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Superstitious
When young, pretty graduate student Sara Morgan meets Liam O'Connor, the dashing Irish folklore professor, the attraction is mutual and overpowering. So when he proposes, Sara is too much in love to let his odd superstitions get in the way. Not even the brutal murders around their college town can spoil her happiness for long. Until, to her horror, Sara learns why Liam has good rreason to be so afraid. Warner.
390 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 1995
73 people are currently reading
2896 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...
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 354 reviews
January 13, 2013
This was pretty stupid. Turns out the girl was married to a guy made out of scrambled eggs or something. I'm sorry I read it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 16, 2013
Seldom do I say this, but I hated this book. I had a passing familiarity with the Goosebumps series, which I thought was great for kids, so I was willing to give Stine's adult novel a try.
If only I could get those hours back, and the money I spent.
Stine apparently thought you can "adultify" a novel by adding healthy doses of sex, gore, and expletives. Now, don't get me wrong--these things do have their place, and can elevate a story to dizzying heights when used skillfully, and sensibly. The result here, unfortunately, is a cast of caricatures who made me feel nothing whatsoever. That's saying a lot, because I'm generally a soft touch who empathizes easily with most characters.
I'm at a loss for words over how bad this one was, and that's a rarity for me. Read it if you must, but I wouldn't recommend it!
If only I could get those hours back, and the money I spent.
Stine apparently thought you can "adultify" a novel by adding healthy doses of sex, gore, and expletives. Now, don't get me wrong--these things do have their place, and can elevate a story to dizzying heights when used skillfully, and sensibly. The result here, unfortunately, is a cast of caricatures who made me feel nothing whatsoever. That's saying a lot, because I'm generally a soft touch who empathizes easily with most characters.
I'm at a loss for words over how bad this one was, and that's a rarity for me. Read it if you must, but I wouldn't recommend it!
January 14, 2014
I didn't go in to this book with any expectations of quality, but nothing could have prepared me for the absolute schlock-fest that is Superstitious. Laughable dialog, gratuitous sex (to prove this is an "adult" book?), and a plot that ranges from predictable and bland to frustrating and repetitive all swirled together to create one of the worst books I've ever read.
On a side note, Stine sure seems to think that all the attractive ladies of 1995 wore nothing but brightly colored sweater dresses over leggings. He went to great lengths to describe those outfits in bizarre detail.
On a side note, Stine sure seems to think that all the attractive ladies of 1995 wore nothing but brightly colored sweater dresses over leggings. He went to great lengths to describe those outfits in bizarre detail.
June 7, 2014
R.L. Stine is the absolute master of horror. I absolutely loved reading his Goosebump and Fear Street books growing up, and am thrilled to be reading his books into adulthood. I often wondered why Stine never wrote horror fiction for adults. I was so thrilled to find this book-And I was not disappointed! This novel is so intelligent, well-written and, most importantly, terrifying! I was hooked until the very end. And, even after the story ended, I'm still left wondering what happens next. He is a wonderful storyteller, and I hope he continues to write horror fiction for his adult fans.
March 14, 2019
Having just hit a milestone in reading my first YA Point Horror book (Trick or Treat) I decided to read a book by the author most associated with YA horror. Mr R.L. Stine himself.
Except the first book of his I read is an adult horror. Although well known for writing YA horror Stine also wrote a few adult horror books.
A number of reviews point (horror – get it? haha) out that this book is written in a YA style and Stine has just added blood, gore and sex to make it an adult read. Great!! Sounds like just my cup of tea (or coffee….only drink coffee).
I have to concede that his writing can be repetitive and he does seem a tad obsessed with female leggings.
Sara Morgan, a graduate student meets an Irish folklore professor, Liam O’Connor. The attraction runs deep and they are soon together for life. Liam has a superstition for everything. All can be explained by a Superstition. At the same time Sara and Liam meet and fall in love a number of murders occur around the college town.
It soon becomes clear that the horrific murders are related to both Sara and Liam in some way. There is plenty of gore and scares as the mystery moves towards it’s denouement. It was the reveal and graphic ending that I really enjoyed. It sparked imagination in my mind as I pictured the end.
Look forward to reading Mr Stine’s YA books.
Except the first book of his I read is an adult horror. Although well known for writing YA horror Stine also wrote a few adult horror books.
A number of reviews point (horror – get it? haha) out that this book is written in a YA style and Stine has just added blood, gore and sex to make it an adult read. Great!! Sounds like just my cup of tea (or coffee….only drink coffee).
I have to concede that his writing can be repetitive and he does seem a tad obsessed with female leggings.
Sara Morgan, a graduate student meets an Irish folklore professor, Liam O’Connor. The attraction runs deep and they are soon together for life. Liam has a superstition for everything. All can be explained by a Superstition. At the same time Sara and Liam meet and fall in love a number of murders occur around the college town.
It soon becomes clear that the horrific murders are related to both Sara and Liam in some way. There is plenty of gore and scares as the mystery moves towards it’s denouement. It was the reveal and graphic ending that I really enjoyed. It sparked imagination in my mind as I pictured the end.
Look forward to reading Mr Stine’s YA books.
