What’s your worst nightmare?
For Ivy Jensen, it’s the eyes of a killer that haunt her nights. For Parker
Bradley, it’s bloodthirsty sea serpents that slither in his dreams.
And for seven essay contestants, it’s their worst nightmares that win them an
exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at director Justin Blake’s latest,
confidential project. Ivy doesn’t even like scary movies, but she’s ready to
face her real-world fears. Parker’s sympathetic words and perfect smile help
keep her spirits up…at least for now.
Not everyone is so charming, though. Horror-film fanatic Garth Vader wants to
stir up trouble. It’s bad enough he has to stay in the middle of nowhere with
this group—the girl who locks herself in her room; the know-it-all roommate;
“Mister Sensitive”; and the one who’s too cheery for her own good. Someone has
to make things interesting.
Except, things are already a little weird. The hostess is a serial-killer
look-alike, the dream-stealing Nightmare Elf is lurking about, and the seventh
member of the group is missing.
By the time Ivy and Parker realize what’s really at stake, it’s too late to
wake up and run.
Well it has certainly been awhile since I’ve been able to actually read.
Depressing, I know. Things have just really gotten out of hand in my life, and
I’m slowly trying to pick up the pieces and figure out what the heck I’m doing.
I can’t promise regular postings right now (I’ll definitely let you know when I
finally find the correct puzzle pieces for the puzzle I’m working on right
now), but I’m going to try and stop being a stranger. I made this blog as a
commitment promise to myself and I don’t know if anyone will read my words and
appreciate them as I do, but in the end this one’s for me. Now, onward to the
review of this wonderful book by one of my all-time favorite authors.
You know that one book that you read late into the night because you absolutely
had to finish it? No not that one, the one that scared your grown self just
enough for you to have to sleep with the lights on. So far, I’ve only really
had two books do that to me, and they’re both written by one Laurie Faria
Stolarz. The first is a book you may have heard of called Blue is for
Nightmares (if you haven’t heard of it then I have no idea how you’re still
alive). The second is titled Welcome to the Dark House, and just so
happens to be the book that I’m here to talk about. Well, rave may be a more
appropriate term.
A big issue that a lot of work in the horror is running into these days is the
advances in technology that have truly shaped and transformed the newest
generations. The classic horror pieces involve going into the woods and no one
hearing you scream. Nowadays, however, that’s becoming more and more difficult
because of cell phones and social media. Writers of horror have to come up with
more imaginative ways to get their victims into horrific situations than the
easy, peasy no cell reception method. And trust me, it’s harder than it seems!
The thing I really enjoyed about Welcome to the Dark House, aside from
the wide array of unique characters, was the way in which Stolarz created her
own horror monsters and then literally brought it to life. The Nightmare Elf
happens to be quite terrifying and very original. I kind of scoffed at the name
of the monster, but by the end I was truly terrified (hence the sleeping with
the lights on bit). Stolarz introduces her characters into a house of horrors.
There are the horror buffs and there are the scaredy cats. These characters
work to both amplify the terror of the Nightmare Elf and discredit it, which
are both important in horror because they keep things suspenseful. Is the
Nightmare Elf real, or is it just a part of this contest? Neither the
characters nor we truly know until the very end.
Another thing I enjoyed was the twist of magic. Sometimes twists like that can
make a book take a turn for the worst, but it helped build the intensity of the
fear at the end. This whole contest revolved around the director of a slew of
horror films, and how, in a Willy Wonka-esque style, he invites a group of
teens who’ve written essays over the things that scare them most, to live in
the iconic house of one of his movie horrors. The book overall deals very well
with the technology of this age, but then it hinders the characters in the most
perfect way when that technology is taken away.
Lastly, the characters. I really enjoyed the variety and depth to the characters,
and different point of view each chapter definitely worked in favor for the
book. What I enjoyed more was that while I liked the characters when reading
their POV chapters, I hated them when reading chapters in other peoples’ POVs.
I think that’s what really made this book great. Each character’s chapter was
completely different and I was able to truly immerse myself and become the
different characters with their different thoughts and options. So while I
understood why Ivy was so scared in the house, I still thought she was weak and
pointless when I was reading Darth’s chapters, and vice versa. Each character
was vastly different, and I hurt when they faced their fears. I loved every
character despite their flaws, because I was able to really connect with all of
them.
However, this book did have its flaws. The ending was ridiculous. The necklace?
Really Parker? I understand you were weak, but come on. It wasn’t believable,
but there just had to be that sort of ending. I didn’t like the ending because
I didn’t feel like any one of them really faced their fears in a gratifying
enough way. I get that it was all a con in a way, but it didn’t work. I know
this may sound like spoilers, but it’s not. Also, while I appreciated Ivy’s
fear as a dose of reality in the story, I also thought it made her a weaker
character. She was scared at the beginning and she was scared at the end. I
don’t feel like she grew as a character, and neither did any of the others for
that matter. Plus, her and Parker just fell for each other after one night. No
way, Jose. The book seemed a lot like a movie, and that’s why the two are
different things. Books are supposed to be in-depth and show more growth,
whereas movies show just a snip of the whole story (a.k.a. the most eventful
part). I’ll definitely have to read the sequel to see if I can really love this
series, or if I’ll just like/appreciate it, because right now I see a flat
character and an terrifying Nightmare Elf whom I’d enjoy reading kill the
former. I loved how the book started out with Ivy’s fear, but I just wish she’d
been more than her fear, and that’s ultimately why this book got such a low
rating despite the fact that I stayed up all night reading it.
XOXO Tia
