Mothman's Curse

by Christine Hayes, James K. Hindle (Illustrator)

When Josie and her brothers uncover a haunted camera, the Mothman legend becomes a terrifying reality that threatens their entire town in this spooky and action-filled novel. Josie may live in the most haunted town in America, but the only strange thing she ever sees is the parade of oddball customers that comes through her family’s auction house each week. But when she and her brothers discover a Polaroid camera that prints pictures of the ghost of local recluse John Goodrich, they are drawn into a mystery dating back over a hundred years. A desperate spirit, cursed jewelry, natural disasters, and the horrible specter of Mothman all weave in and out of the puzzle that Josie must solve to break the curse and save her own life.

Genres: Middle Grade, Mystery, Fantasy, Paranormal, Horror, Fiction, Ghosts

311 pages, Hardcover

First published June 16, 2015

About the author

Growing up, Christine Hayes loved reading stories about creatures that curl your toes and legends that send a shiver down your spine. Now she loves writing about them, too.

Christine seeks inspiration by haunting flea markets and estate sales, searching for cool vintage finds with a story to tell. While earning her degree in music she visited Asia for the first time, and later moved there with her family for several years. She has been addicted to travel ever since. Christine and her clan now live in northern Utah. Find her online at www.christinehayesbooks.com.

Reviews

[Christine Hayes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! Wrote it! Might not be totally objective on this one. :)

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't let the cartoony cover and illustrations fool you--this is a seriously creepy, scary story.

[Lori Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think so far this year this is one of my favorites, if I could give more than 5 stars I would. I just loved how close their family was. It had me from the beginning of the story until the very last page. Fox I just loved so much. I loved how tough he tried to be, but his really so not. But his not the type of kid that says why me all the time.
Mason I just loved how much he likes to take things apart, and the idea that young boy came up with.( Not going to say what that was) You'll just have to go and get the book to find out. It did play a big part of the story.
And Josie she is just so missing her mom, and wishes she could be more like Fox. She loves her family so much, and is so afraid something is going to happen to one of them.
This book has a goosebumps feeling to it. Finding a camera that is working when it shouldn't be able to, and a whole bunch of other creepy things. I loved the plan Fox and Josie came up with towards the end of the book. This book had so many things going on in it. Such as death, curses, a loving family, and so much more. It was a fun and exciting book, full of action and adventure.
I would read more stories with Mason, Fox, and Josie in them. And I feel like the young as well as the older people would love this book. It would be a great book for the whole family to take part in reading certain chapters.
I received this book from the publisher and Author and all I had to do was review the book with my honest opinion of the story. And am so glad I was given such a great story to review. So when this book is available to buy go out and get it. I know I want a paperback edition of the book.

[Wendi Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember watching “The Mothman Prophecy” years ago and finding it really creepy. So I was excited to find this book at the library, eager to see how the Mothman legend is explored in a middle grade format.

I wasn’t disappointed! Part of me was steeling for a Scooby-Do type of story (you know, where everything supernatural is revealed to be some guy in a suit), but happily, this was an actual creepy novel. Josie and her brothers are drawn into the world of the Mothman and his centuries old curse, and it’s up to them to save their town. I loved the close relationship these kids had with each other, and the story itself was lots of fun.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was FABULOUS! So well paced and well characterized. I found that I couldn't read it before bed because I was genuinely spooked! :) I think it will hit just the right note for middle grade readers looking to be a little scared, and the family aspect of it is so nice as well. Really well done.

[Alfeesya · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was a fun read! I love the relationship between the siblings, Josie, Fox and Mason. I love the adventures that they went through. Mothman was great curiosity. But for me, the writing was a little bit slow. Everything happened really slow and too much explanation that I don’t it’s necessary for all the too much details.

Overall, it was a quick read for me! If you guys want to try this out, it’s heart warming welcomed!

[Cara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once again I find myself conflicted over a rating and review. From an adult standpoint, this book was a solid 2, but for the intended audience I would say it was closer to a three or four. It fell flat for me especially with the illustrations, but this was a galley so the illustrations may not be final. Mothman has the potential to be really creepy and there were parts that were really creepy, but then there would be an illustration that was pretty cartoony looking and it would detract from the creepy factor. I guess I'll wait until the book comes out and rewrite my review if they change anything.

[Chelsea Elwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really fun play on the moth man legend! Bonus points for three well-rounded, dynamic, and relatable kid characters. Some kids might find this scary, but it’s otherwise great for all the cryptid lovers out there.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

CW: injury description, medical content, grief, (minor) death of a parent, (minor) cancer

Teach the children about Mothman!

[Majanka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review originally published here: http://www.iheartreading.net/reviews/...

What an entertaining read! For an adult, the characters are a little flat, and some of the plot parts aren’t all that original (a haunted camera has been used just about a million times already) but I’m sure kids will love it. The story flows well, it’s fast-paced, the characters do have little quirks that kids enjoy reading about, the book uses local legends which makes it seem more realistic, and whenever it gets too creepy, the cartoon-like illustrations will help dissolve that fear.

[Shyla Colt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a fun paranormal romp! Full of mystery , a hit of horror, and family Dynamics it's a great story for pre teens who love the spooky stuff.

[James Greer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed this book!! This is definitely one of my top favorite books I have read for this year. I am pleasantly surprised. I went into it expecting it to be a childish take on the Mothman Cryptid, but I found that the characters (though occasionally clichet) were very well fleshed out.

As a fan of Mothman, the creative liberties the author uses to tell a richer back story for the monster, was welcome. 5 star read considering it is meant for middle school level students. There is some references to suicide, guns, and murder, but nothing is in too much detail.

[Karla Brading · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a great concept. Cleverly thought out. There was a part where Josie obtained some feral bats really easily that I felt was too convenient but I can understand it was a plot device to drive the story home in its climax. I have to say I flippin' love all the information we have on the Mothman. He intrigues me to no end. I'm so glad the author chose him to be the subject of a wonderful little children's novel.

[Lauren Floyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute book for middle grades. I picked it up for the Mothman reference and definitely enjoyed it.

[Matheus Lufiego · Rating 5 out of 5]

Never expected Mothman to be an incel.

[Andrew Brennan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think the theme of this book isteamwork and perservearence pay off. Josie and her 2 brothers find a haunted camera that leads back to a ancient mystery. They find the camera belongs to John Goodrich. They ask there dad and he ends up having a key to the Goddrich estate, they split up and find all these haunted treasures that lead to a legend called the Mothman. From there this creature begins to terrorize them and there town and it's up to the to stop the Mothman, and save there town from this curse.

[Holli · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25. I love Bigfoot stories. I think they are so fun. When I grew up, we could still imagine mysterious creatures MIGHT be among us. This was before satellites and all the technology that exists today. (I think we were better off with our imaginations to guide us.) It made a world that wasn't made of stone, and anything could still happen. It gave us spooky stories at camp-outs. Reasons to explore the woods around us and wonder what these creatures would be like if we found them. Did they have families? Were they sentient beings or animals?
The Mothman is a legend I have never heard of before and I really enjoyed it. The research was done for this real-life legend. It was written so well and not just a "kid's" novel. I was pleasantly surprised and happy to see the level of talent. The plot was laced with interesting , suprising, and scary moments. I got chills now and then. EXCELLENT novel. We need more books from this writer.

[Elissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I was kind of confused and perplexed at this being a children's book. It was properly scary, employing elements of horror films like cold air, floating objects, lights exploding, etc. I felt like it was a little all over the place and didn't quite come together. The scary elements were actually scary and that worked, but then the rest of the details felt slapped together--disasters being linked to mothman, mothman himself (at first I thought it was just going to be an urban legend sort of thing then it came out that mothman was real and people actually did see and believe), etc. I wasn't sure if it was a regional lore sort of thing that I wasn't privy to, not being from that area, so I appreciated the author's note at the end that gave context to Hayes' choice to use mothman, but I still feel like it will go over some people's heads.

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

Josie, Fox, and Mason live in the most haunted town in America, but the only strange things Josie ever saw were the few weird customers that came to her family's auction house. When they get their hands on a haunted camera that prints pictures of a ghost of the recently deceased local hermit, they are drawn into a one hundred year old mystery.

It sounds exciting from the back copy, but my interest waned before I even made it half way through.

I was barely a quarter of the way through Mothman's Curse before I was overwhelmed with things to keep track of.

[Jalen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fox, Josie, And Mason are 3 kids who are in love with haunted items and also involved with several auctions. They live in a small town called Athens, Ohio and claim it is inhabited by Mothman, and when they find an old, haunted camera with no film, that in every picture contains an old, grim man, they are determined to find out who he is, and what he wants and by doing so, they get caught up in a whole bonanza of weird, unexplained activity. While reading this book, I connected with them because I know how it feels to have things happen to you and you so desperately want to investigate, but at the same time, you want to let it be. I would recommend this book to a classmate because it’s fun and engaging and a good way to pass time when asked to read in class.

[Noelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I was disappointed in the author's take on the Mothman figure-she portrayed it simply as a man who put a curse on himself by selling his soul to an old hag-(actually the Devil) and then turning into Mothman. So it was a letdown because of the actual character of Mothman -that was sighted-probably was supernatural in nature. More of an X-files figure, than a man turned monster. Also, although this was a children's book , they discussed suicide throughout the book. Not sure what audience of children this is meant for, but perhaps suicide is not the greatest thing to introduce children to. The ending was very suspenseful however, so will give it that. But all in all, not what I had expected Mothman to be.

[Jill Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fresh and exciting idea, meh execution. Let the Mothman drive the plot! Drop the contrived, “well if Momma were alive,” every other chapter. That being said, I would still totally read about the Fletcher kids facing off against other paranormal characters.