November 3, 2024
Prevedibile, parte lento, all'inizio si capisce poco o nulla, poi quando veramente la storia prende la rincorsa fino al finale (purtroppo aperto in puro stile Piccoli Brividi), ci si accorge che già da metà libro viene rivelata l'identità del responsabile degli orrendi omicidi, storia interessante ma a parte la descrizione splatter dei delitti e la protagonista che si lamenta tutto il tempo, lo ritengo un tentativo di Stine di rendere un Piccoli Brividi più adulto, ma, si rivela sì fantasioso e originale, ma la tensione che dovrebbe mettere è pari a zero. Metto 3 stelle solo per l'originalità della trama.
September 5, 2022
Are you looking for a thrilling, make you sleep with the lights on, horror filled book to read this spooky season? Well, keep looking because this is not the book for you. Deliciously 90’s and campy as hell, this book is a poorly written disaster. Imagine if Goosebumps collaborated with Lifetime to make a thriller. Disastrous as it may be, it kept me turning the pages to see what hilarious mess was going to happen next. Contrary to the tone of this review, the book is honestly a delight to read because it’s just so…odd. Rating this 4/5 stars for sheer entertainment value.
May 28, 2008
This book is billed as Stine's first adult horror novel. It is not very good.
The premise sounds promising. A local small-town college is shocked and terrorized at a series of gruesome murders on campus. In the meantime, a new professor has wowed students and impressed his colleagues by teaching classes on mythology, folklore, and superstition. Not surprisingly, the professor, Liam O'Connor from Ireland, is superstitious himself.
Graduate student Sara Morgan returns to her alma mater from New York City, after a failed relationship with a loser, psycho boyfriend and being released from her job as an associate editor at a book publisher. She's majoring in psychology, meets Liam, falls in love, beds him, and marries him. She also goes to work for the dean of students, who spends the whole book leering at her and other women.
So that's the story. As you might have guessed, Liam is connected to the murders, but in a shocking, shocking way! It's actually rather pedestrian.
In fact, the whole novel is quite boring. Not enough happens to make it scary or even interesting. I had to struggle just to finish the thing.
Stine is an okay writer, but he has some quirks that are very annoying. He likes to repeat himself, such as when Sara discovers her ex-boyfriend's hand in her house:
"Ohhh." The hand fell to the dresser, the fingers spreading slowly.
Chip's hand.
Chip's hand.
Chip's hand.
That's right, he repeats it three times. And does it again on the next page, as if dreary repetition will somehow make us more shocked. It's a desperate, sad, contrived device that tires the reader. If it's so scary, it shouldn't need to be repeated.
But he does this throughout the book, repeating the same word or phrase. And every other page, a character is "snickering." Sara, Liam, the other forgettable characters - they all "snicker" multiple times. Find another word!
So that's my take on Mr. Stine. The book was written in 1995, so maybe he's written better books since. But I don't think I care enough to find out.
The premise sounds promising. A local small-town college is shocked and terrorized at a series of gruesome murders on campus. In the meantime, a new professor has wowed students and impressed his colleagues by teaching classes on mythology, folklore, and superstition. Not surprisingly, the professor, Liam O'Connor from Ireland, is superstitious himself.
Graduate student Sara Morgan returns to her alma mater from New York City, after a failed relationship with a loser, psycho boyfriend and being released from her job as an associate editor at a book publisher. She's majoring in psychology, meets Liam, falls in love, beds him, and marries him. She also goes to work for the dean of students, who spends the whole book leering at her and other women.
So that's the story. As you might have guessed, Liam is connected to the murders, but in a shocking, shocking way! It's actually rather pedestrian.
In fact, the whole novel is quite boring. Not enough happens to make it scary or even interesting. I had to struggle just to finish the thing.
Stine is an okay writer, but he has some quirks that are very annoying. He likes to repeat himself, such as when Sara discovers her ex-boyfriend's hand in her house:
"Ohhh." The hand fell to the dresser, the fingers spreading slowly.
Chip's hand.
Chip's hand.
Chip's hand.
That's right, he repeats it three times. And does it again on the next page, as if dreary repetition will somehow make us more shocked. It's a desperate, sad, contrived device that tires the reader. If it's so scary, it shouldn't need to be repeated.
But he does this throughout the book, repeating the same word or phrase. And every other page, a character is "snickering." Sara, Liam, the other forgettable characters - they all "snicker" multiple times. Find another word!
So that's my take on Mr. Stine. The book was written in 1995, so maybe he's written better books since. But I don't think I care enough to find out.
May 23, 2025
A 150 page Fear Street plot stretched out into a 400 page novel, with swearing and sex tossed in to give it an "adult" edge.
This book was slow, boring, badly paced, plot made little sense by the end, characters are all dumb and shallow - all around this book is a giant L.
There's a good reason why this is only one of two adult novels Stine wrote. You can skip this one and stick to what he does best: Middle grade and YA horror.
This book was slow, boring, badly paced, plot made little sense by the end, characters are all dumb and shallow - all around this book is a giant L.
There's a good reason why this is only one of two adult novels Stine wrote. You can skip this one and stick to what he does best: Middle grade and YA horror.
February 25, 2013
R.L. Stine, author of bestselling mystery-thriller books for teens, ventures into adult fiction with this book about a grad student who has a whirlwind romance with a young professor who has a fixation on old superstitions, only to find out that he isn't who she thought he was.
I enjoyed Stine's books (the Fear Street series and his other books for teens - I read one of the Goosebumps books and didn't care for it) when I was younger - so I was eager to see how his foray into adult fiction would turn out. Unfortunately, his writing is either not as good as I had remembered, or it just doesn't translate for an older audience.
