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Fear Street #8

Halloween Party

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The invitation arrived in a black-bordered envelope and was delivered by the beautiful and mysterious transfer student. The inside showed a coffin with the inscription “Reserved for You”—perfect for an all-night Halloween party in an old house on Fear Street.The party is well under way when the lights go out. That’s to be expected at the Halloween party. But when the lights come back on, a boy is on the floor with a knife in his back. Just a Halloween prank? Maybe. Maybe not.Now the guests’ trick-or-treating has turned to terror. And it looks like someone’s idea of a party game is murder!

163 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 1990

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4536 people want to read

About the author

R.L. Stine

1,679 books18.6k followers
Robert 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...

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 407 reviews
Profile Image for Alejandro.
1,304 reviews3,776 followers
November 3, 2018
Welcome to the party!


A PARTY ON FEAR STREET

I liked it a lot, since I was (once again) quite clear of what to expect from a book by R.L. Stine, taking in account the usual level of horror in his lines of books. Since it would be unfair to expect something totally gore or a pile of bodies, since this isn't Saw or Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and not matter that Fear Street may be a more dangerous line than Goosebumps, still this is R.L. Stine, therefore you shouldn't be unfair with him and his work expecting something that it's obvious that it isn't his cup of tea.

But don't get wrong this book, since NOT EVERYBODY will come out alive from this book! There will be blood alright.

A new student, gorgeous and already popular, set a Halloween Party, and what better place to raise it but...

...FEAR STREET!!!

But it's not a open party. Only 9 student from the whole high school are invitedm but they aren't friends (at least not all of them) and soon a battle of students' social groups is call between "wimps" and "jocks"...

...but if they'd know that the Halloween Party already have enough peril there, they should reconsider of instead separating in groups but forging alliances...

...if they really want to come out alive from the party!!!

Oh, and of course, always there are party crashers in this kind of gathering!

Trick or treat!


Profile Image for Cameron Chaney.
Author 12 books2,174 followers
August 3, 2021
This was a re-read for me, but it had been almost twenty years (?!?!?!) since I read it so I didn't remember a ton going in. When I started reading though, I was like, "Ohh, I remember all of this." Lots of memories here! Check out my full thoughts in my Fear Street reading vlog!
Profile Image for Paula.
545 reviews7 followers
July 26, 2016
High school students Terry and his girlfriend, Niki, are invited with seven other students to mysterious new student Justine's all-night Halloween party. None of the invited really know Justine well and wonder why they were chosen. Some of the jocks that were invited turn the party into a contest with the so-called wimps who are there, to see who can out-scare each other before the night is over. As the night progresses, the scares are becoming all too real, and it's not a matter of who will outlast each other, but who will make it out alive.

Really fun Halloween story. It's a young adult novel and it's light on the horror. The main characters, Terry and Niki, are very likable, the secondary cast were a lively bunch of people who added to the fun, and the scares along the way were plenty. Quick and easy, entertaining read for the Halloween holiday.
Profile Image for Scott Rhee.
2,310 reviews161 followers
October 8, 2025
I recently watched the first of three Netflix films based on R.L. Stine's Fear Street series, and I enjoyed it. While not necessarily based on any particular novels in the series, the film certainly captures the "vibe" of the long-running young adult horror series that Stine wrote in the late-80s/early-90s.

The first film---titled, and set in, "1994"---definitely checked a lot of the boxes for horror fans, including not one but four supernatural slashers, gratuitous sex scenes, a tongue-in-cheek self-referentialism, and plenty of blood and guts. Fans of the "Scream" franchise will find in it a suitable alternative.

Stine himself isn't a huge horror fan, according to a few interviews I've read, which may seem like an odd thing to say considering he's the guy who pretty much invented the young adult horror genre and the middle-reader horror series "Goosebumps", which is still going strong after nearly 30 years.



"Halloween Party" is, like the previous Fear Street books, less horror than it is suspense-thriller-ish. Stine didn't really add much supernatural stuff to the series until later books.

Justine, the new girl, lives in one of the old mansions on Fear Street. She has invited a select group to attend a Halloween party. At first, the party starts out okay, but attendees start disappearing one at a time, and, as the night progresses, it's clear that Justine has ulterior motives for throwing the party.

