Halloween IV: The Special Limited Edition

Halloween #4

by Nicholas Grabowsky

It's the return of Michael Myers in the definitive Halloween novelization! Nicholas Grabowsky presents a special, limited edition of his novel, the way it was meant to be. Complete with additional and expanded chapters, it adds an exciting dimension to the Michael Myers legacy! Note: this novelization is copyright 1988, 1989, and 2003 by Nicholas Grabowsky, all rights reserved by the author from original 1988 copyright and subsequent registrations and original publication agreements.

Genres: Horror, Halloween, Fiction, Audiobook, Media Tie In, Suspense

188 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1988

About the author

Nicholas Grabowsky’s novels of horror/fantasy and mainstream pulp fiction, both as himself, as Nicholas Randers, and as Marsena Shane, have generated worldwide acclaim for over three and a half decades and praised by many of today’s popular horror gurus in the literary world and horror industry at large. He began his career in traditional publishing houses with brisk sellers in mass market paperback horror and romance, and in the last two decades is seen by many as a mentor to many authors and the smaller presses, which has become to him a passion.
His body of work includes the award-winning macabre aliens-among-us epic The Everborn, The Rag Man, Pray Serpent’s Prey, Halloween IV (and its special editions), Diverse Tales, Reads & Reviews, The Wicked Haze, Sweet Dreams Lady Moon, Red Wet Dirt, numerous anthologies, magazine articles, and self help books, with projects extending to screenplays, poetry, songs, film, and a wide variety of short fiction and nonfiction since the 1980s.
He’s a veteran special guest at numerous genre conventions and makes appearances and signings across North America. He has been in the limelight a radical gospel preacher right out of high school and in the following years a rock vocalist, teacher, lecturer and activist, editor, publisher and founder of the Sacramento-based Black Bed Sheet Books, which publishes “exemplary literature, fiction & non” but specializes in horror/fantasy, and Blue Bed Sheet Books, which published children's books, and subdivisions in progress.
Currently, Nicholas is at work with numerous anthologies, graphic novels and comic books, an Everborn sequel and the novels The Downwardens and The Sirens of Knowland. His independent film projects include the slasher creature feature Cutting Edges.

Quotes about Grabowsky:

"My Dear Nicholas: You seem to me---in a way that's entirely admirable----a man out of time. You're writing horror epics when the audience has become increasingly numbed by cinematic hokum and stale ideas. I salute you: your ambition, your dedication, your achievements, your blissfully complex imagination...." ----Clive Barker (bestselling author & director, Hellraiser, etc.)
"Grabowsky succeeds in making the whole world creepy...." ----Heidi Martinuzzi, E! Entertainment Television
"Grabowsky's writing is at times touching and emotional, however, his real talent is his ability to infuse his writing with a sense of dread and loathing that I have not experienced since H.P. Lovecraft..." ----Tahoe Daily Tribune
"Grabowsky has imagination to spare.....!" ---Sacramento Bee
"Impressive storytelling....." ----Wes Craven (Dir., A Nightmare on Elm Street)
“…..soon we’ll all be hearing about this Grabowsky guy….” ---Joe Dante (Dir, Gremlins, The Howling)
“Keep ‘em coming, Nicholas….” ----Stephen King
“All hail Grabowsky!” ---Horrorweb.com
“Grabowsky melds horror and Sci-fi with such expertise that I am left speechless.” ---Gorezone Magazine

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Michael Myers is back. He escapes the transfer bus to the sanatarium and finds himself on his way back to Haddonfield. What about Rachel and Jamie (his nice)? Will they survive? Can Dr Loomis and Sheriff Meeker stop the Nightmare Man? Well told eerie creeper that's very close to the movie. There ain't no better way to get in the mood for Halloween than read this classic. Highly recommended!

[Negan88 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Could Have Been Better

I felt that this novelization was pretty much a carbon copy of the film. So, I felt that it was alright. However, there were some lines, and scenes that were altered slightly that irked me.
Basically small flaws such as the scene where the line “F$&@ off Wade” is delivered is altered dramatically in the novelization, and not in a good way. Other than some small flaws of that nature I felt that Nick did a fantastic job!
Overall, not bad except that the film is near and dear to me. I know almost every aspect, and changes bothered me. There were also some continuity issues when Rachel and Jaime are going to the attic, but no spoilers. It is worth checking out for Halloween fans!