My main beef is with the characters (broad generalization, I know). I honestly couldn't stand most of them. The heroine, Sara, is too starry-eyed and naive for me to be able to relate to her on any level, and when the reader can't relate to the protagonist, how in the world are they going to become invested in what happens to her? Short answer: they aren't. Sara is so googly-eyed in love with Liam (the why of which I was never sold on) that she ignores the fact that the guy has some serious issues. I don't care how handsome the guy is or how sexy his accent might seem - after about the third or fourth instance in which he loses his cool over an old wives' tale, I'm going to assume that he is at best suffering from a severe, uncontrolled case of OCD, and at worst a complete psycho with no grip on reality. In either case, there's no way I'm even going for a smoothie with this character, never mind marrying him a couple of months after meeting him.
Liam himself is another problem. Aside from the fact that I just couldn't understand the romance between him and Sara, I didn't like Liam himself at all. He's supposedly handsome, but that's all there is to like about him. And while I get that he has a very good reason for being superstitious, the text is absolutely saturated with it. It's possible to make a point without overemphasizing it, but when you bash your readers over the head with it continually, they're going to start to feel insulted. Okay, okay, we get it. He's superstitious. (As if the title of the book and the black cat on the cover weren't subtle enough.)
In the end, Liam does redeem himself by quite literally sacrificing himself to his inner demons to save Sara, but it feels like a massive dose of too little, too late. Okay, I guess Liam was an okay chap after all, but it's a little late to start liking him after he's dead. After all, he seduced Sara and tricked her into marriage when he was, in fact, already married, just to save his own skin? And to confess that he was the one who made those whispered phone calls to Sara warning her to stay away from him makes absolutely ZERO sense. He claims that it was in his moments of clarity that he was trying to warn her away. Okay, but why be so ambiguous about it? The girl obviously is not good at picking up on subtlety, so after she ignores your second or third whispered phone call, you may want to change tactics and, say, hire a plane towing an enormous banner that reads "YOUR NEW HUBBY IS A PSYCHOTIC NUT SUFFERING FROM DEMONIC POSSESSION," or better yet, book an appearance on the Springer show and arrange for Jerry to smash a mirror right in front of you so you can cough up some deranged Pokemon character? I think that would probably get your message across.
Stine delivers his final blow at the very end of the story, when Sara learns that she is (gasp!) pregnant with the next generation of salt-tossing black cat-fearing demon host! I'm curious as to what reaction the author was looking to provoke with that little revelation. Shock? Horror? Dismay? Meh. I'm pretty sure we all saw it coming, and to be perfectly frank, my first impulse was to shrug my shoulders and say, "Heh. Serves you right. Idiot." Any reaction at all is unwarranted, though, for one simple reason - I'm pretty sure doctors have methods of getting rid of this problem. I'm sure even the most staunch of pro-life campaigners might look the other way considering that this particular fetus is harboring a horde of genocidal nasties.
Overall, I enjoyed the general pacing and flow of this story, but the subject matter and the characters could sure use a lot of work. I can only hope that Stine either a.) improves on his methods in his next book, or b.) abandons this particular genre and goes back to scaring the kiddies.
I enjoyed Stine's books (the Fear Street series and his other books for teens - I read one of the Goosebumps books and didn't care for it) when I was younger - so I was eager to see how his foray into adult fiction would turn out. Unfortunately, his writing is either not as good as I had remembered, or it just doesn't translate for an older audience.
My main beef is with the characters (broad generalization, I know). I honestly couldn't stand most of them. The heroine, Sara, is too starry-eyed and naive for me to be able to relate to her on any level, and when the reader can't relate to the protagonist, how in the world are they going to become invested in what happens to her? Short answer: they aren't. Sara is so googly-eyed in love with Liam (the why of which I was never sold on) that she ignores the fact that the guy has some serious issues. I don't care how handsome the guy is or how sexy his accent might seem - after about the third or fourth instance in which he loses his cool over an old wives' tale, I'm going to assume that he is at best suffering from a severe, uncontrolled case of OCD, and at worst a complete psycho with no grip on reality. In either case, there's no way I'm even going for a smoothie with this character, never mind marrying him a couple of months after meeting him.
Liam himself is another problem. Aside from the fact that I just couldn't understand the romance between him and Sara, I didn't like Liam himself at all. He's supposedly handsome, but that's all there is to like about him. And while I get that he has a very good reason for being superstitious, the text is absolutely saturated with it. It's possible to make a point without overemphasizing it, but when you bash your readers over the head with it continually, they're going to start to feel insulted. Okay, okay, we get it. He's superstitious. (As if the title of the book and the black cat on the cover weren't subtle enough.)
In the end, Liam does redeem himself by quite literally sacrificing himself to his inner demons to save Sara, but it feels like a massive dose of too little, too late. Okay, I guess Liam was an okay chap after all, but it's a little late to start liking him after he's dead. After all, he seduced Sara and tricked her into marriage when he was, in fact, already married, just to save his own skin? And to confess that he was the one who made those whispered phone calls to Sara warning her to stay away from him makes absolutely ZERO sense. He claims that it was in his moments of clarity that he was trying to warn her away. Okay, but why be so ambiguous about it? The girl obviously is not good at picking up on subtlety, so after she ignores your second or third whispered phone call, you may want to change tactics and, say, hire a plane towing an enormous banner that reads "YOUR NEW HUBBY IS A PSYCHOTIC NUT SUFFERING FROM DEMONIC POSSESSION," or better yet, book an appearance on the Springer show and arrange for Jerry to smash a mirror right in front of you so you can cough up some deranged Pokemon character? I think that would probably get your message across.
