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The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain
Turtleshell Mountain is supposed to be the Most Joyous Place on Earth. That's what Tess Cameron is counting on when she invites all of her friends there for the weekend. Tess has a secret, a good secret, and she can't think of any better place to share it with the people she loves most.
But Turtleshell Mountain has its own secrets. Something has awakened inside of the park. Something scarier than any ride. It won't be long before Tess and her friends are the only people left alive in Turtleshell Mountain...
And that's when the nightmare will really begin.
But Turtleshell Mountain has its own secrets. Something has awakened inside of the park. Something scarier than any ride. It won't be long before Tess and her friends are the only people left alive in Turtleshell Mountain...
And that's when the nightmare will really begin.
384 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 12, 2015
6 people are currently reading
345 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
April 13, 2022
If you ever wanted to know what Disney World would be like if it was built off black magic and Walt was into the occult, this is the book for you. Five friends load up their car to head off to Turtleshell Mountain, the "Happiest Place on Earth". Only today, the cute characters have turned into killers and rides are deadly. The upside, there are no long waits in line. I can't think of a worse fate than to murdered by Felix the Fox. This was an outstanding book from start to finish. The characters are well written and relatable. Highly recommend!
October 23, 2018
Turtleshell Mountain is a theme park where people go to spend too much money and have the time of their lives. But there is a sinister underbelly beneath the happy façade and it is ready to come out and have some bloody fun!
The story focuses on a group of five adult friends who take the trip to Turtleshell. One of them has been going through a tough time with cancer treatments and they all want to forget about the sadness for a short time. There’s also a minister and his flock of youngsters visiting on a field trip and the Queen Beyotch who has worked at the park for decades. They’re all there at the worst possible time, of course, and though there are a LOT of innocents, a few of these people sort of deserve what they get and that’s always fun for me.
This book actually caught me off guard a time or two which doesn’t happen very much. It doesn’t flee from the child death scenes and no one is safe so be warned if that’s a trigger for you. The carnage seeps in slowly which worked for me because I love a book where the setting is as much a character as all of the people and the setting is done spectacularly here. The writer spends some time focusing on the characters and their messy relationships and conflicted feelings before bringing on the murderous rampage of an entity known as The Single Rider. When the death and destruction begins to happen it’s grueling and joyous depending on the person losing body parts, lol.
Reading this book was like watching a fantastic B horror movie from the 80’s; fun, messy, nail biting and even little sad and heartwarming in the most surprising way. The final reveal was satisfying and I highly recommend THE TERROR AT TURTLESHELL MOUNTAIN if any of this sounds good to you and your dark little heart (and, really, how could it not?!).
The story focuses on a group of five adult friends who take the trip to Turtleshell. One of them has been going through a tough time with cancer treatments and they all want to forget about the sadness for a short time. There’s also a minister and his flock of youngsters visiting on a field trip and the Queen Beyotch who has worked at the park for decades. They’re all there at the worst possible time, of course, and though there are a LOT of innocents, a few of these people sort of deserve what they get and that’s always fun for me.
This book actually caught me off guard a time or two which doesn’t happen very much. It doesn’t flee from the child death scenes and no one is safe so be warned if that’s a trigger for you. The carnage seeps in slowly which worked for me because I love a book where the setting is as much a character as all of the people and the setting is done spectacularly here. The writer spends some time focusing on the characters and their messy relationships and conflicted feelings before bringing on the murderous rampage of an entity known as The Single Rider. When the death and destruction begins to happen it’s grueling and joyous depending on the person losing body parts, lol.
Reading this book was like watching a fantastic B horror movie from the 80’s; fun, messy, nail biting and even little sad and heartwarming in the most surprising way. The final reveal was satisfying and I highly recommend THE TERROR AT TURTLESHELL MOUNTAIN if any of this sounds good to you and your dark little heart (and, really, how could it not?!).
July 17, 2020
Every couple of years I come across an author that blows my socks off and makes me wonder why I had never read him/her before. Sean McDonough immediately jumps to my top tier of authors now. Upon finishing TURTLE MOUNTAIN, I logged onto Amazon and ordered his three other novels. It was that good. The fact that it was self-published makes it even more impressive
McDonough hasn't just written a horror novel about a Disney World analogue. He has created an entire parallel universe where Timmy Turtle is the smiling figure at the heart of the entertainment that every child knows and loves. Every chapter has a nod to actual films put out by the real world counterpart and each character has a well-developed background and motivation.. Everything in this world is fleshed-out and full of life before McDonough rips out its throat and drinks the blood directly from the neck-hole of its spasming corpse in front of the reader's eyes.