It's fluff, but it's entertaining and fun fluff, without all the gratuitous sex and violence that seems de rigeur for what passes for horror nowadays. "Terrifier" it ain't.
Profile Image for Crystal.
877 reviews169 followers
October 10, 2021
Yes-I'm a middle aged dork who grew up reading R.L. Stine and still loves his books.
This one is a super fun locked mystery style story that takes place during a Halloween Party. Super spooky! It gets even spookier when the bodies start dropping like flies. This is a fast paced read with a killer (pun intended) twist ending that we've all come to know and love from Stine.

IMO, this is one of the better Fear Street books and definitely work a read (or reread) this Halloween for the nostalgia factor alone.
Profile Image for Coos Burton.
913 reviews1,571 followers
July 13, 2021
Tengo debilidad por los libros cuya historia principal transcurre durante la época de Halloween. Y en vista de que estábamos muy cerca del estreno de la trilogía de Fear Street, decidí leer "Halloween Party", que me pareció de lo más divertido. Mucho suspenso, sangre y terror, justo como me gusta.
Profile Image for Ken.
2,562 reviews1,375 followers
August 26, 2018
Nine random students of Shadyside High are invited to Justin Cameron’s Halloween Party. The host is most instant that only those chosen can attend, which instantly made me wonder what was the connection between these people.

It’s a fun 90’s YA horror mystery, with plenty of pranks played during the course of the evening which leads to typical the Stine cliffhangers we all love.

The reveal was great, though if you dissect all the elements too much it doesn’t logically all fit together.
Nevertheless this was a enjoyable Fear Street novel.
5 reviews
January 8, 2014
I loved it

I have read so many of these fearstreet books that I've been obsessed with them, like every hour everyday I will either have to finish a book or start a new one and just keep reading till the end and it's sucks that these cost money on here but all in all this was not a waste of money..... NONE OF THESE BOOKS ARE!! these are the worldwide best books I have ever read in my whole entire life I will always read these until I've read every single one of them, so if I were you I seriously would just spend my money on these books they are great books and they are worth the words that are typed in it!!
sincerely, Faith
Thank You for these amazing book R.L Stine
Profile Image for رزی - Woman, Life, Liberty.
339 reviews119 followers
September 27, 2025
می‌تونستم تو زمان انتظار تو مطب سه بار از اول تا آخر بخونمش. فقط یک بار خوندم ولی. رزیِ عصبانی و خسته‌ای هستم چون حتی داستانش جالب نبود.
Profile Image for tobi10.
347 reviews126 followers
November 9, 2022
Rache passt am besten zu Halloween

In dem Buch Halloween von R. L. Stine, geht es um Terry und seine Freundin Nikki, beide haben eine Einladung zu einer Halloweenparty von Justine bekommen, einer Austauschschülerin die mit ihrem Onkel in der Fear Street in einem alten Haus wohnt. Warum ausgerechnet Terry und seine Freundin zu den wenigen Auserwählten gehören, die eine Einladung zu der Halloweenparty von Justine bekommen haben, wissen sie auch nicht. Alle gehen auf jeden Fall zu der Halloweenparty von Justine, die ihrem Onkel in der alten Villa in der Fear Street wohnt.

Meine Meinung:
Die Geschichte ist spannend geschrieben und flüssig zu lesen. Das Buch passt perfekt zu Halloween und ist gegen Mitte bis Ende der Geschichte so spannend, das ich da nur so durch die Seiten geflogen bin.

Fazit:
Ich kann die Geschichte nur empfehlen, am besten für Halloween oder gruselige Abende.
Profile Image for AFrolicInTheTomesXx.
253 reviews44 followers
October 20, 2022
Some of these books are nostalgic goldmines, and others are just kinda meh. I could understand how someone younger could like it. But too much elementary drama for me. These books are just so hit or miss. And this one was a miss. You have to suspend your disbelief with all Stine books. But with the fear street ones the most as the characters don’t actually seem like high schoolers as they’re supposed to. I was hoping for a Halloween style read with this, but instead got a “jocks vs wimps” competition . Not really my thing. It really ruined any atmosphere this book tried to have. I was over it before it was even time for the creepy setting to take place.

