#sinclair smith

[the-final-sentence]

They found the remains of Arthur Perez in Mr. Umberto's private greenhouse, in the rubber tree in his office, in several potted geraniums at Bart Brown's house - and underneath the flowering cactus in the corner of Violet's dining room.

Sinclair Smith, from “Hacker”

[shoegazr]

my shelf of 90s horror nostalgia.

[devilselbow]

The Waitress by Sinclair Smith

Title: The Waitress by Sinclair Smith

Summary: The food is great. The service is deadly. Dying for a good meal? Come on over to the Dog House, where Paula works after school. It’s a great place to meet friends – if they are still alive. At the Dog House accidents can happen, and they often do. You could wind up with more than just an upset stomach. You might just wind up dead. Of course, when things go wrong everybody always blames the waitress. Now Paula’s first job might be her last.

Tagline: The customer is always … wrong. Dead wrong.

Note: As Dove requested, I’ve updated my template, because we now apparently call the Bad Guy the Muffin Man. Hey, it makes as much sense as most Point Horrors.

Initial Thoughts:

That is very clearly ketchup smeared on the plate, not blood. The scariest thing on this cover is the spilled salt. Salt is gross.

READ THE RECAP

[devilselbow]

13 Tales of Horror edited by T Pines (Part Four)

Title: 13 Tales of Horror edited by T Pines

Summary: Can you face your worst nightmare? These thirteen horror stories guarantee to chill you to the bone. Read about the mysterious Black Walker and discover his grim secret. Shiver in fevered anticipation as Mark enters the House of Horrors, perhaps for the last time… And uncover the truth of the murder who leaves a message on his victim’s computers before he leaps in for the kill. Each take draws you further into a web of horror exquisitely woven by thirteen master storytellers. Prepare to be terrified!

Tagline: No tagline.

Note: As Dove requested, I’ve updated my template, because we now apparently call the Bad Guys Muffin Man. Hey, it makes as much sense as most Point Horrors.

Initial Thoughts:

I’ve never read this before, and we’ve never recapped a short story collection. I guess each story will be its own mini-recap, plus its own counter totals and final thoughts. I’m splitting these into a couple different posts, though, because in just the first three stories, I was already approaching 6000 words. No way do I want to subject you guys to 50k of snark in one post.

If the editor’s introduction is anything to go by, we are in for a world of pain.

We are, shall we say, thrilled to “death” that you’ve decided to join us on this trip into darkness. Ask any vampire, it’s so much easier to see once your eyes have become adjusted to the dark, and we have so much to show you….

This anthology is a compilation of the best horror writers of the young-adult thriller genre. With the overall success of horror novels and “thrillers,” it was just a matter of time before this book became a reality.

What we have here is true horror: everyday occurrences gone awry. The supernatural is frightening, what with ghosts, zombies, witches, and ghouls. But when you discover that your best friend has a nasty habit of doing away with the people he or she no longer likes – that is horror.

We read horror because we like to be frightened. It is a way to delve into other people’s fears and feelings, knowing all the while that if it gets too scary we can always close the book. But what happens when we can’t close the book? That is horror.

The authors who have contributed to this anthology have mastered the art of conveying horror through the written word. In Christopher Pike’s “Collect Call,” the going rate is a little too costly – it will make you think twice before accepting the charges. Patricia Windsor’s “A Little Taste of Death” is a compelling tale explaining why your parents told you never to take sweets from strangers. R. L. Stine spins a story of a self-defeated young man who decides to let his hypnotic gate help erase his problems… but it gets a little out of hand. Similarly, Ellen Emerson White tells of an average girl in a quiet New England town, neither of which are what they appear to be.

So sit back and relax. Don’t worry, that creaking noise you hear is only the house settling, and that soft fluttering noise is nothing more than the turning of the pages of this book. And those footsteps…

–T. Pines

Everything is going to hurt, and nothing will be good. Deep breath, grab your alcohol, and let’s do this. This is, of course, the fourth and final part. First part can be found here. Second part can be found here. Third part can be found here.

READ THE RECAP

[devilselbow]

The Diary by Sinclair Smith

Title: The Diary by Sinclair Smith

Summary: Was she going to die… again?

Delia can’t stop reading the old diary which mysteriously appears in her locker one day. Little by little, she starts to become more like the girl whose words she reads – even having her memories and seeing the world through her eyes. A dead girl’s eyes. Soon Delia is convinced that she was the girl who wrote the diary – in a past life.

But the terror is about to come alive once more. For the girl who wrote the diary was murdered. And the killer is after her again…

Tagline: A dead girl’s diary … in her own handwriting.

Note: I will use “Bad Guy” throughout my reviews to refer to the anonymous killer/prankster/whatever. Doesn’t mean it’s a guy. Also doesn’t mean it’s ever successful at killing/pranking/whatevering.

Initial Thoughts:

I don’t remember reading this at all when I was younger, so odds are I didn’t. Oh joy. I always have so much fun when I read one for the first time to recap it. /sarcasm

READ THE RECAP

[artemissnowflower24]

This book kinda reminded me of the second slumber party massacre movie. Like the villains seemed similar that might have just been my imagination though. I enjoyed the story but the main character got on my nerves at times. 7.5 out of 10 I recommend if you like books that have dream horror.

[nativesreact]

Syd’s Notes, pt. 5

(Side Note: This is significantly longer than previous posts. Be prepared.)

Ch. 24

Staying awake all night is easy, Katie thought as she watched the sun rise. After all, I’ve done it before, though never on purpose. 

As she got ready for school, she remembered the eyedrops she’d bought at the drugstore.

(pg. 123)

“Is easy,” Yeah, I thought that too before I tried and failed miserably. Izzy knows the story. I was successful once. Anyway, the eyedrops stuck out to me. She needs them to not look so tired. When she fell asleep last time, she was accused of being on something, so this is likely to prevent that. 

True, she felt a little tired, but she hoped coffee would take care of that. Katie decided to drive to school.

(pg. 124)

Nice job dumbass, drive around when Heath can make you sleep. This has got to be the stupidest thing I’ve read in this book yet.  

It was daylight, now, and Katie knew there was no way she’d be able to drive to work in her present condition. Just the thought conjured up all sorts of terrifying visions-the sight of herself asleep at the wheel, running the car into a ditch, or getting into an accident and killing someone.

(pg. 127)

SO NOW YOU THINK ABOUT ACCIDENTS?! 

(Side note: Alice in Wonderland is a nice thing to include for this story... you know... I shouldn’t have to explain the connection.)

Ch. 25

We begin the chapter with Katie snapping at Raquelle. This results from a lack of sleep. We will see later that Heath expected such things to happen. He does know what he is doing. 

We are given the explanation that Jason is at home sick. A bit convenient. I would have liked to see him interact with Katie, given the situation and all. I wish the author had done this or given a better reason for him being gone. Hey, maybe the author does have something planned, who knows? 

“You look a little peaked, Katie. I want good work but there’s no need to push yourself too hard. I don’t want you to make yourself sick.” 

(pg. 130)

This bitch. This comes from the teacher who accused her of being on drugs. All I hear is, “I definitely care about your well-being! I love all my students.” I don’t know if its possible to roll your eyes harder than I did. 

Well, Katie continued to drink coffee in an effort to stay awake. This continues to make her snappy at everyone around her. It’s hard for her to control her shaky hands, so she drops the coffee and makes a mess. Raquelle is there to help her, despite their rocky start that morning. I don’t care for the characters in this book, but I can get used to Raquelle. 

“Hey, Katie,” Raquelle smiled as she turned away, “you talk to me like that again, and you’ve had it.” 

(pg. 132)

Queen shit. Not to out due Raquelle, but the chapter ends with Heath forcing another dream onto Katie. ugh

Ch. 26

“Well, gee, I was beginning to think we weren’t pals anymore.” 

“Come around more often. Don’t make yourself a stranger.” 

(pgs. 134 and 135)

Gotta say, Heath is a terrible person/dream/demon. I gotta admit, I like reading his dialogue. It makes things interesting. It’s the type of dull joy you feel for something you really don’t want to like. You cocky little...

The chapter ends -pretty quickly, the chapter is about three pages- with Heath actually giving Katie advice. He tells her to learn more about dreams. I wonder why he does this, maybe he believes he has already won? I wouldn’t give advice to my ‘enemy.’ 

WEEE WOOO WEEE WOOO!

Another Coraline comparison

Ch. 27 

But no one with suspicious eyes greeted her. The house was quiet. In the kitchen she found a note tacked on the refrigerator door with a candy-cane magnet.

(pg. 138)

So, she wakes up to an empty home and there is a letter explaining where they went? Sounds veeerrryyy familiar. 

At the end of the chapter, Katie reads about dreams in a library. She learns something that puts some of her fear to rest: you cannot sleepwalk while dreaming. Katie was worried that Heath would have her hurt her family. The fear of herself doing this is gone, but she must still be careful as Heath can influence the ‘normal’ world. 

Ch. 28

Oh, excuse me. Sure,” Raquelle said in an exaggerated tone. “Especially if you might, just possibly, maybe, could be, at some point in your lifetime, finish those chips before they molded over or turned into rocks.” 

(pg. 144)

Relatable. That’s it. Just relatable. :) 

Ch. 30

“Better tell Jason to stay away from my special girl,” he cooed gently, the way an adult would whisper to a crying child. “Otherwise, if he’s not careful-something bad might happen to him.” 

(pg. 155)

AHHHHHHH! I love this little paragraph/dialogue thing. The comparison to how an adult speaks to a kid is perfect. Heath doesn’t see Katie as a threat-to be honest I see why he wouldn’t. He even gave Katie information that would benefit her. 

(Side Note: I have no recollection of reading this chapter. The last thing I remember was another horror thing and the characters preparing for a movie night. I have no clue what’s going on anymore. I might have a Heath myself...)

[nativesreact]

Syd’s Notes, pt. 2

Chapters 11 through 13. I will be clumping bits of information together as the chapters are very short. 

11. 

(Katie is stuck in a scorching hot shower. She cannot get the temperature down.)

This is probably the most violent thing that has happened. Even though she was awake. Heath found a way to hurt Katie. While she was in the shower, it got scorching hot and she was unable to make it cool again. Katie’s mind refused to actually believe Heath caused this. This could be a small detail or a nod to abusive relationships in real life. 

(pg. 61)

12. 

“Come down here, Katie! I won’t stand for you sleeping all day long!” Katie felt her father’s voice slice into her sleep.

Her father and mother find Katie’s sleeping ridiculous. They have every right to think so: Katie often comes home and goes right to bed. As this was still relatively new for her, they likely were frustrated and thought she was slacking off. They do not share any concerns yet. I understand why they would not suspect anything. I mean, I sleep all the time as well, so a person being lazy is more believable than a person sleeping to meet a love interest. 

(pg. 67)

“It had been wonderful being with Heath - at first. But now I’m not so sure I want to be Heath’s special girl, Katie thought to herself. I don’t think I want to be with him all the time. 

I didn’t expect her to feel this way so early on. This is a short book with short chapters, so this may be the reason. Also, Katie may feel this way because she has only seen Heath while sleeping. Maybe she still thought -besides the hot shower incident- that Heath was only strong and influential when she slept? We also see that Katie is not liking the idea of being in a relationship with Heath. This has opened the door to other relationships. 

(pg. 68)

Heath, if you’re there, don’t hurt her, please don’t hurt her.

Katie thought this when she witnessed her dog having a bad nightmare. The dog first looked as if it were running, then turned like it was trying to protect itself. No matter what, Bopper -the dog- would not wake up. Katie made this plea to Heath. To me, this echoed what some abusive relationships are like. They threaten to hurt or actually hurt those around you. You want to leave? Ok, but I’m going to terrorize your dog. This is what I imagine Heath was thinking. This is also a warning of what Heath could do if Katie were to leave. My final thought: Scaring Bopper crossed the line. No one scares a dog. 

(pg. 69)

13. A little backstory before I begin, Jason is the name of the cute boy Katie talked to on the first day of school. She had made the comment about the school smelling nice? Something like that, anyway, Katie does like Jason in addition to Heath. 

“I’ve just been composing a poem for you. It’s a sort of love letter.... Ready?” He asked with a grin. 

SKIPPING A FEW LINES TO THE POEM

A rose is beautiful. 

So are diamonds and pearls.

Katie Shaw

Would you be my girl?

I found this so cute! Besides Heath, things are starting to go really well for Katie. I mean, she liked this boy, and then he asked her on a date, and asked if they wanted to start dating. I was expecting Katie to be attracted to Heath as he was the only person who had shown her attention, but this isn’t the case anymore. I wish a person would write me a poem.    :’)

(pgs. 73-74)

For context in the next post: Jason’s car went crazy before he and Katie could kiss. The windshield wipers were out of control and the radio would not shut off. Katie immediately suspects this is Heath’s doing.