Stine delivers his final blow at the very end of the story, when Sara learns that she is (gasp!) pregnant with the next generation of salt-tossing black cat-fearing demon host! I'm curious as to what reaction the author was looking to provoke with that little revelation. Shock? Horror? Dismay? Meh. I'm pretty sure we all saw it coming, and to be perfectly frank, my first impulse was to shrug my shoulders and say, "Heh. Serves you right. Idiot." Any reaction at all is unwarranted, though, for one simple reason - I'm pretty sure doctors have methods of getting rid of this problem. I'm sure even the most staunch of pro-life campaigners might look the other way considering that this particular fetus is harboring a horde of genocidal nasties.
Overall, I enjoyed the general pacing and flow of this story, but the subject matter and the characters could sure use a lot of work. I can only hope that Stine either a.) improves on his methods in his next book, or b.) abandons this particular genre and goes back to scaring the kiddies.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 1, 2022
I guess I'm in the minority when it comes to Superstitious, Goosebumps author R. L. Stine's first foray into "adult" horror. For a lot of GR users this is a book worthy of that dreaded one star rating, but I dug it. Maybe it's because I'm a fan of Giallo films and Stine's book plays out a bit like a Dario Argento flick. There's the occult overtones of a story that's interspersed with abrupt scenes of violent murders that appear linked to the shady past of an Irish professor who protagonist Sara Morgan falls for and marries, and then there's the monster angle that Stine has to bring to the table. For me, this is a winning combo even if it's not very deep or original (again, like most Giallo). It probably helped that the version I read was the audiobook narrated by Ron Perlman, who did a great job.
March 10, 2009
This could quite possibly be one of the worst books that I have ever read. R.L. Stine needs to stick to young adult books!
September 17, 2011
Stereotypes women, drags you through about 300 pages of, "really?", and finishes up with an ending fit for a kid's book. R.L., you should be superstitious of adult fiction!
May 11, 2015
Don't worry, no spoilers.
So first off, I'd like to say that I understand the low ratings a lot of people gave this book. It was a little silly, and was very similar to R.L. Stine's Goosebumps series, aside from the added sex and gore.
However, I am giving this a 4 star because it did it's job. It was interesting, fun, and kept me entertained. I ended up despising his main character Sara, but the mystery kept me thoroughly interested from beginning to end. Looking for a compelling, mind-blowing novel? This isn't your read. If you just want a fun way to pass the time? Then I'd recommend this novel.
Just thought I'd mention, R.L. Stine has a very interesting view on women's fashion. The women in this novel always (and I mean practically ALWAYS)wore leggings with dresses/skirts. I don't know man, I don't mind leggings, but with the amount these women were wearing them, I'm just like, "Do you girls not own one pair of jeans??"
Okay, I'm done.
So first off, I'd like to say that I understand the low ratings a lot of people gave this book. It was a little silly, and was very similar to R.L. Stine's Goosebumps series, aside from the added sex and gore.
However, I am giving this a 4 star because it did it's job. It was interesting, fun, and kept me entertained. I ended up despising his main character Sara, but the mystery kept me thoroughly interested from beginning to end. Looking for a compelling, mind-blowing novel? This isn't your read. If you just want a fun way to pass the time? Then I'd recommend this novel.
Just thought I'd mention, R.L. Stine has a very interesting view on women's fashion. The women in this novel always (and I mean practically ALWAYS)wore leggings with dresses/skirts. I don't know man, I don't mind leggings, but with the amount these women were wearing them, I'm just like, "Do you girls not own one pair of jeans??"
Okay, I'm done.
August 9, 2023
I don’t get why there are so many 1 stars. This is a solid horror novel. Reads like GOOD Richard Laymon, has elements of body horror, and erotic horror. Would fit perfectly in a reading run with Shaun Hutson, Bentley Little, and Laymon.
October 25, 2024
Stine pulled a lot of cheesy jump scares as he is prone to do in his goosebumps series, but he also brings a lot of his token atmospherics, rapid plot progression and creative plotting, elevating it all with the content freedom of publishing for a mature audience. The twists are insane, the dark romance subplot was surprisingly involving, and I loved the way folklore, mythology and superstitions were woven in with the mystery and actually paid off in the surprise ending. It’s a shame he didn’t do many more adult books.
April 16, 2013
I have to give credit where credit is due...R.L. Stine cultivated my love for horror at a very young age. I adored the Goosebumps books and I still pick one up every now and then to revel in my childhood. I expected this to be a seamless transition from a successful author of childrens books to adult horror fiction. I think I expected a little too much.
The main character, Sara, comes off as a weak, needy female. In an attempt to flee her previous dysfunctional relationship, she moves closer to her friend Mary Beth. She meets and subsequently falls for a professor at her college, Liam. Liam is an overly superstitious man and while she finds this endearing in the beginning, it begins to wear on her shortly after they marry. The narrative is pretty weak and she has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. It had a predictable plot twist that felt a little too rushed. Even after Sara finds out about Liam's secrets, she still clings to him in a delusional attempt to convince herself that everything will be alright. I felt like Stine just peppered Superstitious with overt sex, curse words, and gore to try to branch out into adult fiction. He has a few more titles he's written since then and I'm hoping they are much better than this one.
