Kritterkeep – J.D. Gordon
Brought to you by OBS staffer Udita

Synopsis: Andy Biggs new life in the “burbs” is about to take a turn for the worse. An uninvited guest has moved into the stately old Victorian home he shares with his mom, new step dad and baby sister. This weird little demon in a zoot suit has nothing but mischief on its mind and threatens to destroy Andy’s home, school life and even his sanity. And when Andy enlists the aid of a pretty girl with a mysterious past, his whole world turns upside down in a battle of good vs. evil against the dreaded “Kritterkreep.”

Review:

I can already see kid’s imaginations running wild with this one…

Andy Biggs is just a teenage boy, who has had to go through his parents’ divorce at a young age. He tends to stick to one or two friends, and is for lack of a better word, a nerd. The story starts off on Andy’s birthday, Halloween. He is at home, when he starts to experience strange things. The “bullying” starts over an instant message, sent from an anonymous user. Eventually, a creature appears in Andy’s room, and claims to be his worst nightmare. The story then proceeds to set up instances where this creature starts to harass Andy and his baby sister. After trying to find help from friends, and even resorting to telling his parents about the problem, Andy ends up in the mental hospital. A beautiful, mysterious girl approaches Andy and tries to convince him that she can help him solve his problem. Andy finally decides to trust her, and together they try to defeat this creature.

Kritterkreep was definitely a good ghost story for a younger audience (8-11). Personally, I tend to read dark books so I didn’t find this book completely horrifying, and I felt certain parts of the book should have been the main focus of the story, instead of others. The ending was slightly rushed, but that was the best part of the story. I didn’t quite get how Andy started to go insane, but I think this book leaves a lot of room for kids to imagine crazy things–which may have been the intent. I think Gordon’s insight into the psyche of a young boy was spot on. This is J.D. Gordon’s debut novel, so overall it was a decent book.

Thanks to JD Gordon!