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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
So, I won't call this a disappointment by any means. The clowns were excellent and spooky villains that reminded me of the scarecrows from the first book, and the Smiling Man was given depth we hadn't seen from him before. That said...it felt so rushed by the end because what should've taken a few chapters at minimum sped by in two pages. And it really just made me want a book about the Smiling Man, his history, his motivation, and a further exploration of his character. So while it falls a little short in the end (literally), I'm glad for the atmospheric horror and themes of friendship that these books exude.
The ending felt a bit rushed, but still, what a cool series.
3.5 stars.
The creepy, no, malevolent-looking clown on the cover told me instantly that this final entry was likely going to be terrifying.
The story begins with two kids getting snatched by something at a carnival. Moments before a strange girl, Ollie, appears to them, warning them to run, but it’s no good.
Coco, Brian and Phil have been trying to figure out how to rescue Ollie, while their parents are deeply worried about their clearly upset kids, who won’t tell them what is wrong.
Ollie, meanwhile, has been living in the Smiling Man’s carnival. She plays chess with him, questions him repeatedly and fruitlessly, but gets only a cryptic phrase about keys. Then she discovers what is up with all the dolls, and the terrifying clowns policing the grounds at night.
When Coco opens up to her mum and Ollie’s dad, things go radically wrong, leaving Coco and Brian on the run, and everyone else in terrible trouble. The pair need to find safety, and save everyone now.
I enjoyed this, and liked how the kids had differing ideas about what to do, introducing believable conflict, and precipitating a horrifying situation.
I also liked how Coco and Brian found a critical clue, and how this was used with Ollie’s discovery to bring all three home.
I was hoping for a resolution for all the kids still imprisoned by the Smiling Man, and I’m not sure I entirely believed that just rescuing Ollie was sufficient to save their and Phil’s families. So, a not entirely satisfying conclusion, but I still enjoyed this book a lot.
The creepy, no, malevolent-looking clown on the cover told me instantly that this final entry was likely going to be terrifying.
The story begins with two kids getting snatched by something at a carnival. Moments before a strange girl, Ollie, appears to them, warning them to run, but it’s no good.
Coco, Brian and Phil have been trying to figure out how to rescue Ollie, while their parents are deeply worried about their clearly upset kids, who won’t tell them what is wrong.
Ollie, meanwhile, has been living in the Smiling Man’s carnival. She plays chess with him, questions him repeatedly and fruitlessly, but gets only a cryptic phrase about keys. Then she discovers what is up with all the dolls, and the terrifying clowns policing the grounds at night.
When Coco opens up to her mum and Ollie’s dad, things go radically wrong, leaving Coco and Brian on the run, and everyone else in terrible trouble. The pair need to find safety, and save everyone now.
I enjoyed this, and liked how the kids had differing ideas about what to do, introducing believable conflict, and precipitating a horrifying situation.
I also liked how Coco and Brian found a critical clue, and how this was used with Ollie’s discovery to bring all three home.
I was hoping for a resolution for all the kids still imprisoned by the Smiling Man, and I’m not sure I entirely believed that just rescuing Ollie was sufficient to save their and Phil’s families. So, a not entirely satisfying conclusion, but I still enjoyed this book a lot.
I have to agree with all of the reviewers that were disappointed by the ending. This was such a creeptastic tale and there’s so much momentum, so much excitement and then all of a sudden it’s just over. What should have been an epic final showdown with the smiling man ended up being very anticlimactic. Bummer. But still giving 4 stars because it was great until the end!
This started off so good. And then what the heck happened?!?!
Evil clowns? Yes! Creepy carnival? Double yes!! Heroic courage? Attempted!
I was never so shocked as when I turned the last page and it was just over.
The story needed the 40 or so pages that was dedicated to the first few chapters of the first book in the hardcover book edition.
No backstory on the villain? The carnival just disappears?
I’ve never been more disappointed in a book.
Evil clowns? Yes! Creepy carnival? Double yes!! Heroic courage? Attempted!
I was never so shocked as when I turned the last page and it was just over.
The story needed the 40 or so pages that was dedicated to the first few chapters of the first book in the hardcover book edition.
No backstory on the villain? The carnival just disappears?
I’ve never been more disappointed in a book.
After Ollie agrees to one last challenge with the Smiling Man in order to save her dad’s life, she finds herself in a carnival that is much more treacherous at night. Her friends, Brian, Coco, and Phil, must follow the clues to find the keys to save Ollie. But when they try to get help from their parents, now they are in danger, too. Will they be able to save everyone from the Smiling Man for good?
A cute conclusion to this spooky mid-grade series. It’s very much a page-turner to see how it all ends, though it feels like it wraps up too easily and quickly. It felt like it just stopped, instead of a proper wrap-up.
A cute conclusion to this spooky mid-grade series. It’s very much a page-turner to see how it all ends, though it feels like it wraps up too easily and quickly. It felt like it just stopped, instead of a proper wrap-up.
3.5 Great until what felt like a rushed and anticlimactic ending to the entire series.