I also didn’t like how the one representative character in here was treated. Nikki has a hearing impairment but can read lips and doesn’t have a speech problem. Which is made to seem like if she did the mc wouldn’t be with her. He also talks about how she def isn’t the prettiest or smartest girl in the school, but this other girl (the one throwing the party) is. Ew. Why is this in a book for young kids? Her nickname “funny face” rubs me wrong for these reasons, as deaf people often get made fun of for their facial expressions while trying to talk/communicate. It’s never mentioned why she has this nickname but it’s kind of offputting. I did see from some hearing impaired readers though that stine did do them justice in SOME aspects though.

The actual plot twist was interesting… but also a plot hole.

I honestly think I prefer goosebumps tbh lol. So I might just switch to those.
Profile Image for Elliot.
12 reviews
September 29, 2010
R.L. Stine is at his best in Halloween Party. The book is about nine seemingly random students from Shadyside High School that were invited to attend a Halloween party at the home of the new, beautiful transfer student, Justine Cameron. Justine Cameron's home is on Fear Street and that means nothing is what it seems.

One of the students invited, Nikki, is a deaf girl with a large curiosity. Nikki makes it her mission to figure out why Justine invited the select nine that she did, as well as determine why she spent so much on her lavish party for such a small group. Justine prepares them for Halloween by playing practical jokes with a promise of a huge surprise at the end of the party.

The party is a lot of fun until odd things begin to happen, like finding a body in another room. Could it be Justine's pranks again, or something much more serious?

I remember reading this book in the sixth grade and literally staying up all night to finish it, in the safety of my bed. R.L. Stine is a main force in why I enjoy horror today.
Profile Image for Nakia's Hideaway.
153 reviews384 followers
October 25, 2021
3 out of 5!

This was my third R.L. Stine vintage YA read and it was okay for me.
I definitely felt too old to be reading this one. There was way too much focus on the teen drama of who likes who and the jocks versus the wimps.

It had a good first chapter and then I lost interest until about the 60% mark.

Plot wise there were too many R.L. Stine fake out scares and there were some laughable parts to the reveals towards the end of the story.

All in all, when the action kicked in it was pretty entertaining and I definitely enjoyed the Halloween vibes. Other than that I probably won't remember this one too much after this Halloween season.

356 reviews80 followers
October 6, 2020
4.5 stars... That was just, so breathtaking, I really loved all the characters especially Nikki, she was so brave and has taken the first step to save all her friends, and her deafness which she really didn't care about was an advantage, and that actually has taught me that any thing in life has a good thing inside.. but we just need to be patient and focus on the better instead of considering the worst, and as simple as this story was.. it had so much to learn, a Halloween party turned in to some thing has totally changed all the lives of every one who was there, they valued and appreciated the bond of friendship and love they all had...
this was my first book from the author and surely won't be the last.. it was so imotionally rich and full of very important life lessons... I really really loved it
Profile Image for Stephanie ((Strazzybooks)).
1,421 reviews111 followers
November 7, 2021
“‘It’s always Halloween on Fear Street.’”

3.5/5

Halloween Party was cheesy but fun, and perfect for some pre-Halloween reading.

Some parts, like the pranks, were annoying, but I definitely want to go to a Halloween party like Justine’s (but maybe without the last part).

Also, #teamNikki.
Profile Image for Horror Sickness .
883 reviews363 followers
November 30, 2022
3,5*

In Shadyside, we are about to have a grand Halloween Party. The new girl in town has moved into the house behind the cemetery on Fear Street.

She has invited some of the highschool kids. However she seems to have invited specific people that have nothing in common, why?

The teenagers can not resist a grand Halloween party and decide to go and make the best out of the night. However soon they will realize that the party might turn into a dangerous game.

Perfect for: Fans of the series and people looking for a quick and fun Halloween read.
Profile Image for Roni Loren.
Author 45 books3,551 followers
Read
October 25, 2020
Did this one as a read aloud with the kiddo in honor of Halloween.
Profile Image for Grace Chan.
208 reviews57 followers
October 21, 2021
****SPOILERSSSS YOU'VE BEEN WARNED, MUAH HAHA****


Mysterious hot new girl at school moves into the creepy old mansion next to the cemetery on Fear Street and holds an all-nighter Halloween party for 9 guests only, a random smattering of jocks, dorks, and a deaf girl. What could possibly go wrong?

