Stress and schoolwork have completely zapped my energy for reading this week. But as I mentioned in my post on banishing reading slumps, one of my favourite ways out of this is choose your own adventure novels. This format works fabulously in the horror genre, and while I could have done with some more adult themes, I really enjoyed Haunted by James Schannep. Check out my review below for a quick and spoiler-free summary, my advice to avoid any bumps, and my overall feeling on the book.
Haunted by James Schannep is a choose-your-own-death novel available on KU. The overall premise for the story is fairly simple: You’re out of work, in need of a job, and running out of time. So when a strange invitation arrives offering you big bucks to spend a few measly nights in a historic house, you obviously jump at the chance. You’re told it’s for a reality show, that you won’t be allowed your phone, and all you have to do is survive, but when you arrive at the house, nothing is as it seems.
FUN, COZY, AND FULL OF CHOICE
Overall, the book was fun, which was the exact thing I needed to get out of a slump. Nothing was too heavy, and the appearance of any ghosts or ghouls felt more in line with an aged-up Goosebumps book than it did gut-wrenching horror— and that’s okay! The chapters were short enough that I was able to stick with it even when I didn’t have much mental space for it, and the choices were happening frequently enough that I really felt immersed.
HOPE YOU KNOW HOW TO SKIM
While I enjoyed the book overall, I will say this is the first choose-your-own adventure book where I’ve really gotten stuck. Of the three hours it took me to read this, I would guess that at least two of those hours were spent shaking my Kindle and rereading the same passages over, and over, and over. I don’t know if it was me, I don’t know if I fucked up somewhere, but the search portion was an absolute nightmare for me. I think I searched every single part of the house before I found an option for a code to move forward in the story, and I got so frustrated I had to put this book down multiple times. If you’re not someone who’s good at skimming pages, you’ll spend so long rereading that this quick little book will turn into a tome real quick.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you’ve got the patience, James Schannep has created a fun little read for those who are still kids at heart. My advice? Don’t take this one too seriously, bookmark any sections you want to return to (pages that have 4+ choices), and definitely pick this book up in Kindle format.
Looking for other choose your own horror stories? Check out my master post by clicking here.