Hickey of the Beast is a hilarious look at coming of age in a school where there are no secrets, but plenty of mysteries, and where supernatural studies take on a whole new meaning. It's a story about all the things that make growing up hell: boys, history class, annoying little brothers, and saving the world from evil. When the supernatural comes to school, it's no field day - and that's before you factor in homework.
Synopsis taken from Amazon.com.
Title: Hickey of the Beast
Author: Isabel Kunkle
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal
Publisher: Candlemark & Gleam
Publication Date: March 2011
Format: E-book
Source: Received from Isabel Kunkle courtesy of Teen Book Scene. I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review.
Tour: This review is part of the Teen Book Scene blog tour for Isabel Kunkle's Hickey of the Beast. You can follow along with the tour here.
Look for it: Amazon
My rating: 3.5/5
Connie is both excited and nervous to be starting at a new boarding school. Well, it's not necessarily new to her as her mom is the principal and she has lived on campus for years. Though she's been on campus for years, she doesn't have the run of the place, but she also doesn't want to be classified as the principal's kid either. Things are running smoothly until Connie starts having weird dreams about some of her new classmates. Then her classmates start to act differently within a few short days. She'll need to figure out what is going on, all the while juggling school, friends, and soccer.
Connie is a likeable character. Her voice throughout is very friendly and the tone is quite conversational. She lets us know right away that she is writing this as a letter to her friend, and that tone is kept up throughout. She has a humorous voice which allows for quite a few laugh out loud moments. She also has a penchant for swearing, almost excessively so. I could easily find myself commiserating with her as she related her unusual dreams to her friends.Though the story is set up to read like a long serialized letter, we also get to meet Connie's friends. They add to the story as they help keep her sane as they realize that the people envisioned in Connie's dreams are becoming ill, or having adverse reactions to something unknown.
The supernatural elements, though talked about a bit at first, don't really make an appearance early on. They are alluded to, but don't actually make a solid appearance until well over halfway through the novel. Connie was still having dreams but hadn't reached the stage where she knew what she was up against.
All in all, a cute, humour-infused read with supernatural ties. Connie's wit, and conversational tone are sure to keep readers invested in her story. They may be asking themselves though if she ever stops to take a breath. I hope there is more to come through Connie's boarding school years as I'm sure she has more stories to tell.
Connie is both excited and nervous to be starting at a new boarding school. Well, it's not necessarily new to her as her mom is the principal and she has lived on campus for years. Though she's been on campus for years, she doesn't have the run of the place, but she also doesn't want to be classified as the principal's kid either. Things are running smoothly until Connie starts having weird dreams about some of her new classmates. Then her classmates start to act differently within a few short days. She'll need to figure out what is going on, all the while juggling school, friends, and soccer.
Connie is a likeable character. Her voice throughout is very friendly and the tone is quite conversational. She lets us know right away that she is writing this as a letter to her friend, and that tone is kept up throughout. She has a humorous voice which allows for quite a few laugh out loud moments. She also has a penchant for swearing, almost excessively so. I could easily find myself commiserating with her as she related her unusual dreams to her friends.Though the story is set up to read like a long serialized letter, we also get to meet Connie's friends. They add to the story as they help keep her sane as they realize that the people envisioned in Connie's dreams are becoming ill, or having adverse reactions to something unknown.
The supernatural elements, though talked about a bit at first, don't really make an appearance early on. They are alluded to, but don't actually make a solid appearance until well over halfway through the novel. Connie was still having dreams but hadn't reached the stage where she knew what she was up against.
All in all, a cute, humour-infused read with supernatural ties. Connie's wit, and conversational tone are sure to keep readers invested in her story. They may be asking themselves though if she ever stops to take a breath. I hope there is more to come through Connie's boarding school years as I'm sure she has more stories to tell.
