“Then they’re alive.” — Watch

“They’re alive for now. But the night is far from over. The Hyeets hunt at night. If they run into one of them, there’s no telling what will happen.” — Ann Templeton


The third book in Christopher Pike’s Spooksville series for younger kids has the same quirky humor and charm to blend with the weird happenings in the town as the first two entries. Cindy has now joined Adam, Sally and Watch, and the friction between the two girls for Adam’s affections continues. In this one, however, we see that deep down Cindy and Sally might actually like one another, which makes Sally’s grating snarkiness more palatable than in The Howling Ghost. Sally even saves Cindy’s life in the haunted cave.

There is some fun at The Frozen Cow as this one begins. Spooksville’s ice cream parlor advertises fifty flavors, but the grumpy owner will only serve vanilla! Well, this is Spooksville, after all. Soon there is talk of the Missing Link, and whether he might exist within the haunted caves where Bill Balley supposedly disappeared — kids have a way of just disappearing in Spooksville. Cindy wants to look, Sally doesn’t, and Adam isn’t so sure he wants to find out — or whether he believes all Sally’s wildly embellished stories. But finally they go check it out. Watch stands watch, ironically, as Adam, Cindy, and a reluctant Sally investigate the dark caves, which may hide more than bats. The caves apparently run directly beneath the town. There’s is also a river, but just as they decide they’ve seen enough for one day, the entrance closes on its own!

Watch goes to Bum for help, and learns of an old well at Mrs. Robinsons which may lead him to his friends. But Ann Templeton, descendent of the witch who founded the town, knows her “boys” are down there. Only her knowledge that Adam thinks she’s pretty, persuades her to give Watch and Bum a hint. It is via a riddle, however, and Watch must decipher it in order to find his friends and help them escape the caves, where the trio are having their own problems. Flashlight batteries going dead and trolls with spears may pale in comparison to the Hyeets. But legend may not match reality, and part of the cave may be a portal to somewhere else. But Adam has a plan…

Great fun for kids in the 8-10 age range especially, the Spooksville series is a good way to give kids a thrill which doesn’t go “too” far into the creepy or magical area, and is sprinkled with humor and charm. If I do have a very minor caveat as an adult, it’s that the few moments between Adam and his father in the first book were really nice, but since then, he’s disappeared. It’s mostly just the kids interacting with the strange and quirky townsfolk. It might have been nice to get a moment or two with Adam and his father, but this seems forgotten — at least so far. Overall, however, this is a really fun read which comes in at just over a hundred pages. A marvelous way to get kids interested in reading, and I’m certain I would have devoured these when I was a kid. ( )

Cindy has joined the Spooksville kids, which annoys Sally a lot. Cindy comes up with the idea of exploring the Haunted Cave, but once Adam, Sally and Cindy are inside the cave, the opening shuts and they're left wandering through the dark caverns, trying to find a way out. Then they realize that they aren't alone. ( )

Not as good as the other I read in the series, but still fun because Pike rules at writing characters and humorous dialogue. The ending is a predictable enough turnabout, but it IS written for such a young audience this is the safer, better route. You don't get particularly deep characterization but you get great humor from them and their chemistry works. The witch was wickedly interesting and I enjoyed some of the science-fiction type suspense/tension put into the cave setting. Worth a read and kids should enjoy well without getting frightened. ( )