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Something else touched upon but not explored in great detail is Gus and his stoma bag. I liked the way this was handled. He has one, he jokes about it, it's there, but it's not a huge issue. It just is. It's cleverly done and I'm sure it'll find its audience who'll really understand and appreciate it, as well as those who go away thinking about it. OK, this is so going to be a hard review to write, so bear with me, because it may get very messy. Haha. XD There’s a new craze at Dread Wood High. Flinch is a game of fear. The more you scare your friends, the more points on the app you get. At first it’s fun, but soon fun is replaced by fear. And Angelo and his friends notice that everyone is behaving more and more strangely every day – almost as if something is taking over their brains… I was sent a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review, with thanks to The Write Reads Tours and the author and publisher. It's basically the worst school detention ever. When classmates (but not mate-mates) Hallie, Angelo, Gustav and Naira are forced to come to school on a SATURDAY, they think things can’t get much worse. But they’re wrong. Things are about to get seriously scary.
Without giving too much away, Dread Wood features an incredibly scary spider. Did you base it on a real-life creature? The true horror of this action soon reveals itself from right under their feet. Something is living underneath their school and grounds. Something that shouldn't even exist. Money troubles is the most obvious one, and Angelo is still very much representative of those kids in a school who don't have the money for new clothes or shiny gadgets, who have to make do with what they can, who know exactly how much lunch money they can afford to spend and exactly what it will cost them. This is contrasted pretty sharply with Hallie in particular, and I loved the descriptions of her house and how fancy it seemed to the others, with a spare bedroom and artisan crisps! It's done with a light touch and a sensitivity but hopefully it'll help to raise awareness and build empathy among school children reading it.Normally when authors use modern slang in their books I am kind of iffy about it because it can take me out of the story but for this book it actually worked in its advantage. Because it a group of preteen kids and that's how they talk. It also wasn't forced in and if flowed well for me. Dread Wood starts with kids from school who don’t normally hang out coming together for a detention. Which character did you most enjoy writing?
The fairground bits, and then especially when things went totally over the top wrong. Those had me on the edge of my seat because WOW, chaos and destruction GO. And then there is a ghost train which is also a big nope. I found the manor on the property to be quite spooky, although I would have really loved to read more about it, have some more descriptions of it, as most of the plot takes place outside or in other buildings. I read the chapter from the second book in the series which was included at the end of my eARC, and I have a feeling that my desire of knowing more about Dread Wood will be sated quite soon. In this exclusive World Book Day story, Angelo and the rest of Club Loser must venture deep into the tunnels underneath Dread Wood High to rescue their favourite teacher, Mr Canton. But more hideous creations live in the Latchitts’ old laboratories . . . and they’re hungry! Can Club Loser stop these creatures from escaping into the world and make it out of the tunnels in one piece? Read it and see, if you dare! Flinch. Well, before it all started to go craycray. That was just great fun and while I did think it was a bit over the top that everyone participated seemingly, I would have expected a few kids to go against the flow as you will often see. But I cannot wait for the next book in the series! So excited to see what is next for this group and what our duo will be up to next~ I am so excited I got to read this during Spooktober! Perfect!Before we get to the horror though, the heart of this book is the friendship circle, Club Loser. They've grown since book one, and Colette is now firmly a member of the group, making for some interesting shifts in dynamics but that feeling of companionship, of people who are always there for each other and would do anything for each other is stronger than ever! Clearly almost dying together forged a strong bond! They still have that Breakfast Club vibe of kids of very different types thrown together in detention and finding that they have more in common than differences, but this is used to great effect not only to give each character their own feel but also to highlight some important and oft-ignored issues. Returning to Dread Wood High and being reunited with Angelo and the Club Loser gang felt so good, not to mention the force of nature that is geography teacher Mr Canton. Gus and Mr C are without a doubt my two favourite characters - they are both absolutely hilarious, (if not a little hapless!) Jennifer totally nails the perfect balance of horror and humour and her teen characters are totally on-point.