Every horror fan should immediately book a vacation to Turtleshell Mountain ASAP!
McDonough hasn't just written a horror novel about a Disney World analogue. He has created an entire parallel universe where Timmy Turtle is the smiling figure at the heart of the entertainment that every child knows and loves. Every chapter has a nod to actual films put out by the real world counterpart and each character has a well-developed background and motivation.. Everything in this world is fleshed-out and full of life before McDonough rips out its throat and drinks the blood directly from the neck-hole of its spasming corpse in front of the reader's eyes.
Every horror fan should immediately book a vacation to Turtleshell Mountain ASAP!
August 10, 2022
Well he's done it again.. Sean McDonough has written another well thought out, unpredictable, gore-fest of a story and I loved every minute! Just know I will never again step foot in another amusement park after reading this, so damn you for that, Sean. But I do owe you thanks for writing such a vicious, brutal, yet tender and emotional book. 5/5 Turtleshell skulls💀
December 21, 2024
Honestly, I thought I was gonna hate this book. It’s incredibly disturbing and very graphic, but then I couldn’t put it down. It’s like Disney World meets Five Nights at Freddy’s.
July 18, 2019
This book certainly made me never want to go to another theme park again.
November 3, 2018
There were things I both liked and disliked in The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain. I'll start with the good, I loved the idea of taking something wholesome and family friendly like an amusement park and turning it into something dark and deadly. The kills in this were also great. They had a decent build-up, and some were shocking! I loved that this didn't hold back when it came to killing off characters.
Now, with the things that didn't work for me. It was mostly the characters. I couldn't connect to the main group of characters. Fast-paced slashers are tough because they have to walk a fine line between getting the action going right away and creating characters you care about so that their deaths are impactful. My issue was that there was too much going on with this group that struck me as unrealistic. I would have preferred if we had focused more on the group and their relationships with each other as opposed to the escalated backstories and secrets they had. I also wanted a little more from the writing, although I did enjoy the chapters that came from the POV of the Single Rider.
This book will not be for everyone. I think it comes down to what you are looking for in a story. If you're looking for a fast-paced slasher that doesn't hold back when it comes to body count, this might be for you, even if it wasn't my personal favorite.
Now, with the things that didn't work for me. It was mostly the characters. I couldn't connect to the main group of characters. Fast-paced slashers are tough because they have to walk a fine line between getting the action going right away and creating characters you care about so that their deaths are impactful. My issue was that there was too much going on with this group that struck me as unrealistic. I would have preferred if we had focused more on the group and their relationships with each other as opposed to the escalated backstories and secrets they had. I also wanted a little more from the writing, although I did enjoy the chapters that came from the POV of the Single Rider.
This book will not be for everyone. I think it comes down to what you are looking for in a story. If you're looking for a fast-paced slasher that doesn't hold back when it comes to body count, this might be for you, even if it wasn't my personal favorite.
February 23, 2021
Disneyland turned deadly should be a no-brainer concept but as far as I can tell, none have taken the idea and ran with it until Sean McDonough did with "The Terror At Turtleshell Mountain". Characters you want to root for and villains you want to hate and get scared of. No one is safe here in this Disneyland parallel, not even the young 'uns.
November 4, 2021
I picked this one up after seeing it spoken highly of in a few groups across Facebook and LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT! It’s fun, brutal, bizarre, and I would probably sell my own mother for a sequel.
May 20, 2019
I enjoyed this fast paced amusement park horror. When I first picked it up I was fondly reminded of Goosebumps books with the title but this is definitely not like a Goosebumps book. The killing is horrific, purely for adults only. Like I already mentioned, it was fast paced but there was a good build up of tension throughout. Highly recommended!
