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In a Florida tourist trap, a summer acting job turns into a real-life horror show when a cast member turns up dead—then disappears. This nail-biting story is perfect for fans of Fear Street and the Scream franchise.
Dave is spending his final summer before college working at Frightmares House of Horrors, a struggling haunted house attraction held together by malfunctioning killer clown mannequins, a cheap replica Annabelle doll, and a lot of improvising.
After a particularly disastrous shift ends in an employee walkout, Dave reluctantly takes over a role for his friend, however, he makes a horrifying discovery—a real dead body, hidden on set. But when Dave returns with help, the body is gone.
Though the killer covered their tracks, Dave realizes they must know what he saw. Could he be their next target?
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
July 5, 2022 -
Formats
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9780593486887
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9780593486887
- File size: 3937 KB
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Languages
- English
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Levels
- Lexile® Measure: 830
- Text Difficulty: 4-5
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Reviews
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May 15, 2022
A summer job turns deadly. Recent high school graduate Dave is resigned to spending the summer working at the Frightmare House of Horrors in Orlando. He's looking forward to entering college on a swimming scholarship, but in the meantime, he is stuck acting out over-the-top scenarios with other demoralized staff. The haunted house has been on its last legs for some time, making do with shoddy prop work and improvisation. After one spectacularly awful day, many of his co-workers quit, forcing Dave to step into an unfamiliar role--but when the body of a dead girl is substituted for a mannequin, the job becomes far from boring. Dave returns with help only to discover the body has disappeared. The killer covered their tracks, but Dave suspects they may come back to tie up loose ends, and he could be one of them. This propulsive thriller does its best to keep the momentum up and the shocks coming at a regular pace. Unfortunately, poor staging leads to clumsy moments that fall flat instead of tingling the spine. Readers looking for something to scratch the terror itch will be disappointed, and there's little else to draw in those averse to the genre. Dave is presumed White; there is some racial diversity in the supporting cast. A plot-driven story offering only mild thrills and chills. (Horror. 12-16)COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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July 1, 2022
Grades 7-10 Monster makeup and buckets of fake blood complicate an amateur murder investigation in Gibson's (Where Secrets Lie, 2021) whodunit set in a haunted-house attraction. Dave is part of the jaded but close-knit cast of Frightmares, an "off-off-Disney" haunted attraction in central Florida. The job is unremarkable until, one night, the sarcophagus opens during a performance and--instead of an animatronic mummy--the dead body of a castmate falls out. The body disappears before the night is over, and the supposed-dead girl is still texting her friends. Without a body, or even a missing person, Dave and his crush Maya decide to investigate instead of contacting the police, and the clues keep bringing them back to the dark, dangerous maze of Frightmares. The haunted house offers a great set piece for snooping, subterfuge, and chases. Dave's narration is witty and fast-moving, but the looming question of why he doesn't immediately report the dead body zaps some of the tension from the novel. This is more mystery than horror but may appeal to the Fear Street crowd.COPYRIGHT(2022) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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