The main character, Sara, comes off as a weak, needy female. In an attempt to flee her previous dysfunctional relationship, she moves closer to her friend Mary Beth. She meets and subsequently falls for a professor at her college, Liam. Liam is an overly superstitious man and while she finds this endearing in the beginning, it begins to wear on her shortly after they marry. The narrative is pretty weak and she has no redeeming qualities whatsoever. It had a predictable plot twist that felt a little too rushed. Even after Sara finds out about Liam's secrets, she still clings to him in a delusional attempt to convince herself that everything will be alright. I felt like Stine just peppered Superstitious with overt sex, curse words, and gore to try to branch out into adult fiction. He has a few more titles he's written since then and I'm hoping they are much better than this one.
September 14, 2012
This book reminded me of why I stopped reading Fear Street novels. R L Stine isn't a bad writer, don't get me wrong, but he doesn't write horror. He writes gore. I read horror novels because I want to be scared, shocked, psychologically twisted. Like Lovecraft, Poe, Bram Stoker, and the rest of the greats, I want to finish a book with chills from the profound meaning; the horror that means more than just slashing. I don't read them because I want to be disgusted with overly bloody imagery. I wouldn't call Superstitious scary, merely disgusting. I suppose the overall premise was interesting and it was well-written enough that I finished it quickly, but it's not a book I'll likely keep on my shelf and read again. I suppose the best way I can recommend it is with movies - if you prefer thrillers like Se7en or Silence of the Lambs, this probably isn't what you're looking for. If you prefer gore movies like Hostel, grab a copy and start reading.
May 16, 2019
I always love R.L. Stine as a kid, and so when he put out his first adult novel, I'm sure I was one of the first to purchase it. Over the years, I lost it somewhere... but fortunately found a copy a couple years ago in a used bookstore. If you loved reading Stine as a kid (or still do), read this book. It has all the fast-paced easy-reading you expect from the author, with some bonus gore and sex. Hurray! This is one I plan on reading again when I have the time... it's been so long; I nearly only remember that I liked it, rather than why.
October 15, 2008
SUPERSTITIOUS - NR
Stine, R.L.
When graduate student Sara Morgan meets Liam O'Connor, the dashing folklore professor, the attraction is mutual. Sara is far too much in love to let Liam's odd superstitions, or even the brutal murders in the town, get in the way. That is, until she learns the secret behind Liam's superstitions.
Definitely NOT for children. This was beyond gruesome and poorly written besides.
Stine, R.L.
When graduate student Sara Morgan meets Liam O'Connor, the dashing folklore professor, the attraction is mutual. Sara is far too much in love to let Liam's odd superstitions, or even the brutal murders in the town, get in the way. That is, until she learns the secret behind Liam's superstitions.
Definitely NOT for children. This was beyond gruesome and poorly written besides.
March 14, 2011
If I could have rated it a negative I would have...
August 25, 2021
La trama se desarrolla muy lentamente. Al principio de ésta, pensaba que era un thriller. Sin embargo, es de monstruos.
Las últimas 10 páginas son un no parar y en donde concentra toda la acción.
Las últimas 10 páginas son un no parar y en donde concentra toda la acción.
January 10, 2023
This book keeps you guessing as to the identity of the killer. But, it is not what you think. Definitely a good read.
October 6, 2023
Longer book to read than most of the ones I have re-read but it is the perfect book to read for this time of year.
I have it rated as five stars but I would say it is more 4.5 after a new reading and I'll explain in a bit...
An adult novel by R.L. Stine is sort of close to being like a Christopher Pike novel with some swearing and then we dumped a lot of sex into the pot. Both writers have written disturbing scenes before but these get ramped up to 11 in almost Stephen King levels.
You want real gory, visceral horror? Boy you are going to get it by the buckets.
The opening is about a girl named Charlotte who works as a secretary for a famous professor teaching at the college of Moore State in Pennsylvania. She just had a one-night stand with an older gentleman she met at a bar.
Don't get too attached to her...she isn't our main character. Think Drew Barrymore in Scream yet delivered in perhaps an even more violently disturbing demise...
That prologue done we switch to Sara Morgan having dinner with her college roommate Mary Beth Logan yet she is more of a graduate student in psychology and Mary Beth works at Moore State and they haven't seen each other in awhile.
The chit-chat is cut short when Sara gets salt in her hair because the person behind her threw it over his shoulder. Turning around she finds it is a very handsome gentleman with a lilt of a foreign accent to his voice, dining with his own companions.
Apologetic and very charming, he flirts with Sara using some superstitions. We all learn that he is Liam O'Connor, versed in folklore who is hosting a seminar at the college in between writing books and TV interviews. He is with his sister Margaret and Milton Cohn, Dean of Students, who are use to Liam always talking about folklore and such.
Liam isn't the only one interested in Sara because Milton offers her a job as his assistant right there during the exchanges between both tables. Sara is flabbergasted at the job offer from Milton and more or less, smitten by Liam's flirtations.
Liam is quite the fellow because the woman who rents the house to both Liam and Margaret flirts with him constantly. Her name is Andrea DeHaven and she is not the kind of person Margaret seems to fancy for Liam which is surprising because he does find her a little sexy. Andrea won't get anywhere with Liam because we learn that he has completely fallen for Sara and plans to...pursue her.
