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Book Review: It’s Hall-Lore-Ween Again! by Josh Spero, illustrated by TT Hernandez and Aldo Avilar

It’s Hall-Lore-Ween Again! by Josh Spero, illustrated by TT Hernandez and Aldo Avilar

Castle Bridge Media, 2025

ISBN: 9798991785570

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

Buy: Bookshop.org | Amazon.com

 

Josh Spero has taken the winning formula from Hall-Lore-Ween, his first collection of spooky stories for kids, and improved it for the sequel.  Like the first, this one features short tales, poems, and illustrations.  This time there are fewer tales, they are longer, and they are oriented towards a slightly older audience.  The first one worked well for roughly grades 1-3, but this one feels like it would be a better fit for grades 3-6.  Most important, it has all the charm and whimsy of the first one.

 

The book consists of three tales and six poems, slotted into 171 pages.  The story length is significantly increased this time, which allows for greater character development.  Similar to the first book, the stories are spook stories for a young audience, and they again rely on universal themes, such as love, loyalty, righting a wrong, and so on, to provide tales with a bit of creep, usually with an uplifting ending.  Let’s take a look at what’s under the hood.

 

“The Kings of Halloween”:  The story establishes the tone right away. This is more for the pre-teen set, as part of the tale revolves around the classic nerdy misfits getting bullied at school by the “cool” kids.  As for revenge, the downtrodden will get it– but in a fun, monster-filled fashion, with no real harm done to anyone in the end, except for maybe a few shattered egos.  This one illustrates the style of the stories well: all the elements of Halloween are present, but in a fun, non-threatening fashion.

 

“The Jamboree”:  A ghostly romance of sorts between the living and the dead, it’s a charming, romantic, and melancholy tale all rolled into one, with a hint of tragedy tossed in for good measure.  It’s an extremely engrossing story that covers all the bases, and should be a guaranteed hit with pre-teen girls.  It’s the longest, and probably the best yarn in the book.

 

“In the Dead of Night”: This one is just fun, loose silliness with zombies, and an ironic explanation for the undead. It’s guaranteed to make the reader chuckle at the end, and it ends the book on a happy, uplifting note.

 

My only complaint with this book is the same as the last one: more illustrations please!  There is still only one illustration per story, I would really like to see two or three.  It’s a book for younger readers (and overgrown kids like me), and a few more illustrations would really appeal to the likely reader base.  There are some good sketches in between each story showing Jacko, who is kind of the book mascot/narrator. but more of them based around the story should be included.

 

My bottom line: I liked this even more than the first one, which I was quite fond of.  Even if readers don’t find it to be better than the first, there is no way they will find it to be a downgrade from the prior book.  Definitely recommended for good, safe, family-friendly Halloween fun.  If Disney had decided to do Halloween films back in their heyday, this is probably the style they would have gone with.

 

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

Posted on June 26, 2026 by , Reply

Book Review: Night of the Living Toilet Paper (Alien Survival Guide #2) by Kevin Garone

Night of the Living Toilet Paper bookcover

Night of the Living Toilet Paper (Alien Survival Guide #2) by Kevin Garone

Temor Press, 2025

ISBN: 9788991328449

Available: Hardcover, paperback, ebook edition (pre-order)

Buy: Bookshop.org  | Amazon.com

 

The irresistible, alien-chasing young scamps are back! Thankfully, author Garone thought his prior book, I Know What UFO Did Last Summer, was good enough to continue the story. Night, while a bit different in scope, has all the charm and enchantment of the original.

 

In Night, original members Marvin (code name: Gold Leader), Jace (code name: Baller One) and Nora (code name: Space Cadet) all return, and they have expanded their ranks to include Kenji Kowahara (code name: Pyro). You can guess what his specialty/obsession is!

 

The story finds the four of them trying to destroy a giant animated mass of toilet paper, which is under control of a Sleech, one of the creatures from the first book. It’s a good story and written as well as the first: it’s just a bit smaller/more focused in scope. The first book had the team in a few different places, (woods, a super secret lab) and tackling a few different related problems. This time, it’s pretty much the team vs. the paper monster in their neighborhood: that’s the crux of almost all the story. Does it work? Yes, very well, it just isn’t as broad of a plot. Think of it as a smaller version of the original, but just as good (kind of like those downloadable expansions they do for video games these days).

