Cursed Cruise

February 15, 2024
Grades 7-10 The second installment of Fulton and McClaren's Horror Hotel series (Horror Hotel, 2022) finds the Ghost Gang attempting to recover from the traumatic events of their last adventure while growing their popular ghost-hunting YouTube channel. An invitation to a voyage on the RMS Queen Anne, a ship famously haunted by a woman in white, seems like the perfect opportunity to increase their viewership and test-drive the new romantic relationships that have recently developed within the group. Rival YouTubers and a complex haunting throw the foursome for a loop and keep the plot moving along at a steady clip. The first-person narration shifts among the four main characters, which offers readers insight into the personal relationships playing out alongside the spooky stuff but also results in a choppy and slightly disorienting reading experience. A quick read for fans of the first novel and readers who can't get enough light horror.

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Starred review from January 15, 2024
A supernatural mystery unfolds aboard a boat with a haunted history. Chrissy, Chase, Kiki, and Emma, all 18, are recent high school graduates known as the Ghost Gang. Their YouTube channel has over a million subscribers, and after their last ordeal, in which a deranged serial killer fan terrorized them while they were filming an episode at the Hearst Hotel, the pressure's now on them to deliver another heart-pounding show. The Ghost Gang also hopes to leverage their fame into a TV deal. With that goal in mind, they board the famously haunted cruise ship the RMS Queen Anne, sister ship of the Titanic, which will be sailing from New York City to Southampton for its inaugural voyage after major refurbishment. On board, they meet the Paranormal Patrol, a rival ghost-chasing crew. Told in alternating first-person viewpoints, this creepy and atmospheric story follows the main foursome as they have a series of chilling ghostly experiences while trying to unlock the truth of the ship's past. Each Ghost Gang member faces a different challenge, putting their skills, confidence, and sometimes their safety to the test. Kiki is brown-skinned; the other major characters read white, and Kiki and Emma are queer. This follow-up to Horror Hotel (2022) will please returning fans, and the novel holds water as a stand-alone adventure. A fast-paced and fun Scooby-Doo-esque paranormal page-turner. (Horror. 13-18)

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June 7, 2024

Gr 9 Up-The Ghost Gang returns, this time with a haunting unlike anything they've encountered before. After the intense experience at Hearst Hotel, all four members of the gang-Chrissy, Chase, Kiki, and Emma-are suffering in different ways. But their subscribers and views went through the roof, so they begin a new case despite their unease. In order to capitalize on the fame from their last case, they embark on a cruise aboard the RMS Queen Anne, a transatlantic ship that has been the scene of many violent deaths. However, once on board, the Ghost Gang quickly realizes this is no normal haunting when Chrissy, their very own psychic, doesn't just see the ghosts on board-she becomes one. The group is desperate to figure out what is happening on this cursed cruise, before it is too late. This quick page-turner lacks body. Although this is a sequel, the characters never fully coalesce and some of the hauntings just feel like too much, even for a horror story. VERDICT Creepiness abounds, but not enough for readers to fully set sail aboard this ship.-Tara Peace

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