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Wednesday, October 25, 2017

HALLOWEEN COUNTDOWN! Review: Temptation by RL Stine



Title: Temptation
Series: Fear Street
Author: RL Stine
Format: Paperback, 407 pages
Pub. Date: July 10th 2012
Source: The Book Depository


Book Description:



Cruel Intentions meets The Vampire Diaries in this sexy packaging of a classic vampire duology from bestselling author R.L. Stine.

In this collection of three fan-favorite stories, the vampires of Sandy Hollow crave the summer months. Summer means plenty of beach tourists…and plenty of fresh blood after months of deprivation. But this year the Eternal Ones have decided to spice things up with a little bet: The first to seduce a hot date of the human variety, and then turn him into a fellow creature of the night, wins.

The catch? In order to successfully turn their prey, they must take only three small sips of blood on three different nights. If they take too much blood on any night, the human will die and the bet will be lost.

The setup sounds simple enough, but things quickly get complicated—especially since each vampire is just dying to quench her thirst...






Review:


★★★★

Ah, good old RL Stine. How I missed you.

When I was a kid, Fear Street books were my absolute favorite thing. They made me love reading, and love horror. And vampires. And creative death scenes. After reading a book I didn't particularly care for, I decided to re-read something familiar to me to wash the taste of bad book out of my mouth. Then, I remembered that I had this one. I've read it, but not in this current edition. I was hoping it would stand up to the tests of time, as I haven't read these books since high school. It didn't let me down.

Temptation is in fact three stories in one. It contains Goodnight Kiss, Goodnight Kiss 2, and a bonus short story called The Vampire Club. Each of these GK books has been published individually as Fear Street Super Chiller books, and they've also been published in a different anthology edition. But during the Twilight-y vampire craze, it got a more modern look, and I'm here for it. I recommend reading the books back to back, but they are able to be read individually too.

These books are the perfect amount of nostalgia for a 90s kid like me. It's a familiar feeling, because I've read so many of his books, when I read an RL Stine story. They're easy to read, yet they're not lacking in creativity or details. I swear, RL Stine comes up with more death scenes than anyone else I read. I appreciated the notes that WEREN'T nostalgic when I read it the first time. It's a "contemporary" book, in that it's set in the 90's. So, no cell phones. There's wrist watches. He gets his film developed at a photo store. It made me so happy and reminiscent, and for that I'm grateful.

The characters are relatable. Well, as relatable as vampires can be, I guess. There's quite a big cast, but they're given enough attention that you can differentiate them all, and they're all given unique looks and personalities.

And then of course, the vampires. They're the old school kind. The ones that don't sparkle. They turn into bats. They sleep in coffins with the dirt of their homelands. It was so nice to read a vampire book where no one is googly-eyed in love. They're kicking vampire butt and taking names. (Let's ignore that Gabriel, a vampire, is the first "book boyfriend" I remember having. I loved his dark features and his really overly dramatic vampire speeches. Puberty is weird, okay?)

The short story at the end is a nice little bonus. Like an after dinner mint for the vampire bloodbath that's taken place for the previous 400 pages. It's quick and to the point, and features different characters than the previous two works in this collection. If Goodnight Kiss were a TV show, this short story would be the bit that happens dramatically before the commercial.

If you remember reading Fear Street or Goosebumps; you should read this. Prepare to crave an Ecto-Cooler, some Gushers, and that really cool Creepy Crawlers lab kit that made candy bugs and slime (that I never got for Christmas, I might add). If you like vampires that are more traditional and more cheesy, like I do, these will be right up your alley.

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