August 12, 2019
Having never read anything by Sean McDonough, I went in blind. What a wild, amazing surprise. The background story is etched out enough to where you aren’t lost, but McDonough doesn’t waste much time before plunging you into the action. And once it starts, oh boy, it really doesn’t stop till the brutal end. This nonstop thriller was an absolute page turner, and a wonderful introduction to a new favorite author of mine. I look forward to picking up his other two books.
This book isn’t all thrills and scares, however. The world that McDonough builds draws you in and truly makes you care. The setting is very clearly his version of Disney World, but it doesn’t come off as plagiarized or cheaply copied at all. The love that clearly went into crafting this world is evident in the small details, and the emotional connection to their childhood that the park brings out in the characters (and by proxy, the reader).
The characters are well thought out and realistic. McDonough doesn’t bore you with pages of backstory and introduction all at once. Instead, you are given the framework of this group of friends, and he slowly adds to it, bit by bit as the story unfolds. The end result is characters that you are constantly learning about as they struggle and have to survive; characters that you truly care about. It’s not often that a horror writer can elicit such an emotional attachment to characters as he puts them through Hell.
Overall, Terror at Turtleshell Mountain was a great read. The plot was wild and a bit unpredictable. The thrills and violence was top notch without being overdone. There is some solid brutality here, but nothing ‘splatterpunk’. If you’re looking for a fast paced horror story that will draw you in and keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end, look no further than here.
This book isn’t all thrills and scares, however. The world that McDonough builds draws you in and truly makes you care. The setting is very clearly his version of Disney World, but it doesn’t come off as plagiarized or cheaply copied at all. The love that clearly went into crafting this world is evident in the small details, and the emotional connection to their childhood that the park brings out in the characters (and by proxy, the reader).
The characters are well thought out and realistic. McDonough doesn’t bore you with pages of backstory and introduction all at once. Instead, you are given the framework of this group of friends, and he slowly adds to it, bit by bit as the story unfolds. The end result is characters that you are constantly learning about as they struggle and have to survive; characters that you truly care about. It’s not often that a horror writer can elicit such an emotional attachment to characters as he puts them through Hell.
Overall, Terror at Turtleshell Mountain was a great read. The plot was wild and a bit unpredictable. The thrills and violence was top notch without being overdone. There is some solid brutality here, but nothing ‘splatterpunk’. If you’re looking for a fast paced horror story that will draw you in and keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end, look no further than here.
March 14, 2019
When you pick up The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain by Sean McDonough, clear your calendar, because this compelling read will take you prisoner.
I was going to take a quick peek and suddenly found myself seven chapters in. I contemplated canceling the rest of my day. I did not want to put it down. Of course, I could not cancel the rest of my day, and so I did put it down. When I got to Chapter 12.
I picked it up again that evening.
The story unfolds layer after layer, like a potent blooming onion that burns your eyes and nose but you just have to have, have to consume until it’s gone. The building dread, the gripping terror, the unexpected shocks as more and more is revealed; all of this pours forth from impactful characters, horrifying sequences, and stomach turning gore. The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain starts strong and stays strong right to the end.
The ending.
I still have a lingering WTF feeling in my bones.
And look at that retro cover art.
Look at it!
That is all the warning you get and all the warning you need. This story crosses over to extreme horror. It is perhaps not as graphic-gory-explicit as some extreme horror, but it is extreme nonetheless. The vivid and expertly written content is not necessarily for the horror thriller crowd, the easily offended, or those with less than sturdy intestinal fortitude. This is in your face, in your gut, in your head long after the words “The End” are behind you.
I was going to take a quick peek and suddenly found myself seven chapters in. I contemplated canceling the rest of my day. I did not want to put it down. Of course, I could not cancel the rest of my day, and so I did put it down. When I got to Chapter 12.
I picked it up again that evening.
The story unfolds layer after layer, like a potent blooming onion that burns your eyes and nose but you just have to have, have to consume until it’s gone. The building dread, the gripping terror, the unexpected shocks as more and more is revealed; all of this pours forth from impactful characters, horrifying sequences, and stomach turning gore. The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain starts strong and stays strong right to the end.
The ending.
I still have a lingering WTF feeling in my bones.
And look at that retro cover art.
Look at it!
That is all the warning you get and all the warning you need. This story crosses over to extreme horror. It is perhaps not as graphic-gory-explicit as some extreme horror, but it is extreme nonetheless. The vivid and expertly written content is not necessarily for the horror thriller crowd, the easily offended, or those with less than sturdy intestinal fortitude. This is in your face, in your gut, in your head long after the words “The End” are behind you.
