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lochnessvhs's review
2.0
Oh boy. This collection of short stories is clearly meant for very young children, but at the same time, barely half of them are even "scary" stories in any way. The longest is a Huck & Tom story from Mark Twain, and there is also a Sherlock Holmes story, neither of which have anything to do with hauntings or spooky situations. What's more, all the stories are VERY old fashioned, in a way that just isn't that fun to read.
atlantabelle's review
3.0
i could remember reading this book when I was a kid and loving it. When I came across it online I was thrilled. It was fun for nostalgia's sake to read it again but it wasn't half as good as I remembered it being. I think most things from our childhood end up being that way.
fantasticmrethan's review
2.0
A lot less hauntings than the title suggest but a cute selection of stories none the less. ‘Jimmy Takes Vanishing Lessons’ and ‘The Water Ghost Of Harrowby Hall’ were particular favourites.
readbydusk's review
3.0
smcscot's review
2.0
I ordered this one off Bookstagram and I was expecting a slightly creepy and slightly goofy book. It mostly didn't disappoint, however there were a few stories I could have supplanted for others. There were also some suspect morals delivered.
Let's Haunt a House: This started the collection out very well. Very much a Scooby Doo vibe. The writing itself led a bit to be desired, but the story was pretty fun.
The Wastwych Secret: A fun story with a really terrible person involved. There was a bit of a happy ending, but yeesh.
Jimmy Takes Vanishing Lessons: This is the first story with the strange moral turn. There are quite a bit of really terrible kids, who end up being the heroes of these stories.
The Mystery of Rabbit Run: One of the best stories of the entire book. Very Scooby Doo vibish, and a ton of fun, as well as spectacularly told.
The Forgotten Island: This was pretty slow moving, but a very fun story. Many of these are a bit more of a mystery than terror stories and this one is the ultimate example of that.
The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall: This was a really fun story, but dang...Yet again...another really terrible character.
The Red-Headed League: A Sherlock Holmes story, but it's just a straight mystery. Doyle has a number of really creepy stories, and I was dissapointed that one of those were not here in this place. Still, this is one of my favorite Sherlock Holmes stories.
The Treasure in the Cave: I really have no idea why this story is here. In fact it's not even a story, it's an excerpt from Tom Sawyer. The issue is that you loose the point of the story, because you don't have the back stories of Huck or Tom. You just get a few damaged boys doing things they shouldn't, with no redemption arc. This was better left off. Dont get me wrong, I love Twain, and I love Tom's story, I just dont know why they didn't just find a better story to fit into a "haunted" story collection.
The Mystery in four-and-a-half-street: This was a bit creepy with the action at the end, but it...again...is just a mystery story. Fun and a good overall story, but I really wanted a bit of a haunted house story.
Let's Haunt a House: This started the collection out very well. Very much a Scooby Doo vibe. The writing itself led a bit to be desired, but the story was pretty fun.
The Wastwych Secret: A fun story with a really terrible person involved. There was a bit of a happy ending, but yeesh.
Jimmy Takes Vanishing Lessons: This is the first story with the strange moral turn. There are quite a bit of really terrible kids, who end up being the heroes of these stories.
The Mystery of Rabbit Run: One of the best stories of the entire book. Very Scooby Doo vibish, and a ton of fun, as well as spectacularly told.
The Forgotten Island: This was pretty slow moving, but a very fun story. Many of these are a bit more of a mystery than terror stories and this one is the ultimate example of that.
The Water Ghost of Harrowby Hall: This was a really fun story, but dang...Yet again...another really terrible character.
The Red-Headed League: A Sherlock Holmes story, but it's just a straight mystery. Doyle has a number of really creepy stories, and I was dissapointed that one of those were not here in this place. Still, this is one of my favorite Sherlock Holmes stories.
The Treasure in the Cave: I really have no idea why this story is here. In fact it's not even a story, it's an excerpt from Tom Sawyer. The issue is that you loose the point of the story, because you don't have the back stories of Huck or Tom. You just get a few damaged boys doing things they shouldn't, with no redemption arc. This was better left off. Dont get me wrong, I love Twain, and I love Tom's story, I just dont know why they didn't just find a better story to fit into a "haunted" story collection.
The Mystery in four-and-a-half-street: This was a bit creepy with the action at the end, but it...again...is just a mystery story. Fun and a good overall story, but I really wanted a bit of a haunted house story.
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