Odd Occurrences: Chilling Stories of Horror

by Andrew Nance

Two best friends.  One goes missing.  And a paranormal podcast that hopes to reunite them, but not before unleashing horror in many forms.

When Zeus’s best friend gets trapped inside the House of Mystery and Mirrors at Carnival Nocturne, Tobin’s existence is erased from the world, and Zeus is the only person who remembers that his best friend ever lived. Zeus is determined to return to the carnival and rescue his friend—that is, if he can only find it. 

Together with Tobin’s sister, Jana, Zeus concocts a plan to conjure Tobin’s captors on Halloween night via his paranormal podcast, Odd Occurrences . Listeners are invited to call in and share their supernatural experiences with the audience. From ghostly encounters to haunted dolls, terrifying escape rooms with deadly consequences to alien lake creatures, Zeus hopes that someone’s story will produce a clue that leads him to the mysterious carnival—and ultimately, back to Tobin. But little does Zeus know that Tobin is almost out of time. 

Genres: Middle Grade, Audiobook, Fiction

336 pages, Hardcover

Published September 27, 2022

Reviews

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of the stories were quite chilling and very good, and some could have really used a better editor. 2.5 stars. That’s my review as an adult though—I think this could certainly have appeal for the tween crowd.

[J.L. DuRona · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book I should have loved—an anthology of spooky stories for young readers is right up my alley—but I found it disappointing. It's premise, borrowed heavily from Something Wicked This Way Comes, is less an homage to Ray Bradbury and feels closer to a rip-off.

It's hacky premise isn't my biggest issue though. While some of the stories show promise, most of them lack any bite, playing it too safe for the sake of the book's young audience. Each story also explains too much, leaving little in the way of speculation (see: imagination) in the reader. A killer ghost on a phantom train loses a lot of its scare-factor when you're told exactly why it's there.

To the book's credit, I did manage to finish it (via audiobook), but I wouldn't recommend it.

[Luanne Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a great premise for a collection of stories. Zeus and his friend Tobin had a very scary adventure in a mysterious traveling carnival, resulting in Tobin’s mysterious disappearance. In order to find the carnival and rescue Tobin, Zeus starts a podcast asking his listeners for news of the carnival. The podcast also retells scary stories submitted by the audience. It’s much more interesting than just a collection of stories. Great for a Halloween read!

[Kathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of these were absolutely terrifying and I was like this is for kids?! Curious if these were based on fairytales or folklore from other cultures? Wish there was a bit more info and background behind that but the stories were fun.

[Abe Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok I DEVOURED this book!! I legit adore middle grade horror so much and this was one of my favorites so far! The podcast anthology format was able to keep me interested throughout each story leading up to the carnival chapters which were TERRIFYING!! I loved this so much.

[Dedra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This would make a great read aloud leading up to Halloween. Most of the chapters work as standalone stories, but there are periodic chapters that weave everything together from beginning to end.

[beccasbookscapes]

I like listening to this book it felt like ghost stories were being told sitting around a campfire.

[Susan Drew · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fun and creepy book! I love the format, the podcast and different stories. It was almost like reading a bunch of short stories.

[Nicole Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 - i liked it! the short story about the kids with black eyes creeped me out the most!