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Spooksville #14
Casa del Mal, La 14
It is Halloween and Spooksville is either the best place to be, or the worst. It depends on how scared you want to get. Adam and his friends dress up in their costumes and set out for a fun night of trick-or-treating. But along the way they come across the Evil House, hear a stream from within, and feel obligated to see what is the matter.
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1996
About the author
Christopher Pike
265 books5,575 followersChristopher Pike is the pseudonym of Kevin McFadden. He is a bestselling author of young adult and children's fiction who specializes in the thriller genre.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
McFadden was born in New York but grew up in California where he stills lives in today. A college drop-out, he did factory work, painted houses and programmed computers before becoming a recognized author. Initially unsuccessful when he set out to write science fiction and adult mystery, it was not until his work caught the attention of an editor who suggested he write a teen thriller that he became a hit. The result was Slumber Party (1985), a book about a group of teenagers who run into bizarre and violent events during a ski weekend. After that he wrote Weekend and Chain Letter. All three books went on to become bestsellers.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
McFadden was born in New York but grew up in California where he stills lives in today. A college drop-out, he did factory work, painted houses and programmed computers before becoming a recognized author. Initially unsuccessful when he set out to write science fiction and adult mystery, it was not until his work caught the attention of an editor who suggested he write a teen thriller that he became a hit. The result was Slumber Party (1985), a book about a group of teenagers who run into bizarre and violent events during a ski weekend. After that he wrote Weekend and Chain Letter. All three books went on to become bestsellers.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
February 26, 2021
After a visit to Spooksville’s very own witch, Ann Templeton, on Halloween night, Adam and his friends investigate a spooky, abandoned house. Everyone knows the stories of how kids disappear in this house and never return, and even Watch and Sally don’t want to risk it. But when Adam sees a strange light and hears a mournful cry, he can’t resist trying to help. Is it possible that the kids who disappeared into the Evil House are still trapped there? Trigger warnings: child death (off-page), abduction, severe illness, violence, blood/implied gore, implied body horror, bullying.
I’ve been eagerly awaiting Halloween in Spooksville, and The Evil House doesn’t disappoint. It’s one of my favorites of the recent (for me) books, and I’m newly frustrated that there’s nowhere to stream the show right now because I have distinct memories of this episode. Pike is at his spookiest here with haunted houses, alternate dimensions, magicians, and, of course, Halloween, and it has pretty much all my favorite things in the series.
Adam is brave (sometimes stupidly brave), but it’s his heart that makes him the real hero of this series. He can’t walk away from someone in trouble, even if they’re a stranger, and wherever they go, he tries to make things better for the people there. (I also love that Adam is much more compassionate than Sally. Boys can be soft. Girls can be tough. Knock down those gender norms.) Pike also does a nice job developing the villain of this story, making him believable, and giving him a compelling backstory all in a few short pages. I will say that I don’t care for Bryce being a more permanent part of the group though. It didn’t really need a fifth wheel, and literally every function he serves in this particular book can be fulfilled by Sally or Adam. (I also just don’t find him that interesting… or trustworthy.)
Potential spoilers ahead! I’m still compiling evidence for my theory that Watch isn’t human/is from another time/dimension/outer space, so of course I loved the line about him only seeing stars in the crystal ball.
I review regularly at brightbeautifulthings.tumblr.com.
I’ve been eagerly awaiting Halloween in Spooksville, and The Evil House doesn’t disappoint. It’s one of my favorites of the recent (for me) books, and I’m newly frustrated that there’s nowhere to stream the show right now because I have distinct memories of this episode. Pike is at his spookiest here with haunted houses, alternate dimensions, magicians, and, of course, Halloween, and it has pretty much all my favorite things in the series.
Adam is brave (sometimes stupidly brave), but it’s his heart that makes him the real hero of this series. He can’t walk away from someone in trouble, even if they’re a stranger, and wherever they go, he tries to make things better for the people there. (I also love that Adam is much more compassionate than Sally. Boys can be soft. Girls can be tough. Knock down those gender norms.) Pike also does a nice job developing the villain of this story, making him believable, and giving him a compelling backstory all in a few short pages. I will say that I don’t care for Bryce being a more permanent part of the group though. It didn’t really need a fifth wheel, and literally every function he serves in this particular book can be fulfilled by Sally or Adam. (I also just don’t find him that interesting… or trustworthy.)
