Review: Monsterland by Michael Phillip Cash

Print Length: 284 pages

Publisher: Red Feather Publishing (October 13, 2015)

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From Goodreads.com: Welcome to Monsterland – the scariest place on Earth. All guests can interact with real vampires in Vampire Village, be chased by an actual werewolf on the River Run, and walk among the dead in Zombieville.

Wyatt Baldwin, a high school student and life-long movie buff is staring bleakly at a future of flipping burgers. Due to a fortuitous circumstance, Wyatt and his friends are invited to the star-studded opening of Monsterland. In a theme park full of real vampires, werewolves and zombies, what could possibly go wrong? 

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My Rating: 3 stars out of 5

When I agreed to read this novel, the synopsis is what sold me, I was curious as to how the author would handle the story. I was unaware as to whether this novel was geared towards young adult readers, or more advanced readers and so my review will reflect that. 

For a YA novel this book is pretty solid. It has all the elements a younger reader that is just stepping into the horror genre will enjoy. 

However, for a more experienced reader like me I have to say that I wish this story had been longer so that it would be able to spend more time on character development (especially where the "monsters" are concerned), and had taken more time to expand on the park and the horrors contained therein. I felt that there could have been more detail as to why people acted and reacted as they did to certain things (and how one thing even happened - I'm still very confused as to whether or not this character was already a certain way, or if they became that way due to circumstances at the park). 

There were a couple of twists this book took that I did not see coming, and while they made the story that much more interesting to me as a reader, it also made me take a deeper look at society. Perhaps that was not the intention of the author, but while reading one cannot help but make the comparison between the "monsters" of the park, and the "monster" that can sometimes be humanity. 

All things considered (and taking into account the author's screen writing experience) I have to say that I do believe this novel would do well as a movie (theater or SyFy made for television). There are so many elements to this that I think would translate better on screen than they came across in the story. I do however, believe this story would appeal to a younger audience and will do well especially with those that are just beginning to 

develop an interest in the horror genre. 

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

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Monsterland is available from Amazon.com