Bump in the Night

by Diane Wright Landolf, Denis Zilber (Illustrator)

Count down to Halloween with 13 sealed short stories!

Bump in the Night features 13 chilling tales to tingle kids' spines...without keeping them up all night. Perfect for reading in the lead-up to Halloween, each story features full-color artwork and is sealed with a sticker for kids to peel open and reveal the frights and delights within. Whether readers open one story per day, or tear into them all at once, this collection will set the stage for a very special spooky season.

Genres: Halloween

144 pages, Paperback

First published July 21, 2026

Reviews

[Alex Joseph · Rating 2.5 out of 5]

I think this is an extraordinary concept for a Goosebumps-esc anthology. One story per day leading to Halloween sounds dope in concept and I think Bump in the Night, as is, is an okay attempt at that whilst aiming to be unapologetically juvenile. It’s fun but I have little to nothing to say on most of the stories, so I’m not gonna review them. My favorite would have to be Wrinkles, but even then it’s just decent. Most of these sadly have weak endings or get cut right when they get interesting, the most victimized one being All Tricks, No Treats. It’s more excusable as it’s for little kids to grow into Goosebumps and more matured kids’ horror, but it’s still just meh stories to me. 5/10. The attempt is nice but the stories just don’t hit.

[Jessica · Rating 0.25 out of 5]

Awful. Do not recommend. Annoyed that I spent money on this. I bought it to read with my 9 year old and even he thought it was awful. The stories aren’t scary at all so if you’re hoping for that, don’t. A lot of the stories are short but that’s because a lot is missing from them, like plot or details or relevant information. Some of the stories are promising in theory but miss the mark in execution. I’m really bummed because if done well this could’ve been really great.

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun collection of spooky stories to listen to with my son. There are thirteen stories meant to be read in the days leading up to Halloween. I love the idea of reading a story a day and getting yourself in the mood for a spooky Halloween.

My son enjoyed the stories, but said they weren’t spooky enough for him. He is seven. So, I’m not sure how scary a middle grade reader will think they are. He’s really into Goosebumps right now and was hoping they would be a little more like that.

Overall, a fun set of stories. I think the physical copy would probably be a more enjoyable way to read it. I look forward to seeing the artwork we missed with the audiobook version.

[Lisa Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice collection of spooky stories. They're not actually scary so everyone can enjoy them. I really enjoy these kinds of introductions to horror for young readers and it's one of the questions people ask a lot when looking for books that interest kids.
The narration was nice, friendly and easy to understand. Thanks to NetGalley for letting me listen to this

[Critter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an audio ARC.

All the stories in this book are fun to listen to. I like the countdown to Halloween idea with this book. I thought the stories were well written for a young audience getting into scary stories. The narration was well done and engaging.