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Lulu by Thomas Tessier: 4/5 I have no idea what this story was doing in a horror anthology, but it's actually pretty evocative and well-written.

Just Like Eddy by Kim Newman: 2/5 I guess it was a pretty good idea, but the joke wore thin on me pretty quick, and the plot wasn't very engaging afterwards.

The Long Hall on the Top Floor by Caitlin R. Kiernan: 3/5 Not at all well-written, but I actually liked the characterization and the atmosphere a lot.

The Stunted House by Terry Lamsley: 1/5 I didn't hate this one exactly, there's just a strong lack of things that work. It's not scary, the writing is hella awkward, and the main character isn't well-developed. There's no reason to like this story.

I can't imagine that Lauren is a very relatable character for the vast majority of Burkhart's audience. She's just so freaking rich and privileged, and struggles with absolutely none of the problems that a middle or lower-class twelve year-old girl would have. Burkhart only makes a minimal attempt to downplay this - it's obvious to anyone paying attention.

The storytelling here is just... baffling. Applegate is such a better writer than this. She knows we don't want a story told entirely in narrative summary. She knows that's not engaging. Animorphs and Remnants were always careful to keep narrative summary to a minimum and focus on things happening. Even The One and Only Ivan wasn't this flashback-heavy. I know Applegate knows better than this.

Some thoughts:

- Burkhart is trying to pretend Lauren isn't ridiculously privileged. This goes beyond unconvincing.

- Random, out-of-place anti-bullying message, okay.

- How is Lauren still obsessing over her accident? It was months ago, she was completely unhurt, and nobody but her cares anymore. I guess because she has such a good life, the accident was the only bad thing that's happened to her.

This book is so bad in so many ways. It doesn't even have a plot - we're a third of the way in, and Lauren is still being introduced to her friends. She hasn't even started classes yet! It would be boring, if it wasn't so painfully cheesy and badly-written. This is really and truly one of the worst things ever.

I don't want to say this is awful, because it isn't. But it's definitely one of the weakest Katherine Applegate books I've read. We're almost halfway through, and it's mostly been narrative summary and flashbacks so far. Applegate focuses so much on Jackson's life when he was in first grade - it makes me wonder why she doesn't just tell that story.

Some thoughts:

- The only POC so far is a villain. Great.

- This dialogue is SO TERRIBLE. I'm not even talking about the slang - Burkhart just has no understanding of how conversations flow. It's like her only glimpse into human interactions was watching Glee.

- Into the Woods doesn't even have a lead. It's an ensemble piece. How was this mistake even made?

I'm very glad Jackson and his family are poor, because that's basically the only thing that makes this book stand out for me, so far.

Fun fact: Before Suzanne Collins wrote The Hunger Games, she was a writer for several Nickelodeon shows in the nineties.

Another fun fact: On my blog, I reviewed the very first thing she ever received a writing credit for: an episode of Clarissa Explains It All. If anybody's curious, the review is here: http://thelowercasegimmick.tumblr.com...

This is okay, I guess. I dunno, I liked that Cat on a Hot Tin Roof gave us an actual opening before the 'everybody yelling at each other' phase of the play started. This one just throws us right into the yelling, and it doesn't work as well - the play feels less subtle.

I wasn't the hugest fan of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof when I first read it, but in retrospect, it's probably the best play I've ever read. So I'm excited for this one.

I wish I had time to be reading faster. The story is slow enough as it is without me reading at a slow pace.

EUGHHHHH. I forgot just how physically painful this series is to read. Burkhart is such a terrible writer, on so many levels.

I can't decide if this works, or if it's just a sad attempt to be Calvin and Hobbes.

The Entertainment by Ramsey Campbell: 3/5 Another confusing one, although at least this one had some atmosphere and weirdness.

Harlequin Valentine by Neil Gaiman: 4/5 Excellent story with a fascinating main character. My only problem with it is that it's too short.

Unhasped by David J. Schow: 3/5 I like how this story began, but the ending ruined it. The twist was incredibly cheap, and it felt like a disappointment compared to the buildup of tension.

The Emperor's Old Bones by Gemma Files: 2/5 This was just confusing, no way around it.

Halloween Street by Steve Rasnic Tem: 2/5 Cliched and boring

Others by James Herbert: 2/5 Less cliched, still boring

Growing Things by T.E.D. Klien: 3/5 Anti-climatic, but well-written

This introduction is SO TEDIOUS. Discuss the trends in horror in 1999, name a few of your favorite and least favorite novels that came out, or whatever. Nobody wants to read a list of every horror work that came out in that year.

I can't say this is something I've ever been curious about. Like, I've never thought, "I wonder what the best horror was of the year I was born." But I've been reading a ton of these anthologies lately, and Neil Gaiman is in this one, so I guess I'll give it a shot.

Eugh, I hate the dialogue. It's either very bland and simplistic, or huge boring monologues.

THIS IS SO GOOD. This book makes me feel like I'm still in middle school, just starting to get into YA.

I really need to change the name of my 'to read very soon' shelf. There are books on that shelf that have literally been there since July.

Say what you want about the dialogue, but there's some beautiful prose here.

Eugh. This is the least interesting anti-war message ever. I've liked these messages, in The Hunger Games and Chaos Walking, but both Suzanne Collins and Patrick Ness had good ideas of why wars happen, how they effect people and societies. I have no evidence that Simner knows any of that - wars are bad because they destroy things, simple as that. We don't even know why this war happened.

The writing in this novel started out pretty good, but it's getting kinda awkward and repetitive. Like they wanted to leave a good first impression, but they didn't care about the rest. Actually, that sums up everything about this novel - very good opening, but everything else is lackluster.

This is so boring. Allie is the only character who's even mildly interesting, and there's no reason to care about any of this. I've liked Simner's short stories, but maybe that's just what she's better at, because this sucks.

Eugh, Simner just introduced like eight different characters at once, and none of them are interesting, and they're so difficult to keep track of. I really can't be compelled to care about the story, or Liz. And while the worldbuilding in Liz's town was nice, Simner makes the huge mistake of having Liz immediately leave that town for a far more boring one.

Yeah, I'm not too into this so far. The worldbuilding is still decent, the pacing is still rushed, and Liz just doesn't seem like a very interesting character so far. Plus, the tone is so gloomy and humorless. It reminds me of an Amelia Atwater-Rhodes novel, except that she used it intentionally as a stylistic choice to enhance her themes and world. This just feels like Simner has no sense of humor.