Potential spoilers ahead! I’m still compiling evidence for my theory that Watch isn’t human/is from another time/dimension/outer space, so of course I loved the line about him only seeing stars in the crystal ball.
I review regularly at brightbeautifulthings.tumblr.com.
September 24, 2026
I just finished another Spooksville book.This is another one I was really anticipating.It's called The Evil House.The cover art is amazing on this one.It is probably my favorite,or at least one of my favorites.The story follows Adam,Watch,Sally,Bryce and Cindy getting ready for Halloween.They are at Bryce's house and he says he lives alone and it sure looks that way.There is one bed in every bedroom and one set of clothes in every closet.Bryce and Sally are both dressed as a vampires.Watch is going as Sherlock Homes.Cindy is dressed as a fairy princess and Adam is wearing the traditional sheet over his head with eyes cut out dressed as a ghost.Adam apparently didn't have a lot of time to get into his costume,because of school.They talk a bit about Anne Templeton's castle and they end up going there first.Her castle is decorated with jack o lanterns on her drawbridge and there is a colorful hue to the water down below.They make it to the witches castle and she is on her front porch in a chair and she has a cauldron with what looks like actual human heads inside it.Adam goes to her and first and she asks if she doesn't have anything will he trick her and Adam doesn't back down.She eventually gives him a candy bar.Bryce asks for some kind of equipment and a candy bar,but the witch says he will die if he gets that equipment thing and gives him a candy bar as well.She makes Watch pick trick and he fires a laser pistol at her crocodiles in the moat around her castle.He asks for her to fix his glasses.She takes Watche's glasses and does so by rubbing her hands over it.Sally refuses to go to her and Cindy says she is just out for candy,but the witch gives her advice about Halloween in Spooksville and tonight in general.They continue on Trick Or Treating when they notice alot of houses have their lights off .Sally mentions that last year a werewolf slaughtered a few families and this might be the first mention of a werewolf in these books.They eventually come to this place called Dead End Lane with this house at the end.Adam heads towards it,but Watch and Sally both try and talk him out of it.Watch claims this is The Evil House and people that go inside and don't come out.Adam talks them into just checking out the jack o lantern,because apparently it is lit up.He goes up to it and notice the fire is suspended in the air off the jack o lantern.They hear a noise inside like a wail and Adam decides for everyone to go check it out.They do and Watch says he saw a flash of white light.They end up discovering this room and find posters of carnivals and magic shows.There is also a picture of this family with a kid.The kid is wearing a shirt that says Marvin The Magnificent.Bryce says he saw a light just like the one Watch saw.Where the picture of the family is at there is a chest underneath.It was closed when the kids first entered,now it's open and It's glowing on the inside.They open this chest looking thing and inside is a book of magic and a cloak and some playing cards. they see this trapdoor and the kids reluctantly go inside.They somehow end up in this carnival and Watch begins to talk ,just like the real Sherlock homes.Bryce and Sally begin to say how thirsty they are.and Adam is beginning to feel really light.They enter the carnival and find this big strong green man,who I just kept picturing as the Hulk.They ask for answers about how long the green guy has been there,but he doesn't help out alot.The find a two headed fortune teller and talk to them for a bit.They hear this bell and everyone gathers around this tent.The kids don't know exactly what to do so this guy named Wild Bill guides them to the tent basically at gunpoint.everybody goes inside and here we are introduced to Marvin The Magnificent.He first calls this viking guy,who he straight up cuts him with a saw before Adam stops him.Watch volunteers Adam to go upstage and he reluctantly does,but Adam can't be cut in half,because he is a ghost now.In fact,everyone is their costumes.MarvinThe Magnificent is pretty much humiliated in front of all of his peers and this surprises everyone,because he invited the kids to his house to eat.They are then driven on a carriage in the back,except Cindy who rides beside Marvin in the front.They get to the house and each kid is put in a room.Later Wild Bill and the strongman gather up the kids and put them in a dungeon.This is the only time the kids get separated.For those of you that don't know In the Spooksville books the kids typically get paired doing something else while the other kids do their own thing.It's pretty much up to Cindy to save them now and that's where I'm going to leave this plot I really enjoyed The Evil House.The Halloween atmosphere was there and the carnival is great, especially with the costumed people.The scene where the viking gets cut with a saw reminds me of Game Of Thrones.Marvin reminds me a little bit of Joffrey.I'm pretty sure there is a scene in that show where he kills people in front of others or something.The climax is actually pretty sweet.I also liked the reveal of who the carriage driver was.I give The Evil House a four out of five stars.The only thing holding it back was the actual explanation of what the white flash actually was.I also wasn't thrilled about an evil magician.He was more then that though,but still.This one was definitely a good one,just not my favorite.