[Rick Powell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book delivers the scares! Say what you want about the franchise, Michael Myers will forever be ingrained in the horror genre. I have read only a few novel adaptations but this one breathes new life into the legend started by John Carpenter. Very fast paced and a book you will not want to put down. It has been years since I have seen the fourth installment of Halloween and this book keeps the mystery while the suspense never lets up. Kudos to Nicholas Grabowsky and what he has accomplished here. You will look at Halloween in an all new light after reading this!

[the tony. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed 2 things most about this book. 1. My first M. Myers/Halloween novel, as a gift it has the authors signature in it. Very cool/collector item. 2. A few changes made in the middle of it gave it a nice variation from the movie. What I didn’t like, I guess you can’t blame the author too much, was that it’s a movie I’ve seen a million times so at times the novel bored me. I already knew the characters, the plot, the kill scenes and parts of the dialogue was word-for-word as in the movie. I would’ve like to know more about what was going on in M. Myers head before/after/during the kills. Can anyone suggest another Halloween novel that deviates more from the motion picture??

[Christina Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I could give more than five stars! Incredible book. 🙂

[Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars. This is my second favorite novelization in the series. I’ve always had a soft spot for Halloween IV so I was the most excited to get to this one. It was awesome. The writing was solid and like the others in the series it adds quite a bit to the story of the film. The extended epilogue was particularly great. I loved it. I had a blast reading this series and I could see myself re-reading them every fall from here on out when I need a Michael Myers fix and the movies just aren’t enough. Highly recommend.

{Challenges completed:
✔The Lost Challenges: Hidden Homes Semi-Annual Challenge
✔For Love of a Book: Baking Challenge}

[~Cyanide Latte~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet again, I need to say here that I wouldn't have been able to go through this book if it weren't for The 80s Slasher Librarian on YouTube. He does some seriously helpful and important archival work by getting these rare OOP slasher/horror books and recording fan audiobooks to upload so many fans can still have access to these stories for free without having to shell out a small fortune in the process. If you'd like to read this or other slasher movie tie-in novels, please go check out that channel and support him.

Full transparency here: I've not yet watched Halloween IV. I tend to go through the Halloween movies with one of my best friends, and she has a specific watch order and we've not hit IV yet. (I think the plan was to go through it and V sometime this month.) I was only vaguely aware of the existence of the character Jamie Lloyd in certain timelines thanks to fandom osmosis, so it was interesting to go through this book following her character and knowing (at least in this timeline) that Laurie is dead and we're following her daughter. That being said, the focus isn't solely on Jamie's POV, and we get some interesting additional characters in here whose POVs we follow from time to time. I think Grabowsky did a good job of juggling third-person omniscient narrative without it being too jarring or confused, and I do enjoy the way he handles Loomis as a character as well.

The plot itself is...well, it feels slightly by this point like there's a specific formula to the stories centered on Michael Myers and Haddonfield, if the comparison to the first two Halloweens are anything to go by. And while it's the plot that really drives the pace, I feel like the characters are fleshed out enough that it creates a fairly decent balance to something that might otherwise come across as stale. And Grabowsky also does a nice job of building tension, which The 80s Slasher Librarian audiobook ramps up by including the tense soundtrack from the film in during the reading. It really helped set a decent mood for the story, and I think this was a great read during the Halloween season!

[Luke Southard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was watching a bootlegged VHS tape as a small child one time. There were three movies on one tape and I wanted to watch the underrated Jewel of Nile.

After the movie, I went to the kitchen to make chocolate milk (or whatever young kids do) and when I came back, I saw the credits were almost done.

I figured I would watch whatever came on next.

What came on next was the last gas of the first Halloween, picking up right as Laurie Strode tells the kids to run and get help just before Michael Myers rose from the darkness and came after her.

I had no context here and it scared the shit out of me because, years prior when I was too young for school and was being baby-sat, I was forced to watch Halloween 4 (great babysitter) and was also scared, then.

So I knew that there were movies where a guy in a white mask killed people. My mom tried to calm me down by explaining the mythos is the Halloween universe but failed MISERABLY. She said it’s just a movie (good) about a guy who kills people and no matter what people try, they just can’t kill him. He could be ANYWHERE! And his name is Michael Myers.

I was terrified and spent nights trying to outthink this phantom.

But I did love the tingling in my stomach and the excitement I felt. I enjoyed the movies. I wasn’t keen on my own reaction to them where I couldn’t sleep and would have benefited from a few more years before getting into them, but my path was set and I’ve been sneaking and watching or reading horror ever since.

I say all that because I had the space. The Halloween 4 novelization was okay. I like that Myers wasn’t getting sexually aroused all the time and I liked how Loomis was back to being more sane, but I expected more answers to bridge the gaps from 2 to 4 and maybe even explain the ending a bit more, but alas, no.

Still fun, though!

[Amit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Final part of Halloween 🎃 (IV) and there's nothing better than that, the way tale ended you just couldn't ask for more. Again I read it in one sitting. Full of ecstasy and hyper tension in every single pages, just go for it...

Michael Myers not dead yet! Unbelievably he's still alive and he is Jamie's uncle. A vicious, terrible human hunter. He is back and this time nothing will stop him. But he was wrong, or not??...

Being in coma for 10 years that very night Michael came alive again. Fleed from the hospital and going again for his hometown Haddonfield illinois. Dr. Loomis is also in the action, this time with Sheriff Meeker as Sheriff Brackett retired from the job he too begun his hunt against that maniac machine. Rachel Jamie's foster sister being always her side did try best to protect the six year old girl from him. While reading the book I couldn't help as the tale creep the hell out of me and made me feel deep into total tension and fear. I would say the ending was perfect but while the ending was done there's new twist also developed through the final scene and yes this about that little girl Jamie. This time I could see that coming. There's a short tale too from the author after finishing the book you will find and it named "The Falling" which was also a good read...

Fast paced, scary, full of action with horror. Highly recommended...

[David Denoyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

For the most part, this is a pretty straightforward novelization of Halloween 4 that offers a few scenes/additions not included the final film. Reverend Sayers who picks up Loomis after the petrol station explosion has more involvement but is not a big character however his inclusion at police station massacre adds an eeriness to the Shape as does internal thoughts from the Shape we get a few times. Quick read with little description on the murders & stalking but since fans of the film will most likely be the readers, their memory of the film can fill in the blanks. My biggest gripe by far was no detail or scene presented of the ambulance massacre scene. Regardless a fun read for spooky season but don’t go in expecting to be blown away.

[David Kempf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nicholas Grabowsky has written a truly inspired movie novelization here. I am a huge fan of Halloween 4, and he delivers all of the scares from the film and adds a bold and original spin on the characters from the movie. The Shape and Dr. Loomis almost come alive off the page here. I always thought there was kind of a price the reader paid when reading what is essentially a movie. The relentless thrills and merciless frights make this book worth reading every page. A must for fans of the Halloween series.

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a reprint of the 1989 novelization for Halloween 4:The Return Of Michael Myers.
The writer expands his novel here, with some fleshed out scenes, and some new ones.
Fans of the film should enjoy this. There are enough differences to keep it fresh.
Some characters are a little different here.
(Kelly Meeker being the main one)
And there is a quick, unexpected cameo....
Also, where as the mask used in the film almost ruins it, at least in the book, you can have the mask look like the one on the posters, and this book.

[Darren Vincent · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a pretty straightforward translation of the movie, with just a few extra bits that I don't remember being in the movie. This is probably the second best novelization after the first movie/book, with the second movie/book being the worst. It was well written but it didn't try too hard. In the end, it did its job but I could have gone for just a few extra scenes or tidbits of background.

I am a fan of the movies so I will keep reading because of that and not because of the skills of the writer or how good the books actually are.