They meet up on campus a few times in between classes and at faculty functions where it is clear that the chemistry between Sara and Liam is on fire. Milton is a little jealous and we meet a woman named Devra Brooks who knew Liam back in Chicago when he taught there who clearly has the hots for Liam but he only has eyes for Sara.
Sara has never been lucky in love and her last boyfriend, Chip Whitney, almost killed her. She refused his marriage proposal and he went crazy trying to drown her on the beach and she had to leave New York City to escape him. He shows up back in her life after her relationship with Liam has led to a whirlwind romance, a proposal of marriage and mind-blowing sex.
Chip has been spying on Sara long enough to know about her relationship with Liam and he is a complete psycho to her. He wants Sara back but seems to be completely oblivious to the fact in his spying that they are engaged to be wed around Thanksgiving. Liam has even met Sara's mother and one of her brothers on a trip back to Indiana and gotten the Morgan family blessing.
While all of this is going on, we also get focus on the detective who gets dragged into the story.
Detective Garrett Montgomery is a family man with a wife and a toddler son, a tender side behind his gruff stature. He's the kind of police officer who looks as if he can't be phased by all the crime that he has seen but that isn't true...once these murders start piling up.
Brutal murders that leave him vomiting, giving him nightmares, the desire to just move his family away and work for his brother-in-law selling sofas and futons. His colleagues are just as shaken and just as baffled when they find fingerprints that aren't human...find a witness who thinks he saw a man in a monster costume fleeing the latest murder.
They know that the killer is strong, inhumanly strong enough to tear a person apart, but that just can't be possible...can it?
The only logical thing is that Professor Liam O' Connor knew every...single...one...of the victims.
We get a few glimpses into Liam's Ireland childhood but not much to clear a few things up, which is where my rating comes from. Stine builds the mystery up beautifully but once we get a few tiny peeks at just how he is involved...it is glossed over.
The murders are not for the squeamish but Stine was always good at pushing that WTF meter in his young adult writing and just gets to go full tilt here. If you can't handle human murders, you won't handle the few animal ones either...
I am impressed by how much research Stine had to do on all of these superstitions and even if he did maybe make-up a few, I could find them believable. Some start out innocent enough but as the book continues some get ridiculous and a few...creepy. I'm not innocent...I throw salt over my shoulder, don't break mirrors, walk under ladders or open umbrellas indoors.
As we get toward the end of the book, we get a wham moment after wham moment delivered to us and it gets really good yet...
You can see the ending that we eventually get coming a mile away and the punch it gives is the same kind twist you can expect from any Fear Street or Point Horror Stine has written.
If you haven't read Superstitious by R.L. Stine it is worth a reading...
I have it rated as five stars but I would say it is more 4.5 after a new reading and I'll explain in a bit...
An adult novel by R.L. Stine is sort of close to being like a Christopher Pike novel with some swearing and then we dumped a lot of sex into the pot. Both writers have written disturbing scenes before but these get ramped up to 11 in almost Stephen King levels.
You want real gory, visceral horror? Boy you are going to get it by the buckets.
The opening is about a girl named Charlotte who works as a secretary for a famous professor teaching at the college of Moore State in Pennsylvania. She just had a one-night stand with an older gentleman she met at a bar.
Don't get too attached to her...she isn't our main character. Think Drew Barrymore in Scream yet delivered in perhaps an even more violently disturbing demise...
That prologue done we switch to Sara Morgan having dinner with her college roommate Mary Beth Logan yet she is more of a graduate student in psychology and Mary Beth works at Moore State and they haven't seen each other in awhile.
The chit-chat is cut short when Sara gets salt in her hair because the person behind her threw it over his shoulder. Turning around she finds it is a very handsome gentleman with a lilt of a foreign accent to his voice, dining with his own companions.
Apologetic and very charming, he flirts with Sara using some superstitions. We all learn that he is Liam O'Connor, versed in folklore who is hosting a seminar at the college in between writing books and TV interviews. He is with his sister Margaret and Milton Cohn, Dean of Students, who are use to Liam always talking about folklore and such.
Liam isn't the only one interested in Sara because Milton offers her a job as his assistant right there during the exchanges between both tables. Sara is flabbergasted at the job offer from Milton and more or less, smitten by Liam's flirtations.
Liam is quite the fellow because the woman who rents the house to both Liam and Margaret flirts with him constantly. Her name is Andrea DeHaven and she is not the kind of person Margaret seems to fancy for Liam which is surprising because he does find her a little sexy. Andrea won't get anywhere with Liam because we learn that he has completely fallen for Sara and plans to...pursue her.
They meet up on campus a few times in between classes and at faculty functions where it is clear that the chemistry between Sara and Liam is on fire. Milton is a little jealous and we meet a woman named Devra Brooks who knew Liam back in Chicago when he taught there who clearly has the hots for Liam but he only has eyes for Sara.
Sara has never been lucky in love and her last boyfriend, Chip Whitney, almost killed her. She refused his marriage proposal and he went crazy trying to drown her on the beach and she had to leave New York City to escape him. He shows up back in her life after her relationship with Liam has led to a whirlwind romance, a proposal of marriage and mind-blowing sex.
