The Paradise Trap

by Catherine Jinks Narrated by Chelsea Bruland

Overview

Eleven year old Marcus loves video games and hates the beach. So he is not happy when his mum Holly drags him to Diamond Beach, the place she loved as a child. Once there, Holly meets Coco, her friend from her childhood. She is there with her electronics-obsessed husband, Sterling Huckstepp, and their kids, cool teenage Newt, pizza-loving Edison and the family robot, Prot. Opening a door into the basement of Holly's caravan, Edison discovers the most amazing amusement park. Whoever opens a door in the basement finds themselves in their very own dream vacation. But when the dream becomes impossible to escape from, it all begins to feel more like a nightmare: Marcus, Holly, and the Huckstepps find themselves trapped in a matrix of terrifyingly perfect dreamscapes peopled with strange characters that will allow them to do anything they want, except leave...A whirlwind adventure at a breakneck speed.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Praise for Catherine Jinks:

"A breathless escapade."—Kirkus Reviews

"Jinks (the Evil Genius series) combines a plot filled with surreal twists and turns with a dash of Greek mythology in a novel that hits the mark on both the humor and horror fronts."—Publishers Weekly

"Jinks deftly mixes mild horror with humor to give younger readers a few shivers and make older readers chuckle. Each dream/nightmare world sheds dramatic, sometimes touching, insight into the character whose hopes and fears create it, and the nonstop action will make for exciting read-alouds and book talks. Completely absorbing and totally fun."—School Library Journal

Kirkus Reviews

Two vacationing families fall afoul of a deadly predator from Greek mythology. Just arrived among the hordes of vacationers surrounding Diamond Beach, 11-year-old video-gamer Marcus is astounded to discover that the shabby, wheeled trailer his mother Holly bought for the outing sports a hidden staircase that leads down to a dark cellar. Stranger yet, the cellar has doors that lead to the opener's dream vacation. These range from a fabulous amusement park for the young son of Coco, a childhood friend of Holly's who follows Marcus down the stairs, and a rock club packed with celebrities for Coco's moody teenage daughter to the idyllic beach resort of Holly's childhood. The disturbing discovery that each locale turns hostile toward anyone who wants to leave or isn't having fun prompts Marcus to enlist the grownups in a rescue that becomes a running battle with the trailer's former owner, Miss Molpe. This kindly old lady from Holly's youth is in truth a clever and powerful child-eating Siren who has lost her voice but still retains the ability to set elaborate magical snares for intended victims. She can also create vacations from hell, as Marcus and company discover before a narrow escape that (possibly) sends her to a fiery doom. A breathless escapade, featuring several horror-show tropes leavened with hints of satire. (Fantasy. 11-13)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169090123
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	04/24/2012
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

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