Welllll we find out mysterious hot new girl is out for REVENGE, as all of the guests invited to her party are the kids of the people who were responsible for her parents fiery car accident death over 29 years ago. YUPPPP, girlfriend is a THIRTY YEAR OLD, masquerading as a high schooler 😱😱

Loved that the most vulnerable victim was the smartest cookie out of the bunch...the deaf girl Viki remains calm and cool as the house burns down while her friends are freaking the fuck out and she devises a clever escape, saving the day.

Only 1 death here...thought it was a classic RL Stine fakeout at first but was legit 💀

1 star deducted because umm, wtf. There is NO FLYING PUMPKIN HEAD IN THE CEMETERY LIKE ON THE COVER! 🤣🎃💀

1 star added back because the kids all dance at the party to the "relentless synthesized rhythm" of Pump Up The Jam (pump it pump it pump!!) 🤣🤣🤣


Profile Image for Latasha.
1,358 reviews435 followers
August 24, 2017
fun good times on Fear Street. This one kept me guessing for a while. There was a lot of fun atmospheric building. good Halloween fun. I liked all the characters. on to the next one!
Profile Image for Skrekkbibliotekaren.
119 reviews22 followers
November 2, 2024
“𝘖𝘯𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨,” 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘥. “𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘣𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭. 𝘈𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭— 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘯 𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯.”

I år feira jeg Halloween med å lese boken 𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 av R. L Stine. Dette er en del av 𝘍𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵-serien, en YA-skrekkserie fra 90-tallet, med masse morsomme og cheesy skrekkbøker. 𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 is no exception, denne er cheesy og underholdende, samtidig som at den er spennende og skrekkelig.

I typisk 90-talls tenåringsskrekkstil så ligger ikke skrekken her i det overnaturlige. Dette er mer en klassisk tenåringsslasher, blandet med en mysteriefortelling i klassisk Nancy Drew-stil. Boka er full av cliffhangers, og språket er (som alltid med Stine) engasjerende og spenningsfullt.

Et tips til de som ønsker å høre 𝘍𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵-serien på lydbok, men ikke klarer å finne frem til dem på noen av streamingtjenestene: YouTuberen “Nightfall Audio Books” har en haug med 𝘍𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘵 bøker opplest som lydbok, inkludert 𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺. Innlesningene er amatørmessige, ja, men for de som ikke bryr seg alt for mye om oppleseren, og vil høre disse morsomme, cheesye bøkene på lydbok er dette et supert alternativ!

𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 er langt i fra den beste boken jeg har lest fra R. L. Stine. Men det betyr heller ikke at den er dårlig, og denne fungerer utrolig godt å lese til Halloween! Så, 𝘏𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘺 får av meg (trommevirvel…) 𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐊𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝟒!🎲

(og nå er det kanskje på tide for meg å finne frem juleskrekkbøkene mine?...😶🎄)
Profile Image for Ivona Brleković.
37 reviews2 followers
November 2, 2019
Lijepo je prisjetiti se osnovnoškolskih dana uz ovakve knjige. Svaki tjedan sam trčala u knjižnicu da podignem novi nastavak 😁
Profile Image for Liliana.
996 reviews216 followers
July 13, 2017
Reviewed on Lili Lost in a Book

A select few of kids are invited to the new girl’s Halloween party. They don’t know why they were selected in particular—this group of kids aren’t friends, they don’t even run in the same circles in school! But hey, it’s a party and they all don’t complain too much... until there’s a murder at the party. This is not what they had in mind when they came to the party. A party where no one had any idea why they, in particular, were chosen to attend. But I definitely had an idea. That particular plot twist did not surprise me once the reveal came. To be fair, I think I may have read this book this for back in middle school, but I don’t actually remember.

Awwww... You can't resist the puppy dog eyes! | Lazarus Rising 4x01

But overall, I really liked it! I enjoyed all the different characters, particularly Nikki! It was also thrilling and suspenseful, with a couple of good twists! And while I did guess that big twist ahead of time, I’m not even mad ‘cause I actually really liked the execution! I thought it was really interesting. The person behind everything was just freaking insane!