Chip has been spying on Sara long enough to know about her relationship with Liam and he is a complete psycho to her. He wants Sara back but seems to be completely oblivious to the fact in his spying that they are engaged to be wed around Thanksgiving. Liam has even met Sara's mother and one of her brothers on a trip back to Indiana and gotten the Morgan family blessing.
While all of this is going on, we also get focus on the detective who gets dragged into the story.
Detective Garrett Montgomery is a family man with a wife and a toddler son, a tender side behind his gruff stature. He's the kind of police officer who looks as if he can't be phased by all the crime that he has seen but that isn't true...once these murders start piling up.
Brutal murders that leave him vomiting, giving him nightmares, the desire to just move his family away and work for his brother-in-law selling sofas and futons. His colleagues are just as shaken and just as baffled when they find fingerprints that aren't human...find a witness who thinks he saw a man in a monster costume fleeing the latest murder.
They know that the killer is strong, inhumanly strong enough to tear a person apart, but that just can't be possible...can it?
The only logical thing is that Professor Liam O' Connor knew every...single...one...of the victims.
We get a few glimpses into Liam's Ireland childhood but not much to clear a few things up, which is where my rating comes from. Stine builds the mystery up beautifully but once we get a few tiny peeks at just how he is involved...it is glossed over.
The murders are not for the squeamish but Stine was always good at pushing that WTF meter in his young adult writing and just gets to go full tilt here. If you can't handle human murders, you won't handle the few animal ones either...
I am impressed by how much research Stine had to do on all of these superstitions and even if he did maybe make-up a few, I could find them believable. Some start out innocent enough but as the book continues some get ridiculous and a few...creepy. I'm not innocent...I throw salt over my shoulder, don't break mirrors, walk under ladders or open umbrellas indoors.
As we get toward the end of the book, we get a wham moment after wham moment delivered to us and it gets really good yet...
You can see the ending that we eventually get coming a mile away and the punch it gives is the same kind twist you can expect from any Fear Street or Point Horror Stine has written.
If you haven't read Superstitious by R.L. Stine it is worth a reading...
August 15, 2024
So, I'm not a superstitious person at all but I have to say I did enjoy reading all the folklore and superstitions in here, it really seems like Stine did his homework and it pays off. This is essentially a slasher and with that we get a high body count and some great gory imagery. We follow our main protagonist Sara and intermediately throughout we get chapters from the pov of lead detective on the case Garrett Montgomery. If you're a fan of R.L Stine you'll recognise a lot of his signature writing traits in here, there's also some good innovation, for example there's a chapter early on describing our lead detective arriving at a crime scene and it could have been a standard scene in a book but Stine uses a very clever writing mechanism to really engage you and place you into the protagonist psyche. (3.5 rounded down).
September 14, 2025
3.5⭐️
Pretty much an adult goosebumps. Stine is such a cornball, but can’t deny his twists are insane. You literally can’t predict them. I overall really liked it, although I did have doubts throughout the first 60%.
Pretty much an adult goosebumps. Stine is such a cornball, but can’t deny his twists are insane. You literally can’t predict them. I overall really liked it, although I did have doubts throughout the first 60%.
September 20, 2014
Mild Spoilers in review so read at your own risk:
I don't know why I had any sort of expectation for this book as I thought his YA books were campy even as a preteen. Hey... I'm not saying that I didn't like Fear Street and others like it but I still thought they were cheesy horror.
Which is what I got with "Superstitions". It was the same ole R.L. Stine writing, just laced with foul language and sex. The same old fake-outs that end up being a joke (Milton getting "shot"), prank calls (Babysitter 1-4, anyone?), etc. Nothing more than cheap shocks that end up being nothing.
What was up with that Milton guy? Was he suppose to be a red herring? I'm suppose to believe that a guy that creepy and gross is someone important with an actual job?
Stine may be able to fake his way writing as a 16 year old girl in his other series, but he proves he is all male with this sad attempt of writing a slightly older female lead.
Sara is 24 yet her thinking and behavior swings from that of a 17 year old girl, up to a 40 something woman and back again. She is wishy-washy and an IDIOT. ("Oh, a real life hand? Let me go back to give him a chance to explain! Cuz, ya know, there MUST be a reasonable, rational explanation for the human hand on my dresser! I mustn't be rash and jump to crazy conclusions!")
The part that got me was the "Thanksgiving" dinner in Indiana and the cat. What a cheap, overused plot point. Shame on you, Stine. That incident revealed just how stupid your characters were. "Oh, a wild animal opened the back door and then left the same way and no one heard anything!" Sounds plausible to me... another cup of gullible, please!
Please let this be his first and only attempt at "Adult" fiction......
I don't know why I had any sort of expectation for this book as I thought his YA books were campy even as a preteen. Hey... I'm not saying that I didn't like Fear Street and others like it but I still thought they were cheesy horror.
Which is what I got with "Superstitions". It was the same ole R.L. Stine writing, just laced with foul language and sex. The same old fake-outs that end up being a joke (Milton getting "shot"), prank calls (Babysitter 1-4, anyone?), etc. Nothing more than cheap shocks that end up being nothing.
What was up with that Milton guy? Was he suppose to be a red herring? I'm suppose to believe that a guy that creepy and gross is someone important with an actual job?
Stine may be able to fake his way writing as a 16 year old girl in his other series, but he proves he is all male with this sad attempt of writing a slightly older female lead.