 

There are some good modifications from the first book. For one, the kids really don’t get any help this time. It’s up to them alone to use their ingenuity and make the right decisions to outwit the creature, and that’s what makes the characters and their specialties stand out. Marvin and Jace are still good as team leader and tactics officer, respectively, but Nora’s character plays a bigger role this time, with her developing abilities as a backyard mechanic proving critical to the team. Kenji also has a big part, as his fire obsession comes in very handy when the team is on the defensive against the TP monster. As before, it’s the comradeship between them all that carries the story. The author may be planning ahead, as there are some very slight hints that the kids may be starting to mature. They have to deal with the actual loss of a person– a minor character– but a loss nevertheless, and there are a couple other subtle hints.

 

Bottom line is, if you liked the first one, you don’t want to miss this. It has all the characteristics that made the first one such a pleasant surprise. Whether they are trying to use an inflatable mattress as a boat, or riding motorcycles while spitting flames, it’s hard to avoid loving the antics of Marvin and his team. Certainly recommended!

 

 

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

 

 

Posted on July 26, 2025 by , Reply

Book Review: I Know What UFO Did Last Summer by Kevin Garone

cover art for I Know What UFO Did Last Summer

I Know What UFO Did Last Summer by Kevin Garone

Temor Press, April 2025 (not yet released)

ISBN: 9798991328401

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

Buy: Bookshop.org

 

Part adventure, part sci-fi, and all childlike charm, this book is for young readers, but perfect for young-at-heart adults.  With its irresistible characters, it’s a reminder of a time when you were young and could believe in anything with all your heart, no matter how outlandish it might have been.  Simply put, this is magic.

 

It’s the three pre-teen lead characters, Marvin (code name: Gold Leader), Jace (code name: Baller One) and Nora (code name: Space Cadet) that make the story such a joy.  The author clearly knows kids and how to write them. His insights are so good, you’ll wonder if the book was written by a teen with advanced writing skills.  The main character, Marvin, truly believes aliens will one day infiltrate the earth, so he spends his spare time searching and preparing for them, along with his less enthusiastic friends.  Jace and Nora don’t really buy into Marvin’s obsession, but searching the night sky during campouts and building an anti-UFO catapult is fun for them.  That’s what buddies do: go along with the ideas of each other, in the name of friendship.

 

Things change when the three of them do find something unusual in the woods. It isn’t actual aliens, but it does somewhat fit into Marvin’s beliefs.  The author wisely doesn’t hide the fact that it isn’t an extraterrestrial invasion, but he has Marvin play his role to the end, and that’s where a lot of the story’s charm comes from.  It’s hilarious when adults in the book occasionally ask “what’s wrong with this kid?”” when Marvin accuses them of being from another planet.  The answer is, nothing at all.  He isn’t written as crazy or stupid, but as a kid who believes, wholeheartedly, in aliens coming to earth.  It makes the character interactions between the three kids more powerful than a laser bolt from Han Solo’s blaster, as Jace and Nora are perfect foils to Marvin.  Jace has fun with the whole alien thing, but would rather play basketball, while Nora is new and town and just needs a friend.

 

The storyline is quite good: call it sci-fi light.  There are a few weird creatures and a bit of teleporting, plus, of course, an EEEEVIL mastermind behind it all.  There are some stock elements, but they are used extremely well.  A few characters do get chomped by something, but nothing messy.  This book is perfect for grades four through seven, roughly. (I’m basing that on my teaching experience)

 

However, since this review is mainly for adults, the bottom line is, this is perfect for those who haven’t let the world dampen the joy of imagination.  It’s a good reminder that magic of a sort still does exist, if you still believe.  Often, that magic is found in the friendships you make, as the book’s characters discover during their adventure.   Most definitely recommended!

 

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

 

 

Posted on January 19, 2025 by , Reply