[Jennifer Bertman · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a page turner. And SPOOKY! If you know a young reader who loves a great ghost story, I highly recommend this book!

[Kris Kizer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Children's literature is some of the best stuff out there. Creativity with no rules. This was a good book, fun to read.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I want to preface this by saying that I cannot, in good conscience, recommend this to anyone but early high school, MAYBE late middle grade at the OLDEST, because it gets pretty intense. Full content warnings at the bottom because they contain the heaviest spoilers, but for real, you might want to pre-read this one before letting a kid have it.

That said, as a grown adult, the escalation in this book is BONKERS. The jump from "oh, huh, haunted camera" to "r/niceguys goes r/NoSleep feat. Mothman" is so swift I got whiplash. Not necessarily in a bad way, though. I kind of appreciate that Christine Hayes throws you right in the deep end. The writing is pretty good and I'm a big fan of the illustrations. While some plot elements were MAYBE a bit too rich for my blood (I get uncomfortable when dark magic and curses come into play but since the perpetrators were all villainous and there's a happy ending, we're gonna let it slide), overall I'd say this wasn't bad.

But for real, carefully consider this book for young readers. Parental death, curses, black magic, murder, suicide, and child endangerment with the threat of death are all plot points. Just because they can read the writing doesn't mean they can handle the subject matter.

[Katherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

An amazing middle grade read! It follows a young girl and her two little brothers. Josie, Fox, and Mason live with their dad, aunt, and uncle. Together, the children must learn to fight against a 100 year old curse connected to Mothman. The action starts immediately with a haunted camera, old ghost, and impending disaster estimated to kill hundreds of people. Nobody knows weather Mothman appears as a warning to upcoming crisis or generates them. However, he soon starts showing up in their hometown of Athens. The mystery of Mothman's arrival is tied to a man living in a nearby town that was destroyed by a disaster. The man died under mysterious circumstances, pulling the Josie's family into the curse. It's told through Josie's perspective with multiple illustrations scattered throughout.

It was a really dark and creepy read that I read through very quickly. The family dynamics and sibling relationships were positive and uplifting. The pasts on the ghosts affected by the curse were interesting, as well as Mothman's origin story. While the kids do research Mothman and his involvement with disasters, there could have been more talked about with his history. Also, I wish there were more ghosts introduced. It wrapped up well. Overall, I enjoyed it a lot!

[Brodie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read a book called "Mothman's curse, by Christine Hayes". Mothman's curse is about a girl named Josie and her two younger brothers. One day herself and her two younger brothers set out to go out on an adventure. While they were out the youngest brother Fox, discovered a old polaroid camera. They took a picture together, and when they got the picture out they saw a white ghost-like figure in the background. Now they released the curse... Towards the end of the book they found out how to trap the ghost and release the siblings of their curse.

I enjoyed the whole book and wouldn't change anything about it, The whole book was action packed and one of those books I could not put down. The siblings were a pretty interesting family, but they did a lot of weird things, such as go find the old polaroid, and snap a picture with it.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is between the ages of 12-14. This book is understood better by older kids than younger. Anyone younger wouldn't really understand some of the things they said and what they meant by it.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where do I start? This is the book I didn't know I needed.
Just a month or so ago, my family and I made the trip to Point Pleasant West (by god) Virginia. We stopped to see the Mothman statue and of course we went in the Mothman museum. I was looking at shirts and this book screamed at me from a shelf. Of course for only $8 I bought it. THE BEST $8 I'VE EVER SPENT. I love this book. My favorite type of book, is a book that I can see clearly like a movie in my head. This book definitely did that for me. It snatched all of my attention and held it tight. I couldn't put it down. The detail and thought are amazing. It had twists and turns that I didn't expect. I loved this book. I'm sure I'll read it more than just this once. 10/10 would recommend.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it!
The perspective of a family of Auctioneers was very unique!
I absolutely was pulled into the story, and loved the "Mothman" and paranormal aspects of the plot.
This was incredible. If this was a series I'd be reading the whole thing!...
I loved the characters, especially the children. Fox being my favorite.
I liked Mason (who reminded me of a kid I used to know who liked to take things apart and rebuild them.) and Josie too (Who everyone imagines is younger than she is, just like me lol.)


*SPOILERS*


I can't believe all the destruction, wow...
And to think the ghost problem happened all because of a girl saying no...

[Krystal Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a pretty good read with my son. A little scary, a little creepy, and very mysterious.

There is mention of suicide, death, and loss of a parent, but the book is based around the Mothman who curses people and causes disasters so I suppose that's to be expected. It doesn't glamorize the suicide, but it does frame it as something somewhat heroic by the character involved, which could be problematic if a kid is reading it by themselves.

I like the siblings' close relationship in the story as well as the loving support of their aunt and uncle.

If your kiddo likes mysterious lore like Mothman or Sasquatch, and reading about kids who take matters into their own hands, they will probably enjoy this book. I do not recommend for kids under the age of 10.