Sara is 24 yet her thinking and behavior swings from that of a 17 year old girl, up to a 40 something woman and back again. She is wishy-washy and an IDIOT. ("Oh, a real life hand? Let me go back to give him a chance to explain! Cuz, ya know, there MUST be a reasonable, rational explanation for the human hand on my dresser! I mustn't be rash and jump to crazy conclusions!")
The part that got me was the "Thanksgiving" dinner in Indiana and the cat. What a cheap, overused plot point. Shame on you, Stine. That incident revealed just how stupid your characters were. "Oh, a wild animal opened the back door and then left the same way and no one heard anything!" Sounds plausible to me... another cup of gullible, please!
Please let this be his first and only attempt at "Adult" fiction......
September 9, 2014
Really more like half a star. Maybe. This was so awful. I fully admit to skimming starting at about page 75. I don't even know where to begin. Characters are very stereotypical and idiotic. Plot is nothing new. And the writing is some of the worst I've ever seen. Bad enough that you would assume the man had never written before. Stine is the king of sentence fragments. For every one complete sentence, there must be 3 fragments. Here's a sample paragraph.
"Laughter in the hallway. Raised voices. People greeting Liam." Yes, this is a whole paragraph.
Or another of my favorite examples of the quality of the writing.
"I'll never get the sound out of my ears, I don't think. Those poor people. They screamed like animals. It sounded like horses. You know. When they tilt up their heads and just neigh?"
Women in the book are either sex objects, or too repulsive to ever have sex. ("He stopped to say hello to two graduate assistants in short skirts and tights.") Yes, women are described pretty consistently by how sexy they are.
And let's mention the sex scenes. They are absurd. A sixteen-year-old boy could write a better sex scene.
Don't waste your money or your time. Read good horror. Steven King's Tommyknockers (which I hated) is infinitely better than this.
"Laughter in the hallway. Raised voices. People greeting Liam." Yes, this is a whole paragraph.
Or another of my favorite examples of the quality of the writing.
"I'll never get the sound out of my ears, I don't think. Those poor people. They screamed like animals. It sounded like horses. You know. When they tilt up their heads and just neigh?"
Women in the book are either sex objects, or too repulsive to ever have sex. ("He stopped to say hello to two graduate assistants in short skirts and tights.") Yes, women are described pretty consistently by how sexy they are.
And let's mention the sex scenes. They are absurd. A sixteen-year-old boy could write a better sex scene.
Don't waste your money or your time. Read good horror. Steven King's Tommyknockers (which I hated) is infinitely better than this.
September 25, 2020
3 stars is maybe a bit generous as I love RL Stine, but I’ll explain why. Stine, like many here my age, was an unbelievably important part of getting me into reading horror books. He got a whole generation of kids into reading, and his significance there really can’t be overstated. His books weren’t literary masterpieces of course, but they were entertaining and very readable.
I remember barely being able to contain myself when I found out he had written an “adult” horror book. I think I set my expectations a bit high, but the truth here is that this book isn’t much different at all than his Fear Street or Point Horror books. It’s about an adult, but still very much reads like his books with teenage protagonists, with two major differences; graphic sex and foul language. Add those two elements into a Fear Street book and you have Superstitious.
Would I recommend this? Yes and no. If you grew up reading RL Stine and missed this one, I’d say it’s worth a peek. You’ll find it entertaining and probably nostalgic from his writing style alone. Other than that, I wouldn’t rush out to read it. Stone’s writing doesn’t stand with some of the great horror authors out there and it will show unfortunately. But as a curiosity, I’d say it’s worth a read.
I remember barely being able to contain myself when I found out he had written an “adult” horror book. I think I set my expectations a bit high, but the truth here is that this book isn’t much different at all than his Fear Street or Point Horror books. It’s about an adult, but still very much reads like his books with teenage protagonists, with two major differences; graphic sex and foul language. Add those two elements into a Fear Street book and you have Superstitious.
Would I recommend this? Yes and no. If you grew up reading RL Stine and missed this one, I’d say it’s worth a peek. You’ll find it entertaining and probably nostalgic from his writing style alone. Other than that, I wouldn’t rush out to read it. Stone’s writing doesn’t stand with some of the great horror authors out there and it will show unfortunately. But as a curiosity, I’d say it’s worth a read.
March 17, 2019
This Stine book is definitely for adults. It has swear words and some drug use and lots of sex, which you'll never see in any of his young adult offerings. It also features the staple gore in his Fear Street books, made much more extreme and graphic.
I never cared for any of the characters though since they're a pretty unpleasant lot. It is also unnecessarily wordy, like you can cut the novel to half of its size and retain or maybe even improve its impact. And really, around the halfway point the culprit becomes so painfully obvious that it loses a lot of its potential thrill.
I still enjoyed it though, and compared to his usual books it's definitely a step up. The folklore/superstition bits were also interesting. I'm giving it 5/10 or 3 grisly, inauspicious stars out of 5.
I never cared for any of the characters though since they're a pretty unpleasant lot. It is also unnecessarily wordy, like you can cut the novel to half of its size and retain or maybe even improve its impact. And really, around the halfway point the culprit becomes so painfully obvious that it loses a lot of its potential thrill.
I still enjoyed it though, and compared to his usual books it's definitely a step up. The folklore/superstition bits were also interesting. I'm giving it 5/10 or 3 grisly, inauspicious stars out of 5.
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