The brand new must-read middle-grade novel from the author of super-spooky Crater Lake. Perfect for 9+ fans of R.L.Stine's Goosebumps. The story is narrated entirely from the perspective of Angelo,a loner who is harbouring a lot of anger when we are first introduced to his character and is determined just to get through the detention without having any involvement with the other three students. But,as time passed and the day went from a frustrating inconvenience to strange and intriguing to absolutely shizing terrifying, it was heart warming to witness the changes in his character as the group began to gel and work together as a team. Like most people,each member of the group had their own personal issues and were each harbouring a secret that may or may not have been connected to the events that were currently unfolding. As with any group of people no matter what their ages are, each member of The Loser Club had their own unique personality and character traits. Unbeknownst to Angelo,he was a natural problem solver and leader, my favourite character Hallie was a feisty,take no shiz tomboy, Gustav (Gus) was the comedian of the group and Niara wasn't the uptight, preppy individual that she came across as at the beginning of the story. Another of my favourite character's was the teacher Mr Canton who was supposed to be supervising the group during the detention, his attempts to be 'down with the kids' were both cringeworthy and hilarious.Of course, no cast of a thrilling adventure isn't complete without the villains of the story and oh,boy, the bad guys of this tale were certainly sinister and creepy and not just a sandwich but a whole hamper short of a picnic. But, despite their actions, I actually thought there was a tiny bit of twisted logic behind a certain aspect of the motive behind their behaviour,that said,that doesn't mean that I am condoning their actions and behaviour in any way. Their teacher Mr Canton doesn't seem angry that his Saturday is taken up with hosting their detention. In fact he's full of positive reinforcement, earning lots of eye rolling from the teens. The creep factor gradually builds into the nightmare these teens must work together to defeat and save one another's lives, and the life of their teacher.Coffee house Caffè Nero has announced the 16-strong shortlist for the inaugural Nero Book Awards, recognising the outstanding books of the past 12... The brand new must-read middle-grade novel from the author of super-spooky Crater Lake. Perfect for 9+ fans of R.L.Stine’s Goosebumps Yes! I watched lots of documentaries about different types of spider and combined some of their creepiest qualities for the creature in Dread Wood. The species I used the most was the trapdoor spider - such fascinating creatures, and perfect for what I wanted for this story.
Technically I received an e-book copy to review, but I bought my own copy as I was already planning on doing so + the e-book didn’t work for me. So happy my copy came in on time! Ultimately, of course, the book is also about friendship: the friendship that the four main protagonists forge in the face of adversity, as well as (spoiler alert, again) the hand of friendship they extend to Collette in the final chapter of the book. “Most of my books have themes of friendship, because it’s something I’ve always struggled with,” says the author, who was the “weird, geeky, shy” girl at school. “I’ve never felt I fitted in anywhere, so I think a lot about what it means to be a good friend.” Breaking through I genuinely believe that if I was in one of these horror-story situations, I would still be joking and laughing. As much as some things can be quite harrowing and upsetting, I need to be able to laugh through it.” There are SO MANY references and I love love it! Scooby Doo, talk about my sweet raptors (and then decided who is who and finding out who really are the raptors), Jurassic Park/World, there is mention of anime (Gustav, yas), Harley Quinn, and more. I had so much fun finding all the references and then squeeing in delight at them. It made the book even more fun to read. But yes, I was angry with our cast as well. For what they have done. We do find out why each of them has done it, but I still wanted to shake them around a bit. Throwing them for the spiders is a bit harsh, but I can shake them at least a bit. And then later we find out something even more important and I just wanted to shake them even harder. I am glad that they all realised what they did wasn’t right. That it was wrong.
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There’s some light spoilers incoming at this point, so if you want to avoid them I’ll give you a takeaway now: I liked this book, it was good dumb fun, written well and compellingly. The plot moved along at a good clip and the tension started nice and early. Flat but serviceable characters. Probably won’t read again, but enjoyed it a lot all the same. Three and a half stars. Maybe four if I’m feeling generous. Cut off from help and in danger each time they touch the ground, the gang's only hope is to work together. But it's no coincidence that they're all there on detention. Someone has been watching and plotting and is out for revenge. About This Edition ISBN: I appreciated that there was more to the characters than at first anticipated. They are so much more than their first takes and as they find a way to work together, all these unexpected qualities shine through. As it turns out, they all have personal struggles and it actually bonds them together as they learn more about each other. There are some pretty serious issues that they are grappling with: bullying, poverty, disability, and living up to parental pressures. It's all handled with grace and a lot of quippy humor. Hallie, Gustav, Naira and Angelo don't usually hang out together at school, let alone on a Saturday. But these four teens are on detention together for their behaviour in their school canteen.
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