A Midsummer Night's Scream

May 13, 2013
Stine takes a page from Shakespeare and late night B-movies in this hard-to-swallow tale of ambition and murder in the movie industry. Six decades after a series of fatal accidents shut down production of a low-budget movie, a new set of producers are determined to do Mayhem Manor properly, filming in the same “cursed” house as before. Claire, whose parents own the studio, has secured one of the lead roles, but she’s starting to have misgivings. When her fellow actors start dying horribly, it looks as though the curse has struck again. Unfortunately, Stine’s plot requires too much suspension of disbelief—namely, that filming would continue after one let alone multiple grisly deaths (in both productions) and that said deaths would all be caught on film; the story’s reimagining of A Midsummer Night’s Dream amounts to little more than the inclusion of a short man named Puck in possession of various potions, and a superfluous love quadrangle among the teenage cast members. Diehard horror fans might bite, but there’s not much to the story beyond Stine’s typical flair for gruesome scenes and bloody demises. Ages 12–up.

September 1, 2013

Gr 7-10-Sixteen-year-old Claire and her friend Delia have just gotten their big break in show business: they are starring in a remake, 60 years later, of Mayhem Manor, a film that started production in 1960. The movie was never completed due to multiple deaths on the set. Some say that the film is cursed, although Claire's parents, who own the studio, are banking on it being a hit. But the remake is also marked by multiple gruesome deaths, and the cast and crew begin to think that the curse may be real. When Claire meets Mr. Puckerman, a strange, hairy little man in an unmarked trailer, who claims to be a master of potions, she finds him suspicious-especially since she is the only person who sees him. Claire wants to be a star, but she doesn't want to die. Stine, master of light horror for middle grade readers, seems slightly out of his depth in the young adult market. The characters are superficial and flat, the plot is disjointed and lacking an air of menace, and the incorporation of Shakespearean elements is clumsily done. No doubt this book will attract some readers looking for something a step up from the author's usual fare, but horror aficionados are more likely to find themselves laughing rather than shuddering.-Misti Tidman, Licking County Library, Newark, OH

Copyright 2013 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 30, 2013
Stine returns with this chilling reimaging of a Shakespeare play that features murder, fatal accidents, and the (low-budget) movie industry. Narrator Brittany Pressley delivers a solid performance that’s slightly rushed at times, but manages to draw in listeners via her age-appropriate tone and likeable energy. Pressley’s youthful voice is mixed with just enough life experience to give her the perfect amount of teen angst and youthful optimism—and this renders the story all the more immediate and realistic. However, the male characters sound similar and come across as caricatures, making the scares slightly less effective when they spring up. Ages 12–up. A Feiwel and Friends hardcover.

January 1, 2014
Landing a role in the remake of a famously cursed horror film delights sixteen-year-old Claire, until the deaths that plagued the original production begin to repeat. Although she suspects the mysterious Puckerman, her interest in romance and a snazzy birthday party obliterate any other concerns. Murder and magic mix awkwardly in this novel, but the vapid portraits of teenagers are the real horror here.

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)