Book Review - The Bellwoods Game by Celia Krampien

 

The Bellwoods Game by Celia Krampien is about a young girl named Bailee who decides to play a game with her classmates, but things expectedly start going wrong. The residents of Fall Hollow know that the town is haunted, especially after Abigail Snook went into the woods in 1982, and was never seen again. People assume that Abigail is the one haunting the town and its residents, at least according to the legend.

It’s been tradition since Abigail's disappearance for the sixth graders at Beckett Elementary to play the Bellwoods Game on Halloween Night. On this current year’s fateful night, three players are picked to go into the woods. To win, one of the players would need to ring the bell before they all get caught by Abigail. If the players win, the town is saved for another year. If the spirit catches you, you will need a “gift” to guarantee safe passage out of the woods and the spirit is given free reign to cause havoc on the town if no one rings the bell. No one knows for sure if the tale is true, as previous players are sworn to secrecy about the game.

Bailee is excited that it is finally her year to play the game. Bailee loves reading and writing horror stories and is obsessed with finding out the truth. Legend has it that the winner of the game is granted one wish. Bailee is determined to win because she wants things to go back to the way they were before her grandmother got sick and her friends started hating her. Her friends believed that she ratted them out to the principal about a dangerous stunt, causing the entire class to get detention. She once was surrounded by so many friends but now with most of her friends ignoring her, she feels lonely. As the game participants get ready to play the game, strange things start to happen. Is the local legend true or is someone playing a prank on them?

The book is geared towards young readers and has fun illustrations that added to my enjoyment of the novel. It was a quick read that had some scary and spooky elements that might be scary to some young readers, but I thought it was okay as an adult reader. It reminded me of the works of R.L Stine, with the creepy and scary factor but nothing that I was terrified or lost sleep over. The plot moved at the perfect pace to set the creepy mood and move the story along. I was a bit confused by the ending, I believe the author left it a bit open for more books and I would be open to reading more. If you or your young reader love mild horror books, then you will enjoy this book!

Book Review - Slasher Girls & Monster Boys by April Genevieve Tucholke

 The book is a collection of young adult authors who write thrilling and terrifying thrillers. Each of the author draw inspiration from different sources to create a new and unsettling story. I found most of the short stories to be an interesting to read. Three stories I didn't care for and stopped reading before I finished. However, I did enjoy reading most of the stories and trying to find out what the inspiration was for each short story. I would recommend this book for anyone who likes scary short stories.

 

Book Review - The Patient by Jasper DeWitt

Photo Credit - Amazon

Parker H. is a young psychiatrist who finds a new job at a mental asylum in New England. He decides to undertake the curing of a dangerous patient that everyone else in the asylum avoids. He begins to chronicle his journey through a series of online posts. Parker hopes to communicate with the world on his struggles and efforts on helping the patient.

The patient is a forty-year-old man who was originally admitted to the hospital at the age of six for night terrors. However, the patient currently has no known diagnosis. His symptoms keep evolving and every person who attempted to help treat him ends up driven to madness or suicide.

The hospital directors are desperate but, fear for Parker's safety. They allow him to be confined to the patient's room and have minimal contact with him. They are worried that if they release the patient to the outside world, that there will be terrible consequences. Parker is confident that he will be the person who will help cure the patient. However, it becomes very clear that after his first encounter with the patient, things start spiraling out of control.

The novel was an interesting and engrossing read. I finished the entire book in one sitting and it was just too good to put down. Some of the characters were more well defined than others. For example, Parker's wife, Jocelyn seemed like an afterthought. Parker was considered a genius and brilliant but, I sometimes question some of his behaviors. However, all in all, I still found the novel to be a suspenseful read with a bit of a supernatural twist.

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Book Review - The Bye Bye Man: And Other Strange-but-True Tales by Robert Damon Schneck

Photo Credit - Amazon

In the winter of 1990 in Wisconsin, three college students decide to experiment with an Ouija board. Little did they know that would be a terrible mistake. The board allowed them to make contact with a psychic serial killer known as The Bye Bye Man. When they learned his name, he becomes drawn to you. He is willing to travel day and night for his next victim. You will know he is close when you hear a shrill sound of a steady whistle. He might be even waiting for you outside your bedroom door, talking to you in the voice of a trusted friend.

I see the movie before I read this and thought it was done well. It was scary and entertaining. The book contains several short stories of weird but, true stories. The author provides the story along with some background and provides his theories. Some of the stories were interesting but, I found a few to be dull and boring. Overall, it was an interesting read, and look forward to reading more of his novels.

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