The Gravedigger

Creepers

by Edgar J. Hyde

When the Price family move to a house in a graveyard, are they scared of ghost and ghouls and thins that go bump in the night? Absolutely not! That's why they moved there!

This family includes a father who writes horror stories, his children Jamie and Paula, a blood-phobic vampire, a vegetarian werewolf, a headless ghost and an Egyptian mummy.

For some reason, the sinister gardener Ebenezer Krim and the old gravedigger's ghost are intent on getting them out of their new home. But the Prices stay put with terrifying results.

Genres: Horror, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Halloween, YA Horror, Paranormal

121 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Elizabeth Sagewood · Rating 3 out of 5]

A delightful children’s read about an unconventional family living in a graveyard. Right up my alley.

[Tor Domay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even for a kids novel it's got some poor structure, but the premise is actually neat and the result is mildly entertaining.

[tim Skaggs · Rating 3 out of 5]

this one was a bit goofy

[Frankenoise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty interesting story, and a fairly original one for kids to read as well, I must say. We have a house of a clairvoyant family that befriends four ghosts in their new home (I particularly like the Titanic ghost that carries his own head around and spits salt water out every time he talks).
We also have the town nut and an evil spirit that both want this family to move out and try their best to do so.
Written well for the 7-12 age group it's intended for, and the illustrations are good too. I've read well over 70 Stine/ Pike books, and this one is just as good as the best of the Goosebumps ones I've read. Amazon has these listed for $8 each, but I got 5 from this series at The Dollar Store for the same price, so well worth the price if you can find it there.

[Spookynene156 · Rating 3 out of 5]

The ending just seemed abrupt/too fast :/

[Bobby Keniston · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 Stars rounded up.

I bought this book at the Dollar Tree, along with the next four books in the series (they didn't have books 1-5, just 6-10). I'm a nostalgic sort, and often read middle-grade spooky fiction because I write plays for children. So I bought the books, thinking they might be a fun, obvious "Goosebumps" knockoff.

"The Gravedigger" by Edgar J. Hyde (if that is a pseudonym, it's a fun one), is a short, quick read. The premise is a fun one: a horror writer and his son and daughter move into a house in the middle of cemetery. They don't move in alone, however: they move in with four ghosts, one a vampire, one a werewolf, one a Mummy, and one who died on the Titanic and carries his head (which constantly spits sea water) around with him. The thing is, these are kind ghosts, family friends, who move everywhere with them. Don't worry--- this isn't a spoiler, you learn about it right in chapter one.

The real antagonist is Ebenezer Krim, the cemetery gardener, who wants the family to move out. And we meet another ghost later on that Krim teams up with.

The premise is the best thing about the book. The story is decent, I suppose, but the writing could have stood an extra polish or two, or more marks with the red pen from an editor.

But....

The reviews in the front of the book are all from kids, so that's cool. They seem to dig it. And the Creepers books say they have sold over 4 million copies, so that's more than I've done.

I may try reading the next in the series tomorrow and see if it is a bit more tightly written. If not, I may not proceed with finishing the series right now. But for Dollar Tree purchases, I really can't complain, and, again, there was some fun to be had here. I'll be curious to see how the next one fares...

[Sylvia Fey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this book and several other Creepers books from Dollar Tree. That's where I got quite a few books, actually. Sometimes you find some gems amongst the bibles and spiritual books.

Review:

It was a pretty good, short read. It's really obvious about halfway through the book that it's meant for younger readers because most young readers can't discern The Gravedigger disguising himself as the friendly ghosts when an adult can. It honestly pulled me out of the story when the author clarified those parts. Other than that, it was really cute. A very mellow, not so scary version of Goosebumps and a pretty good start to spooky reading season. I have several more of the Creepers books that I plan to read. They're so easy to read and so short that I'm sure you could read several in a day or one in a couple of hours with breaks.

[Tanya · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked this up from Dollar Tree because I've seen someone on Youtube mention them and I thought it would be something like Goosebumps. It's really not. The story is about a family moving to a house in the middle of a cemetery with their creepy friends (a vegetarian werewolf, blood-phobic vampire, a mummy and a headless ghost) because the father is a horror writer. Some weird choices were made in this story.
The father's name is Andrew and he's referred to by his first name the whole time. The author also likes to over explain. I get that I'm an adult, but I feel like I'd get tired of that even as a kid. I wish he'd give the readers some credit. It's stuff like the guy did this because this happened, and that's why he did that. The ending was abrupt.

