Release: May 4th, 2021
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Source: Netgalley
Find it at Goodreads, Amazon, B&N
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No Stuffy has ever gone into the Darkness and returned…
Clark can’t wait to go away to camp this year. For the first time, he has actual friends to hang out with. Catherine-Lucille and D. A. will both be at Camp I Can work with Clark, and C. L. has already promised to induct him into her exclusive camp club. It is the one for campers who know everything there is to know about the world of Monsters and how Stuffies protect kids from them. And now that he knows that his grandma made Stuffy, Foon heroically saved his own father from a horrible fate. Clark is obviously bringing Foon to camp along with him.
But once Clark gets to camp, he and his friends discover things are off. There are strange, gooey findings in some of the bunks; the adults are acting weird, and, worst of all, their Stuffies and dolls go missing right at the moment they need them the most—when they go on the intersession camping trip and end up trapped in a creepy old cabin. What Clark and his friends don’t know, and what the mighty Foon soon discovers, is that the Monsters have launched a revenge campaign against Foon—a campaign that entails sucking the very life out of Clark. Now it’s up to Foon to enter the World of Darkness and take on the Monster in charge to stop the plot and save Clark’s life.
In the long tradition of Stuffies vs. Monsters, this one’s a battle for the ages—one that will certainly go down in Stuffy history.
About the Author:
Liz Braswell spent her childhood reading fairy tales, catching frogs, and going on adventures in the woods with her stuffed animals. She has a degree in Egyptology from Brown University (and yes, she can write your name in hieroglyphs).
After making video games for ten years, Liz now writes full-time and plays video games for fun. She has written Snow, Rx, The Nine Lives of Chloe King, and several books in the best-selling Twisted Tale series, including Part of Your World and As Old as Time.
She lives in Brooklyn with her husband, two children, a cat, a part-time dog, three fish, and five coffee trees, and still sleeps with a Stuffy. You can email her at me@lizbraswell.com or find her on Instagram and Twitter @LizBraswell.
Into Darkness Review:
I read “Stuffed” before reading the sequel, “Into Darkness,” and it did not disappoint!
The author went to the next level with this story. Initially, I was worried, as the story starts off a bit slow, with nothing much happening. However, the story takes full form when Kris joins the picture. While I was not too fond of Kris, I must admit he brought the story to life. From there, the author terrifically paces the story, especially when Foon starts his quest. The author fills the story with suspense, action, adventure, with beautiful messages that a reader of any age group would enjoy.
On the one hand, I loved the drama between D.A. and C.L. Unfortunately, Clark’s reunion at camp does not go the way he had hoped. I enjoyed how the author tackled this because we face situations where we make new friends growing up, and sometimes we don’t realize who our real friends are. On the other hand, the author fills the book with fantastic adventure moments revolving around Foon. The moments where Foon fights Yechzeken was one of the highlights! Similarly, I loved Foon’s interactions with “Phlebbish” and how the monster questions his beliefs.
However, the only thing I missed in this story compared to book 1 was the cute interruptions Foon makes with the reader. While the first book was more of a children’s novel, this book is a full-on middle-grade adventure. Nevertheless, it is very entertaining! Also, the author once again put in exciting tutorials on how to make badges and more stuffies! The story also ends with a hint of another book coming soon, which I am already excited to read!
Overall, “Into Darkness” is a beautiful middle-grade adventure and a complete entertainer!
