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Michigan Chillers #18
Sault Ste. Marie Sea Monsters
Horror is waiting in the deep, dark depths! Brittany Rockensuess and her family have just moved to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Brittany loves the beautiful forest and scenery, and the fresh, crisp waters of the St. Mary's river. When Brittany first spots something in the depths of the river, she's not sure what it is. What she saw was so terrifying that she's certain that it must be her mind playing tricks on her. She is wrong. What she saw that afternoon wasn't her imagination. It was real. For the St Mary's river hides an unspeakable horror ... a horror that's just waiting for innocent people who venture into the water. And soon, Brittany, her friend Zach, and the entire city of Sault St. Marie will be wondering: who will be the next victim?
208 pages, Paperback
First published September 30, 2017
3 people are currently reading
105 people want to read
About the author
Johnathan Rand
119 books300 followersChristopher Wright is the author of dozens of horror fiction books for children and young adults. He writes under the pseudonyms Johnathan Rand and Christopher Knight. Almost all of Wright's books (save American Chillers) take place in his home state of Michigan.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 20, 2019
This isn't Johnathan Rand's first time writing about monsters in the water. AuSable Alligators, South Carolina Sea Creatures, Nuclear Jellyfish of New Jersey, and other Johnathan Rand books explore the mysterious world under the water's surface, and he does a good job generating suspense in that setting. Our story begins not long after twelve-year-old Brittany Rockensuess moves to Sault Ste. Marie (pronounced "Soo Saint Marie"), Michigan from Texas. Fortunately, she right away meets a boy her age, Zach Kuschman, and they become friends over summer. Good enough friends to kayak together on a local river...which is where the sea monster finds them.
When Zach's kayak overturns and he slides out of his life vest beneath the river's surface, Brittany grows concerned. She dives in, but what she sees deep in the darkening water is a slimy creature reaching up to drag her down. Terrified, Brittany surfaces and climbs up on her overturned kayak, where she's relieved to find Zach uninjured. But what was that blue-green monster? There's no sign of it now, and Zach doubts that Brittany saw what she thinks she did. She suddenly feels anything but safe on the river.
Sea monsters can't live in a Michigan waterway, can they? Common sense indicates "No", but public opinion sways in Brittany's favor when multiple sightings of slimy amphibious humanoids are reported. They're showing up on land and water, and there's no telling how dangerous they could be. Home alone one day, Brittany and Zach are stalked by one of the monsters, but the incident gives Brittany insight into what could be drawing them to her in particular. Might her theory lead to the creatures' capture, ending the horror in Sault Ste. Marie? Perhaps...but not first without a showdown that will place Brittany and her family in mortal danger.
As usual, Johnathan Rand maintains a fast narrative, with just enough peril so the story isn't bland. I would rate Sault Ste. Marie Sea Monsters at least one and a half stars. Dwayne Harris's cover illustration of an aquatic beast reaching for you is among his most evocative of the series, and of course Johnathan Rand fits in a sly reference to one of his own American Chillers, this time Mississippi Megalodon (on pages eighteen and nineteen). Michigan Chillers aren't twisty like Goosebumps books, but they're not bad for a simple, fun read. I enjoy them.
When Zach's kayak overturns and he slides out of his life vest beneath the river's surface, Brittany grows concerned. She dives in, but what she sees deep in the darkening water is a slimy creature reaching up to drag her down. Terrified, Brittany surfaces and climbs up on her overturned kayak, where she's relieved to find Zach uninjured. But what was that blue-green monster? There's no sign of it now, and Zach doubts that Brittany saw what she thinks she did. She suddenly feels anything but safe on the river.
Sea monsters can't live in a Michigan waterway, can they? Common sense indicates "No", but public opinion sways in Brittany's favor when multiple sightings of slimy amphibious humanoids are reported. They're showing up on land and water, and there's no telling how dangerous they could be. Home alone one day, Brittany and Zach are stalked by one of the monsters, but the incident gives Brittany insight into what could be drawing them to her in particular. Might her theory lead to the creatures' capture, ending the horror in Sault Ste. Marie? Perhaps...but not first without a showdown that will place Brittany and her family in mortal danger.
As usual, Johnathan Rand maintains a fast narrative, with just enough peril so the story isn't bland. I would rate Sault Ste. Marie Sea Monsters at least one and a half stars. Dwayne Harris's cover illustration of an aquatic beast reaching for you is among his most evocative of the series, and of course Johnathan Rand fits in a sly reference to one of his own American Chillers, this time Mississippi Megalodon (on pages eighteen and nineteen). Michigan Chillers aren't twisty like Goosebumps books, but they're not bad for a simple, fun read. I enjoy them.
January 9, 2023
This is a good story that follows two friends over a summer in Sault Ste Marie. It’s interesting to read a fictional story that takes place in the town you reside in! The location details were on point and made the book that much more interesting. Although it is technically a children’s book, I can’t stand the foreshadowing that happens at the end of EVERY chapter. A few here and there are critical but every chapter seems excessive.
July 19, 2020
the book wasn’t really that bad it was pretty interesting but sadly i think i’ve outgrown johnathan rand :/. thankfully i read majority of his books already
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews