Brad About Books: Substitute Creature by Charles Gilman

Read on May 23, 2013

SUBSTITUTE CREATURE
Expected Publication Date: September 24, 2013
Publisher: Quirk
Format: ARC
Page Count: 176 pages
Source: Publisher in exchange for an honest review
Series: Tales from Lovecraft Middle School, #4

This review is entirely spoiler free, even if you haven't started this series.

Read my reviews from previous books in this series:

Professor Gargoyle • The Slither Sisters • Teacher's Pest

Substitute Creature is wicked fun! Dark, compelling, and a wild adventure, these books are unputdownable! Such an awesome series.

The Lovecraft Middle School series is one of my favorite MG series - it's got everything you could ever want in a creepy story. An epic trio of characters, sinister secrets lurking in the darkness, mutational animals, and something new and fresh in each book. And Substitute Creature did not disappoint by any means. With each book, I'm always shocked and creeped out by the new and perilous evil that Gilman throws into every book. Substitute Creature is such a creeptastic and epic novel! Who wouldn't be scared by a weird substitute teacher who may or may not be a monster? I love these books so much, and Substitute Creature was a fantastic continuation of the series.

I love going on adventures with Robert and the gang. Lovecraft Middle School is a quirky and odd place, and we get to explore darker realms of it in every novel - Substitute Creature definitely brought on the darkness! I wasn't expecting a lot of the events to actually happened, but I was so glad that Charles Gilman wasn't afraid to take risks in this fourth book. With a fourth book, things can get a little draggy with the story; that's not the case with this series. There's never a filler book, and each plot twist plays a vital and important role to the story. The perfect Halloween read!

Action, action, action! It was impossible to put Substitute Creature down. This was definitely the most fast-paced of the series, and I was shocked, frightening, and enchanted by the twists and turns thrown at the reader. The monsters terrified me, and the illustrations, as always, were an even more awesome addition to the story. (Seriously, some of these illustrations are super freaky!) Substitute Creature was an absolutely brilliant novel to this ever-epic series. I love this series to pieces!

Overall, Substitute Creature is a true gem in the middle grade genre. Fast-paced, horrifyingly marvelous, and one of a kind, this series is a must-read for all ages!

M Y    R A T I N G

Brad About Books: Teacher's Pest by Charles Gilman

Read on March 30, 2013

TEACHER'S PEST
Expected Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Publisher: Quirk
Format: Hardcover
Page Count: 176 pages
Source: Publisher
Series: Lovecraft Middle School, #3

This review is entirely spoiler free, even if you haven't started this series.

Read my reviews for previous books in this series:

Professor Gargoyle • The Slither Sisters

Teacher's Pest is a haunting, chilling and fun read! Gilman has created another middle grade masterpiece and knocked it out of the ballpark with Teacher's Pest! Definitely the best book of the series!

If you're looking for a fun and fresh series, look no further - the Lovecraft Middle School series is the perfect choice. Yes, they're creepy, and yes, they're eerie, but they are so. much. fun! I believe that this series will be the next Series of Unfortunate Events - it's sure to be a hit! The entire school of Lovecraft is so weird and different, but Gilman does a fantastic job at bringing the school to life for the reader.

Teacher's Pest definitely has the most unique plot. Bugs are everywhere, and the wonderful illustrations made these freaky creatures even more vivid in my mind! While I'm not scared of bugs, I'm not a fan of them, and I actually got scared at one scene towards the end of the book! Two words: Bug. Pile.

The character development is just as great. Robert becomes stronger and more daring in this third book, and I really appreciated that. The author himself is actually more daring! I didn't expect quite a lot of things to occur in Teacher's Pest, and my jaw was open for the majority of the book! Which is why this book is my favorite of the series thus far - I love it when a book has me in suspense and not having a clue what will happen next. Teacher's Pest is mind-boggling!

Overall, this series is a must-read for fans of middle grade. Creepy, eerie and a bucket of fun, Teacher's Pest was awesome!

M Y   R A T I N G

Brad About Books: The Slither Sisters by Charles Gilman

Read on March 26, 2013

THE SLITHER SISTERS
Published: January 15, 2013
Publisher: Quirk
Format: Hardcover
Page Count: 174 pages
Source: RAK
Series: Lovecraft Middle School, #2

My review from other books in this series:

Professor Gargoyle

This review is spoiler free, even if you haven't read the first book.

Loads of fun and peculiarly mysterious, The Slither Sisters is a whirlwind of craziness! I can't get enough of this school! 

Robert, Glenn, and our gang of characters become significantly better with their character development. And now that we get to explore the lives of the creepy and strange twins Sarah and Sylvia Price, it's clear in my mind that The Slither Sisters was even better than its predecessor. Gilman knows how to create a wonderful ensemble! 

The action was super awesome in this sequel! More monsters, mischief, and madness ensues in The Slither Sisters, and I was honestly taken aback by the events that happened! I loved seeing what crazy and whacky things popped out of Gilman's imagination, and wow, was it vivid and epic! I could picture everything moving along in my head so smoothly, plus the illustrations helped out (and they were great as well).

And like any Lovecraft Middle School book, the ending was crazy! I flew through those pages - it  was that fast-paced. I was on the edge of my seat for the last 40 pages, and I absolutely loved it.

Overall, The Slither Sisters was an awesome sequel. This series promises to become a hit!

M Y   R A T I N G