October 21, 2018
This amusement park of horror was a fun ride (see what I did there). Check it out. Also, for the love, never let Sean McDonough open a theme park!!!
August 10, 2022
I couldn't put this down! This book is an amusement park gore-fest! It checked all my boxes for what I look for in a horror book. It's a fast read so what are you waiting for?
November 20, 2018
This is my introduction to author Sean McDonough, and he made an excellent first impression!! This is a story like NOTHING I have read before. Based in an amusement park called Turtleshell Mountain, a group of friends, and all of the park customers and employees, find themselves racing for their lives against terror and death. With practically non-stop action, and surprise elements, you are sure to be on the ride of your life just by reading this book!
February 2, 2021
Damn!
This mother f***** doesn't hold back at all!
What would happen if Disney world was possessed and all the characters tried to slaughter people?
Well read this book to find out!
After reading this I don't know if I need a shower or a psychologist.
This mother f***** doesn't hold back at all!
What would happen if Disney world was possessed and all the characters tried to slaughter people?
Well read this book to find out!
After reading this I don't know if I need a shower or a psychologist.
June 6, 2024
Well, that was a wild ride…
The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain - Sean McDonough- Horror Author
A group of friends are going on a trip to the magical world of Timmy Turtle at Turtleshell Mountain! Nostalgia!!!!!! One friend has some big news to share with the gang, but pretty soon after she tells her friends the news one of the friends gets killed! What follows is a literal (literary?) theme park nightmare, and NO ONE is safe.
I had a really fun time with this book. When I was a kid we always went to Six Flags Over Texas in the summer and it was awesome. I always felt that the Looney Tunes crew was “cooler” than Disney. Don’t @ me. Just look at the gangster Looney Tunes shirts from the 90’s! I had moments reading this that were very immersive and nostalgic only to have the reverie smashed by a murderous cartoon character made monstrously real.
The dialogue was great and the characters were all believable (the normal people, I mean) and the plot was really fun. Any horror novel that makes me wonder IF there even is a way to get out of the situation has done its job. It was gory and violent. It was also funny without being annoying or too light.
Recommended if you like: theme parks, nostalgia, turtles, rides to die for!!!
The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain - Sean McDonough- Horror Author
A group of friends are going on a trip to the magical world of Timmy Turtle at Turtleshell Mountain! Nostalgia!!!!!! One friend has some big news to share with the gang, but pretty soon after she tells her friends the news one of the friends gets killed! What follows is a literal (literary?) theme park nightmare, and NO ONE is safe.
I had a really fun time with this book. When I was a kid we always went to Six Flags Over Texas in the summer and it was awesome. I always felt that the Looney Tunes crew was “cooler” than Disney. Don’t @ me. Just look at the gangster Looney Tunes shirts from the 90’s! I had moments reading this that were very immersive and nostalgic only to have the reverie smashed by a murderous cartoon character made monstrously real.
The dialogue was great and the characters were all believable (the normal people, I mean) and the plot was really fun. Any horror novel that makes me wonder IF there even is a way to get out of the situation has done its job. It was gory and violent. It was also funny without being annoying or too light.
Recommended if you like: theme parks, nostalgia, turtles, rides to die for!!!
October 5, 2023
Who hasn’t been in an amusement park and wondered, even briefly, how all that goes into a go-to place for the kiddies could go wrong? It could be a ride’s failing from lax maintenance, sabotage by a disgruntled employee looking to make trouble on the way out…any number of reasons that a park ostensibly intended to put smiles on children’s faces could go terribly wrong. Take such possibilities, recall your elementary school math and multiply these maybes to the third or fourth power. That’s Sean McDonough’s The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain. A group of close friends—one terminally ill—meet at an amusement park eerily reflective of Disney, and everything that could go wrong does. The answer lies at the very bloody origins of the park, a pact that ensures the park flourishes through the generations. And the friends do what they can to stick together and make it out alive despite impossible odds. They’re real-life characters, and you’ll be rooting for them every step of the way.
March 17, 2023
The Terror at Turtleshell Mountain was a thrill ride! Imagine going to your favorite theme park and all of the characters that you loved as a child come to life and things turn sinister.
Tess coordinates a trip with her friends to visit Turtleshell Mountain to share some news with her friends. What should have been an amazing time quickly turns deadly.
Wonderful descriptions of the characters that make up the “cast” of Turtleshell Mountain. I really enjoyed how the current story intertwined with parts from the past to give the reader and idea of what had caused the evil to be unleashed. This is a real treat for fans of horror.
Tess coordinates a trip with her friends to visit Turtleshell Mountain to share some news with her friends. What should have been an amazing time quickly turns deadly.
Wonderful descriptions of the characters that make up the “cast” of Turtleshell Mountain. I really enjoyed how the current story intertwined with parts from the past to give the reader and idea of what had caused the evil to be unleashed. This is a real treat for fans of horror.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 13, 2024
Disney World but make it scary! I loved the nods to Disney and the nostalgia. I never would have grabbed this book off a shelf at a bookstore, but I had the pleasure of going to Scares That Care in Williamsburg and I picked it up after talking to the author briefly. This was a super fun read and I’m so happy I grabbed it. I enjoyed how you got all the backstories of the different characters mixed throughout the main story. This story definitely left me with a little bit of an unsettling feeling knowing that I’m taking my son to an amusement park next week. 😅 5⭐️ read for me!
April 29, 2025
It's supposed to be the happiest place on Earth, but for a large group of people on this particular day, is becomes their worst nightmare! How did Charles Tuttle, the creator of Turtleshell Mountain and its cute cartoon characters, get so famous? Maybe there is more behind the success than anyone wants to believe!
Full of plenty of inventive and gruesome deaths, this is a fast-paced and enjoyable horror romp. Will anybody get out of this alive? Or, will they all fall at the hands of the Silent Rider? I never have been a huge Disney fan, and this book did not change my mind at all!
Full of plenty of inventive and gruesome deaths, this is a fast-paced and enjoyable horror romp. Will anybody get out of this alive? Or, will they all fall at the hands of the Silent Rider? I never have been a huge Disney fan, and this book did not change my mind at all!
March 16, 2023
This book was amazing! Imagine being at the happiest place on Earth and all the beloved characters you grew up with, the characters children worldwide love, start to come to life and slaughter everyone. It was both horrifying and extremely fun to read. I wish I could forget the whole story just so I could read it again for the first time. I absolutely loved everything about it and will be recommending it to everyone.
August 29, 2024
Very good horror book. It was visceral when it needed to be but not over the top. The story was strong and the pacing was good. The only negative I had was that there were two main characters names Erin and Aaron. its spelled different but sounds the same in your head. If that is all I could find it is a great read.
May 12, 2024
This was my first story that I read of Sean McDonough . And it made me question why I didn't read his work sooner. Although this book was a lot of fun, It will definitely have me looking at amusement parks differently next time I go to one !
May 31, 2024
This was my second read from this author and once again he did not disappoint!!! Such a fun take on an evil Disney world!! Love all the secret Easter eggs with characters that are nods to the Disney cartoons I grew up with!! Fast paced,fun with just the right amount of gore.
August 18, 2024
Theme parks are all about fun until they aren’t. Having lots of memorable trips to them growing up I was drawn to this book. Similar to Five Nights at Freddie’s interpretation of Chucky Cheese, this book gives a great reimagining of the frightening what if of a favorite childhood institution
December 3, 2022
I really enjoyed this one! So much fun! If you like amusement parks, this is for you.
March 2, 2023
Enjoyable read but not as well written as it could have been but if you like theme parks don't read this ha ha u will never want to go to one again
May 27, 2024
3.5
Insane theme park slasher. The end dragged on a bit too long for me, but it was a fun ride.
Insane theme park slasher. The end dragged on a bit too long for me, but it was a fun ride.
August 22, 2018
The plot of this book is amazing. It takes place at Turtleshell Mountain, an amusement park that reads like a version of Disneyland. I love going to Disneyland, so it was really fun to read this. The book starts strong, and the killing begins quickly. It almost felt too fast. I was thinking there would be no where else to go, but I was wrong. The book is intense right up to the ending. The book gets an A for originality. My only complaint is the writing style felt a little unpolished and simplistic.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews