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Fear Street #24
The Thrill Club
Thrills and chills…
Talia Blanton could scare you to death.
She writes horror stories—stories that often give her friends starring roles.
Everyone loves Talia’s terrifying tales—until they start to come true. One by one, Talia’s friends become Talia’s victims.
Is Talia making her stories come true? Or is someone trying to turn Talia’s real life into a horror story?
Talia Blanton could scare you to death.
She writes horror stories—stories that often give her friends starring roles.
Everyone loves Talia’s terrifying tales—until they start to come true. One by one, Talia’s friends become Talia’s victims.
Is Talia making her stories come true? Or is someone trying to turn Talia’s real life into a horror story?
148 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 1994
About the author
R.L. Stine
1,737 books19.4k 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 172 reviews
March 26, 2017
Los libros de las portadas un poco más adultas, como este son los que tienen las historias más estructuradas. Por desgracia extravié este libro, fue de las historias más creativas que tiene la colección y también de las mas maduras, una historia sangrienta algo no muy común en Stine que vale mucho la pena.
October 18, 2017
Acclaimed author Tom Perrotta says he wrote this book, although I sleuthed throughout to find any deviation to Stine’s usual style and found nothing suspect. I adore Tom as well so I also searched for signs of him. No luck. The plot does have a winking nod to ghostwriting which does seem like something Perrotta would do.
I am curious how involved the ghostwriting process was. Did Stine heavily edit the book? Or is Perrotta just an excellent mimic? There are signature words such as “demanded” that Stine routinely uses in awkward places that also show up here. All other rhythm and flow seemed identical to the Stine I’ve read hundreds of times before.
Anyway, whoever wrote the book, be it Stine or the award-winning Perrotta, it’s a great story. The opening chapter is fantastic and it doesn’t let up from there. The ending got a little wacky but it’s Fear Street so you get used to wacky. I thoroughly enjoyed myself as I always do with this series.
I am curious how involved the ghostwriting process was. Did Stine heavily edit the book? Or is Perrotta just an excellent mimic? There are signature words such as “demanded” that Stine routinely uses in awkward places that also show up here. All other rhythm and flow seemed identical to the Stine I’ve read hundreds of times before.
Anyway, whoever wrote the book, be it Stine or the award-winning Perrotta, it’s a great story. The opening chapter is fantastic and it doesn’t let up from there. The ending got a little wacky but it’s Fear Street so you get used to wacky. I thoroughly enjoyed myself as I always do with this series.
October 20, 2024
4.5 stars
I was really impressed with this one. One of my favourites in the series so far. Reminded me of the Are You Afraid Of The Dark TV show but with deadly consequences. The mystery was very compelling and nearly all of the characters could have easily been the killer, which is the sign of great writing. Also pretty decent horror scenes for a young adult book, would definately reccommend.
A group of highschoolers gather every week to tell each other spooky stories. But when somebody chooses to use the real names of the club members in a story, those people end up dead. Is there a supernatural cause at work here? Or is one of the club members more dangerous than they seem?
I was really impressed with this one. One of my favourites in the series so far. Reminded me of the Are You Afraid Of The Dark TV show but with deadly consequences. The mystery was very compelling and nearly all of the characters could have easily been the killer, which is the sign of great writing. Also pretty decent horror scenes for a young adult book, would definately reccommend.
A group of highschoolers gather every week to tell each other spooky stories. But when somebody chooses to use the real names of the club members in a story, those people end up dead. Is there a supernatural cause at work here? Or is one of the club members more dangerous than they seem?
October 24, 2016
Ah, the one Fear Street book that is known to be the work of a ghostwriter. Tom Perrotta, who has written books like Election and Little Children that became acclaimed movies, has allegedly claimed ownership of this one. And it is actually one of the more entertaining, far-fetched Fear Street entries, with a meta twist: Talia Blanton is ghostwriting short stories for her boyfriend! They are members of the titular club, who swap scary stories. Talia starts using her friends as characters in her stories - and then her friends start to die for real!
Perrotta does a bang-up job in imitating Stine's style. I can usually spot a book I think was ghostwritten (Missing and The Knife particularly come to mind), but this one could have fooled me! It has the requisite false cliffhanger chapter endings - but also the more rare element of a body count. It's a shame that the upcoming Fear Street movies are going to be original storylines (which makes me think why even make it a Fear Street movie), because this could make a decent horror film!
Fast, fun thrills make this one of the more entertaining Fear Street books. It's been an age since I've read it, but I can still remember it vividly!
Perrotta does a bang-up job in imitating Stine's style. I can usually spot a book I think was ghostwritten (Missing and The Knife particularly come to mind), but this one could have fooled me! It has the requisite false cliffhanger chapter endings - but also the more rare element of a body count. It's a shame that the upcoming Fear Street movies are going to be original storylines (which makes me think why even make it a Fear Street movie), because this could make a decent horror film!
Fast, fun thrills make this one of the more entertaining Fear Street books. It's been an age since I've read it, but I can still remember it vividly!
October 19, 2020
Rounded up from 3.5
I read all these in my preteen/young teen years but I don’t remember a thing about them now. This didn’t end the way I thought it would and that was good. This is one of the out there Fear Street books but it’s a nice change from the more predictable ones.
I read all these in my preteen/young teen years but I don’t remember a thing about them now. This didn’t end the way I thought it would and that was good. This is one of the out there Fear Street books but it’s a nice change from the more predictable ones.
May 31, 2020
The Thrill Club by R.L. Stine was a great, spooky, YA, horror novel!
Talia is a member of the Thrill Club with five of her friends. In this club, she tells spooky stories to everyone. Lately, she's been slacking and one of the other members is writing her stories.... but something strange is also happening. These horror-filled stories of death and murder are now happening to the people she wrote them about. Talia also can't seem to remember parts of her day, and she doesn't even realize it... Something spooky is going down on Fear Street.
This book is short but fast paced. It's the fun kind of horror I like in an R.L. Stine book. There's twists and turns, there's descriptive or spooky horror and it's just lots fun. The action or deception never stops! There's also blood and gore, which is rare for a YA (but this was also written many years ago, so the status quo for gore has changed).
I'm also super glad that this book has held up. The only thing I can say is that I found a couple of the characters unbearable, but that's typically how it works with YA. There's always that bratty or snobby character that nobody likes. The deaths also don't affect the people in the story that much. The characters seem to be sad for a couple moments and get passed it. Again, this is YA and it doesn't have many extra pages for fluff like that, so it's just me being picky.
Overall, this book is predictable but loads of fun! I definitely want to pick up the remaining Fear Street books. That may take me a millennia, but I will get there eventually!
Four out of five stars.
Talia is a member of the Thrill Club with five of her friends. In this club, she tells spooky stories to everyone. Lately, she's been slacking and one of the other members is writing her stories.... but something strange is also happening. These horror-filled stories of death and murder are now happening to the people she wrote them about. Talia also can't seem to remember parts of her day, and she doesn't even realize it... Something spooky is going down on Fear Street.
This book is short but fast paced. It's the fun kind of horror I like in an R.L. Stine book. There's twists and turns, there's descriptive or spooky horror and it's just lots fun. The action or deception never stops! There's also blood and gore, which is rare for a YA (but this was also written many years ago, so the status quo for gore has changed).
I'm also super glad that this book has held up. The only thing I can say is that I found a couple of the characters unbearable, but that's typically how it works with YA. There's always that bratty or snobby character that nobody likes. The deaths also don't affect the people in the story that much. The characters seem to be sad for a couple moments and get passed it. Again, this is YA and it doesn't have many extra pages for fluff like that, so it's just me being picky.
Overall, this book is predictable but loads of fun! I definitely want to pick up the remaining Fear Street books. That may take me a millennia, but I will get there eventually!
Four out of five stars.
October 6, 2020
Well that was weird, and mostly predictable. But I liked it.
May 28, 2018
From my blog theresthegirlwittheblog.blogspot.com (slightly edited)
So before I go into the book review, I believe we should get the tiny white elephant out of the closest and out of the way. For those who do not know the book I will be talking about, The Thrill Club. was not written by R.L. Stine (allegedly).
In the early 90s even though Fear Street was big Goosebumps came along and kind of overthrew it in popularity and then of course R.L. also had the books he wrote for the Point Horror series, the Goosebumps TV series and other projects. It's kind of hard to have a new Fear Street book every month so this was the first instance where a ghostwriter was employed.
When a franchise is so huge and the author you love sadly passes it is nice to honor them and continue the hard work but when you are still alive and swamped by ideas I see it as being nice to give aspiring writers a chance to help you out.
The Thrill Club was written by author Tom Perotta and if you don't know who he is his biggest claim to fame is writing the book Election which was made into a film starring Matthew Broderick and Reese Witherspoon. If you have never heard of either the book or the film, I recommend the film as it's one of my faves!
Until I learned this news, I thought it was a good story and the first one I can actually remember having more supernatural kind of elements instead of just being a murder mystery which was awesome. So if you still wish to see what this book has to offer let's get on with the show...
So Shandel Carter is having to cut through Fear Street near the cemetery because she and bestie Nessa Troy got into a stupid argument...over ghosts. Nessa says she saw a ghost bride once and Shandel is like yeah right so Nessa tells her to leave if she can't believe her.
What do you know?
Shandel gets her throat slit by an unseen figure with a feminine voice...guess she should have listened to Nessa.
Turns out it was all just another story written by Shadyside's greatest writer...or is it? Talia Blanton usually has no problem writing but lately she has had severe writer's block and her boyfriend Seth has been writing her last couple of stories including tonight's presentation to The Thrill Club.
Talia never usually puts her friends as the characters in her stories but since it's been Seth he says it makes the stories creepier...too bad Shandel is not amused at having her throat slit even in a tale of fiction. She and Talia get into a little bit of a heated argument and well I guess also trying to stab Shandel with a trick knife isn't going to help is it?
There is also a lot of drama going on in this club because well you see Seth and Maura use to go out until Seth asked Talia for a date and she said yes so there is some tension there because even though Maura is with Rudy now she still flirts with Seth.
Not only has Seth been writing Talia's stories he has also been helping her with her math homework and apparently Maura thinks Talia treats Seth like a slave but apparently he likes to be treated like a loyal puppy dog. Talia's blonde, blue-eyed and beautiful so who wouldn't want that over a chubby ginger with freckles I mean this is Teen World right?
Maybe Seth likes to feel needed seeing as how weeks ago his father just dropped dead at his work desk and it's messed with Seth pretty bad. His dad was an anthropologist into tribes from New Guinea and other countries so Seth has been going through his notes and tapes and finds one labeled TRANSFER TAPE with some real weird and creepy chanting on it that he makes Talia listen to it.
It gets to the point where Talia thinks her ears are going to bleed as she feels weak and dizzy and nauseous from it and Seth shuts it off. Well it seems like Seth may be taking Dad's death even worse than Talia believed and she does feel guilty for almost maybe being tired of Seth and his needy tendencies.
It also doesn't help that Seth doesn't defend her when Maura and the others begin to suspect the stories aren't hers and when a teacher asks her outright if she is cheating on her Math homework.
These teen troubles are nothing compared to the terror about to come when Shandel is found dead with her throat slashed just like in the story and Talia finds a bloody knife in her drawer and bloodstains on her sweatshirt!
Talia has no idea what is going on especially when the police tell her that she called Shandel's mom and confessed to killing her daughter and Nessa says Talia also called to tell her that she can start dating Seth! Is Talia going crazy she says she didn't do either of those things?
Everyone begins to look at her with much more suspicion that Talia can't help but kiss Rudy, the only one not treating her different or pulling away, but someone catches them! Who was it and is this person responsible for all of Talia's terror?
It seems like horror is spilling over into reality when another member, the victim of another story, of the Thrill Club is found dead and this time Talia can't erase the evidence against her. Who is the villain rewriting Talia's story into one of horror and can she change the ending into a happy one?
As stated above, I really enjoy this story. Yes it has murder like most other Fear Street books but the supernatural element presented around the story's climax is refreshing and quite plausible: there is a lot about other cultures and the paranormal we don't understand.
It's almost easy to pick out the antagonist of the story from the beginning but a few hints of another character being the villain are alluded to and maybe even a person not in the foreground. Soon that possibility is scrubbed and the more paranormal/fantasy element is introduced and you are like yeah I can see that.
The characters are good but I don't really get invested into them much. It's not that I don't care whether they live or die but only one death really doesn't seem deserved and I'm not sure if you can call the main character Talia completely innocent for some of the things she did.
I'm also not really sure if the antagonist was justified in their motive as well but it doesn't mean the book isn't great either. I would recommend this Fear Street book it's engaging and all kinds of messed up (but in a good way!)
BTW the second death is one of the saddest I have read in a Fear Street book (out of many others) and hits me really hard...
So before I go into the book review, I believe we should get the tiny white elephant out of the closest and out of the way. For those who do not know the book I will be talking about, The Thrill Club. was not written by R.L. Stine (allegedly).
In the early 90s even though Fear Street was big Goosebumps came along and kind of overthrew it in popularity and then of course R.L. also had the books he wrote for the Point Horror series, the Goosebumps TV series and other projects. It's kind of hard to have a new Fear Street book every month so this was the first instance where a ghostwriter was employed.
When a franchise is so huge and the author you love sadly passes it is nice to honor them and continue the hard work but when you are still alive and swamped by ideas I see it as being nice to give aspiring writers a chance to help you out.
The Thrill Club was written by author Tom Perotta and if you don't know who he is his biggest claim to fame is writing the book Election which was made into a film starring Matthew Broderick and Reese Witherspoon. If you have never heard of either the book or the film, I recommend the film as it's one of my faves!
Until I learned this news, I thought it was a good story and the first one I can actually remember having more supernatural kind of elements instead of just being a murder mystery which was awesome. So if you still wish to see what this book has to offer let's get on with the show...
So Shandel Carter is having to cut through Fear Street near the cemetery because she and bestie Nessa Troy got into a stupid argument...over ghosts. Nessa says she saw a ghost bride once and Shandel is like yeah right so Nessa tells her to leave if she can't believe her.
What do you know?
Shandel gets her throat slit by an unseen figure with a feminine voice...guess she should have listened to Nessa.
Turns out it was all just another story written by Shadyside's greatest writer...or is it? Talia Blanton usually has no problem writing but lately she has had severe writer's block and her boyfriend Seth has been writing her last couple of stories including tonight's presentation to The Thrill Club.
Talia never usually puts her friends as the characters in her stories but since it's been Seth he says it makes the stories creepier...too bad Shandel is not amused at having her throat slit even in a tale of fiction. She and Talia get into a little bit of a heated argument and well I guess also trying to stab Shandel with a trick knife isn't going to help is it?
There is also a lot of drama going on in this club because well you see Seth and Maura use to go out until Seth asked Talia for a date and she said yes so there is some tension there because even though Maura is with Rudy now she still flirts with Seth.
Not only has Seth been writing Talia's stories he has also been helping her with her math homework and apparently Maura thinks Talia treats Seth like a slave but apparently he likes to be treated like a loyal puppy dog. Talia's blonde, blue-eyed and beautiful so who wouldn't want that over a chubby ginger with freckles I mean this is Teen World right?
Maybe Seth likes to feel needed seeing as how weeks ago his father just dropped dead at his work desk and it's messed with Seth pretty bad. His dad was an anthropologist into tribes from New Guinea and other countries so Seth has been going through his notes and tapes and finds one labeled TRANSFER TAPE with some real weird and creepy chanting on it that he makes Talia listen to it.
It gets to the point where Talia thinks her ears are going to bleed as she feels weak and dizzy and nauseous from it and Seth shuts it off. Well it seems like Seth may be taking Dad's death even worse than Talia believed and she does feel guilty for almost maybe being tired of Seth and his needy tendencies.
It also doesn't help that Seth doesn't defend her when Maura and the others begin to suspect the stories aren't hers and when a teacher asks her outright if she is cheating on her Math homework.
These teen troubles are nothing compared to the terror about to come when Shandel is found dead with her throat slashed just like in the story and Talia finds a bloody knife in her drawer and bloodstains on her sweatshirt!
Talia has no idea what is going on especially when the police tell her that she called Shandel's mom and confessed to killing her daughter and Nessa says Talia also called to tell her that she can start dating Seth! Is Talia going crazy she says she didn't do either of those things?
Everyone begins to look at her with much more suspicion that Talia can't help but kiss Rudy, the only one not treating her different or pulling away, but someone catches them! Who was it and is this person responsible for all of Talia's terror?
It seems like horror is spilling over into reality when another member, the victim of another story, of the Thrill Club is found dead and this time Talia can't erase the evidence against her. Who is the villain rewriting Talia's story into one of horror and can she change the ending into a happy one?
As stated above, I really enjoy this story. Yes it has murder like most other Fear Street books but the supernatural element presented around the story's climax is refreshing and quite plausible: there is a lot about other cultures and the paranormal we don't understand.
It's almost easy to pick out the antagonist of the story from the beginning but a few hints of another character being the villain are alluded to and maybe even a person not in the foreground. Soon that possibility is scrubbed and the more paranormal/fantasy element is introduced and you are like yeah I can see that.
The characters are good but I don't really get invested into them much. It's not that I don't care whether they live or die but only one death really doesn't seem deserved and I'm not sure if you can call the main character Talia completely innocent for some of the things she did.
I'm also not really sure if the antagonist was justified in their motive as well but it doesn't mean the book isn't great either. I would recommend this Fear Street book it's engaging and all kinds of messed up (but in a good way!)
BTW the second death is one of the saddest I have read in a Fear Street book (out of many others) and hits me really hard...
July 25, 2017
BOOKTUBEATHON DAY 1 (2017): face on the cover
This book completely sucked me in.
The vivid images were gory and insanely creepy! I think this should be a movie, given with a proper ending. The book was short imo, as there were still things unsolved. I wanted a different ending.
I wasn't a fan of the personalities of these characters, except Nessa.
It was also confusing at times, if something happened or if it was the story created by one of the characters. Another annoying thing is how predictable the book was. However, this book was definitely fun to read. I actually liked it?? I'm shook.
This book completely sucked me in.
The vivid images were gory and insanely creepy! I think this should be a movie, given with a proper ending. The book was short imo, as there were still things unsolved. I wanted a different ending.
I wasn't a fan of the personalities of these characters, except Nessa.
It was also confusing at times, if something happened or if it was the story created by one of the characters. Another annoying thing is how predictable the book was. However, this book was definitely fun to read. I actually liked it?? I'm shook.
February 28, 2020
I needed a book for the PopSugar 2020 Challenge and this was a perfect fit for the category “A Book in a Series of 20 or More Books.” While some of it is predictable, I was more entertained by this story than some bestsellers I’ve read lately. Being back in the nostalgic world of Feat Street was also fun. The story held up pretty well for me and I wouldn’t hesitate to read more of the older series. I was very excited to find some of the series on Libby.
Side note: I read this in the ‘90s and always thought one of the girls on the cover looked like Tia or Tamera Mowry.
Side note: I read this in the ‘90s and always thought one of the girls on the cover looked like Tia or Tamera Mowry.
December 31, 2011
Once again, this is a book spoiled by the explanation at the end and if you are a halfway observant reader, This book could have turned out so much better.
December 12, 2018
This was a quick teen scream thriller that hit all of the fun cliche notes. It was cheesy, creepy, cliche and dated. But it was a lot of fun to read. I figured it out before the end. But I still had fun with it.
June 2, 2022
3.5 stars rounded up for Goodreads. This Fear Street book was fun and unique. That's no surprise as I've enjoyed all the Fear Street books I've read so far. They definitely strike a wonderfully nostalgic nerve for me. To hear more of my thoughts on this book, check out my April reading wrap up here: https://youtu.be/yk74-v1dlHc?t=1034
July 25, 2022
um livro pra passar o tempo e que cumpre o que promete, cheio de ação, sangue e reviravoltas, achei a história bem interessante e rápida de ler, seria bem legal ver esse livro ser adaptado pra filme!
June 13, 2011
I LOVED this when I was around ten. It was the equivalent of reading a horror movie that I couldn't watch enough times. I've read this book easily twenty-five times. I read a lot of Goosebumps when I was in elementary school, so I guess this was my middle school version. It's more serious than Goosebumps - this was right before my graduation into a Stephen King phase. Very quick read, and it's worth it if you read any R.L. Stine.
July 19, 2019
Love these books!
June 29, 2024
Scary stories turn terrifying true in this teen horror that manages to cram a lot of content into a relatively short page count. The pacing is on point and the plotting crisp; the crescendo a departure from other Fear Street books I’ve read yet overall grounded by the tried and true formula that makes these stories so easy to consume.
Note. I read this as part of the Fear Street Collection (book 5): Evil Powers (and in my opinion this is the best of the three books in the collected volume)
Note. I read this as part of the Fear Street Collection (book 5): Evil Powers (and in my opinion this is the best of the three books in the collected volume)
July 18, 2020
The plot twist in this one was predictable halfway through it. Yet, it was enjoyable and gave me chills at some points. Nice!
September 28, 2024
the suicide jokes weren’t cute but other than that, a decent, quick r.l. stine read
May 3, 2026
Thought I had the ending pegged from the beginning and I'm so glad I was wrong! The real ending was so much darker lol. RL Stine you will always be famous for making generations of children scream!!!
July 14, 2017
The Thrill Club was certainly less than thrilling... This next book in the Fear Street Series sees Talia and her boyfriend Seth writing horror stories featuring their friends for a little gathering they call "The Thrill Club", and it's all fun until the murders from the story become real. And Talia is starting to forget large chunks of her day and the evidence against her keeps piling up...
This book was short on the usual thrills and chills of Fear Street. It was pretty blase and only glossed over the deaths and was so predictable that even the mystery was lackluster. The explanation and reveal at the end is so cheap it never raised my interest past "meh". One of the weaker books in the series.
This book was short on the usual thrills and chills of Fear Street. It was pretty blase and only glossed over the deaths and was so predictable that even the mystery was lackluster. The explanation and reveal at the end is so cheap it never raised my interest past "meh". One of the weaker books in the series.
August 9, 2018
3.5 ☆
This was one of the scarier ones from all I've read, mostly because of the way in which the murders happened and the way it's written. Some parts are written in such a way that you don't know if it's a story that they're telling or the actual events. I found that to be quite entertaining and I alsmost thought that maybe the ending was going to go somewhat along those lines - not knowing if it's all a story or story becoming reality. And that would've been great, in my opinion, but it did not go that way and that's why I gave the story a lower rating than I originaly wanted to - the ending was a bit dissapointing to me.
Otherwise, it's quite a scary read for a lonely, dark night.
This was one of the scarier ones from all I've read, mostly because of the way in which the murders happened and the way it's written. Some parts are written in such a way that you don't know if it's a story that they're telling or the actual events. I found that to be quite entertaining and I alsmost thought that maybe the ending was going to go somewhat along those lines - not knowing if it's all a story or story becoming reality. And that would've been great, in my opinion, but it did not go that way and that's why I gave the story a lower rating than I originaly wanted to - the ending was a bit dissapointing to me.
Otherwise, it's quite a scary read for a lonely, dark night.
January 3, 2020
I can't believe all these bad things happened to Talia. I knew something was suspicious when the story started out with one of her friends dying. It's weird how whenever she wrote something it came true. I thought the scariest part was when rudy accidentally hung himself. He was my favorite character. I don't think seth deserved Talia. He treated her poorly. If I was Talia I would have broken up with him right away. I knew seth was behind this. I can't believe he tried to kill Talia and Nessa. I'm happy they survived
November 13, 2014
This book is fantastic. The storyline is very interesting. Talia Blanton and her friends form a group called The Thrill Club. Talia is in charge of writing horror stories in every meeting. The truth is her friend Seth is the one that has been writing her stories. The events that happen in these horror stories actually happen to Talia and her friends. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes horror. I would give this book 5 stars out of 5. Overall, this book is really great.
October 7, 2009
I remember thinking this was a rip-off of Christopher Pike's Midnight Club. Or that other Christopher Pike book, Whisper of Death, where they find the stories written by their dead friend about each one of them dying in horrible ways that then come true. I also remember thinking the girl on the cover (the one with the yellow vest and hat?) was WAY out of style.
May 22, 2014
I just can't with Talia and I needed a much darker ending. The best part of the book were the short horror stories Talia tells to the group. They're quick, to the point and everyone in them dies. We needed more stories and less vague mind trances.
October 16, 2014
This book is full of mystery and suspense that will leave you wondering. I recommend this book to people who like R.L Stine books especially Fear Street
May 20, 2021
This one is the infamous ghostwritten Fear Street book, and you can tell it was ghostwritten, because there is a black character in it. Stine would never!
September 23, 2026
This starts off badly with a character named Shandel, which just makes me think of Sindel from Mortal Kombat. It also raises the question of pronunciation: Is is 'Shan-delle', or does it rhyme with sandal?
We also don't get past page one before Stine provides another piece of evidence that he doesn't know what ghosts are, by describing one like this:
"A man with a meat cleaver. Wearing a hockey mask. I've seen that movie".
So have I. That isn't a ghost.
Luckily, it appears Sandal isn't real. She is part of a story being told in one of those classic ghost-club setups, used in many teen franchises like 'Are You Afraid of the Dark' and 'Midnight Club'. This one has been inaccurately named the 'Thrill Club'.
Unluckily, all the members of this particular club are crap at stories, and mainly just keep describing each other getting gruesomely killed. They are also the exact same characters as every other Stine book - bland girl 1, bland girl 2, chubby girl, bland boyfriend 1, bland boyfriend 2, annoying younger brother.
Worse, it turns out Sandal is a real person after all. Her friend Talia has just chosen to use her as the character getting gruesomely decapitated. Or rather Seth has, since he secretly wrote Talia's story for her. TBF writing is hard. You can't expect a girl to do it.
As always, many pathetic fake-outs end chapters. Not much else happens for a bit, except for the usual Stine stuff: All the girls hate each other and fight over boys. People are impatient that someone hasn't got over the death of a close relative, as it happened weeks ago. People pretend to stab each other for a bit of a laugh, and are terrified by plastic masks.
Then it gets racist. "Primitive tribe" whose "voices don't sound human" racist.
More nothing, except the previous. Also, the girls thinking about how pretty they are. Not the plump one, obviously.
Then, finally, Sandal is murdered. In the exact same way as the story, obviously. Talia isn't sure if she is the murderer or not, because she is a girl and girls are dumb. just in case, she throws out vital evidence. She also tells everyone about it, as she doesn't understand the point of throwing out evidence. Consequently, all her horrible friends suspect her. She doesn't bother to tell them that it wasn't even her that wrote the story, because she has no sense whatsoever.
We get another classic Stine annoying prank. In this case someone attempts to trick people into thinking they've found a dead body, roughly a month after one of the people concerned actually found their father's dead body. Which is a touch thoughtless. However, the prank-player manages to actually hang themselves instead, which seems a harsh punishment. But don't worry, it's just a fake-out story. But no, guess what, it actually happens! It's actually quite an inappropriately grim scene for a book aimed at young teens, and the only sign I noticed of the hand of claimed ghost writer Tom Perrotta.
Then an uncomfortable moment when Sandal's ghost turns up, is described as African American, and then immediately starts patting Talia's blonde hair and saying how beautiful it is. Worse, it turns out it isn't Sandal's ghost, it's just some other black girl. TBF though, Talia can't recognise her white friend's ghost either, so I guess that's more of a personal problem than racism?
And at last the dénouement. Seth is quite obviously the problem. Less obviously, he has been using mystical chants from the aforementioned "primitive tribe" to possess Talia and force her to murder people. I think the stupidity is just her though. His motivation is that he is mad at girls for using him, i.e. not sleeping with him. So he uses them to kill people he is jealous of. Well, not Sandal. He just killed her by accident, apparently. Then he either dies or escapes his body, depending on whether a sequel was ever released. And somehow this solves Talia's problem of the authorities suspecting her of the murders. Not sure how.
An even worse Fear Street than usual, frankly, due to the fact that the only thing which differentiated it was the racism. And, to be fair, the unexpectedly vivid hanging.
We also don't get past page one before Stine provides another piece of evidence that he doesn't know what ghosts are, by describing one like this:
"A man with a meat cleaver. Wearing a hockey mask. I've seen that movie".
So have I. That isn't a ghost.
Luckily, it appears Sandal isn't real. She is part of a story being told in one of those classic ghost-club setups, used in many teen franchises like 'Are You Afraid of the Dark' and 'Midnight Club'. This one has been inaccurately named the 'Thrill Club'.
Unluckily, all the members of this particular club are crap at stories, and mainly just keep describing each other getting gruesomely killed. They are also the exact same characters as every other Stine book - bland girl 1, bland girl 2, chubby girl, bland boyfriend 1, bland boyfriend 2, annoying younger brother.
Worse, it turns out Sandal is a real person after all. Her friend Talia has just chosen to use her as the character getting gruesomely decapitated. Or rather Seth has, since he secretly wrote Talia's story for her. TBF writing is hard. You can't expect a girl to do it.
As always, many pathetic fake-outs end chapters. Not much else happens for a bit, except for the usual Stine stuff: All the girls hate each other and fight over boys. People are impatient that someone hasn't got over the death of a close relative, as it happened weeks ago. People pretend to stab each other for a bit of a laugh, and are terrified by plastic masks.
Then it gets racist. "Primitive tribe" whose "voices don't sound human" racist.
More nothing, except the previous. Also, the girls thinking about how pretty they are. Not the plump one, obviously.
Then, finally, Sandal is murdered. In the exact same way as the story, obviously. Talia isn't sure if she is the murderer or not, because she is a girl and girls are dumb. just in case, she throws out vital evidence. She also tells everyone about it, as she doesn't understand the point of throwing out evidence. Consequently, all her horrible friends suspect her. She doesn't bother to tell them that it wasn't even her that wrote the story, because she has no sense whatsoever.
We get another classic Stine annoying prank. In this case someone attempts to trick people into thinking they've found a dead body, roughly a month after one of the people concerned actually found their father's dead body. Which is a touch thoughtless. However, the prank-player manages to actually hang themselves instead, which seems a harsh punishment. But don't worry, it's just a fake-out story. But no, guess what, it actually happens! It's actually quite an inappropriately grim scene for a book aimed at young teens, and the only sign I noticed of the hand of claimed ghost writer Tom Perrotta.
Then an uncomfortable moment when Sandal's ghost turns up, is described as African American, and then immediately starts patting Talia's blonde hair and saying how beautiful it is. Worse, it turns out it isn't Sandal's ghost, it's just some other black girl. TBF though, Talia can't recognise her white friend's ghost either, so I guess that's more of a personal problem than racism?
And at last the dénouement. Seth is quite obviously the problem. Less obviously, he has been using mystical chants from the aforementioned "primitive tribe" to possess Talia and force her to murder people. I think the stupidity is just her though. His motivation is that he is mad at girls for using him, i.e. not sleeping with him. So he uses them to kill people he is jealous of. Well, not Sandal. He just killed her by accident, apparently. Then he either dies or escapes his body, depending on whether a sequel was ever released. And somehow this solves Talia's problem of the authorities suspecting her of the murders. Not sure how.
An even worse Fear Street than usual, frankly, due to the fact that the only thing which differentiated it was the racism. And, to be fair, the unexpectedly vivid hanging.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 6, 2024
A good premise one of my favorite fear street books so far with a lot of potential, i liked the scary atmosphere of the book and the good writing and some of the parts written in such a way you dont know if its a story that they are telling or the actual events and i felt the ending was going to go that way but sadly it didn't.
i also liked the characters chemistry and the development of it and the book was so intriguing and it keeps me going.
what i didn't like that the book spoiled a little bit in the ending with the rush explanation and also supernatural factor that i didn't like and i also predicted halfway.
(VERDICT: 7.6/10)
i also liked the characters chemistry and the development of it and the book was so intriguing and it keeps me going.
what i didn't like that the book spoiled a little bit in the ending with the rush explanation and also supernatural factor that i didn't like and i also predicted halfway.
(VERDICT: 7.6/10)
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