October 16, 2026
You are traveling through a shelter — a shelter not only of sight and sound but of mind. A journey into a wondrous house whose boundaries are that of imagination. That’s a street sign up ahead; your next stop: The Evil House. Forgive the reference… welcome back to Spooksville. This volume is one of the only ones I got mostly spoiled by the tv series, as it’s arguably an iconic episode in the short-lived show. Was this any good? You bet bro. The characters here are fun and dynamic as always, and the challenge of this particular ‘Ville was one of the most creative yet. I loved the world introduced here and it appears to be some kind of pocket dimension, and the mechanics of it are cool. The villain was great as they were potentially the least threatening yet shares some of the sorrow of some of the earlier Spooksville entities did. I liked them a lot and I think the book was a lot of fun, and the vibes were great. My only negative here is the pace isn’t great in the first two-thirds of the story, definitely scratching slow. Overall, 9/10 for me. A great Spooksville, thankfully, as the previous two left me disappointed. The orphanage is about to have a business boom LOL
March 11, 2015
Halloween has come to Spooksville, and if there's one thing this town knows how to do, it's frighten children and adults alike.
I appreciated that this installment in the Spooksville series read less like a sci-fi novel and more like a horror novel, reminiscent of works by authors such as R.L. Stine. In my opinion, it helped break the series out of the rut that it seemed to be falling into in previous books. As usual, Watch (or should I say Sherlock Holmes in this case) filled the role of the intellectually superior voice of reason, but he seemed to play a bigger part in The Evil House, which I enjoyed since Watch is my favorite character at this point.
I dare say this is the best book in the Spooksville series so far, and I hope that Christopher Pike continues in this direction.
I appreciated that this installment in the Spooksville series read less like a sci-fi novel and more like a horror novel, reminiscent of works by authors such as R.L. Stine. In my opinion, it helped break the series out of the rut that it seemed to be falling into in previous books. As usual, Watch (or should I say Sherlock Holmes in this case) filled the role of the intellectually superior voice of reason, but he seemed to play a bigger part in The Evil House, which I enjoyed since Watch is my favorite character at this point.
I dare say this is the best book in the Spooksville series so far, and I hope that Christopher Pike continues in this direction.
March 11, 2023
J'ai été agréablement surprise par ce tome quatorze de Spooksville. Après quelques petites déceptions passées, ici Christopher Pike nous offre de la nouveauté et l'auteur a été totalement à la hauteur avec cette histoire spéciale Halloween qui plus est ! Il faut dire aussi que l'apparition furtive d'Anne Templeton au début du tome avait déjà de quoi me faire grandement plaisir.
Après une rentrée plutôt mouvementée, les cinq amis se réunissent pour LA fête de Spooksville : Halloween. Connaissant la ville, on se doute que ce trente-et-un octobre ne va pas être de tout repos et que les ennuis ne vont pas tarder à arriver. Et ce n'est pas la visite au château de la sorcière qui va nous détromper. Mais le danger pourrait plutôt se trouver dans la rue du mort… où une étrange maison attire indéniablement Adam.
Il y a pour moi un tournant avec ce tome. Déjà, j'ai trouvé que Christopher Pike était moins caustique vis-à-vis de ses héros, et qu'il leur donnait ici l'occasion de se montrer sous leur meilleur jour en exploitant leurs qualités. Ensuite, l'ambiance horreur est carrément présente du début à la fin. Il y a même certains passages que j'ai trouvé un petit peu poussé, c'est pour dire. Parfait pour Halloween, donc, et en plus il y a de la nouveauté.
On avait déjà eu affaire à des fantômes dans les premiers tomes, mais ici, nous sommes à un autre niveau. Entre l'imagination d'un enfant quelque peu perdu et un monde parallèle, nos héros se retrouvent face à plusieurs problèmes, et ils vont devoir compter sur l'intelligence de Tic-Tac pour les sortir de ce très mauvais pas. Sans compter quelques petites transformations qui vont obliger les cinq amis à dépasser leurs limites. On sent l'étau se resserrer, les enjeux plus que vitaux, l'angoisse qui monte crescendo. C'est très bien amené et j'ai clairement pris plus de plaisir à lire La maison du mal que d'autres tomes de la saga.
