Monday, February 3, 2014

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: CREEPOVER #1 -- TRUTH OR DARE

YOU'RE INVITED TO A CREEPOVER, TRUTH OR DARE (#1) by P.J. Night (Simon Spotlight 2011)

What It's About (Goodreads blurb): During a round of Truth or Dare, Abby Miller confesses her crush on Jake Chilson. The only people who know her secret are her friends at the sleepover and whoever sent her a text message in the middle of the night warning her to stay away from Jake--or else! 
But Abby isn't going to stay away from Jake, especially not after he asks her to the school dance. 
As the night of the dance comes closer, some very creepy things start happening to Abby. Someone definitely wants to keep her away from Jake. Is it a jealous classmate or, as Abby begins to suspect, could it be a ghost?

Opening Lines (Prologue): "Up and down the aisles she wandered, and though so much was familiar, there were small and unexpected differences. The lights seemed brighter, the colors looked bolder, even the sounds were louder."

What I Liked: There are a ton of series out there, and most of them are definitely plot-centered. The Creepover series is definitely in this category. The characters could be anybody--which, for this age group allows for self-identification. It is a swift read and, judging from the ecstatic comments on Goodreads the target audience, (9 and 10 year-old girls), are captivated. I thought it was good and creepy--you definitely wondered if Abby was being targeted from beyond the grave. The cover is very appealing too. I can see the target readership quickly becoming addicted to such scares!

About the Series: There are now 18 books in this series, published by Simon Spotlight. You can get more information about titles, and watch a video HERE. The author, P.J. Night, is actually the pseudonym for several writers involved in the series' production. At the back of each book, there is a Creep-O-Meter. Truth or Dare ranks as a 3 ("Hide Under the Covers"), but most other books in the series are 4 ("Sleep With the Lights On") or 5 ("Never Sleep Again").

Any other creep series you know of? Leave the names in the comments. And don't forget to bolt the doors and bar the windows tonight...! 

4 comments:

  1. I hadn't seen this series. My daughter was always looking for scary stories when she was younger. This sounds like a fun one!

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  2. Thanks for featuring the book and series. I had seen the covers in the past but never picked up a copy myself. I have a few young readers I can recommend this to.

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  3. Intriguing! Sounds like something my friends and I would have done back in the day. :-)

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  4. This sounds like a fun series. I'll have to get some of these for my grandkids. Thanks for telling me about them.

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