 “From bone-chilling ghost stories, to tense psychological thrillers, to bloody murder mysteries, Red Eye has a book to grip every young horror fan” Since 2015 the Red Eye brand (from Little Tiger Press) have released ten Young Adult horror novels aimed roughly at the age group ten to thirteen. January 2019 saw the arrival of their latest addition “Whiteout” four years after their 2015 debut “Sleepless”. They have a roster of talented authors, a couple of which have contributed more than one title. Since the number of UK publishers who give any serious commitment to the horror genre is minimal we would like to applaud Red Eye for going out of their way in trying to scare our kids. Their titles are excellent introductions to slightly edgier fiction for children who are developing an interest in horror but are not yet ready for adult titles. And we all know the readers of kid’s horror are the life-blood of our genre and as a school librarian I always get a warm and fuzzy feeling when a kid asks: “Are there any new Red Eye books?” To celebrate their tenth publication, we are going to briefly look at all ten Red Eye novels, working backwards from their brand new 2019 release to their 2015 debut. We have reviewed a number of them before, but here’s a comprehensive rundown of their books to buy for your kids or favourite niece or nephew. Whiteout by Gabriel Dylan (2019) Terror lurks in the remotest areas of the Alps Red Eye kick-off 2019 with a ridiculously fast paced, fun and trashy monster tale set in a remote part of the Alps. A British school trip gets stranded in an isolated skiing village with a huge storm rumbling in, strangely enough, all the locals abandon the shops and restaurants, and the teenagers are totally isolated with a skeleton hotel staff and a couple of guides. Obviously the locals are aware something nasty is going to arrive with the storm and are running for cover. If anything, the book moved too quickly and it had barely set the scene before the body count started to rise, so young readers will be pulled in quickly. It was fairly violent for a young teenage novel and had the obligatory Red Eye warning “Warning: Not Suitable For Younger Readers”. This, of course, will make those youngsters want to read it even more. And why not? Although “Whiteout” was a hefty 350 pages and set over a very short space of time, it kept the unrelenting pace up with plenty of action, blood letting and a decent backstory on the origins of the creatures. Many of the characters are sketchily drawn, but for those who survive longer the author begins to flesh them out well and there is a good blend of heroes, terrified kids and those who might have ulterior motives for being on the mountain. Charlie, loner, and coming from a whole host of family problems and Hanna, who is searching for her elder brother who disappeared ten years earlier are convincing and easy to root for. Both entertaining and chilling, a fine mix. Savage Island by Byrony Pearce (2018) An internet challenge on a remote Scottish island becomes a deadly challenge to survive Although “Savage Island” by Byrony Pearce was ultimately predictable, it certainly had some cringing moments to keep young teens flicking the pages at speed. I’ve read the likes of “Battle Royale” so am a bit more critical than the target audience. A group of teenagers enter a competition to win a million pounds in an endurance survival event on an island near the Shetlands. Everything is secretive, social media is banned, and soon you get a very bad feeling. Very quickly the friends realise the competition has a bit more than problem solving and one girl loses a finger and things then get worse in a fight for survival. Maybe I’m being too harsh, but I felt the boundaries could have been pushed a little bit further? Although I found it straight-forward, thriller loving teens will get a kick and Red Eye have produced another fast-paced horror thriller. Stronger readers may jump straight to “Battle Royale” or Stephen Kings “The Long Walk” to which this also has similarities. Obviously, the organisation behind the event have their own secret agenda, but by the time it was revealed my interest was not what it was. Throughout, the description of the remote Island could have been more detailed, as there was potential to do much more with the dark natural surroundings. I suppose you could call this ‘survival horror’, but it was more thriller than anything else. A solid easy read for kids not looking for something too challenging and there’s nothing wrong with that. Fir by Sharon Gosling (2017) Something ancient and nasty lurks in a remote Swedish forest A teenage girl is disgruntled to be uprooted from Stockholm to remote northern Sweden – especially when never-ending fierce storms cut the family off from civilisation. Hints of classic horror, full of creepy children, a housekeeper who the family ‘inherit’ when they move it, coupled with atmospheric snow scenes make this new take on the Scandinavian werewolf legend a solid and engrossing read. There are sly references to other books and “Fir” had me reaching for Google to investigate the true mythology of the creatures in the book. I also wondered whether the author had read Adam Nevill’s “The Ritual” as there is definitely something to avoid in the Swedish forests! Charlotte Says by Alex Bell (Prequel to Frozen Charlotte) (2017) Head to the Isle of Skye for an origins story on the nasty Frozen Charlotte dolls The prequel to the superb “Charlotte Says” provides us with a very convincing backstory on the origins of the Frozen Charlotte dolls and what occurred way back in 1910 in the Dunvegan School for Girls. Seventeen-year-old Jemima is an engaging and punchy central character, and we pick up the story when she arrives at Dunvegan for her new job as Assistant School Mistress. She quickly finds it to be a horrible place with a cruel Headmistress whom she does not get on with and punishes her along with the girls. Strange things begin to happen when she receives a large package in the post containing many tiny porcelain dolls which may be connected with Jemima’s old life before arriving in Skye. Like with “Frozen Charlotte” there are chills all the way as the dolls start to play their horrible games including the “throw the teacher down the stairs game” and Jemima tries to unsolved the mystery which is interconnected to her own past, whilst trying to deal with an increasingly unhinged Headmistress. Writing horror for kids is not easy and both “Charlotte” books hit the nail on the dead, having an excellent balance of fast placed plot, the supernatural, characters you care about, and nasty little dolls that will have your kids looking under their beds at night. The Haunting by Alex Bell (2016) Sea scares abound in an old haunted pub in deepest darkest Cornwall “The Haunting” was a solid, if unspectacular, ghost story about a seventeen-year-old girl who returns to her childhood home to visit her very ill grandmother in the deep south coastal area of England, Cornwall. Much of the story centres around the Waterwitch pub, which has its own fair share of ghosts and dodgy history. The main character Emma soon discovers, some curses grow stronger with time and that the ghosts never really go away. Although the leading character is wheelchair bound, which was excellent to see, the story also deals with mental health issues blended into the sea related horror plot. Although there were some excellent atmospheric scenes the novel lacked true scares, but this was compensated by convincing teenage characters and relationships. Frozen Charlotte by Alex Bell (2015) A Ouija mobile app leads to a deadly encounter with tiny, but vicious, Victorian dolls Alex Bell’s dark and unsettling tale of tiny porcelain dolls, the size of two pence pieces, is an edgy, tension rich read probably more aimed at girls, but anyone will enjoy it. Right from the opening pages it builds into an outstanding page-turner with these evil little creatures whispering from behind a locked glass cabinet and in their words they have the power to kill. Equally demonic, the Charlotte’s have the ability to control and influence others to do their bidding, sneaking around a vast haunted house sowing horrible plans and turning characters against each other. Loaded with atmosphere, with a superb setting, a huge house converted from Dunvagen School for Girls which was closed in 1910, poor old Sophie is sucked into a mystery which takes her all the way back to 1910. But first she must solve the mystery of what really happened to her dead cousin Rebecca. Bearing in mind this novel is aimed at kids it has some hair-raising scenes, these nasty little dolls, once they escape from their cabinet even blind one of the characters with their “stick a needle in their eye game”. However, some of the most unsettling scenes are character driven, rather than perpetrated by the dolls. The pace moves fast, the characterisation is strong and the combination of mystery and the supernatural is finely balanced. It’s perfectly pitched at children who like a good mix of horror, thriller and mystery. Dark Room by Tom Becker (2015) Gruesome photographs and a serial killer on the loose in posh suburb Saffron Hills “Dark Room” was another Red Eye release which was reminiscent of the Point Horror novels and although it was an enjoyable read it was not one of their more demanding releases and I thought the killer was fairly obvious long before the end. Darla and her dad are looking for a fresh start as he has a dodgy past which saw them leave their last place in a hurry. By chance they wind up in affluent Saffron Hills, Darla stands no chance of fitting in with the beautiful, selfie-obsessed teens at her new school. Just when she thinks things can’t get any worse, she starts having visions. The gruesome snapshots flashing into Darla’s mind seem to suggest she’s going crazy… until she realizes they’re actually a horrifying glimpse into the future as there is a real killer on the loose. The book is a balance between supernatural and slasher thriller with a beauty pageant thrown into the mix which distracts everyone from the killer on the loose. This is another serial killer read straight out of the Point Horror stable, with the new girl in town getting sucked into a serial killer story with a camera fixation. Bad Bones by Graham Marks (2015) Good luck turns bad very quickly when a teenager finds a cursed bracelet What would you do if you had the chance of making very easy money? Would honesty go out of the window? In horror fiction, YA or adult, such situations have a habit of going full circle and biting you on the backside. And this is exactly what happens to poor old Gabe who finds a gold bracelet buried in a shallow grave in the hillsides of Los Angeles. The fact that he practically had to prise the bracelet from the skeletal hands should have been warning enough! Having lots of family problems, a dodgy dad, and other issues Gabe thinks he’s won the lottery until he discovers the treasure has a seriously dangerous past and it's catching up with him, and soon he is being hunted by a demon will not rest until its demands are met. Before long death follows the bracelet like a curse and he’s on the run on the streets of LA before his luck really does run out. Bad Bones was a fast-moving page-turner which reinvigorates an old and tired plot-line turning it into an easy read for a young teenager. Flesh and Blood by Simon Cheshire (2015) New home, new town, new school, but beware the new neighbours! Teenager Sam sets out to investigate what's going on at Bierce Priory as he feels there is something dodgy about his neighbours and their nocturnal activities, who also happen to be big-shots in the local community. However, he has no idea of what he's getting himself into and this entertaining homage to the Point Horror novels of the 1990s has plenty of twists and turns along the way as poor old Sam finds himself in a whole heap of trouble after almost witnesses a murder on his first day at school. This was one of the gorier Red Eye novels and to be fair I enjoyed the pretty dark ending which I doubt many kids will see coming. It is a highly effective twist. To an adult reader Sam’s embarkment on his Scoobie Doo routine is fairly predictable, but for thirteen-year-olds this is top notch stuff. Sleepless by Lois Morgan (2015) Kids… If offered study drugs… JUST SAY NO!!! “Sleepless” remains one of my favourite Red Eye novels and was a terrific way to kick off the series. It has an unsettling quality, and my thirteen-year-old daughter was really sucked into this very well drawn story with believable characters. It also featured a plot which was edgy enough to be believable to a teen readership who will identify with the teens under pressure 100%. The stress of exams leads Izzy and her friends to stupidly take a new study drug they find online and soon, one by one, they succumb to hallucinations, nightmares and psychosis. The only way to survive is to stay awake, which is pretty tough with big exams around the corner. Throw a killer into the mix and you have an engrossing thriller. “Sleepless” was slightly more challenging than some of the other Red Eye titles and the suggestion that a pill that allows you to study better has nasty side effects was a clever one. The central London location of the school also added atmosphere and threat of something nasty lurking around the corner. Highly recommended. To find out more, check out: http://littletiger.co.uk/red-eye )   |
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