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Secret Santa
When some friends decide to become each others' Secret Santas, what should have been a fun time turns out to be a nightmare when one Secret Santa turns out to be not so jolly. Original.
152 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2001
3 people are currently reading
98 people want to read
About the author
D.E. Athkins
9 books48 followersD.E. Athkins (a.k.a 'Deathkins') is one of the pseudonyms used by published author Nola Thacker. Nola has also written several other books under the pseudonym Tom B.Stone.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 5, 2017
Seven teens from Shelter Cove High School are invited to popular Djuna Dufarge's yearly "Secret Santa" party, which is held around Christmas time. (This is the "in" party that everyone is dying to be invited to.) The teens are flown on a plane to Teach's Landing (a remote island) where the party is being held. Once they get to the island, and get settled in, eventually they are told to draw names and they will be a "Secret Santa" to the name that they picked. (Basically they give a gift to whoever's name that they picked). But then strange things begin to happen. They hear eerie howls in the night, their "Secret Santas" are giving them weird gifts, people are disappearing...
I thought this book would be fun to read around Christmas, but it was sort of boring, and had way too many characters in it for such a short story. The gifts were silly and not scary, and I didn't really care for any of the characters.
I thought this book would be fun to read around Christmas, but it was sort of boring, and had way too many characters in it for such a short story. The gifts were silly and not scary, and I didn't really care for any of the characters.
January 14, 2018
Point Horror was a series of YA horror/thrillers published by Scholastic in the late 1980s - '90s. The books were written by many different authors, most of which were popular horror writers at the time, writers like R. L. Stine, Christopher Pike, Caroline B. Cooney, and D. E. Athkins, the author who wrote this little book. Unfortunately, Point Horror died in the mid/late '90s, leaving behind a legacy of trashy teen chills and thrills... then came Secret Santa in 2001.
I'm a little confused by this one, honestly. When I found a copy of it at a thrift store, I immediately thought it was a Point Horror novel that I'd somehow missed. I mean, it has a similar cover, it is published by Scholastic, it is the same slim length as a Point Horror, and it is written by one of Point's mainstays. But it was published about five years too late, as Point was dead and buried by 2001. So I'm guessing this was a book D. E. Athkins had either written or been hired to write at the end of Point's run, but was never published until 2001.
Whatever happened, this is not the best teen horror I've ever read. There is no killer in a creepy Santa mask like the cover suggests, nor is there even a killer at all. There's someone who wants to kill teens, but mostly just leaves creepy (but not actually creepy) gifts for them.
This is also barely a Christmas read. It takes place at Christmastime, but the teens are staying on a tropical island which totally killed my hopes and dreams of yuletide bloodshed. *sigh*
Also, other than there being too many characters, the names of the characters really bothered me. Cleo? Barnett? Djuna Dufarge? Yuck.
Overall, it was a quick read, it just wasn't as good as the cover.
I'm a little confused by this one, honestly. When I found a copy of it at a thrift store, I immediately thought it was a Point Horror novel that I'd somehow missed. I mean, it has a similar cover, it is published by Scholastic, it is the same slim length as a Point Horror, and it is written by one of Point's mainstays. But it was published about five years too late, as Point was dead and buried by 2001. So I'm guessing this was a book D. E. Athkins had either written or been hired to write at the end of Point's run, but was never published until 2001.
Whatever happened, this is not the best teen horror I've ever read. There is no killer in a creepy Santa mask like the cover suggests, nor is there even a killer at all. There's someone who wants to kill teens, but mostly just leaves creepy (but not actually creepy) gifts for them.
This is also barely a Christmas read. It takes place at Christmastime, but the teens are staying on a tropical island which totally killed my hopes and dreams of yuletide bloodshed. *sigh*
Also, other than there being too many characters, the names of the characters really bothered me. Cleo? Barnett? Djuna Dufarge? Yuck.
Overall, it was a quick read, it just wasn't as good as the cover.
December 10, 2025
Author Nola Thacker (writing as "D.E. Athkins," rather than "Tom B. Stone") delivers a Christmas entry late in Point Horror's run, and this honestly serves as a huge stain on what was (mostly) a pretty solid label. The characters were all introduced in short order and there are too many to keep up with, especially considering how underdeveloped all of them are. I felt like I was reading a really bad late 90's or early 2000's teen drama that tried to sprinkle in some horror vibes, but nothing ever happened. Basically just some rich girl named Djuna invites the new girl in school and her other friends to an island to play Secret Santa...and that's it. This seemed to be unintentionally spoofing itself throughout, and had no redeeming qualities that come to mind. Not recommended.