“Hey—we made it all night. It’s morning!” Ricky cried. “It isn’t Halloween anymore.”
Nikki: “I don’t know about that. It’s always Halloween on Fear Street.”


The Fear Street connection: The party takes place in the Cameron mansion which is behind the cemetery on Fear Street!

Profile Image for Obsidian.
3,230 reviews1,146 followers
October 22, 2019
So I don't even know what to say. What a crazy ride this book was. Also it takes place in 1984 and I maybe laughed at how some of the characters were talking. But the main plot and reveal of what the villain was up to made me go what in the world. And then I started to wrack my brain and wonder if I had seen a tv movie based on this book or what since it sounded familiar to me. I never read this the first time this was published back in 1990 so this was a new read for me.

"Halloween Party" takes place in the town of Shadyside (everyone needs to move okay?!) with a group of teens being invited by the new girl who has recently transferred to an exclusive party at a house purported to be haunted on Fear Street. Yeah, I got nothing, I would have hard passed, stayed home and ate some candy.

I liked that Stine started off the book with Terry and his girlfriend Niki walking through a graveyard on the way to this party and then the book jumps a couple of weeks back to when some of the students (9) get invited by the new girl, Justine, to a Halloween Party in an old mansion that her uncle is fixing up.

There is some tension in the book prior to the party with the group of 9 kids turning on each other and splitting off into a jocks and wimps team. Since Terry is now dating his ex best friend's ex-girlfriend (you follow that?) he has even more tension built up about this party.

I liked Terry a lot and Stine switches between Terry, Nikki, and another character as well (no spoilers). The fight between groups sounds like something stupid I would have done in high school so well done Stine. And I honestly didn't get what was going on with the party until the reveal so well done again.

The flow worked and I thought this was a nice book to get you in the Halloween mood.

The town of Shadyside has to have been built on a Hell Mouth though or something. I just laugh at people always going, yeah Fear Street and moving along.
Profile Image for RivetingReads.
168 reviews404 followers
November 24, 2021
I read this in one day and absolutely loved it! It was the perfect book to have on while I was doing chores. Such a fun and nostalgic Halloween read! You can hear more of my thoughts on this vlog: https://youtu.be/QDlkdUh-c3g
Profile Image for Austin Smith.
713 reviews66 followers
October 20, 2021
If I had to take a guess this is probably my 4th or 5th Fear Street book I've read (roughly) and while this is one of the better ones, perhaps my favorite so far, I still didn't love it quite as much as I'd hoped, especially after hearing this was one of the more popular, mainstream titles of the series.
During my reading of this book, there were some scenes that felt startlingly familiar. I'm wondering if I may have read this one when I was younger. I did really like the spooky Halloween vibes, the eerie mystery going on at the Halloween party, and the overall nostalgic 90's feeling that these books typically have. The twist was good and thankfully did not go the route I first thought it was (I would have been pissed and likely rated this book 1 star otherwise) but at the same time it didn't feel super innovative or shocking in any way. This is likely due to my over-exposure to the genre and the author at this point.

Overall this was a good book just not one that I fell in love with. I'll continue to read the Fear Street books in moderation and maybe one day I'll come across one that really hits home for me, but at the end of the day I prefer Goosebumps or even Stine's standalone and/or Point Horror entries.

Halloween Party gets a solid 3.5 / 5 from me.
Profile Image for Daniel Stalter.
Author 6 books22 followers
October 28, 2020
The Halloween Party had a few scary scenes and a compelling main character in Niki, but it ended up being too convoluted for its own good. It was refreshing to have good representation of characters with disabilities. I just wish her character was featured in a better story. Aside from Niki, there were just way too many characters for a book this short. Half of them could have easily been cut and the story would have been better for it. This also turned out to be another case of R.L Stine writing a villain with really poor planning skills. Without naming any names, there was some truly baffling logic at play in this one. Random side note: I found a few of the scenes very reminiscent of The Rocky Horror Picture Show and I’m wondering if Stine was inspired by it in some way. This is not a complaint, I’m just curious. Overall, this book was a let down considering it seems to be one of the top-rated books in the series. I guess I’m in the minority on this one.

Score: 2

I've got a full review with memes, snark, and spoilers over on my blog:
https://www.danstalter.com/the-hallow...
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