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briarsreviews's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
5.0
I remember this one! Ahh, the nostalgia of a Throw Back Thursday review for my favourite childhood series... Goosebumps. Is it any wonder I love Halloween, FNAF, and scary movies? Really? I binged these like mad! I read some of them hundreds of times a year (literally... I have a problem and I always have).
Dr. Brewer, Margaret and Casey's Dad, works in the basement and is working on some strange project with his plants... He recently got fired and now he spends a LOT of time down there. One day, they sneak down and find out... something's growing... and it's more than just a harmless experiment.
I remember being creeped out by this one and I stopped helping with the plants for a while. I was a young kid (probably too young to read them at the time... honestly...) and it weirded me out that the plants might try to destroy my life. I am now an avid gardener and the plants can gladly take over paying the bills and working any day of the week. Have fun, guys!
This is one of the better Goosebumps books, in my opinion. It's spooky, has you on the edge of your seat, and it's just a fun read. But the dreaded cliffhanger... I feel like this is one of the few I like since it's supposed to make you creeped out and not expecting another book.
Regardless, one of my fave Goosebumps!
Five out of five stars.
Dr. Brewer, Margaret and Casey's Dad, works in the basement and is working on some strange project with his plants... He recently got fired and now he spends a LOT of time down there. One day, they sneak down and find out... something's growing... and it's more than just a harmless experiment.
I remember being creeped out by this one and I stopped helping with the plants for a while. I was a young kid (probably too young to read them at the time... honestly...) and it weirded me out that the plants might try to destroy my life. I am now an avid gardener and the plants can gladly take over paying the bills and working any day of the week. Have fun, guys!
This is one of the better Goosebumps books, in my opinion. It's spooky, has you on the edge of your seat, and it's just a fun read. But the dreaded cliffhanger... I feel like this is one of the few I like since it's supposed to make you creeped out and not expecting another book.
Regardless, one of my fave Goosebumps!
Five out of five stars.
xhekap30's review
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
briesespieces's review
4.0
i laughed more than i got creeped out this was so fun. if my dad had told me to stay out of the basement when i was a kid i’m damn sure going to disobey my unhealthy amount of curiosity and stay out of the basement. especially if he’s a mad scientist.
best spoilery but non-spoilery lines without context:
“i’m trying to build a plant that’s part animal” is where i’d have gotten off the crazy train
“give me the axe!!”
“margaret, im your father”
“EAT IT!!”
my two favorite parts of this were where their dad tried to feed them some gross green stuff for lunch in the most insistent, evil, and maniacal way ever. id have thrown that shit in his face and ran the hell out of that house
best spoilery but non-spoilery lines without context:
“i’m trying to build a plant that’s part animal” is where i’d have gotten off the crazy train
“give me the axe!!”
“margaret, im your father”
“EAT IT!!”
my two favorite parts of this were where their dad tried to feed them some gross green stuff for lunch in the most insistent, evil, and maniacal way ever. id have thrown that shit in his face and ran the hell out of that house
mehsi's review
2.0
Not sure what to think of it, it had some scaryish parts, but mostly it was predictable and the ending is so typical R.L. Stine.
I couldn't find a normal version in my library, so I read the one with all the dictionary definitions. Which made me just laugh at times I probably should be afraid or scared. There were also images with what the items were at times. The images were at times creepy, but most just made me laugh, because of the words and the arrows pointing to the items.
The story was so-so. I was bored for most of the book, and knew what was happening long before the ending popped up. Maybe, just maybe, I am getting too old for these stories and maybe it is just the story that is too predictable and easily figured out.
The main character and her brother were decent, I didn't particularly like how they didn't seem to understand listening to stuff. I know, they were curious and they wanted to help out, but it kind of annoyed me that they never listened. Not once. It makes me wonder how they are normally, with no scary things in the basement.
Of course they were also brave, and they tried their best to find out what happened to their dad, why he changed so much, and what is going on in the basement.
The actual ending? It was decent, and I was kind of excited to see what the kids would do, what choice they would make and also would it be the right one? I am still not entirely sure if they picked the right person or not, especially with that ending. A typical R.L. Stine ending which just ends it with a twist. I don't mind twists but these books are standalones and it just annoys me that we will just have to think up the ending for ourselves, sometimes I just want the ending without having to think about stuff, without pondering about it.
Would I recommend this book? Meh, not really. It had some parts that were fun, but mostly it was just a bit too boring and a bit too predictable. Also that ending was just annoying.
Review first posted at http://twirlingbookprincess.com/
I couldn't find a normal version in my library, so I read the one with all the dictionary definitions. Which made me just laugh at times I probably should be afraid or scared. There were also images with what the items were at times. The images were at times creepy, but most just made me laugh, because of the words and the arrows pointing to the items.
The story was so-so. I was bored for most of the book, and knew what was happening long before the ending popped up. Maybe, just maybe, I am getting too old for these stories and maybe it is just the story that is too predictable and easily figured out.
The main character and her brother were decent, I didn't particularly like how they didn't seem to understand listening to stuff. I know, they were curious and they wanted to help out, but it kind of annoyed me that they never listened. Not once. It makes me wonder how they are normally, with no scary things in the basement.
Of course they were also brave, and they tried their best to find out what happened to their dad, why he changed so much, and what is going on in the basement.
The actual ending? It was decent, and I was kind of excited to see what the kids would do, what choice they would make and also would it be the right one? I am still not entirely sure if they picked the right person or not, especially with that ending. A typical R.L. Stine ending which just ends it with a twist. I don't mind twists but these books are standalones and it just annoys me that we will just have to think up the ending for ourselves, sometimes I just want the ending without having to think about stuff, without pondering about it.
Would I recommend this book? Meh, not really. It had some parts that were fun, but mostly it was just a bit too boring and a bit too predictable. Also that ending was just annoying.
Review first posted at http://twirlingbookprincess.com/
queenofodas's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
thee_eclectic_eccentric's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror
thereadingbunny's review
5.0
This book and TV show episode is a ✨ Core Memory ✨ for me and I love it!
mcj_writer96's review
4.0
It felt a bit odd having it be told in third-person, when this genre is usually written in first-person. Probably not as memorable to me because I have such fond memories of the TV episode adaptation.
Still read it, however, because it's considered a classic Goosebumps for a reason.
Still read it, however, because it's considered a classic Goosebumps for a reason.