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The Monster Librarian Presents
Reviews of Fiction with Human Monsters and Psychological Horror for Young Adults
In these books the cause for terror is the actions of a person. What makes these book particularly scary is the killer might be your neighbor, your teacher, or even your best friend.
Slumber
Party by Christopher Pike
*New Review
Scholastic Paperbacks, Reissue edition,
2004
ISBN: 0590430149
Available: New and Used
Years after a slumber party that left one of their group or friends dead and one disfigured, Lara, Nell, Rachael, Mindy, Dana, and a new friend Celeste come together for a fun ski trip to get together and catch up. Disturbing events make Lara think something is not right- the friends are getting strange phone calls, a snowman is mysteriously scorched, and a girl goes missing. It is up to Lara to uncover the truth. The characters are a little weak, but the overall story is still intriguing and will keep the reader's attention. Although Slumber Party has many elements present in mystery novels, it is more of a thriller and horror story. Lara never seems to come across any clues, and the ending is revealed as a surprise. A note: Slumber Party initially looks like a quick and easy read, but Pike manages to fit a considerable chunk of story in a deceptively small package. Contains: kidnapping, violence.
The
Hand of the Devil by Dean Vincent Carter
Delacorte Books for Young Readers, October,
2006
ISBN: 0385733712
Available: New and used
Ashley Reeves is a reporter for
"Missing Link", a magazine devoted to natural oddities. One day Ashley
receives a letter from Reginald Mather, requesting him to come to
his house on Aries Island in the middle of Lake Languor to see a specimen
of "Ganges Red," a giant deadly red mosquito also known as "The Devil's Hand."
Ashley's arrival on the island is marred when his boat hits some rocks,
destroying the vessel and stranding him there. It turns out that there is
more to the mosquito and the residents of Aries Island than meets the eye and
soon Ashley is fighting for his life as he finds out that the mosquito
isn't the only deadly killer on the island. The Hand
of the Devil is a very engrossing tale that sucks the reader in. The
exposition is considerable and does interrupt the pacing of the story, but also
provides needed backstory and fleshes out the plot, allowing Carter to introduce
additional plot twists. The Hand of the Devil will appeal to readers in a
variety of subgenres. Readers of killer animal books will appreciate The giant
mosquito that kills in a particularly gory manner. A serial killer who does away
visitors on the island in a gruesome manner will be of interest to readers of
human horror. There is also a supernatural aspect to the story. Although
the extensive exposition initially makes for a slow and awkward start,
once the action gets going it is strong throughout the rest of the book.
Note: This is an unusually gory book for a teenage audience.
Recommended for high school libraries. Contains: gore, violence.
Silent
to the Bone by E.L.
Konigsburg
Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, 2002(reprint)
ISBN: 0689836023
Available: New and Used
Branwell Zamborska hasn’t spoken since his baby sister Nikki stopped breathing. Accused of shaking the baby into a coma, he is struck completely mute, unable to speak even in his own defense. Only one person knows him well enough to find a way to communicate, and to discover what really happened that day- his best friend, Connor. Guided down a twisty and indirect path, Connor finds himself actually following in Branwell’s footsteps, as, with the help of his resourceful older sister, he begins to understand and empathize with the horrifying situation that has caused Branwell’s refusal to speak. Readers won’t be able to put down this gripping, suspenseful, and heartbreaking story. Silent to the Bone is a winner of the 2001 Edgar Allan Poe Best Young Adult Novel award and also made the list of YALSA Best Books for Teens for that year. Highly recommended for readers 12 and older: an unbeatable choice for middle school and high school libraries and public library collections. Contains: implied sexual situations, child neglect and abuse.
The
Twisted Window by Lois Duncan
Publisher: Laurel Leaf; Reissue edition
(September 1, 1988)
ISBN: 0440201845
Available: New and Used
Appearances are deceiving in The Twisted Window. Brad has been following Tracy-
he needs her to help rescue his sister, who was kidnapped by his stepfather.
Tracy is grieving and angry, looking for someone to save. Offering her services
as a babysitter to the family his sister is living with, Tracy conspires with
Brad to take his sister back. But nothing is as simple as it seems. It becomes
clear that the girl is not Brad’s sister, and that Brad’s grip on reality is
tenuous at best. As his paranoid fantasies escalate, it’s obvious that both
girls are in a seriously dangerous situation. A gripping and disturbing tale
with surprising twists and turns, The Twisted Window accurately, and
frighteningly, portrays the monster that can arise from a teenager’s grief,
anger, denial, and defiance. Grades 9-up. Contains: violence, guns, kidnapping.
Entry by Francesca the Librarian.
Angelmonster
by
Veronica Bennett
Candlewick, May, 2006
ISBN: 0763629944 .
Available: New
“What manner of ungodly baby kills its creator?” Even at sixteen, Mary Shelley’s nightmares force her to face this question. Angelmonster takes us into the mind and heart of the author of Frankenstein, in the entwined stories of her tragic love affair and marriage to the tormented poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and the terrible events that she must come to terms with to write this classic tale of horror. Veronica Bennett has taken some liberties with the order of events, but the story does follow along the lines of Mary’s life with the poet, and her fictional take draws us in to this unconventional, passionate, and independent woman’s thoughts and feelings. Angelmonster is gripping and gorgeously written historical fiction woven with strong elements of romance and horror, but don’t expect lots of gore and sex. This would be a great book to bridge readers of paranormal romances to historical fiction, or to connect readers of historical fiction to gothic novels and classic horror fiction. Since the Frankenstein story is so pervasive, there are a lot of great literary and media connections as well. Although it’s not strictly horror, Angelmonster deserves a place in the well-rounded YA horror fiction collection. Highly recommended- suggested for grades 10-up, due to mature content. Contains: extramarital affairs, suicide, drug abuse, teen pregnancy, and the death of small children.
A Fate Totally Worse
Than Death by Paul Fleischman
Candlewick; (Reprint edition) April, 2004
ISBN: 0763621897
Available: New and Used
A combination of teen horror spoof, mystery, and a little legit horror mixes it up in this offering from Newbery award winning author Paul Fleischman. When blond Norwegian Helga comes to town, the boys of Cliffside High are automatically drawn to her, causing three of the girls who belong to the elite Hun click, Danielle, Tiffany, and Brooke, to try to find a way to eliminate this new source of competition for good. Fleischman uses a number of conventions of teen horror, but the spoofing of those conventions seems to fall a little flat. I suspect that the book was supposed to be more humorous than it actually was, and what Fleischman does end up give us is a mystery with some horrifying elements with a degree of unpredictability in its telling. It is a quick and easy read, and teens who have read young adult horror will enjoy this. Recommended: Contains: mild violence.
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The Love Curse of
the Rumbaughs by Jack Gantos
Farrar, Straus and Giroux, April, 2006
ISBN: 0374336903
Available: New and Used
Ivy Spirico, age seven, is fascinated by the Rumbaugh twins,
an elderly pair who run the town pharmacy, believe in eugenics, and enjoy
taxidermy. She stumbles onto the family secret: the Rumbaughs are cursed with a
warped and obsessive love of their mother and have committed bizarre acts to
preserve her memory. Ivy, infected with the curse of the Rumbaughs, must come to
terms with it. Is she genetically predestined to fulfill the curse, or can she
choose to reject it? Reading The Love Curse of the Rumbaughs is like
watching a car crash: you know what will happen, see it in slow motion, and
watch it all with appalled fascination. Jack Gantos, widely known for his
entertaining children’s books, has reinvented himself here and created an
extraordinarily creepy, morbid, and disturbing atmosphere in this homage to the
gothic novel. Contains: frank discussions of sex, references to rape and incest,
grave-robbing, and corpse mutilation. Entry by Francesca the Librarian.
Are You In The House
Alone? by Richard Peck
Puffin, April , 2000
ISBN: 0141306939
Available: New and Used
This is probably the first young adult novel to deal frankly with rape and its aftermath. Gail, a high school junior living in a charming New England town, is getting obscene notes and phone calls. She doesn’t want to think about it, her best friend pretends nothing is happening, and when she finally tells a guidance counselor she isn’t taken seriously. Isolated and terrified, she opens the door one night to let her boyfriend in and is surprised by her stalker, who happens to be her best friend’s boyfriend and the son of the wealthiest family in her small town.
The chief of police tells Gail he will not arrest the boy, and a sympathetic lawyer explains that pressing charges would mean an attack on her personal life. Gail decides not to press charges, and returns to school. Another girl with an identical raincoat is then attacked on her way home and is left in critical condition.
This story shows that the rapist is not the only monster. Every person who turns a blind eye to Gail’s situation, from her best friend to the chief of police, shows an ugly side that should horrify anyone who has ever needed to tell a terrible secret. Richard Peck, a brilliant young adult author, is effective at creating Gail's world and is able to express the horror of her situation without getting graphic. by Francesca the Librarian
Underworld by
Catherine Macphail
Bloomsbury USA Children's Books, July, 2005
ISBN: 1582349975
Pages: 250
Underworld looks on its cover that this some sort of underground monster horror book, however the true terror is more about what happens when a group of students trapped in a series of caves with no adults. Before going into the caves the students are told about the legend of a great monster worm that inhabit the cave. Once in the cave there is an earthquake, and the student are trapped and their teacher is knocked unconscious. The group of students consists of Axel, the school bully, Liam his sidekick, Zesh the hero, Fiona the rebel, and Angie the friendly overweight girl. The real story is about the group dynamic with in the cave once the teacher is unconscious that had a touch of Lord of the Flies feel to it. If you are looking for a giant monster book you need to look elsewhere. However if you want a good read about what happens to a group of students trapped inside a labyrinth of cave with the haunted by the story about a giant worm that makes every sound seem like impending doom and every dark place suspect then this is the book for you. Contains minimal non lethal school violence. Note: This book has nothing to do with the popular vampire/werewolf movie with the same name.