Gather round the camp fire folks, because it’s time for another book review!

This time I’m reviewing Camp Scare by Delilah S. Dawson. 

This cover was giving me some serious fall vibes, so I just had to see what it was all about. Let’s see how it went!

Blurb

An eerie, twisty ghost story about twelve-year-old Parker, who only wanted a summer of fun and new friendship, and the nightmare she finds instead.

Don’t forget your flashlight…

Parker Nelson can’t wait for summer camp. She’ll have fun and make amazing memories, far away from the bullies who made seventh grade unbearable.

But then something terrible happens: The mean girl who made life a living nightmare is in Parker’s cabin. Soon all the other girls turn on Parker, too–no one wants to be her friend. Except Jenny.

Jenny’s the only one who is willing to listen. The only one who understands. The only one who feels the same way Parker does: That there’s a deep, dark secret to making friends and she’s the only one who doesn’t know it.

But there’s something else Parker doesn’t know. Something bad happened at the camp a long time ago, and it just won’t stay buried…

GoodReads

Amazon

***Brief disclosure***

I am an Amazon affiliate and earn a tiny commission for purchases made through the Amazon links in this post at no cost to you. It’s a great way to help me keep things running on my blog if you’re already intrigued enough to make a purchase. 

The Review

I had a lot of fun with this paranormal middle grade story.

Young Parker has a history with bullies. She’s been tormented by the popular kids at school, so when school is out, it’s the perfect opportunity for her to broaden her horizons at Camp Care. But when she arrives she is shocked to find one of her bullies at the camp. As her hopes for a new way forward become tricky and strange happenings occur around camp, can Parker get to the bottom of it?

I love camp-themed stories. There’s just something magical about it. I didn’t enjoy my time at camp in fifth grade, and Parker is much the same, which helped me relate to her a lot. There’s a constant sense of mystery and some light chills as strange things happen around camp that I really loved. Each chapter was fast paced, and the drama was balanced well with the creepy happenings. The writing was well done and flowed smoothly from page to page.

Parker herself was easy to understand, and her POV came off as an authentic tween to me. She’s intelligent and resourceful, but those traits seem to be ignored by most. Her strange friend Jenny was an interesting character, and her antagonistic cabin mates helped amp up the dramatics. Many people (myself included) have been bullied in grade school, and this is a prominent theme throughout the book.

I would have liked to see Parker given a bit more leeway in her arguments. It felt that everyone around her was ignorant to a fault, and that took me out of the story a bit. I also felt that the big reveal was easy to predict, even for a younger reader, so that lessened the spooky parts for me.

Overall, not a bad book if you want to introduce your younger reader to paranormal fantasy or need a quick read with some light thrills.

That’s A Wrap!

Well that’s it for this book review. I hope you enjoyed it!

Have you read this book? Are there other similar books you’ve read that you simply have to gush about? Feel free to leave a comment. I’d love to start a conversation!

Have a great day!

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