Review: Trapped (Fear Street #51) by R.L. Stine

Title: Trapped

Series: Fear Street #51 (Can be read as a standalone)

Author: R.L. Stine

Genre: YA, mystery thriller, horror

Publication date: December 1997

Published by: Pocket Books/Simon Pulse

Source: Own paperback

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Synopsis:

Some kids in the sixties used to party in the tunnels under Shadyside High, until something left a bunch of people dead. But that's just a story, right? Besides, exploring the tunnels is more fun than being stuck in Saturday detention. Too bad there's no turning back--because in the tunnels there's no one around to hear your screams.

My rating: ★★★★★

You're invited... to die.

Elaine thinks she’s going to spend a boring day in detention, but she would be wrong.

[Elaine] pulled her jacket tighter around herself and tried to fight off the chill that refused to leave her body.
It was going to be a long day.
She had no idea how long—or how dangerous.

The idiot kids in detention decide to ditch the room and go have fun in the deserted school, like raiding the cafeteria!

[Elaine] glanced around—and saw Jerry in front of another big steel door. He held several cans of iced tea in his arms. Elaine grinned at him.
“Don’t look at me that way,” he complained. “Everyone else is doing it.”
“I know,” Elaine replied. “I want chocolate milk.”
“Oh.” Jerry’s expression relaxed. “Second shelf.”

But then Elaine accidentally finds the entrance to the infamous tunnels under the school and the idiot kids decide to go explore them.

“Why would anyone want to party in a dump like this?” Jerry asked.
“Think about it,” Bo replied. “No one to bother you. No noise complaints. No cops. One hundred percent privacy.”
“If you survive it,” Elaine remarked.
That comment brought silence.

I remember reading this book back when I was in middle school and really loving it! But I didn’t actually remember any specific details about, which was nice because I love being surprised. The one thing I definitely did remember was the creepy atmosphere of being trapped down in some spooky tunnels. And you know what, it was still creepy the second time around!

I really liked the characters and how vastly different they were from one another. Bo I thought was kind of insane, though. I really don’t know why Elaine decided to follow his bad example. He also pulled some really awful pranks there were actually not funny at all. I feel like the only sane one in the group was Jerry, and he was made fun of for following the rules *sigh*

But Bo did become more likable as the story went on. He began fooling around less when he realized that they were in some serious trouble. He actually became a pretty good leader, and I much prefered this more serious Bo.

And I have to talk about the kills, because you bet people are going to die! So, the kids run into... something that starts picking them off one by one (is it the same thing that go the kids back in the 60s??) So not only are they lost, but now they’re being killed off by some red mist, which is more horrifying than it sounds! And let me tell you, the description of the deaths were amazing! They were gory and tense and just—yes! This is what I live for—R.L. Stine’s descriptive death scenes. Lol.

In the end, I actually guessed what this thing was. However, I actually really enjoyed reading the reveal and it’s connection to—ahem, a certain someone who I will not name in order to avoid spoilers. But also its connection to the dead kids from the 60s was insane!

I really enjoyed this Fear Street book! I loved the creepy, claustrophobic atmosphere, the suspense, the descriptive scenes, and the setting in the school and the tunnels! It was just an overall enjoyable read!

The Fear Street connection: Yeah, I don't know. I couldn’t even find a mention of Fear Street in the whole book—and I checked twice! My guess is that one of the characters in the book lives on Fear Street. Maybe the protagonist Elaine, or Bo, or even Principal Savage... idk. Lol.

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think about it? If not, what do you think? Does it sound like something you might want to read? Leave me a link to your review or comment below! :)