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Curtains
Her terrifying secret was buried--until driven director Meritt Baxter tore it out of her during a performance. Suddenly Rena wasn't safe anymore. And the Merritt Baxter Summer Theater Camp had become a trap, where Bax would stop at nothing to elicit emotions that would lead to murder--onstage.
152 pages, Library Binding
First published October 1, 1990
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457 people want to read
About the author
R.L. Stine
1,679 books18.6k followersRobert Lawrence Stine known as R. L. Stine and Jovial Bob Stine, is an American novelist and writer, well known for targeting younger audiences. Stine, who is often called the Stephen King of children's literature, is the author of dozens of popular horror fiction novellas, including the books in the Goosebumps, Rotten School, Mostly Ghostly, The Nightmare Room and Fear Street series.
R. L. Stine began his writing career when he was nine years old, and today he has achieved the position of the bestselling children's author in history. In the early 1990s, Stine was catapulted to fame when he wrote the unprecedented, bestselling Goosebumps® series, which sold more than 250 million copies and became a worldwide multimedia phenomenon. His other major series, Fear Street, has over 80 million copies sold.
Stine has received numerous awards of recognition, including several Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards and Disney Adventures Kids' Choice Awards, and he has been selected by kids as one of their favorite authors in the NEA's Read Across America program. He lives in New York, NY.
http://us.macmillan.com/itsthefirstda...
R. L. Stine began his writing career when he was nine years old, and today he has achieved the position of the bestselling children's author in history. In the early 1990s, Stine was catapulted to fame when he wrote the unprecedented, bestselling Goosebumps® series, which sold more than 250 million copies and became a worldwide multimedia phenomenon. His other major series, Fear Street, has over 80 million copies sold.
Stine has received numerous awards of recognition, including several Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards and Disney Adventures Kids' Choice Awards, and he has been selected by kids as one of their favorite authors in the NEA's Read Across America program. He lives in New York, NY.
http://us.macmillan.com/itsthefirstda...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 46 reviews
September 23, 2019
Rena goes to an acting camp for the summer with her friend Julie. She discovers, through the director, that she's a very good actress and she ends up getting a leading role in the play. But there is also another girl (Hedy) who wants the lead role and she is jealous of the attention that Rena is getting from the director. One day Rena finds her clothes in shreds. A dead animal is found in her bunk bed. Someone keeps tapping on her window late at night. She becomes suspicious of her fellow campers and wonders if someone is out to get her...
This was a fun, easy read. I liked the setting at the acting camp. I found Rena's character, her backstory, and the cast of suspects interesting. The story was compelling as I tried to figure out who the culprit was.
An entertaining read by R. L. Stine.
This was a fun, easy read. I liked the setting at the acting camp. I found Rena's character, her backstory, and the cast of suspects interesting. The story was compelling as I tried to figure out who the culprit was.
An entertaining read by R. L. Stine.
January 21, 2015
This one actually took me by surprise. I'm glad it wasn't Hedy or Julie. The whole girl hating on other girls thing out of any jealously is so old. And I really didn't guess the connection between Andy/George and Kenny.
June 16, 2022
Our summer camp marathon continues with a trip to Mr. Stine. Since it is one of his, it is one I can review. And I will very much do so, meaning I can't really say that much here so this will be short. No idea when I'll get to it though.
This is a stand alone YA book that is the same publisher as Fear Street but again is a stand alone. Not sure why, I assume either A. Stine didn't wanna break the rules and go outside of Shadyside yet or B. the publisher thought it wasn't fit for the series. I wouldn't blame them if it was the latter.
This is set at a theater camp, with a girl Rena having been forced into going there by her friend, as she deals with some trauma from 3 years ago. Accident start up and they have to find out whodunnut. This was honestly quite good, I'll have a lot to say when I fully get to it someday.