[Kerry Higgins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really loyal to the film and well written. After reading the novelisation of Halloween I wasnt expecting this book to be much better, and I was pretty disappointed with that one, but I was pleasantly surprised. It was loyal to the film well written and I wish this author had had the job of writing the original Halloween novel, I may have enjoyed it more.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is pretty much just like the movie. But I was missing that fear factor. There was a lot of telling more so than showing which I felt took away the horror element a bit. I read the newest Halloween book which was very good and well done. I wish this book terrified me and it fell flat for me on that. But it is well written and a light read.

[ᥫ᭡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easily read, susceptibly does say is based off the screenplay. So a lot of it is based off the film, and very much. It’s still fun, and I recommend it. The ending is a little different, from the film. You can definitely read this in one sitting. This could be seen more as a collectors item, than an actual novel; in my opinion.
4/5

[KAggie97 · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you enjoyed the other "Halloween" novelizations, you'll like this offering as well. Very faithful to the movie but, of course, there are some discrepancies and elaborations. Quick and enjoyable read.

[Mike Calkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Might be my favorite of the Halloween novelizations tbh. Does a great job deepening the film, with some wonderful descriptive flourishes and some alternate takes of favorite sequences.

Grabowski kicked ass with this. Going to have to snag a signed copy.

[Nik Kerry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book!

[Joaquin Romero · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great adaptation, I personally think that this book makes you forget about the movie but keeping the main story intact.

[Ryan Sasek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick fun read for fans of the HalloweeN franchise. I love Halloween so this was enjoyable for me. Nice to read during October to get in the HalloweeN spirit 🍂🎃🔪

[BRNTerri]

A lot of typos. I don't like the forth film therefore I disliked this novel.

[C.C. Bruno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fun and matches the movie perfectly. One thing I didn’t like were the few areas where it was in Michael’s perspective, but overall it was great!

[Sara Santos · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5

[Stay Fetters · Rating 4 out of 5]

Boogeyman Boogeyman. Jamie's uncle is the Boogeyman!
This ultimate edition has the original novelization, never released epilogue, an article from a magazine from 2010 and a short story called the falling. As you read the falling, you realize how much better his writing got.
During the book it had a lot of typos and more dashes then I've ever seen in my life. If you are a fan of the Halloween franchise then this is for you. It really isn't a great standalone novel.
The typos are distracting and they even use a wrong name a few times. This book is great to add to your collection but not worth reading more then once. I would opt out and buy the original.

[Noel Thingvall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good adaptation, well written. I have some problems, but they're all issues with the source screenplay, which I also still find pretty good.

Not docking a star for this, but I do have to caution people that the Ultimate Edition, while the most readily available form of this otherwise pretty rare book, is littered with formatting errors and typos. For a somewhat higher priced collectible edition, it's appalling how little work they put into crafting it. The book is still very readable, though, and the extras from author Grabowsky are a welcome treat.

[Nichole Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

After finding out there were novelizations of my favorite movie franchise, I had to read them. Though I couldnt get my hands on the 2nd one, I managed to get book 1 and 4. The first one was more suspenseful and I loved it. This one was simply the movie in words. It didnt add anything extra to lengthen the story, no background info to help better understand the curse. It was a descent read, still scary, still frightful.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really enjoyable, all the extra character moments were great, the crazy preacher from the movie is in it more. The atmosphere created is ominous as the story builds to a tense climax, all 10 years of anticipation is finally over. Really good small town descriptions that add to the enjoyment of seeing the whole town on alert for Michael. 'Goddamn you Michael' as Loomis says. You can also imagine the mask being the original, not the horrible one from this movie.

[Alexander Beresford · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished reading Nicholas Grabowsky's Halloween IV, the Special Limited Edition. Cool! Great additional storytelling! I've seen the movie, it was my favorite after the original. In the novelization, Grabowsky delves deeper, gives you more to chew on, more depth, more fun, more horror!

Get it here:

http://blackbedsheet.goshopper.net/i/...

[Lee Ferrier · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast paced adaption but full of typos and poor formatting. There were minor changes to the story here and there but overall it's a beat for beat retelling of the movie.