Scan barcode
paulabrandon's review against another edition
3.0
Samantha Genetti's 17th birthday is coming up, and it's on the same day as Halloween. She has a great boyfriend in football player Wyatt Moran. But life isn't always perfect. Wyatt is a popular kid, and Sam's not, so she doesn't really fit in with Wyatt's friends. His ex and cohorts are downright mean. Her father Leo is distant and strict, and has been ever since her mother abandoned them when Samantha was two. And life starts getting tougher for Sam - hang-up phone calls, threatening notes in the lead-up to Halloween. Who's out to get her and why?
Based on this and Summer Lightning by Wendy Corsi Staub, I'm surprised she wasn't a bigger name in YA horror/thriller fiction. Once again, this is confidently written and well-plotted. Without wanting to give away too much, if you're expecting the typical killer-does-it-all-over-a-boy type quickie thriller the genre is well-known for, you'll be pleasantly surprised. Halloween Party touches on many themes in its pages. The burgeoning sexuality of teenage females. The struggle to connect between teen girl and solo father. Body shame. This sort of complexity keeps the book interesting even when it's a bit of a slow burn. I was surprised by where the plot went, and it must be said (perhaps warned) that is much more adult and darker than most of the 90s YA thriller fare at the time.
Like Summer Lightning, this spent a bit too much time on its protagonist behaving like a brat, which tends to drag the pacing down. The notes and phone calls that Sam receives also aren't much to write home about, leaving us to wait a bit impatiently for the Halloween showdown the antagonist keeps promising us. But getting there is interesting. And dark.
Based on this and Summer Lightning by Wendy Corsi Staub, I'm surprised she wasn't a bigger name in YA horror/thriller fiction. Once again, this is confidently written and well-plotted. Without wanting to give away too much, if you're expecting the typical killer-does-it-all-over-a-boy type quickie thriller the genre is well-known for, you'll be pleasantly surprised. Halloween Party touches on many themes in its pages. The burgeoning sexuality of teenage females. The struggle to connect between teen girl and solo father. Body shame. This sort of complexity keeps the book interesting even when it's a bit of a slow burn. I was surprised by where the plot went, and it must be said (perhaps warned) that is much more adult and darker than most of the 90s YA thriller fare at the time.
Like Summer Lightning, this spent a bit too much time on its protagonist behaving like a brat, which tends to drag the pacing down. The notes and phone calls that Sam receives also aren't much to write home about, leaving us to wait a bit impatiently for the Halloween showdown the antagonist keeps promising us. But getting there is interesting. And dark.
More...