It's a well built mystery where each suspect makes sense and it can be about anyone. The person it is makes sense and while they gotta cheat a tad to do it, it works and their motivation ties into the story well. And spoilers, the asshole boyfriend doesn't end up with her, thank god.
The camp part isn't quite used super well aside from a few nice moments of them walking around but the theater part is good. We got this diva Hedy and camp director guy who is very theatrical. There's fun stuff there.
Although I wouldn't call this a "fun" one generally, as it gets into some surprisingly serious subject matter and actually pulls it off. We explore what Rena is going through and why, and we get mental health type stuff treated with more tact than usual. Especially regarding the true events that went down in her past and how it ties into the villain.
It's effectively done and I'm surprised Stine did it and pulled it off. It's not perfectly done per say, I'll get it someday but there is one aspect I'm not totally sure of even if it wasn't poorly intentioned. As usual there's a few side things that could have been tied up, the ending and climax are a bit rushed but the ending caps off the main arc well.
It's not the most fun read I've seen from Stine but it's one of his more complex stories. More proof that he weirdly can pull off these more nuanced emotions. It's not perfect by any means but it is pretty solid so if you want a more serious tale, this is a good one. I'd rate is a a like 3.75, almost higher but still quite good.
It also has a section scrutinizing the Stanley Kubrik method of getting good performances out of actors, so that's a win. Actually, this is another Fright Camp in that regard when you get down to it lol. It's also better than Lights Out.
That does it for this one, hopefully I'll get to have more detail and not be as serious for next week's camp book. Next time, we get that with a cutesy looking book I had never heard of. See ya then.
POP CULTURE WATCH; Michelle Pfiffer, Cher, Cat on a hot tin roof, Tennessee Williams, Keds, Matt Dillon, Mickey & Minnie Mouse, The Godfather, Benetton sweater, Norman Rockwell, National Geographic, Rice Krispies, Coke, King Lear.
RED HEAD WATCH: Hedy, Chip.
ANIMAL DEATH WATCH: Yes, a swan. Yeah.
STINE-ISMS: O of surprise, tried to scream but no sound came out. That's shockingly it.
This is a stand alone YA book that is the same publisher as Fear Street but again is a stand alone. Not sure why, I assume either A. Stine didn't wanna break the rules and go outside of Shadyside yet or B. the publisher thought it wasn't fit for the series. I wouldn't blame them if it was the latter.
This is set at a theater camp, with a girl Rena having been forced into going there by her friend, as she deals with some trauma from 3 years ago. Accident start up and they have to find out whodunnut. This was honestly quite good, I'll have a lot to say when I fully get to it someday.
It's a well built mystery where each suspect makes sense and it can be about anyone. The person it is makes sense and while they gotta cheat a tad to do it, it works and their motivation ties into the story well. And spoilers, the asshole boyfriend doesn't end up with her, thank god.
The camp part isn't quite used super well aside from a few nice moments of them walking around but the theater part is good. We got this diva Hedy and camp director guy who is very theatrical. There's fun stuff there.
Although I wouldn't call this a "fun" one generally, as it gets into some surprisingly serious subject matter and actually pulls it off. We explore what Rena is going through and why, and we get mental health type stuff treated with more tact than usual. Especially regarding the true events that went down in her past and how it ties into the villain.
It's effectively done and I'm surprised Stine did it and pulled it off. It's not perfectly done per say, I'll get it someday but there is one aspect I'm not totally sure of even if it wasn't poorly intentioned. As usual there's a few side things that could have been tied up, the ending and climax are a bit rushed but the ending caps off the main arc well.
It's not the most fun read I've seen from Stine but it's one of his more complex stories. More proof that he weirdly can pull off these more nuanced emotions. It's not perfect by any means but it is pretty solid so if you want a more serious tale, this is a good one. I'd rate is a a like 3.75, almost higher but still quite good.
It also has a section scrutinizing the Stanley Kubrik method of getting good performances out of actors, so that's a win. Actually, this is another Fright Camp in that regard when you get down to it lol. It's also better than Lights Out.
That does it for this one, hopefully I'll get to have more detail and not be as serious for next week's camp book. Next time, we get that with a cutesy looking book I had never heard of. See ya then.
POP CULTURE WATCH; Michelle Pfiffer, Cher, Cat on a hot tin roof, Tennessee Williams, Keds, Matt Dillon, Mickey & Minnie Mouse, The Godfather, Benetton sweater, Norman Rockwell, National Geographic, Rice Krispies, Coke, King Lear.
RED HEAD WATCH: Hedy, Chip.
ANIMAL DEATH WATCH: Yes, a swan. Yeah.
STINE-ISMS: O of surprise, tried to scream but no sound came out. That's shockingly it.
April 25, 2023
1 .character: Starting with the characters, they are good. The main character and the supporting characters were also written in a good way.
2. Atmosphere: The atmosphere of the story can also put you inside the theater, but it lost some aspects that could have been exploited. I hoped that the camp would have some events, but it was marginalized and the focus was on the element of performance and theater only, which led to an imperfect evaluation of the atmosphere for the book in relation to me.
3. writing : Good narration of the events of the story and there was no lengthening of the events
4. Plot: The main plot of the story is interesting and made me think about it for some time to reach the end, but I feel that there is a better one, because I felt that there is a threat to the main character, without doubt, but i didnt felt anxious or that there is a great danger to her.
5. Intrigue: The book kept me looking forward to reading it, especially the last third of it.
6. Logic: The story is logical, as the main character suffers from trauma due to some reason without spoiling the events that happened to her 3 years ago, and accordingly, events inside the camp entail that affect her performance in the theater, and there are moments in the story that I could not guess what was happening to her until the last pages, and this is what I really liked despite Though I wanted some details on the back story.
VERDICT: 7.2/10
2. Atmosphere: The atmosphere of the story can also put you inside the theater, but it lost some aspects that could have been exploited. I hoped that the camp would have some events, but it was marginalized and the focus was on the element of performance and theater only, which led to an imperfect evaluation of the atmosphere for the book in relation to me.
3. writing : Good narration of the events of the story and there was no lengthening of the events
4. Plot: The main plot of the story is interesting and made me think about it for some time to reach the end, but I feel that there is a better one, because I felt that there is a threat to the main character, without doubt, but i didnt felt anxious or that there is a great danger to her.
5. Intrigue: The book kept me looking forward to reading it, especially the last third of it.
6. Logic: The story is logical, as the main character suffers from trauma due to some reason without spoiling the events that happened to her 3 years ago, and accordingly, events inside the camp entail that affect her performance in the theater, and there are moments in the story that I could not guess what was happening to her until the last pages, and this is what I really liked despite Though I wanted some details on the back story.
VERDICT: 7.2/10
October 2, 2022
'Tis the spooky season so I am right at home reading all of these YA horror/thrillers and the first one for October is this standalone Stine novel.
It's never a good idea to go to any kind of camp...even theater camp apparently.
Rena ends up going with her friend Julie, her bestie convincing her it will be fun, but Rena has never been interested in acting. She may look like Michelle Pfeiffer even with her short hair but being onstage may help her get over some past trauma...or so she thinks.
Running this camp is Meritt Baxter, Broadway director. He looks like Santa Claus but he is not a very nice person...at least to Rena's opinion. He hurls cruel comments and criticism at the young actors and stage crew members, getting some sort of glee out of tormenting them.
He gives the lead in the new play he has written, the titular Curtains, to Rena. This doesn't sit well with Hedy, the fiery redheaded spoiled brat of a clearly rich stage mother. Of course she threatens Rena that she will never play the part on stage.
Julie's not exactly happy that she didn't get the lead either and well she and Rena have fought over things before...like boys. Chip and George at camp seem to like Rena better even if Julie is dramatic looking like Cher.
Stardom and dating are far from Rena's mind once she discovers the dead swan in her bunk and all of her clothes shredded to ribbons. The blood and viciousness of these acts bring back memories of an event in her past Rena would like to forget but now she can't think of anything else.
Soon the reality of the terror and the horror of the play begin to bleed together and Rena has to figure out who is behind this before her blood is what flows during the final curtain...
Rena is a strong character suffering from PTSD and she's a likeable character. Julie has her moments where I don't like her and Chip is the nicer guy while George is the broody one. Hedy and Baxter, known as Bax, are truly horrible people.
What happens in Rena's past is left a little vague on some details until the ending and that seems to work as a twist along with the reveal. I actually kind of saw it coming as to why Rena was being targeted and thought a good fake-out might explain something that seemed unusual for a Stine story.
The climax is good and the ending is bittersweet but also slightly positive on an emotional level for our main character. It's a quick read and a recommendation if you love R.L. Stine's Fear Street and Point Horror output.
It's never a good idea to go to any kind of camp...even theater camp apparently.
Rena ends up going with her friend Julie, her bestie convincing her it will be fun, but Rena has never been interested in acting. She may look like Michelle Pfeiffer even with her short hair but being onstage may help her get over some past trauma...or so she thinks.
Running this camp is Meritt Baxter, Broadway director. He looks like Santa Claus but he is not a very nice person...at least to Rena's opinion. He hurls cruel comments and criticism at the young actors and stage crew members, getting some sort of glee out of tormenting them.
He gives the lead in the new play he has written, the titular Curtains, to Rena. This doesn't sit well with Hedy, the fiery redheaded spoiled brat of a clearly rich stage mother. Of course she threatens Rena that she will never play the part on stage.
Julie's not exactly happy that she didn't get the lead either and well she and Rena have fought over things before...like boys. Chip and George at camp seem to like Rena better even if Julie is dramatic looking like Cher.
Stardom and dating are far from Rena's mind once she discovers the dead swan in her bunk and all of her clothes shredded to ribbons. The blood and viciousness of these acts bring back memories of an event in her past Rena would like to forget but now she can't think of anything else.
Soon the reality of the terror and the horror of the play begin to bleed together and Rena has to figure out who is behind this before her blood is what flows during the final curtain...
Rena is a strong character suffering from PTSD and she's a likeable character. Julie has her moments where I don't like her and Chip is the nicer guy while George is the broody one. Hedy and Baxter, known as Bax, are truly horrible people.
What happens in Rena's past is left a little vague on some details until the ending and that seems to work as a twist along with the reveal. I actually kind of saw it coming as to why Rena was being targeted and thought a good fake-out might explain something that seemed unusual for a Stine story.
The climax is good and the ending is bittersweet but also slightly positive on an emotional level for our main character. It's a quick read and a recommendation if you love R.L. Stine's Fear Street and Point Horror output.
May 1, 2025
TW: there IS an upsetting animal death in this one btw. There’s also a HILARIOUS animal death at the end though. I’m sorry, but the random tidbit about a rat jumping and accidentally plopping into the water nearly broke me
Darker and better written than a Fear Street. This one takes place at THEATER CAMP so you just know it’s going to be filled with dramatics. The camp director is unhinged and belongs in jail for all the real trauma he’s causing (for the sake of ART ??) in order to elicit ~authentic emotions from these kids, but anyway…
These kids are maybe a little too competitive. Who knew theater camp could be so cutthroat
We have a few of Stine’s favorite things in this one!
- A redhead
- A fake stabbing
- An accidental real stabbing
- Fake blood
- Real blood
- Two (2) fake dead bodies
And a decent twist woohoo. Can’t trust the protag but I kinda like when you’re second-guessing things.
Bonus: RATS
Darker and better written than a Fear Street. This one takes place at THEATER CAMP so you just know it’s going to be filled with dramatics. The camp director is unhinged and belongs in jail for all the real trauma he’s causing (for the sake of ART ??) in order to elicit ~authentic emotions from these kids, but anyway…
These kids are maybe a little too competitive. Who knew theater camp could be so cutthroat
We have a few of Stine’s favorite things in this one!
- A redhead
- A fake stabbing
- An accidental real stabbing
- Fake blood
- Real blood
- Two (2) fake dead bodies
And a decent twist woohoo. Can’t trust the protag but I kinda like when you’re second-guessing things.
Bonus: RATS
February 14, 2021
I was not expecting that plot twist 😮
July 18, 2018
So, this one wasn’t half bad. Except there was another animal that was killed. Are you surprised? Of course not.
Anyway, our heroine is Rena. She is at the summer theater camp because of her friend, Julie. But, to Rena’s surprise, she gets the lead in the play, Curtains. Julie doesn’t seem too happy about it. Neither does Hedy - a clear Cheryl Blossom ripoff, down to her long red hair. The director of the play, Bax, is an asshole, but for some reason still chooses Rena as the lead even though he doesn’t really like her.
Rena is happy with it - at first. A horrible thing happened three years ago, and this is the first time that something good has happened to her since, or so she says. She was in the basement with her friend Kenny when he handed her a gun and told her to shoot. But when she tells the story to Julie, she can’t remember all of the details. She isn’t totally sure what happened three years ago. Maybe she did kill Kenny (haha).
Rena starts experiencing a waking nightmare at the camp. She finds a dead swan in her bed. Then she accidentally stabs her costar with a real knife when someone replaces it after stealing the prop knife. To top it all off, Bax plays cruel jokes on the cast to keep their fear levels up so that they will be “real” actors. But when Bax fakes his own suicide, it’s the last straw for Rena. She stands up for herself and quits the play. She says she refuses to keep being a victim. I love Rena!!
As she’s taking a walk later on before leaving, she runs into George, who took over from the costar she stabbed. He also seems to have a crush on Rena throughout the book. She really wants him to leave her alone, but he can’t take a hint. So she agrees to go with him when he wants to show her something. But he leads her to the boathouse, which Bax told them all to avoid. Rena is hesitant, but George insists it’s worth it. He shows her some baby robins nesting in a canoe. Rena relaxes a bit, but then the tide starts to come in. And rats start to jump from canoe to canoe. And George claims the door is locked, making escape impossible. Or is it?
Throughout the book Rena suspected Hedy, Bax, even Julie of torturing her. But since she never thinks of George, that’s obviously who it ends up being.
She gets to the door and finds out it’s unlocked. She suddenly realizes what’s going on. She asks George to try the door again, but he claims it’s still locked. And Rena knows the truth. It was him torturing her. His name is really Andy Malone... Kenny’s brother. He truly believes Rena killed Kenny. Rena still kind of believes this too, but then she has a flashback and realizes she left the room when Kenny started playing with the gun. Unfortunately, his death was a suicide.
Rena tricks Andy and gets out the door and out of the collapsing boat shack. But a falling piece of wood hits Andy in the head and renders him lifeless. Rena is sick of death and blood, so she does her best to save Andy. Thankfully, she gets him breathing again. Just then Julie and Marcie come down and tell her that her parents are waiting for her. Rena could not be more relieved. She is free of the guilt of believing she killed Kenny, and she knows Andy can get the help he needs now.
Rena decides that the theater is not for her. She likes the real world better. Good call, girl.
Anyway, our heroine is Rena. She is at the summer theater camp because of her friend, Julie. But, to Rena’s surprise, she gets the lead in the play, Curtains. Julie doesn’t seem too happy about it. Neither does Hedy - a clear Cheryl Blossom ripoff, down to her long red hair. The director of the play, Bax, is an asshole, but for some reason still chooses Rena as the lead even though he doesn’t really like her.
Rena is happy with it - at first. A horrible thing happened three years ago, and this is the first time that something good has happened to her since, or so she says. She was in the basement with her friend Kenny when he handed her a gun and told her to shoot. But when she tells the story to Julie, she can’t remember all of the details. She isn’t totally sure what happened three years ago. Maybe she did kill Kenny (haha).
Rena starts experiencing a waking nightmare at the camp. She finds a dead swan in her bed. Then she accidentally stabs her costar with a real knife when someone replaces it after stealing the prop knife. To top it all off, Bax plays cruel jokes on the cast to keep their fear levels up so that they will be “real” actors. But when Bax fakes his own suicide, it’s the last straw for Rena. She stands up for herself and quits the play. She says she refuses to keep being a victim. I love Rena!!
As she’s taking a walk later on before leaving, she runs into George, who took over from the costar she stabbed. He also seems to have a crush on Rena throughout the book. She really wants him to leave her alone, but he can’t take a hint. So she agrees to go with him when he wants to show her something. But he leads her to the boathouse, which Bax told them all to avoid. Rena is hesitant, but George insists it’s worth it. He shows her some baby robins nesting in a canoe. Rena relaxes a bit, but then the tide starts to come in. And rats start to jump from canoe to canoe. And George claims the door is locked, making escape impossible. Or is it?
Throughout the book Rena suspected Hedy, Bax, even Julie of torturing her. But since she never thinks of George, that’s obviously who it ends up being.
She gets to the door and finds out it’s unlocked. She suddenly realizes what’s going on. She asks George to try the door again, but he claims it’s still locked. And Rena knows the truth. It was him torturing her. His name is really Andy Malone... Kenny’s brother. He truly believes Rena killed Kenny. Rena still kind of believes this too, but then she has a flashback and realizes she left the room when Kenny started playing with the gun. Unfortunately, his death was a suicide.
Rena tricks Andy and gets out the door and out of the collapsing boat shack. But a falling piece of wood hits Andy in the head and renders him lifeless. Rena is sick of death and blood, so she does her best to save Andy. Thankfully, she gets him breathing again. Just then Julie and Marcie come down and tell her that her parents are waiting for her. Rena could not be more relieved. She is free of the guilt of believing she killed Kenny, and she knows Andy can get the help he needs now.
Rena decides that the theater is not for her. She likes the real world better. Good call, girl.
May 16, 2019
Well, this was yet another amazing book by the master of kid's horror books. I totally loved this one! I have only read one fear street book and I almost mistook this book for one. I eventually did read the list of books on the inside cover and found out that this is a sperate book from the rest of the series. I thought that would be an interesting little thing to point out. Never the less, it was still an amazing book! The book had a very interesting main character with an even more interesting past history. I have to admit, the book started out a tad slow but it then quickly picked up pace and was very exciting. The grand character reveal, a chapter or two before the ending, was exceptionally exciting. I mean, I almost didn't see it coming! Right before I read the chapter, I had a guess it might be who I thought it was and then I turned out to be right! Even still, it came in a surprising way and still kind of shocked me. By the time the end of the story rolled around, I was very pleased how the last few chapters came out and even more pleased by the very good ending it had. There's almost no better feeling than having a long time guilt being washed away and instead being replaced by relief/happiness. Well, that's how it seemed for Rena anyway. In the end, I was very happy that I had read this book and I quite enjoyed it! I will make sure to go pick up another one of R.L. Stine's books again soon.
November 30, 2009
I think this book was very well written.It has lots of unsoled mysteries that make you want to continue reading.In this book the main character's name is Rena, she has paranoia, of course you would to if you witnessed a murder that you think caused! Rena witnessed her boy friend's "murder" but she was dramitized by what happened so she doesn't remember anything. In the book she says that all she remembers is hearing a gun shot, and seeing the drark red blood spill on the floor. she doesnt know weather she killed him or if he killed himself untill the end of the book.To make things worst Rena's best friend, julie convinces her to go to a acting camp with her...acidents happen, those acidents make her very scared and make her feel like someone is after her... In the middle of the book she even thinks it could be julie, she doesnt know for sure but someone is sabotaging her and someone is trying to scare her out of acting camp!The best part of this book is the end, it is very suprising and unexpected.
October 18, 2011
As with all R.L. Stine novels, I loved this book. It's an eerie thriller written for teens and young adults.
This book was pretty violent. Everything from animal slaughter, suicides, stabbings, attempted drowning, gunshots, and even slashing of Rena's clothing. Swan lovers beware.
This book kept you guessing for quite a while. It was hard to figure out the killer's identity and motive and it had that classic Stine twist of an ending.
I enjoyed the characters and the setting of Curtains. Since it is set at an acting camp, it's hard for Rena and the reader to tell when characters were acting and when their actions, thoughts, and words were genuine.
Must read for any R.L. Stine fan.
This book was pretty violent. Everything from animal slaughter, suicides, stabbings, attempted drowning, gunshots, and even slashing of Rena's clothing. Swan lovers beware.
This book kept you guessing for quite a while. It was hard to figure out the killer's identity and motive and it had that classic Stine twist of an ending.
I enjoyed the characters and the setting of Curtains. Since it is set at an acting camp, it's hard for Rena and the reader to tell when characters were acting and when their actions, thoughts, and words were genuine.
Must read for any R.L. Stine fan.
February 2, 2014
I haven't read this book since I was 8, and I'm sure if I were to reread it today I would have to change my rating, but this is the book that got me into reading, and for that it gets 5 stars.
I bought it at a book fair in my school library when I was in the 3rd grade. It was the old cover, and that was what made me pick it up.
It was the first time I realized a book could be scary, and suspenseful (although I probably didn't even know that word at the time). I had never read a book for pleasure before, I had only read books I was assigned in school, which weren't always the most interesting. This book showed me that books could be exciting and interesting.
I bought it at a book fair in my school library when I was in the 3rd grade. It was the old cover, and that was what made me pick it up.
It was the first time I realized a book could be scary, and suspenseful (although I probably didn't even know that word at the time). I had never read a book for pleasure before, I had only read books I was assigned in school, which weren't always the most interesting. This book showed me that books could be exciting and interesting.
March 8, 2021
This was a very fun and quick read. Theater kids are an interesting bunch. Poor Rena had all these unfortunate things happen to her and the whole time I thought I knew who was doing them, but I was surely wrong! I loved the twist at the ending and I would definitely recommend this book to others. Stine never disappoints.
August 27, 2012
Actual rating: 3.5 stars. I very much enjoyed Rena's backstory in terms of the psychological damage that she has and how it shapes this book. I think a theater camp is a great setting for a mystery.
May 19, 2019
This book is awesome to me and it scared me a little bit!
June 12, 2022
This was a really short one-shot so it didn’t have a lot of space to stretch out and build any sort of ambiance (not that ambiance is Stine‘s strength), but it did do something a liked:
A girl is at camp and she feels like she’s had enough vague threats and weird occurrences and calls her parents to come pick her up.
And they do.
I mean, she let everyone know that they were coming so the bad guy had to move up the timetable, but I like the effort anyway. Any other Stine book and they would have said “weird how people keep dying and I’m being chased by something I don’t know, but mom would be so disappointed in me if I came home early from camp“
A girl is at camp and she feels like she’s had enough vague threats and weird occurrences and calls her parents to come pick her up.
And they do.
I mean, she let everyone know that they were coming so the bad guy had to move up the timetable, but I like the effort anyway. Any other Stine book and they would have said “weird how people keep dying and I’m being chased by something I don’t know, but mom would be so disappointed in me if I came home early from camp“
July 3, 2024
Theater camp as a mystery setting is pretty cool ngl. Can't imagine the psyche of going between "is this truly reality or is this all just a performance??" This was a pretty quick read (139 pgs) and the suspense was worth it - for the most part.
I just really couldn't stand Hedy nor Julie's snarky ass, and especially Bax's grown ass being stuck in his peaked potential days. I will admit though, the suspense throughout the story & plot twist was definitely worth it, but the ending to close out such a high ride narrative wasn't. Like what kind of bullshit ass white parent dialogue was that ?? 💀💀 Bffr.
Overall, it was ight - I enjoyed it more than I initially thought.
I just really couldn't stand Hedy nor Julie's snarky ass, and especially Bax's grown ass being stuck in his peaked potential days. I will admit though, the suspense throughout the story & plot twist was definitely worth it, but the ending to close out such a high ride narrative wasn't. Like what kind of bullshit ass white parent dialogue was that ?? 💀💀 Bffr.
Overall, it was ight - I enjoyed it more than I initially thought.
October 27, 2018
This book felt like it was between Goosebumps and Fear Street in the sense that it had more mature content than what I read in Goosebumps, but it didn't have that dark heart-pounding experience I crave from the Fear Street novels. "Pranks gone wrong" is the vibe I got from this, beyond the mystery of trying to find out who was messing with Rena.
June 18, 2024
I think this is the first YA story by R.L. Stine that I have read and I’ve just gotta say: it is much better writing than his Goosebumps series 😂 although I did call the big twist ending, there were some small things that still surprised me (I.e. Bax’s “suicide”) and it was still an enjoyable read. A good book to start Summerween.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 25, 2017
I really did like this book but I wish that the ending was different like some evil killer was out there but all in all the ending did make sense and I do recommend.
August 24, 2019
Title curtains
July 19, 2020
Decent short book with an unexpected ending
July 8, 2021
I love Stine's characters. They're so wacky.
August 3, 2021
I loved these books when I was a child. I probably should really just leave them in the past though.
March 13, 2022
Definitely not one of his better books. Was boring and hard to get through. Did not hold my interest at all, hence how long it too to finish.
January 29, 2023
I’ve read a few books by this author and I liked the others a lot better. This one just didn’t capture my attention much at all and I found it hard to finish.
December 30, 2023
This is an R.L Stine I picked up a while ago from a used book store, that I had never read in my youth. You would think with the amount I have read of his I would see the twists coming, but nope.
February 20, 2021
This was a strange story, but it kept me guessing and that was good. It was quick and got the job done, which was what I was looking for.
August 17, 2009
This I read just for the hell of it. I guess that could be said about anything I read, but in this case, I knew what I was getting into because I'd read a number of these R. L. Stine "YA horror" books when I was ten, twelve years old, and I thought I'd pick one up purely for nostalgiac value.
The writing is remarkably simple, the chapters often end in cliched cliffhangers, there's almost no violence to speak of, and... I don't know. There isn't much else to say. I can certainly see why these books appealed to kids in the 90s (I don't think they're very popular anymore, but then, I've been outta the scene for a while, so I may not know), but it seems to me that "genre" books intended for a younger audience have gotten better in recent years.
Bob Stine must have churned these things out every couple of days back then (and I know for certain that at least a few of his books were ghost written--thank you, Interview With Tom Perotta), and I think he's probably done a lot towards getting kids to read, and to read genre fiction, but there are certainly better quality books out there that are geared towards younger readers.
The writing is remarkably simple, the chapters often end in cliched cliffhangers, there's almost no violence to speak of, and... I don't know. There isn't much else to say. I can certainly see why these books appealed to kids in the 90s (I don't think they're very popular anymore, but then, I've been outta the scene for a while, so I may not know), but it seems to me that "genre" books intended for a younger audience have gotten better in recent years.
Bob Stine must have churned these things out every couple of days back then (and I know for certain that at least a few of his books were ghost written--thank you, Interview With Tom Perotta), and I think he's probably done a lot towards getting kids to read, and to read genre fiction, but there are certainly better quality books out there that are geared towards younger readers.
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