December 13, 2021
Wait, in what universe do you buy your Secret Santa a gift before even drawing a name? And several gifts, no less.
These characters don’t even know how to play Secret Santa correctly so it’s already off to a bad start.
Rich girl invites a group of friends (or not? it’s actually unclear how well they all know each other because one is the random new girl?) to her private island for several days of activities…but it appears the only activity they have planned is, you guessed it, Secret Santa.
It’s all they talk about. It’s all they have to talk about. Besides the Storm. Oh right. There’s a storm. Sometimes a character gets a weird but non-threatening gift. One of them gets a DIY razor blade decorated ornament and cuts themself lol. I don’t even remember who. There’s like 10 characters to keep track of.
Some of them start to go missing. Then Psycho Santa starts a mysterious scavenger hunt and you think it’s about to get interesting but it really doesn’t. Only one clue and then they suddenly all end up in a cave? Or a pit? A cave pit?
AND NOBODY DIES. So disappointing.
One of my favorite tropes is “obscenely rich person brings group of misfits together to play elaborate and dangerous game” and this doesn’t touch on that AT ALL. It’s literally just a half-assed game of secret Santa on an island with some rain for a touch of moodiness.
So boring. Too many characters with occasional POV switching, which adds nothing to the story. Can’t tell you what the plot is. It’s not even Christmasy.
Not adding this one to my “nice list.”
These characters don’t even know how to play Secret Santa correctly so it’s already off to a bad start.
Rich girl invites a group of friends (or not? it’s actually unclear how well they all know each other because one is the random new girl?) to her private island for several days of activities…but it appears the only activity they have planned is, you guessed it, Secret Santa.
It’s all they talk about. It’s all they have to talk about. Besides the Storm. Oh right. There’s a storm. Sometimes a character gets a weird but non-threatening gift. One of them gets a DIY razor blade decorated ornament and cuts themself lol. I don’t even remember who. There’s like 10 characters to keep track of.
Some of them start to go missing. Then Psycho Santa starts a mysterious scavenger hunt and you think it’s about to get interesting but it really doesn’t. Only one clue and then they suddenly all end up in a cave? Or a pit? A cave pit?
AND NOBODY DIES. So disappointing.
One of my favorite tropes is “obscenely rich person brings group of misfits together to play elaborate and dangerous game” and this doesn’t touch on that AT ALL. It’s literally just a half-assed game of secret Santa on an island with some rain for a touch of moodiness.
So boring. Too many characters with occasional POV switching, which adds nothing to the story. Can’t tell you what the plot is. It’s not even Christmasy.
Not adding this one to my “nice list.”
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 21, 2024
3.5 stars rounded up to 4
So I am starting to get in all the books I ordered using the money I got for Christmas so I think it was fitting to start with the one closest to the aforementioned holiday.
D.E. Athkins also known as Nola Thacker is pretty good at writing some teen/YA fiction full of tension and Secret Santa has a lot of that. The title is just a small detail about what is really going on in this story because a Secret Santa game gets hijacked and it is set at Christmastime but it is also set on a small island off the coast of Georgia...no cold snow in sight like there is here.
The person behind the main event that ties everyone together is Djuna Dufarge...what a name.
The girl who throws the biggest, most extravagant holiday parties in all of Shelter Cove High School.
Only those who are popular enough usually get invited if they are lucky enough and if you don't happen to fit any of those social cliques, you must have done something to either impress Djuna...or get on her bad side for some catty revenge.
Cleo Newcomb is the new girl at school so she is more than a little confused and surprised to be invited to this year's party held on Teach's Landing, a small island off the Georgia coast.
Pammi Purchase is the daughter of a preacher but she is by no means saintly. She's interested in boys and tries to hide her intelligence and doesn't care what anyone else thinks of her until it is that time of year to suck up to Djuna and her best friend, Barnett, to get a party invite.
Kip Anderson is a cheerleader dating Jeremy Witherspoon, one of the nice jocks in the school. The thing is that Jeremy and Djuna Dufarge use to date each other before they had a break-up and now Jeremy is with Kip.
