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Bone Chillers #2
Little Pet Shop of Horrors
Cassie is so delighted with the puppies that she does not notice that the spooky old pet shop has become crowded with strange new animals or that pet-shop owner Mr. Willard is planning a terrifying surprise for her.
136 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
19 people are currently reading
172 people want to read
About the author
Betsy Haynes
122 books109 followersABOUT ME
Maybe it's because my feisty grandma chased tarantulas around with a broom when we lived on an oil lease property when I was a baby that made me love danger and adventure. And maybe it was my father's spending nights as a trombonist with the bands of his day and his days spent drawing sketches that sparked my artistic side. Do you suppose that because my mother stood only four feet ten inches tall that I feel like a giant at five feet? And I'm sure my FBI (Full Blooded Italian) step-father, his seven brothers and sisters and their families are responsible for my LOVE of Italian food. That's who I am. Who are you?
My First Book, Peppy The Frog That I Wrote In The 2nd Grade
I'll always be a child at heart. Whenever I close my eyes, wonderful, funny, awful, embarrassing memories of middle school/junior high come flooding back to fill the pages of my contemporary novels. My childhood friendships and rivalries with old enemies all find their way into my books. I've even spied on my own kids for story ideas.
Unlike most kids who can't wait to grow up, I've gotten younger--at least my stories have. I've stepped into the world of 7 to 10 year olds.
I and my husband, Jim, live in Texas on Lake Lewisville north of Dallas. We are owned by our greyhound, Miller. Our favorite things to do are traveling the world and boating.
Maybe it's because my feisty grandma chased tarantulas around with a broom when we lived on an oil lease property when I was a baby that made me love danger and adventure. And maybe it was my father's spending nights as a trombonist with the bands of his day and his days spent drawing sketches that sparked my artistic side. Do you suppose that because my mother stood only four feet ten inches tall that I feel like a giant at five feet? And I'm sure my FBI (Full Blooded Italian) step-father, his seven brothers and sisters and their families are responsible for my LOVE of Italian food. That's who I am. Who are you?
My First Book, Peppy The Frog That I Wrote In The 2nd Grade
I'll always be a child at heart. Whenever I close my eyes, wonderful, funny, awful, embarrassing memories of middle school/junior high come flooding back to fill the pages of my contemporary novels. My childhood friendships and rivalries with old enemies all find their way into my books. I've even spied on my own kids for story ideas.
Unlike most kids who can't wait to grow up, I've gotten younger--at least my stories have. I've stepped into the world of 7 to 10 year olds.
I and my husband, Jim, live in Texas on Lake Lewisville north of Dallas. We are owned by our greyhound, Miller. Our favorite things to do are traveling the world and boating.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
September 25, 2024
Many junior horror novel concepts morph out of normal childhood desires that meet a supernatural force, and this is true for Little Pet Shop of Horrors. Young Cassidy—Cassie—Cavanaugh is excited when a store called Custom Pets pops up in her hometown. She has long wanted a dog, but that wasn't feasible because of her allergies; what if this shop can acquire a hairless breed? Cassie and her best friend Suki Chen find Mr. Willard—the man running the shop—to be odd, but he claims he can get a dog that fit her needs. The sourcing methods of Custom Pets are darker than Cassie could guess, and soon she is physically transformed into a golden retriever for Mr. Willard to sell an unsuspecting kid.
Cassie doesn't see how her problem could be worse until David Ferrante, a boy from school who often plays nasty tricks on her, shows up at Custom Pets. He talks his parents into buying him a dog...and what could be more fun than one with the nameplate "Cassie" on her cage? David jeers that the dog even looks like the Cassie he loves teasing from school. His father has doubts about getting a pet, and Cassie has no intention of making the process easy; she'd almost rather be locked up at the shop than owned by David. But if Cassie behaves badly enough that the Ferrantes return her, what will Mr. Willard do with the incorrigible golden retriever? Perhaps he'll turn her human again and let her free...or maybe he has a shocking consequence for Cassie's ruining a perfectly good sale.
Little Pet Shop of Horrors isn't a bad book, but I rate it one and a half stars because it doesn't put in effort on the small things. Why did Cassie feel dizzy before Mr. Willard offered her a sip of the pink liquid that turns her into a dog? It's rather convenient to his scheme. Also, while the ending is an amusing twist, it is over-reliant on coincidence. I'm surprised, too, at how often the narrative alternates between calling the main character Cassie and Cassidy; it's as though the book lacked a diligent editor. Regardless, I enjoy the Bone Chillers series, and if you're keen to overlook some sloppiness, this book can be a good time.
