Dominique Franceschi shines with her enthusiastic narration of this fun and creepy mystery. All the characters have distinct and realistic voices. Omega Morales feels that she doesn't fit into her hometown, Noche Buena. The human townspeople are wary of her because she is half-human, half-empath. She straddles both worlds without fully feeling part of either one. Omega's best friends are the ghost Clau and her cousin, Carlitos. When cats start to disappear from Noche Buena, Omega suspects La Lechuza is the cause of it. In trying to learn more about La Lechuza, Omega discovers secrets about her town, family, and herself. Franceschi's slight accent pairs perfectly with the characters of Noche Buena. She beautifully incorporates Spanish when necessary.
(Paranormal. 9-13)Pub Date: Sept. 27, 2022
Duration: 8 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781666617245
Publisher: Dreamscape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Solid middle-grade horror.
Kaipo Schwab performs this fourth outing in the Tales From Cabin 23 series. In this entry, a Lipan Apache middle schooler finds himself trapped in a house that’s slowly falling into the ocean off coastal Massachusetts. Sean’s been uprooted from his Texas home to live temporarily with his cousin, Zeke, and Schwab convincingly captures his hesitancy and earnestness. Little Badger’s story is propulsive, and Schwab matches its pacing easily. His characterizations also include brash and confident Zeke as well as lonely schoolmate Jenny and “Many Names,” a monster who’s as displaced as Sean—and very hungry. Each character comes alive for listeners as Sean desperately works to rescue himself, his cousin, and their new friend from both Many Names and the Atlantic.
Solid middle-grade horror. (Horror. 8-12)Pub Date: Aug. 4, 2026
Duration: 5 hrs, 20 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063298286
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: Aug. 27, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2026
A not-too-scary horror audiobook.
Dan Bittner gives a polished performance of Stine’s middle-grade horror novel, narrating with melodramatic flair and dramatic pauses at the end of each cliffhanger chapter. When the Ferber family moves into a creepy old house on Nightmare Street, Joe’s parents are oblivious to the scary things happening in the house. In a parallel story, the Hannigan family moves into the same house, where Shawn has different creepy experiences. Both Joe and Shawn have nightmares in which they encounter horror tropes—headstones, a creepy rag doll, a looping camera, a ventriloquist’s dummy, and masked teachers—in their house and at school. Bittner’s pacing works well, and fans of the Goosebumps series will enjoy the familiar shivers and tongue-in-cheek humor.
A not-too-scary horror audiobook.Pub Date: April 18, 2026
Duration: 2 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9798228588288
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Review Posted Online: April 7, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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