Avec toujours la même dose d'humour noir, et une ville qui décidément n'a rien vraiment pour elle, le quatorzième tome de Spooksville réussit son pari de nous faire frissonner. Je regrette par contre toujours autant les fins vraiment très abruptes que l'on a depuis quelques temps, même si elles offrent tout de même une bonne conclusion.
Après une rentrée plutôt mouvementée, les cinq amis se réunissent pour LA fête de Spooksville : Halloween. Connaissant la ville, on se doute que ce trente-et-un octobre ne va pas être de tout repos et que les ennuis ne vont pas tarder à arriver. Et ce n'est pas la visite au château de la sorcière qui va nous détromper. Mais le danger pourrait plutôt se trouver dans la rue du mort… où une étrange maison attire indéniablement Adam.
Il y a pour moi un tournant avec ce tome. Déjà, j'ai trouvé que Christopher Pike était moins caustique vis-à-vis de ses héros, et qu'il leur donnait ici l'occasion de se montrer sous leur meilleur jour en exploitant leurs qualités. Ensuite, l'ambiance horreur est carrément présente du début à la fin. Il y a même certains passages que j'ai trouvé un petit peu poussé, c'est pour dire. Parfait pour Halloween, donc, et en plus il y a de la nouveauté.
On avait déjà eu affaire à des fantômes dans les premiers tomes, mais ici, nous sommes à un autre niveau. Entre l'imagination d'un enfant quelque peu perdu et un monde parallèle, nos héros se retrouvent face à plusieurs problèmes, et ils vont devoir compter sur l'intelligence de Tic-Tac pour les sortir de ce très mauvais pas. Sans compter quelques petites transformations qui vont obliger les cinq amis à dépasser leurs limites. On sent l'étau se resserrer, les enjeux plus que vitaux, l'angoisse qui monte crescendo. C'est très bien amené et j'ai clairement pris plus de plaisir à lire La maison du mal que d'autres tomes de la saga.
Avec toujours la même dose d'humour noir, et une ville qui décidément n'a rien vraiment pour elle, le quatorzième tome de Spooksville réussit son pari de nous faire frissonner. Je regrette par contre toujours autant les fins vraiment très abruptes que l'on a depuis quelques temps, même si elles offrent tout de même une bonne conclusion.
December 10, 2021
Evil house by Christopher Pike is a middle grade short book, set on Halloween in the town of Springsville - which the kids called spooksville.
I can fully see how this is perfect for young readers. It's fast paced, has a scary but not sinister plot line and fun characters.
Our main characters, Watch, Adam, Cindy, Sally and Bryce go trick or treating. They meet the witch of the town and then move on, realizing that they are at a spooky house where people have known to go missing. When a lone cry comes out, Adam, who is the newest of the group refuses not to go and help.
What follows is a mysterious box with stairs and a carnival. I really enjoyed reading about this little mystery and can see alot of thought has gone into the halloween characters.
They even have a two headed lady which is a tribute to a real life person. A good read for young kids as it has an element of fantasy and horror.
I can fully see how this is perfect for young readers. It's fast paced, has a scary but not sinister plot line and fun characters.
Our main characters, Watch, Adam, Cindy, Sally and Bryce go trick or treating. They meet the witch of the town and then move on, realizing that they are at a spooky house where people have known to go missing. When a lone cry comes out, Adam, who is the newest of the group refuses not to go and help.
What follows is a mysterious box with stairs and a carnival. I really enjoyed reading about this little mystery and can see alot of thought has gone into the halloween characters.
They even have a two headed lady which is a tribute to a real life person. A good read for young kids as it has an element of fantasy and horror.
April 20, 2026
Another fun and silly Spooksville story! Thrse are great, quick stories when I want something easy and nostalgic. I should have saved this for Halloween, the carnival setting they end up in added to the festive Halloween feeling. The kids' snarky conversations are the best
April 16, 2019
It’s truly a great Halloween story!
July 8, 2020
DIMENSIONES 💙😍😭🌈✨ EXCELENTE PLOT TWIST!!! Amo a Ann Templeton y Watch :,) fav, misterios.
"You will only get stuck if you're afraid of getting stuck" 👀
🖖🏼
"You will only get stuck if you're afraid of getting stuck" 👀
🖖🏼
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews