Goosebumps – Secrets of the Swamp
Marieke Nijkamp (Author) • Yasmin Flores Montanez, Bill Underwood, (Art) • Rebecca Nalty (Colorist) • Danny Djeljosevic (Letters)
You can’t be a horror writer or aficionado in this day and age without giving some credit to R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps series. Whether you were an avid reader or avoided them, you can’t deny that they are a very real influence on the genre for many people and that for most, it was their first foray into horror/dark fiction.
In this latest Goosebumps adventure, we are introduced to a young gamer who was sent to stay with her aunt for the summer in a place affectionately named, Fever Swamp. While there, she is introduced to a fellow gamer and a local who tells her all about the monsters in the swamp and how they are real. With a little encouragement, our young hero decides to go check it out with one of the friends. While there, they discover that the monsters are very real and very scary. Werewolves chase them until they eventually get separated. But, in true Goosebumps fashion, that’s when the twist happens.
The monsters aren’t who she thinks they are and turns out the very real monsters aren’t the werewolves. Through an adventure worthy of the game she plays online, Lore Hunters, our main character chooses a side to take, creates a strategy, and goes for it.
It is a young reader’s story so there isn’t a lot of nuance or depth to the dialogue or situations, but there is enough there to not pander to a young audience. The artwork is colorful and well-drawn, the writing fits the narrative well, and it ends up being a fun romp of a story.
Secrets Of The Swamp
Reader beware, you’re in for a scare! The kid-friendly horror series returns with a spooky new graphic novel from New York Times bestselling YA author Marieke Nijkamp!
When twelve-year-old Blake is shipped away to stay with her weird aunt in Fever Swamp for the summer, she expects her weeks to be filled with video games, mosquito bites, and a whole lot of nothing. Instead, she finds herself in a spooky turf war between werewolves and wolf hunters! Blake’s never let anything–including her prosthetic hand–slow her down or stop her from crushing her opponents in a game of Lore Hunter, but real-life monsters on all sides take danger and fear to a whole new level, and Blake will need to use all of her gaming skills to escape.
You can buy Secrets Of The Swamp from IDW Publishing
A. S. MacKenzie
A. S. MacKenzie is an Atlanta based author who loves all things books, movies, games, and comics. He lives with his wife, spoiled dogs, and an unhealthy obsession with building things. He can be found building worlds in books, building plastic models, or building with wood. Check out his website at asmackenzie.com for ways to join his newsletter and read free stories. Also, he’s been known to frequent Twitter (@a_s_mackenzie) to say something vaguely interesting and Instagram (a.s.mackenzie) for food, travel, and random pics.
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