Goosebumps HorrorLand
Goosebumps HorrorLand is a horror novella series by R.L. Stine, a spin-off of his popular Goosebumps books.
Overview
R.L. Stine is writing a twelve-book series titled Goosebumps HorrorLand. The series, based loosely on One Day at HorrorLand (sixteenth in the original series) and Return to HorrorLand (thirteenth in the Goosebumps 2000 series), is the first Goosebumps series where each book is part of the same plot:
The new series will be an immersive storytelling experience welcoming fans to HorrorLand, a vast theme park which R.L. Stine describes as "the scariest place on Earth." In a Goosebumps first, the new series will be a serialized adventure, and the story won't end on the final page of book #1. Instead, the spine-tingling and funny bone-tickling adventures will continue on the Internet and in books #2-12, each of which can also stand alone. The first nine HorrorLand books all will feature a combination of frightful new faces as well as the vilest villains from the original Goosebumps series. Ordinary kids are being summoned to HorrorLand-but why? Readers are in for the ride of their lives as the cast of characters trapped in the theme park grows larger with each book, and their situations become more and more perilous.
Books #10-12 will take place entirely in HorrorLand. Who-or what-is behind the evil plot to assemble these kids? The answer will be revealed in the final book. Soon after the debut of books #1 and #2 in February 2008, Scholastic will begin to reissue original Goosebumps books-ten bestselling titles that tie in with each new story as it unfolds in HorrorLand.
Scholastic will launch HorrorLand with a dedicated website that, with the publication of each book, will further the narrative and provide corresponding clues to help readers unlock the secrets to HorrorLand. In addition, the web site will offer readers original HorrorLand material not available in the books-including ten free internet-only related stories, bonus downloads, interactive games, and more.[1]
R.L. Stine has stated that each book will "have two stories."[2]. The purpose of the first story is to introduce the villain and protagonists; the second story shows what happens to the protagonists when they get to HorrorLand, and are united with the other characters. The books also include a case file and an invitaton to HorrorLand. The final three books in the series will serve to wrap up the 'HorrorLand' plot in a single climactic storyline.
Scholastic's reprints of classic Goosebumps titles to accompany the series have all-new covers[3] and bonus material[4].
Format
Each book is split into three sections.
Section 1: The Story
This is the main section of the book, lasting approximately 90-95 pages. Since it reads identically to a classic Goosebumps book, readers will be most familiar with this section.
Section 2: Enter HorrorLand
Technically a continuation of the first section (as well as a continuation of the previous books' "Enter HorrorLand" segments), this 30-40-page mini-story finds the book's characters at HorrorLand, meeting up with other books' protagonists and villains. Each HorrorLand segment ends with a "cliffhanger" ending, to be continued in the next book's HorrorLand segment, and likely to be concluded in the ninth book (after which the series is set entirely in HorrorLand).
Section 3: Fear File
Only a few pages long, each book's Fear File contains fictional maps, brochures, menus, etc. pertaining to the section of the theme park featured in that book, along with a hand-drawn map of the area. Each book also includes a fictional advertisement to its featured park area on the front page of each book. Most of the advertisements feature web addresses for either EnterHorrorLand.com or EscapeHorrorLand.com.
Other Features
Some books feature single-chapter previews of the books on which they were based. For example, Creep from the Deep features a single-chapter preview of the original Deep Trouble. In addition, the back of each book shows half of a HorrorLand map token on either edge of the book. When two books (such as #1 and #2) are placed next to each other, the two halves match up and show a complete token; in this case, it features Slappy the Dummy. Following this pattern, the second book shows half of a coin that will only be complete when placed next to the third book, and so on. Each token has a unique message, written in mirror writing, around the edge.
The Books
#1 - Revenge of the Living Dummy
- Release Date: March 2008
- Number of Pages: 128
- Goosebumps series: Night of the Living Dummy
- Companion reissue: Night of the Living Dummy - featuring a new interview with R.L. Stine and other bonus features created by Joshua Gee (the author of Encyclopedia Horrifica).
- Plot: 12-year-old Britney Crosby and her friend Molly have to put up with bratty cousin Ethan, who's causing trouble with his new dummy Mr. Badboy. But is there more to the dummy than meets the eye? When it seems the danger has passed, Britney and Molly receive a special invitation to the popular theme park HorrorLand, but has Slappy followed them there?
- Featured HorrorLand Area: Stagger Inn
- Note: The first chapter can be read online at Scholastic.com/HorrorLand.
#2 - Creep From the Deep
- Release Date: March 2008
- Number of Pages: 137
- Goosebumps series: Deep Trouble
- Companion reissue: Deep Trouble - featuring a new interview with R.L. Stine and other bonus features created by Matthew D. Payne.
- Plot: Billy and Sheena must once again defeat creeps from the deep, in the form of a group of zombie pirates led by Long Ben One-Leg. Even if they succeed, a surprise invitation to HorrorLand is drawing them into another deadly situation.
- Featured HorrorLand Area: Black Lagoon Water Park
- Note: The map for this book on EnterHorrorland.com was available as of March 25, 2008.
#3 - Monster Blood For Breakfast!
- Release Date: May 2008
- Number of Pages: 137
- Goosebumps series: Monster Blood
- Companion reissue: Monster Blood
- Plot: Top student Matt despises Bradley "Worm" Wormser, who copies everything he does. Bradley orders a container of Monster Blood from a website in order to become big and strong like Matt, but a trick gone wrong leaves Matt with Monster Blood for breakfast. Even in HorrorLand he can't escape the evil ooze - and neither can his new friends.
- Featured HorrorLand Area: A street with the Monster Police Office and Dr. Twisted's Science Lab
- Note: The map for this book on EnterHorrorland.com was available as of May 16, 2008.
#4 - The Scream of the Haunted Mask
- Release Date: June 24th, 2008
- Goosebumps series: The Haunted Mask
- Companion Reissue: The Haunted Mask[5]
- Plot: Menaced by the scream of the Haunted Mask, Carly-Beth starts to delve into its past - searching for a way to escape it. She uncovers a terrifying tale about an old stable she works near, but the mask isn't the only threat. At HorrorLand, she and her friend Sabrina team up with the other very special guests, and overhear a disturbing plot to dispose of them all.
- Featured HorrorLand Area: Zombie Plaza
- Note: The map for this book was open at Enterhorrorland.com as of July 12, 2008.
#5 - Dr. Maniac vs Robby Schwartz
- Release Date: October 2008
- Goosebumps series: This book follows a formula similar to Attack of the Mutant, about a comic book fan who discovers his favorite comic supervillian is real.
- Companion Reissue: One Day at HorrorLand[6]
- Plot: Robby Schwartz publishes a webcomic featuring the villainous and superpowered Dr. Maniac. But somehow, Dr. Maniac gets into the real world and Sam goes missing! Soon enough it's Dr. Maniac vs Robby Schwartz, but there's the added threat of a summons to HorrorLand waiting for Robby, and danger is drawing closer and closer.[7]
- The HorrorLand area in this book is supposedly either the Play Pen or Werewolf Village.
- Note: Because this book does not follow a classic Goosebumps series, its companion reissue is related to Enter HorrorLand.
#6 - Who's Your Mummy?
- Release Date: December 2008
- Goosebumps series: The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb was the first of several Goosebumps books featuring mummies.
- Companion Reissue: The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb[8]
- Plot: Peter and Abby are staying with their Egyptologist uncle Jonathan in a strange old village - but what kind of secrets is he hiding from them? Later Abby and Peter find themselves in HorrorLand, where many other villains have been seen; can the Horror named Byron help them out?[9]
#7 - My Friends Call Me Monster
- Release Date: January 2009
- Goosebumps series: The plot is reminiscent of Creature Teacher or The Girl Who Cried Monster, in which educational staff turn out to be monsters.
- Companion Reissue: Be Careful What You Wish For...[10]
- Plot: Michael Munroe learns never to trust a teacher who calls her students "Little Monster," especially when she invites him over to lunch while a giant monster egg hatches in her attic. But before too long, Michael will be trapped in HorrorLand with the other kids.[11]
- Note: Because this book does not follow a classic Goosebumps series, its companion reissue is related to Enter HorrorLand.
#8 - Say Cheese and Die Screaming!
- Release Date: Febuary 2009 [12]
- Goosebumps series: Say Cheese and Die!
- Plot: Ordinary kids are being brought to HorrorLand and trapped there. Their only company? Vicious monsters and enemies, some new and terrifying, some from Goosebumps history - including an evil camera that spells a terrifying future. But thanks to the camera, for someone, there might not be a future...[13]
#9 - Welcome to Camp Slither
- Release Date: March 2009 [14]
- Goosebumps series: There is a long tradition of Goosebumps books taking place at a camp, including Welcome To Camp Nightmare, The Horror at Camp Jellyjam, Ghost Camp, The Curse of Camp Cold Lake, Fright Camp, Return to Ghost Camp and Escape From Camp Run-For-Your-Life.
- Plot: Another evil camp has horrible plans for its campers, but could HorrorLand be even worse?
- The HorrorLand series will feature a villain called "Mister Slither", who is most likely to appear in this book.[15]
#10 - Help! We Have Strange Powers!
- Release Date: April 2009 [16]
- Goosebumps series: One Day at HorrorLand/Return To HorrorLand
- Plot: The story moves entirely to HorrorLand as the kids and their enemies clash.
- It is rumored that Lizzy, Luke, and possibly Clay from the classic HorrorLand novellas may appear in this book.
#11 - Streets of Panic Park
- Release Date: May 2009 [17]
- Goosebumps series: One Day at HorrorLand/Return To HorrorLand
- Plot: The kids must survive in HorrorLand, but the odds are against them with so many villains around.
#12 - The Last Horror
- Release Date: June 2009 [18] / July 2009 [19]
- Goosebumps series: One Day at HorrorLand/Return To HorrorLand
- Plot: Can the kids find out who or what has brought them to HorrorLand and why, before it's too late?
Companion websites
The series is complemented by companion websites.
Enter HorrorLand
The website EnterHorrorLand.com is a "gameplay experience which immerses fans in HorrorLand itself"[20]. It is based around twelve map sections corresponding to each HorrorLand book, each of which includes numerous mini-games. The premise of each map section is that the antagonist of the corresponding book is trying to take over that area of HorrorLand; the minigames tell the story of each antagonist's defeat by the player. The player is frequently represented by Mr. Wood, the main antagonist from Night of the Living Dummy. Guidance and help is provided by an automated fortune teller named Madame Doom. The site opened on February 20, 2008[21].
Escape HorrorLand
The website EscapeHorrorLand.com and is a "serialized, story-driven, fact-finding experience" hosted by the protagonists of One Day at HorrorLand.[22] It is ostensibly a blog that seeks out and post evidence and information about the HorrorLand theme park[23], written by Luke Morris of One Day at HorrorLand[24]. His sister Lizzie also contributes to the site, largely in the form of extracts from a "Welcome to HorrorLand" guidebook[25]. Luke's friend Clay is also mentioned.[26] Since the story began, Luke and Lizzie have received HorrorLand correspondence from Madame Doom[27] and the mysterious "MONSTER-X"[28] (who may be Byron from the series proper), who claims that HorrorLand has changed.[29] Several of these props appear within the HorrorLand books themselves. The site opened on February 14, 2008.
Others
Scholastic also opened a page previewing the titles in the series; it displays the covers of the first four Goosebumps HorrorLand books and the first two Classic Goosebumps books, and posted daily updates in late October of installments of the first chapter of Revenge of the Living Dummy.[30]
Video Game
Scholastic Book Company is also releasing a new Goosebumps video game in October 2008 to tie into the series, entitled Goosebumps HorrorLand, and to be released on the Nintendo DS, Wii, and PlayStation 2 platforms. The plot follows a young boy and his friends trapped in HorrorLand, where they must make their way through challenging levels to escape the evil theme park. Reports indicate the game is similar to the original Goosebumps Horrorland game Goosebumps Escape From Horrorland, in which you had to beat the minigames of various levels to reveal who was behind it all and get back home.
External links
References
- ^ BookOpinion (2007-05-19). ""R.L. Stine to Launch New Goosebumps HorrorLand Series". BookOpinion.com.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Reading Is Fundamental | Reading Planet | Book Zone | Meet the Authors and Illustrators
- ^ International Rights
- ^ Amazon.com: Haunted Mask (Classic Goosebumps): R.L. Stine: Books
- ^ Amazon.com: Haunted Mask (Classic Goosebumps): R.L. Stine: Books
- ^ Amazon.com: One Day at HorrorLand (Classic Goosebumps: R.L. Stine: Books
- ^ Amazon.com: Dr. Maniac vs Robby Schwartz (Goosebumps HorrorLand): Books: R.L. Stine
- ^ Amazon.com: The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (Classic Goosebumps): R.L. Stine: Books
- ^ Amazon.com: Who's Your Mummy? (Goosebumps HorrorLand): Books: R.L. Stine
- ^ Amazon.com: Be Careful What You Wish For (Classic Goosebumps): R.L. Stine: Books
- ^ Amazon.com: My Friends Call Me Monster (Goosebumps HorrorLand): Books: R.L. Stine
- ^ Borders - Store Inventory - Title Detail - Goosebumps HorrorLand 8 Say Cheese and Die Screaming
- ^ International Rights
- ^ International Rights
- ^ Night of the Living Dummy (Classic Goosebumps) (bonus material)
- ^ International Rights
- ^ International Rights
- ^ International Rights
- ^ Ute Körner Literary Agent
- ^ International Rights
- ^ Enter HorrorLand
- ^ International Rights
- ^ Escape HorrorLand - Thursday, February 14, 2008
- ^ Escape HorrorLand - Thursday, February 14, 2008
- ^ Ebook index
- ^ Escape HorrorLand - Thursday, March 20, 2008 - "My friend Clay is here, and we’re gonna play soccer in the backyard."
- ^ Escape HorrorLand - Thursday, March 6, 2008 - "We opened it carefully, and inside were two fortune-teller cards with the words “MADAME DOOM” printed on them. One of the cards also had BOTH OUR NAMES printed on it!"
- ^ Escape HorrorLand - Monday, May 12, 2008
- ^ "“HorrorLand is NOT what it used to be!”"
- ^ Scholastic.com|Goosebumps: HorrorLand
