Brief Synopsis
“Bumps in the Night” is the middle grade horror debut of Amalie Howard, and follows 13 year-old Darika Lovelace as she is sent off to stay with her grandmother in the Caribbean. Sure, she should be happy, but the island isn’t all that she remembers. As sinister forces close in around her, Darika will have to uncover the secrets of her family…and herself.
Content Warnings: Intense Action (PG-13), references to death
What Do I Think?
This book…confuses me.
Let me clarify: I really like it! In fact, I think that this book is almost perfect – the writing is phenomenal, the characters are each memorable and have their own distinct feel, and the setting is gorgeous. I know I normally save this for the end, but overall the book is just a delightful read.
The reason why this book confuses me is because it is marketed (heavily) as a horror novel. The cover art looks like a horror novel. All of the marketing I saw for it online, as well as on bookmarks and things of that nature, markets this book as a horror novel. And yet, whilst reading it…it never really felt like one.
Now, this isn’t an issue of “oh a grown adult isn’t scared by a children’s novel” more so a tonal issue. There is a distinct way a horror novel is presented, whether it be in children’s or adult fiction. In horror, the characters usually feel completely incapable of handling whatever task is set before them. Whether the threat is a mystical monster, an axe-wielding maniac, or an environmental catastrophe, the protagonists generally don’t actually have an effective method of combating it and thus are usually in plain-old survival mode.
In “Bumps in the Night”, Darika and her friends have the power to fight back. Quite literally – the allies she makes along the course of the story literally have elemental magic powers. The tone of the book is less “oh we have no chance against this force we’re fighting against” but more “well it’s difficult but we’re capable and can manage it.” It read more like something along the lines of Tristan Strong or Percy Jackson.
Now, again, this isn’t an actual complaint against the novel itself – ignoring the mistaken marketing, Bumps in the Night is a solid book overall that is very well-written and just plain fun to read. I’m mostly just ranting about how off-kilter the marketing is.
If I were to level one complaint against this book, it is that the ending twist wasn’t nearly as effective as the book made it out to be, I think partly because there wasn’t enough build-up to it. But that is a minor complaint, and, overall, the book is delightful.
So if you’re looking for an actual proper horror book, perhaps look somewhere else. But if you want a glorious adventure full of fun quips, magic aplenty, and a story full of heart, Bumps in the Night is a fantastic choice.
Jacob Ryckman 