GOOSEBUMPS HORRORLAND #6: WHO'S YOUR MUMMY?
by R.L. Stine
Scholastic Paperbacks
ISBN: 9780439918749
Ages 9-12
160 pages
Abby and Peter are devastated when the grandmother they live with informs them she must go into the hospital. Granny Vee is the siblings' only family, or so they thought, until she tells them they will be traveling to the village of Cranford, Vermont, to stay with their Uncle Jonathan. She describes him as "a very interesting man," which turns out to be quite the understatement.
When Abby and Peter arrive at the Cranford train station, they're surprised at how old-fashioned the village appears. In the distance they see a huge mansion on top of a hill and assume (correctly, as it turns out) that the house is Jonathan's. Eerily, even though it's daytime, hordes of bats circle the mansion's towers. As the children gawk, a friendly-looking woman approaches them. But when Abby tells her they're going to stay with their uncle in the mansion, she becomes agitated and begs them to stay away from the house. She claims she hears moaning from the mansion at night and believes that something horrible goes on up there. The lady vanishes when Uncle Jonathan pulls up in an old-fashioned horse-drawn carriage.
Upon their arrival at the house, Jonathan makes the first of his many strange jokes: "You're my prisoners now." His humor isn't all that bizarre, though. Abby and Peter are surprised to see that the interior of the house is decorated in an ancient Egypt theme. There are paintings of pharaohs, statues of Egyptian animals, and even a small pyramid. Peter keeps asking Jonathan if he has any mummies; he really wants to see one.
Jonathan introduces Peter and Abby to his housekeeper, Sonja. She is round and grandmotherly-looking, with curly gray hair, pink cheeks and an apron over a long black dress. When Sonja shows the kids to their bedrooms, she points out closed doors that she warns them never to open.
Abby lies down for a quick nap that's interrupted by a creature that almost strangles her. When she recovers, she and Peter join Jonathan for dinner, during which he tells them about his adventures in Egypt. Afterward, he takes them to the temple he has created, which is creepily realistic, right down to the (gulp!) mummy. Peter is fascinated, but the mummy gives Abby the heebie-jeebies. Her unease intensifies when she goes to bed. She hears moaning, is accosted by a bat, and then watches a man fighting off bats in Jonathan's yard. What could be going on? Although Sonja swears that the bats are just protecting the house, Abby is not reassured.
Could the strange woman at the train station be right? Are Abby and Peter in terrible danger? As things go from very bad to much worse, Abby knows the undeniable answer to that question.
This is another exciting adventure for horror fans, who will wonder if Abby and Peter will survive their fateful visit. After all, if they do, they can expect an invitation to the world's scariest amusement park, HorrorLand, where villains and monsters await them.
--- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon (terryms2001@yahoo.com)
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