With Halloween coming up, we are all looking for scary movies, scary video games, and for some of us, scary literature. If you liked Goosebumps when you were younger, this article is for you. Everyone, say hello to Tales From the Haunted Mansion. Go on. SAY IT. This is a book series about the various ghosts and ghouls haunting inside the mansion's walls. There are only 4 unfortunately, but they all have amazing stories and the plot ties them so well. I won't spoil anything but I'll give a basic idea of the books to generate interest.
Book 1 is about a group of friends who call themselves the Fearsome Four and try to scare each other with stories they made up. The group consists of Tim (a baseball fanatic), Steve (the cool kid), Noah, (a red-headed geek), and Willa(the only girl in the group). When they go to the mansion for a meeting, they meet the librarian Amicus Arcane. He claims to have the scariest stories of all time, and even the titles sound spooky. Lonegan's Glove is about a baseball glove Tim bought at a flea market, Witch-Bone about Willa's wish to have her pets brought back to life, Sea Creatures about a 4th of July mishap at Noah's house, and The Dare about Steve daring someone to spend an hour in a coffin. This book is a great introduction to the lore of the ride itself and sets the mood for the next few books to come.
Book 2 takes place about 8 years after Book 1 with a man named William Gaines. Every year on his sister's birthday, he goes to a medium to try and speak to his deceased older sister. All of them have been fakes and always left him wanting to continue the tradition. He takes a cake to his sister's grave and as he eats his slice of s'mores cake, Amicus comes to see him. William tells him of the tradition he has and how it has been failing him. Amicus tells him he knows of a medium named Madame Leota, and that she can help him. He declines as payment would be death, but after pleading with him, Amicus leads him to the mansion. After walking through some scary hallways and whatnot, they reach the library. William asks where Madame Leota is, but Amicus says he's not ready yet. He reads some tales to prepare him for the seance, and these are probably better than the first ones. Please Remain Seated is about 2 girls in 1965 who rode a haunted house ride at a carnival, Blood Relatives is about a boy who finds out he's related to a vampire, Uncle Rory's Late Show with a boy named Mark who finds his uncle's treasure trove of old movies, and The Roaches with a girl named Camille working at a bed and breakfast. This one in my opinion is superior to the first, but some things here require prior knowledge to fully understand.
The third book is probably the best out of all of them to me. We follow 3 people from a moving company delivering some items to the mansion. They consist of a piano with a haunting tune, an Egyptian sarcophagus with a story 3,500 years in the making, and a door that took a girl to Salem, Massachusetts 1692. The story of the door was fascinating and that alone made it my favorite book. There is a "third time's the charm" joke all over it, but it's not too annoying.
The last book is like getting every good thing from previous books and combining them. A sanitarium holds a renowned writer, and she shares the mansion's tales with a doctor of the insane. Stories included a teen who brings to life a friend with science, a boy with the goal of finding the treasure of a ghost ship, and one I won't say because it's crucial to the plot. We even get a twist at the end to officially wrap up this series! This was the first book I read because my school got this book in bulk as a donation, but it's a wonderful ending to this short-lived series. I do hope you end up reading this series because it's like Goosebumps but for an older audience. It's perfect to read during spooky season, so please consider.