Cassie doesn't see how her problem could be worse until David Ferrante, a boy from school who often plays nasty tricks on her, shows up at Custom Pets. He talks his parents into buying him a dog...and what could be more fun than one with the nameplate "Cassie" on her cage? David jeers that the dog even looks like the Cassie he loves teasing from school. His father has doubts about getting a pet, and Cassie has no intention of making the process easy; she'd almost rather be locked up at the shop than owned by David. But if Cassie behaves badly enough that the Ferrantes return her, what will Mr. Willard do with the incorrigible golden retriever? Perhaps he'll turn her human again and let her free...or maybe he has a shocking consequence for Cassie's ruining a perfectly good sale.
Little Pet Shop of Horrors isn't a bad book, but I rate it one and a half stars because it doesn't put in effort on the small things. Why did Cassie feel dizzy before Mr. Willard offered her a sip of the pink liquid that turns her into a dog? It's rather convenient to his scheme. Also, while the ending is an amusing twist, it is over-reliant on coincidence. I'm surprised, too, at how often the narrative alternates between calling the main character Cassie and Cassidy; it's as though the book lacked a diligent editor. Regardless, I enjoy the Bone Chillers series, and if you're keen to overlook some sloppiness, this book can be a good time.
April 5, 2018
Someone on What's The Name of That Book? reminded me of this title's existence, which I got from Scholastic book orders in elementary school and probably sold off within five years. However, the memory flash of both title and cover was so visceral that I immediately requested it from the closest library and had a blast for the roughly 25 minutes it took me to reread, every line hitting with staggering and delightful familiarity.
It really is just your basic Goosebumps mold of a kid's horror novel (mashed up with a pinch of sci-fi), but because I read it at just the right time in my life, this entire book is cemented in memory as Iconic: the jowly pet store owner with "watery black eyes" like a beetle, the mysterious pink transmogrification liquid, Cassie's best pal Suki (personality traits include flipping her body and/or hair because she is A Gymnast), local jerk/bully David who throws spiders at girls for fun, Dog-Cassie -- whose new body comes with zero built-in canine instincts to override the human ones, such as "both dog food and this tennis ball that has been on the floor of your car taste disgusting" -- being jerked around by her awful new owner, the high-stakes climax and the surprise twist ending
But most of all, a line near the beginning that I never forgot, and in fact TO THIS DAY think about whenever I am biking on a hot day:
"I'd really rather ride my bike in the park than stay inside at Suki's. Who cares about the stupid old air-conditioning? When you pedal fast, the breeze keeps you plenty cool."
(Why did this line stay with me? I have no idea. But it did. Not least because it seems wild to me to remember that there really was a time not so many years ago when friends having air conditioning in their house was not a given.)
Overall: great for kids who want to be delightfully scared but not traumatized by their reading material.
It really is just your basic Goosebumps mold of a kid's horror novel (mashed up with a pinch of sci-fi), but because I read it at just the right time in my life, this entire book is cemented in memory as Iconic: the jowly pet store owner with "watery black eyes" like a beetle, the mysterious pink transmogrification liquid, Cassie's best pal Suki (personality traits include flipping her body and/or hair because she is A Gymnast), local jerk/bully David who throws spiders at girls for fun, Dog-Cassie -- whose new body comes with zero built-in canine instincts to override the human ones, such as "both dog food and this tennis ball that has been on the floor of your car taste disgusting" -- being jerked around by her awful new owner, the high-stakes climax and the surprise twist ending
But most of all, a line near the beginning that I never forgot, and in fact TO THIS DAY think about whenever I am biking on a hot day:
"I'd really rather ride my bike in the park than stay inside at Suki's. Who cares about the stupid old air-conditioning? When you pedal fast, the breeze keeps you plenty cool."
(Why did this line stay with me? I have no idea. But it did. Not least because it seems wild to me to remember that there really was a time not so many years ago when friends having air conditioning in their house was not a given.)
Overall: great for kids who want to be delightfully scared but not traumatized by their reading material.
March 16, 2025
I picked Little Pet Shop Of Horrors from the Bone Chillers series,because the spine was pink and February is a pink month.It is now almost St. Patrick's day and I finally finished it.You're probably wondering why it took me a while to finish it.Well you will see.I remember when I first saw this cover as a kid and I didn't ever want to read it.The covers fine but not super intresting.The story follows Cassie Cavanaugh.Her and her friend Suki are walking home from I think school and they notice a pet store that wasn't there the day before.The building is open and it's called Custom Pets.The sign claims they can get you any pet you want.They enter and meet this overweight man with wet,black eyes named Mr.Willard.The kids notice there is not alot of animals in this store so they leave and Mr.Willard says they will be back.They go to the park and see this kid named David that always bullies them.He is showing a bunch of other kids this box and it has something inside it that he is scaring other kids with it.Cassie and Suki get closer and it turns out its a tarantula.David claims he got it from that pet store.The kids end up leaving and Suki talks Cassie into asking for a pet dog that doesn't make her sneeze.Cassie ends up going and asking Mr.Willard and he claims he can get a dog that she won't be allergic to but she has to have her parents permission.The parents refuse and Cassie goes back and tells Mr.Willard her folks won't let her get a dog.David ends up coming inside the pet store and Cassie hears sad animal sounds.As she's exploring,she goes up to this door,but before she can enter Mr.Willard pops up and stops her.He gets angry and says she can't go in there.Cassie starts feeling hot and hears this mysterious hum.Mr.Willard offers Cassie something to drink.She drinks it and wakes up and Boom she's in a cage and she's a dog.After this,the book becomes super boring.Cassie goes to obedient school,tries to communicate with other dogs but gets in trouble.She also is forced to become a hunting dog,but fails and gets a gun pointed at her,which was kinda shocking.She is also owned by David. The first thirty or so pages were fun.I liked the ideas of the kids being able to possibly get any animal they want and I was hoping that would be the case,but it isn't.Instead they went with a girl being turned into a dog and eating dogfood and gets into stuff.This one wasn't my favorite.We didn't learn anything about Mr.Willard.I was hoping he would be some kind of animal or something to, but nope.I give Little Pet Shop Of Horrors a two out of five stars.
August 28, 2025
OKAY, OKAY, OKAY! I have a bit of a confession to make: I vowed to never read this one. Bone Chillers as a series isn’t the most appetizing Goosebumps knock-off there is, but this book doubled-down on looking like shit on a plate. From the furry/fetish/kinky ass artwork, to the blurb sounding like a migraine mixed with liquidated fat, this was a pot bound to be overflowing with diarrhea. Gross terms aside… having read it, my fears were proven mildly true, though I walked away with some decent positives. This story was far darker than I anticipated, with an ending that kinda slapped. The villain is solid too. I think the concept isn’t the worst thing ever, shockingly; turning kids into animals and selling them is pretty dark and interesting… however, I can’t say it turned out well. The story turns into a repetitive slog for most of its run-time, with our protagonist in the possession of a harsh family. It’s boring, predictable, and you know it just won’t go anywhere (and it didn’t). The actual ideas played out here are so stupid that my mind is now numb to band kid humor. Limpidly, I heavily dislike a lot of furry related things; there so happens to be things related to furries. Point-blank, brochacho. The plot in itself is insanely predictable (I called the resolution, climax’s stakes, and precisely how most of the story would play out) and that disallowed for anything much to land. Post-furry clarity, I wish there was a happier wrap-up and less ambiguity, as it would’ve fit the story better. In other words, just use the pink stuff for you-know-whating the you-know-whose. There’s a random inclusion of our protagonist feeling dizzy and off soon before being… well, you know… and it’s never explained, let alone nothing to go off at all. My best guess is that Mr. Willard can cast spells, idfk. And, the book was far longer than it needed to be. Am I saying this because I suffered? You bet. Am I saying this because it actually has a lot of unnecessary fat? That too. Overall, 4/10. BUH-LEAVE ME, I am being GEN-ER-ESS. Butt what can I say? At least it’s over with. What a rough second entry from this series lol.
May 6, 2022
I remember this being one of my favorites as a kid. The plot still holds up fairly well and is actually a frightening idea—especially if David’s tarantula was in a similar situation as Cassie! This was definitely much darker than I remembered. I’m not totally sure I understood the horror of this entire situation as a kid, either.
I’d remembered some of the plot but had definitely forgotten about the animal abuse and threats of animal abuse. David’s family should never be allowed to have animals. The scenes with Cuda were some of my favorites.
The interactions between the kids was well written. Mr. Willard is a creepy villain, though I felt like the author harped on about his weight a little more than was necessary. As if the general concept isn’t scary enough, the climax takes it to another notch. The ending has always managed to stick with me.
Still enjoyable, though not really a five star read for me anymore. I’ll always remember it being one of my favorites, though!
I’d remembered some of the plot but had definitely forgotten about the animal abuse and threats of animal abuse. David’s family should never be allowed to have animals. The scenes with Cuda were some of my favorites.
The interactions between the kids was well written. Mr. Willard is a creepy villain, though I felt like the author harped on about his weight a little more than was necessary. As if the general concept isn’t scary enough, the climax takes it to another notch. The ending has always managed to stick with me.
Still enjoyable, though not really a five star read for me anymore. I’ll always remember it being one of my favorites, though!
Read
April 19, 2017I remember this novel too well, so I know it wouldn't stand up very well 15 years later; but as a kid, I thought it was cool, so 4* for back then.
October 16, 2025
3.5/5 stars really, but I round up.
Overall, a fun little book. I’ve had it for years, and I may have read it in the past, but I don’t remember when. Would not be surprised if I got it at a Scholastic Book Fair yeeeeaaars ago and have just kept it around.
It’s in the same vein as that of Goosebumps, but it’s a bit different. A bit darker, if you want to call it that. It’s still a book for children, but the ending certainly got a bit darker than I was expecting.
The ending though is what I didn’t care for. Without giving away spoilers, it ends abruptly. Some of the things that led up to the end seemed a bit too convenient. It dragged the book down. As if the author was on a deadline and had to rush.
I still enjoyed the book and I’d recommend it.
Overall, a fun little book. I’ve had it for years, and I may have read it in the past, but I don’t remember when. Would not be surprised if I got it at a Scholastic Book Fair yeeeeaaars ago and have just kept it around.
It’s in the same vein as that of Goosebumps, but it’s a bit different. A bit darker, if you want to call it that. It’s still a book for children, but the ending certainly got a bit darker than I was expecting.
The ending though is what I didn’t care for. Without giving away spoilers, it ends abruptly. Some of the things that led up to the end seemed a bit too convenient. It dragged the book down. As if the author was on a deadline and had to rush.
I still enjoyed the book and I’d recommend it.
May 13, 2023
Book quote: “Cassie would die for a puppy….”
"With a book that gives me the chill each time I think about it, the author has achieved her award." ~ Chen Pink, reviewer of ‘Little Pet Shop of Horrors’
Back then, I read the 1994 paperback edition. Looking at the book cover today, this book still gave me the chills. I remembered vividly that while reading this book, I imagined myself visiting a pet shop and ending up in the cage wagging my tail. That’s why the series is called ‘Bone Chillers’ as it gives you the chill whether you read it the first time or re-read it later. Well done, Betsy Haynes!
"With a book that gives me the chill each time I think about it, the author has achieved her award." ~ Chen Pink, reviewer of ‘Little Pet Shop of Horrors’
Back then, I read the 1994 paperback edition. Looking at the book cover today, this book still gave me the chills. I remembered vividly that while reading this book, I imagined myself visiting a pet shop and ending up in the cage wagging my tail. That’s why the series is called ‘Bone Chillers’ as it gives you the chill whether you read it the first time or re-read it later. Well done, Betsy Haynes!
May 1, 2023
I remember discovering this series as a kid and falling in love with them. I remember endless nights tucked in bed reading these books frantically as I enjoyed the bit of fear and fun they provided to me. I’m gonna go buy the whole set for my kids.
October 9, 2017
It was was a great book
April 28, 2020
Forgot to log this back when I finished it lol.
Here's my blog review: https://spongey444.wordpress.com/2020...
Here's my blog review: https://spongey444.wordpress.com/2020...
October 30, 2021
1.5 stars?
October 14, 2023
As a huge animal lover, this one just made me uncomfortable.
December 12, 2023
It was a good book, recommended reading. The ending is quick, but the story is interesting.
July 26, 2024
3.5 stars.
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May 21, 2009JEAR3-Hay
December 5, 2010
My opinion is that Cassidy didn't really try too hard to escape, but in the end, that was soooo cool how cassidy's new dog was actually her friend
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 26, 2020
Excelente libro
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews