and ran home. Then they play hide and seek in the barn. While looking for Danielle, Ashley encounters something that’s head comes off. Ashley screams hysterically until Mary Beth points out it’s a scarcecrow.
When they find Danielle, she’s in a impossible position-yet she says not a gymnast-. Also her bones are cracking loudly. Ashley and Mary-Beth go to the bathroom to find her something to take the pain away-that she says she has- but when they return, she’s gone. Ashley can’t understand why she’d just leave. Mary Beth says maybe she was just in so much pain she wanted to go home. She says it wasn’t cool for either her or Stephanie to leave like that but says they can still enjoy her birthday. Ashley offers to clean up although Mary Beth says she shouldn’t have too.
After this they start to watch scary movies. Mary Beth says she’s thirsty so Ashley goes to get her some soda. But she says she’s thirsty again so Ashley goes to get her some water. When she drinks it Mary Beth says it taste sour. She keeps saying she’s thirsty over and over. She doesn’t want Milk, Cider, or Orange juice, but that’s all they have. When Ashley brings her some of each she spits it out and says it taste bad. Only to Ashley it tastes fine. Ashley cuts her thumb and finally finds something that quinch’s her thirst. Ashley thinks yep. Time to get the hell out of there. But Mary Beth blocks the steps. She convinces her she’s just going to go upstairs a minute and get something.
The ”something” is her mother. She tells her there’s something wrong with Mary-Beth but when her mother gets halfway down the steps she realizes this might not be a good idea so she tries to stop her. Her mother goes anyway, but Mary-Beth is long gone. She’s left a bloody print on the doorknob. Ashley’s mom wants to call the other girls parents but Ashley convinces her not to. Upset she decides to turn in. Before she does she trashes her costume and the candy-which doesn’t even taste right-.
Her friends aren’t in school Monday. (I forgot to say Ashley threw soda in Mary-Beth’s face so she could get past her. Now she’s worried she’ll never speak to her again). The teacher says that Danielle, Stephanie, and Mary-Beth moved over the weekend. When Ashley gets home, she sees a pair of really nice brown boots from her sister. Then it hits her she didn’t give her the necklace. She goes to Joey’s and he tells her about the curse on Heaton Corner. Whenever people go trick or treating they disappear at midnight. He says he was the one that gave her the necklace-for protection-. He also gave the other girls one but their parents fear the symbol so they must have intercepted it. He was also the one that put the symbol on the mailbox.
Ashely doesn’t accept this and rushes off to find someone who might know more. He comes with. They go to Mrs. Bernice who takes them to the secret room and shows them the three new names on the wall (Mary-Beth, Stephanie, and Danielle). She says she does it to remember. She gives them a book and lets them read how the curse started with a girl named Charlotte who bragged too much about her wealth so some kids decided to get revenge on her. Her costume was a snake dancer and they slipped her a real snake. Only it was poisonous. Long story sthort the only thing Ashley can do is try to reach her friends on Halloween and remind them of their humanity. They will have turned into the costumes they wore and many have become evil. Especially if you forget to leave the candy out for them. At the end of the story Ashley hears Mary Beth (I think) whispering she misses her.
My Thoughts:
Not bad! I liked that there was no “solution”. Mary-Beth, Stephanie, and Danielle are just GONE! Or either as strongly suggested they’re spirits roaming around that appear on Halloween. This wasn’t too scary. I think the scariest moment for me was when Mary-Beth started getting thirsty. I thought she was going to turn on Ashley and then Ashley’s mom. I wasn’t sure what was going on with Joey. I thought he’d turned into a snake. All in all this was good for a short, quick, read.
Rating: 6
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 2, 2014
True rating: 4.5 stars.
Author* Ellie O'Ryan's story may not be "so scary it broke the Creep-O-Meter", but it's very good nonetheless. It's nicely written and easy to read, with a likeable group of girls you hate to see bad things happen to -- but alas, they do. I would highly recommend that this book be read the day or two before Halloween. It will make that long, dark trek through the neighborhood that much scarier and, if you survive, the candy that much sweeter.
By the way, I chose to bump the book up to 5 stars rather than down to 4 because Aly Turner's scary-cool cover art takes on a super eerie dimension when the glow-in-the-dark ghost bride is charged and the lights go off. That's when the Creep-O-Meter does start to tremble and crack....
*P.J. Night is the house name for this series written by Simon & Schuster's stable of writers.
August 9, 2022
Yesterday I spent an hour trying to remember what this series was called. I remembered how capturing the books were and what unique plot lines they had. I finally got my hands on a couple of them and thoroughly enjoyed reading them. Though I am way beyond the target audience's age, the books were still great. I'd highly recommend them to anyone. Though the writing may seem derivative as an older person, I still loved the little details and overarching plotline.
December 21, 2013
I really enjoyed reading this one. I can firmly place myself in Ashley's position. If moved somewhere and there was no Hallowe'en I'd definitely try to celebrate it anyway. I think the book built up a nice tension and kept a great pace to bring unease. On the other hand if someone had explained it in the first place so much trouble could have been saved.
July 9, 2018
Evokes memories of reading R. L. Stine books in one sitting. It's middle grade, but scants a bit younger. Still really enjoyable. This won't be a 4 or 5 star read for everyone, but I considered the genre and the intended age group and I really did have a good time. The plot isn't new to anyone that saw that one Halloween episode of Buffy, but my Halloween-loving heart had a good time anyway.
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April 5, 2017Omg loved it!her friends turning into the monsters they pretended to be was just plain awesome!i just hope they turn back......cause' t didn't say and they was sorta sad never seeing her friends again the same way.....
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 2, 2013
I loved it
August 22, 2013
I IOVED this book
February 8, 2014
I love these creepover book they are fast and fun read.They are kind of spooky love them.
October 11, 2014
this book is SUPER scary!!!!!!!! I LOVED it!!!!!!!!!!!
February 8, 2017
I loved it
November 15, 2017
AMMAZZZING BOOK!!!!!!
June 20, 2024
THIS ONE IS ACTUALLY FIRE
February 23, 2023
4.5 Stars
I LOVED THIS! It was super creepy and super fun! My favorite of the 13 I've read.
I LOVED THIS! It was super creepy and super fun! My favorite of the 13 I've read.
August 26, 2025
favorite creep over book
June 20, 2024
It is such a great book I love the Halloween feel it gives there’s always such great details
October 14, 2023
I'm so sad that this is the last unread Creepover book for me. I absolutely loved this series!
September 4, 2023
I've been wondering if there was room in a post-Harry Potter world for a children's creepy anthology series similar to Goosebumps or AYaotD? that so enthralled budding horror fans of the '90s. so when I saw this Creepover entry at a thrift store and opened it up to a copyright date of 2012, I was intrigued. Clearly this series wasn't the phenomenon that Goosebumps was twenty years prior, but hey, it exists.
It's difficult to decide on a rating. On the one hand, I love the small-town rural atmosphere, and the trick-or-treating sequence halfway through the book is legitimately unsettling, even to an adult reader. On the other hand, the structure is a bit wonky--it takes a bit too long for the plot to get going, leading to a number of repetitive sequences in which Ashley is warned about celebrating Halloween in Heaton Corners and then given no follow-up information, and the explanation for the curse that prompted the ban on All Hollow's Eve is rushed and unsatisfying. Still, I give P.J. Night points for the equally spooky and tragic ending, for avoiding the temptation to indulge in fake-out scares for the sake of fast pacing, and for the creation of a rural town that is both idyllic and eerie--I kind of want to live in Heaton Corners even though I know I'd go insane from having to drive an hour to the next town every time I wanted to pick up a pizza. Think of Endora from What's Eating Gilbert Grape? but with supernatural vibes on the wind and a population of tight-lipped adults harboring a dark secret. I kind of wish the entire Creepover series took place in this town, with a rotating cast of characters a la Fear Street, but I suppose that would be difficult with a class size of 43.
It's difficult to decide on a rating. On the one hand, I love the small-town rural atmosphere, and the trick-or-treating sequence halfway through the book is legitimately unsettling, even to an adult reader. On the other hand, the structure is a bit wonky--it takes a bit too long for the plot to get going, leading to a number of repetitive sequences in which Ashley is warned about celebrating Halloween in Heaton Corners and then given no follow-up information, and the explanation for the curse that prompted the ban on All Hollow's Eve is rushed and unsatisfying. Still, I give P.J. Night points for the equally spooky and tragic ending, for avoiding the temptation to indulge in fake-out scares for the sake of fast pacing, and for the creation of a rural town that is both idyllic and eerie--I kind of want to live in Heaton Corners even though I know I'd go insane from having to drive an hour to the next town every time I wanted to pick up a pizza. Think of Endora from What's Eating Gilbert Grape? but with supernatural vibes on the wind and a population of tight-lipped adults harboring a dark secret. I kind of wish the entire Creepover series took place in this town, with a rotating cast of characters a la Fear Street, but I suppose that would be difficult with a class size of 43.
October 25, 2024
This was a well written, well paced, very atmospheric slow burn with a strong mystery element attaining to what's going on in this town. There were a couple of eerie scenes all culminating in a very dark, satisfying ending which I was very much a fan of. My only real negative is this was marketed as a super scary special and I can't help but feel that there wasn't much In the way of scares in here at all.
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October 7, 2023How do I read the story
October 11, 2024
Great for October!
March 12, 2025
This was one of my favorites in this series. Spooky and fun. (Well, for me, not for the characters.)
July 13, 2020
This book is easily one of P.J. Night’s absolute best work. It’s longer than the other books in the series, which leaves room for a lot more writing and detail. It’s definitely quite spooky and creepy, and I’d love to see it adapted into a film! I listened to "Witching Hour" by Nosferatu while reading the book and it was such a fitting soundtrack 👻
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