[April Grob · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one I thought to be truly frightening for late elementary and middle grade age. If you are a parent who is raising your very biblically this would go against the verse in book of Deuteronomy that speaks again talking to or reaching out to speak with ghosts willingly, so in this case it would not.be for your children because they wouldn't be mature enough to not be confused on the difference between this being a story that's being told and that's it or if it is just story being told that you are reading or listening to, so I would say proceed with caution knowing your child's maturity level. Otherwise, this is a great spooky read that I recommend.

[寿理 宮本 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Firstly, this is a fun twist on the horror genre: a family HAPPILY living with a (bloodphobic) vampire, a (vegetarian) werewolf, a mummy, and a decapitated ghost. So what's so scary? Apparently, a gravedigger who is mad at them because they bought the house he wanted... like, okay, couldn't you have done that first and saved this whole story having to be written? I don't know.

It's entertaining to read, anyway, despite the Ghostbusters rip-off device and the weird tonal shift right at the end to ensure it has a happy ending like the other books in the series. Recommended for fans of horror, especially comedy horror!

[Colin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up a set of 8 of these "Creeper" books at the Dollar Tree for my son who loves horror stories. They're a bit cheesy, but fun. This one is cheesier than most in the series - the family of a horror novelist moves to a new home in a graveyard. The family has a bunch of ghosts who are practically members of the family - the ghost of a vampire who faints at the sight of blood, the ghost of a werewolf who is a vegetarian, etc. - it is super cheesy. Anyway, the human caretaker of the graveyard wants them gone, and joins forces with the ghost of a gravedigger who has been haunting the graveyard quietly for a long time, and . . . well, wackiness ensues . . .

[Christian Domenicci · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I truly enjoyed the family's story in this book. Dealing with a haunted house, secrets naturally come to the surface, making the entire experience spooky and fun at the same time. Reading has no age limit, and I thoroughly enjoyed this story, even though it seems to be aimed at a younger audience."
​"The flow was great, and the balance between the chilling moments and the lighthearted fun kept me engaged until the very end. Definitely 5 stars!"

[old account (rl) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now that is how you write children's horror. Fantastic! I loved this story so much more than I would ever have expected. The writing was absolutely charming, the beginning was just perfect and I simply adored the range of characters. The ending was a little open but that's just me being picky. If you like middle grade novels and want something horrifying than this has to be your go to book!

[Madison · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book wasn't bad but my only two completes about it is one the ending felt rushed and didn't make sense whatsoever. Two that the vampire, werewolf and mummy were ghosts. That the werewolf wasn't alive, then the vampire and mummy not being the undead. To me that just didn't make sense that they were ghosts. It made sense for the headless ghost to be a ghost but not the other three.

[David Macpherson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hate to talk smack on a kid book but this was a mess. The family lives with ghosts in a graveyard and a guy wants to run them off by killing the ghosts with a leaf blower and then two thirds to the end of the book an evil ghost shows up and then the guy with the leaf blower turns out to not be that bad and what the hell did I just read?

[J.D. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one was okay. I really like the characters and setting. I just feel like it could have been a bit more creepy. Also the story itself felt rushed along, especially the ending.

Would make a good read for Middle grade readers just getting into horror for the first time.

[Kaycee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story was fun from the beginning but the ending was so abrupt that I had to go back and make sure I didn't miss something and that it actually ended.
I liked this better than the last Creepers I read though.

[Kolves Nathalia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Li quando tinha 9 anos,amei muito!

[David Bennett Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect introduction to horror for kids. Goofy, funny and just spooky enough to entice a love for scary stuff.

[Mario Pimental · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silly, but Goosebumps is still the king.

[Nykita Brookshire · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was just a fun quick read. Reminds me of the old 80’s and 90’s kid’s horror books.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Savannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good! Vaguely reminds me of the fearstreet series, which I love. This was also a very quick read.

[Christina Asher · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a kids creepy book, I found this entertaining. I lean a single dad with two kids buying a house in a grave yard. What could happen?

[BRANDON · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute, would make a good DCOM for Halloween.

[Adriana Gonzalez · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book for a short children's book.

[Miki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good introductory book for readers not quite ready for Goosebumps. The end seemed rushed but it was a short enjoyable lower grade book.

[Candice Azalea Greene · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick and fun read that both horrifies and delights. Seriously. I laughed while reading and had nightmares about a dark figure following me around that night.

[Kat Skinner]

very short easy read. would make a fun TV episode.

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great premise, but the execution is naff. It's a shame, really. This one is better written than the majority of the Creepers series and had potential.