Neal Franklin thought that dating Barnett would get him closer to Djuna, the real object of his affection, but that certainly didn't work out well. They had a very nasty break-up and now both girls treat him like he was invisible but Neal isn't one for being ignored.
Grant Winthrop is one of those strong, silent types who sits in class without saying a word. A loner but not a bad boy just a guy with a mysterious vibe that we know little about...
Of course, none of them say no to being invited and a chartered plane takes them to the island so it is one way to spend the holiday weekend before Christmas. They arrive and a Range Rover comes to pick them up and the driver is a typical surfer looking guy with sandy hair that Djuna introduces as Tucker or "Tuck".
Pammi has eyes for Tuck but it is obvious to Cleo, not our narrator but our audience surrogate, that he and Djuna have history and chemistry between them.
The two other people we are introduced to are the housekeeper Mrs. West and her son Teddy, who looks similar to Tuck and we learn that they are cousins. Teddy and Djuna have a very acerbic relationship between each other and Pammi seems to be interested in Teddy more as Cleo informs us that he is a little more attractive than his cousin.
There is also a lot of flirting between Cleo and Grant and though we never learn which name each person drew for Secret Santa, Cleo got Grant's name and that he has gorgeous green eyes...
A storm comes to the island, Kip gets a gory little gift from her Secret Santa, someone sticks a razor blade onto a Christmas ornament as they all gather to decorate the Christmas tree and Barnett is the recipient of a nasty cut. Barnett thinks it is Neal behind both of the cruel pranks and he doesn't take the accusation very well and then we learn Kip has psychic flashes once in awhile...okay.
Cleo is with Kip when it happens and the warning is of danger and then one by one, the teens start going missing...
Lots of snarky banter, angry fights with everyone on edge and playing the blame game but some dry humor and a few laughs. The tension does become thick and the horror aspect becomes more of a whodunnit mystery towards the end. The climatic reveal is actually pretty good since it is so unexpected and mundane but not without tragedy behind it.
There isn't a very drawn-out ending but there is some glimmer of actually character growth from some of the teens after the experience is over. Secret Santa isn't an amazing book but it is a really good read and being that it is more of a later entry that isn't actually Point Horror but in that wheelhouse since it came out in 2001...it doesn't feel dated.
Well...not too much if you don't count a Scary Movie and a Survivor reference.
Oh well.
So I am starting to get in all the books I ordered using the money I got for Christmas so I think it was fitting to start with the one closest to the aforementioned holiday.
D.E. Athkins also known as Nola Thacker is pretty good at writing some teen/YA fiction full of tension and Secret Santa has a lot of that. The title is just a small detail about what is really going on in this story because a Secret Santa game gets hijacked and it is set at Christmastime but it is also set on a small island off the coast of Georgia...no cold snow in sight like there is here.
The person behind the main event that ties everyone together is Djuna Dufarge...what a name.
The girl who throws the biggest, most extravagant holiday parties in all of Shelter Cove High School.
Only those who are popular enough usually get invited if they are lucky enough and if you don't happen to fit any of those social cliques, you must have done something to either impress Djuna...or get on her bad side for some catty revenge.
Cleo Newcomb is the new girl at school so she is more than a little confused and surprised to be invited to this year's party held on Teach's Landing, a small island off the Georgia coast.
Pammi Purchase is the daughter of a preacher but she is by no means saintly. She's interested in boys and tries to hide her intelligence and doesn't care what anyone else thinks of her until it is that time of year to suck up to Djuna and her best friend, Barnett, to get a party invite.
Kip Anderson is a cheerleader dating Jeremy Witherspoon, one of the nice jocks in the school. The thing is that Jeremy and Djuna Dufarge use to date each other before they had a break-up and now Jeremy is with Kip.
Neal Franklin thought that dating Barnett would get him closer to Djuna, the real object of his affection, but that certainly didn't work out well. They had a very nasty break-up and now both girls treat him like he was invisible but Neal isn't one for being ignored.
Grant Winthrop is one of those strong, silent types who sits in class without saying a word. A loner but not a bad boy just a guy with a mysterious vibe that we know little about...
Of course, none of them say no to being invited and a chartered plane takes them to the island so it is one way to spend the holiday weekend before Christmas. They arrive and a Range Rover comes to pick them up and the driver is a typical surfer looking guy with sandy hair that Djuna introduces as Tucker or "Tuck".
