Spooky Youthful Reads

 

Freaks / Brett Riley
Las Vegas, NV : Imbrifex Books, 2022.
288 p.

Since it's time for some spooky reads, I picked up a couple of books from the young reader section of my library. I started with this one by Brett Riley -- the comparison to Stranger Things caught me! Unfortunately, I didn't see a lot of that here other than a group of kids facing a supernatural villain. The tone is quite different; it feels more Marvel movie style to me. But the story was still a quick and mostly satisfying read.

Four friends, bullied throughout their school years, accidentally open a portal to another dimension, releasing evil into the world. Thanks to the same accident, though, they develop superpowers that they must learn to control in order to fight the monsters they've brought to their small Arkansas town. Micah, Christian, Jamie and Gabby are all 'freaks' at their school; they aren't the popular kids. But they stick together even in the face of this sudden shift in their reality. 

In this fight they must pair up with one of their long-time bullies in order to defeat the creature terrorizing their town. But how do you forgive years of bullying even when it's clear you have to? In this fast-paced read, the backstories of all the teens (as well as the four-armed, fanged vampire monster they are fighting) are mixed in with lots of action and teen angst, and a sprinkle of romance. The novel is full of adventure, gore, and dark magic, but the teens also experience challenges to their friendships and are faced with moral decisions about power and responsibility. I did find a few things about it that I didn't like as much (Micah's character arc for example) but overall it was pretty good and would likely appeal to teen readers. 

The Stars Did Wander Darkling / Colin Meloy
New York, NY : Balzer + Bray, ©2022
329 p.

This book was in the juvenile section, for middle grade readers. However, I found it spookier and more subtle than Freaks was. In this one, four friends again face an existential threat. But this time, it's some creepy and unexplained men who appear in the woods after main character Archie's father, a contractor, digs up the ground beneath the old haunted house at the edge of town.

The town starts to feel the repercussions; adults begin acting strangely and frightening the kids -- only the local video store owner seems to listen to them. They slowly come to realize that the adults are being replaced by changelings, even their own parents. It's a slow burn horror, and when Archie runs into the woods to try to find his friend Chris at their campsite, he comes across something even more terrifying. 

I thought this one was a great read. The overarching sense of horror was well done, and nothing was overly explained, which made it even creepier. We're not sure what the strange men were guarding or how they got there; we're also not sure how the kids resolved the situation, exactly, but they did. Sort of... 

This one is a great seasonal read for anyone who likes a little creepiness with their middle grade reading. I'd recommend it to teens  too, even if the characters are around 12 or 13, because the tone is definitely suitable to older readers as well. I enjoyed this one, and the title reflects the sense of unknowing that raises the spooky factor in the tale.