Pammi has eyes for Tuck but it is obvious to Cleo, not our narrator but our audience surrogate, that he and Djuna have history and chemistry between them.
The two other people we are introduced to are the housekeeper Mrs. West and her son Teddy, who looks similar to Tuck and we learn that they are cousins. Teddy and Djuna have a very acerbic relationship between each other and Pammi seems to be interested in Teddy more as Cleo informs us that he is a little more attractive than his cousin.
There is also a lot of flirting between Cleo and Grant and though we never learn which name each person drew for Secret Santa, Cleo got Grant's name and that he has gorgeous green eyes...
A storm comes to the island, Kip gets a gory little gift from her Secret Santa, someone sticks a razor blade onto a Christmas ornament as they all gather to decorate the Christmas tree and Barnett is the recipient of a nasty cut. Barnett thinks it is Neal behind both of the cruel pranks and he doesn't take the accusation very well and then we learn Kip has psychic flashes once in awhile...okay.
Cleo is with Kip when it happens and the warning is of danger and then one by one, the teens start going missing...
Lots of snarky banter, angry fights with everyone on edge and playing the blame game but some dry humor and a few laughs. The tension does become thick and the horror aspect becomes more of a whodunnit mystery towards the end. The climatic reveal is actually pretty good since it is so unexpected and mundane but not without tragedy behind it.
There isn't a very drawn-out ending but there is some glimmer of actually character growth from some of the teens after the experience is over. Secret Santa isn't an amazing book but it is a really good read and being that it is more of a later entry that isn't actually Point Horror but in that wheelhouse since it came out in 2001...it doesn't feel dated.
Well...not too much if you don't count a Scary Movie and a Survivor reference.
Oh well.
February 24, 2021
DE Athkins books are always good! This one did not disappoint, even though the ending wasn’t the best, it was still pretty suspenseful. What a page-turner!
December 15, 2016
I think D.E. Athkins was given the title and had to work from there, because the Secret Santa angle is pretty thin! Basically, kids are invited to a party and disappear one by one! It's only an OK mystery, as it's too short and has too many characters, so nobody is developed to any degree of satisfaction.
This was released in 2001, four or five years after the Point Horror boom died a quick death. Was this an attempt to reboot it? If so, why did they pick one of Point Horror's weakest writers as their first choice for the relaunch? Makes no sense! They should have seen if they could have gotten Diane Hoh or R.L. Stine.
Much like they picked the lousy Anna Davies to try and reboot Point Horror in 2013! Those editors at Scholastic make some funny decisions!
This was released in 2001, four or five years after the Point Horror boom died a quick death. Was this an attempt to reboot it? If so, why did they pick one of Point Horror's weakest writers as their first choice for the relaunch? Makes no sense! They should have seen if they could have gotten Diane Hoh or R.L. Stine.
Much like they picked the lousy Anna Davies to try and reboot Point Horror in 2013! Those editors at Scholastic make some funny decisions!
Currently reading
October 6, 2009Man, this thing is deadly creepy. ^^ I still wanna know who gave Kip that disgusting present, or who pushed Barnett down. I would guess that it was the culprit of everything else(Not spoiling it for anyone who might want to read it).... But still.
But it's so SMALL! ;_;
But it's so SMALL! ;_;
October 16, 2012
Was way to short to do plot justice. Which made the story seem like a 3rd grader had written it.(no offense taken to 3rd graders)
December 19, 2024
I’m not sure what I read.
It’s definitely quick and easy! The story starts out strong with some interesting characters. As the story progresses everything seems to get a little jangled. More detail and tying everything with the original theme would have gave the story more depth.
It’s definitely quick and easy! The story starts out strong with some interesting characters. As the story progresses everything seems to get a little jangled. More detail and tying everything with the original theme would have gave the story more depth.
December 25, 2020
This was a short read compared to many other books in this genre. It was suspenseful and had me guessing until the end.
November 29, 2020
Fantasy Island holiday horror. Great idea but poor writing and execution. Too many characters who were not fleshed out which I know is a lot to ask for a ~150 page book. With them being on an island it didn’t feel Christmas-y at all and I don’t think there was a Santa mask in the story. The Secret Santa gifts were lame. Boo.
July 14, 2015
What the heck? This book is awful. Ugh!
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews