Let Me Tell You How I Died by Sinclair Smith

Published June, 1994.

Delia can't stop reading the old diary she's found. She's becoming more and more like the girl whose words she reads - seeing the world through her eyes - even having her memories. Soon she believes she was the girl who wrote the diary - in a past life.

So does her killer.

The terror is alive once more. For the girl who wrote the diary was murdered. And whoever killed her the first time . . . is after her again. (book back blurb)

I grabbed this one not too long after I featured it in one of my Freaky Friday posts a while back and it definitely stands out from the other YA horror cheese of yore. I love it even more because of that.

The premise itself is actually really great. A past life and a current one clash when the past life becomes conscious. It points it out in the book that it's like Delia almost has a split personality, which she pretty much does. So not only is it a bit ghosty type of horror but is throws in some psychological horror in there as well and it wasn't all that cheesy, believe it or not.

I had a hard time guessing who the actual killer was. I've said it before and I'll say it again: I pretty much suck at picking up the subtle nuances that would denote something like that but that's besides the point. Every guess I made was wrong and there were quite a few red herrings to throw you off. Pretty awesome.

I think it's a bit better than some of the other cheese I've read simple because it's crafted a little better. It doesn't try too hard with the teenspeak, it doesn't go super crazy with the horror. The story just is and I really like that. It's freaky watching Delia transform into someone else against her will but it's not overdone. It's not subtle either but it's not wacky.

LET ME TELL YOU HOW I DIED is definitely one of the better works of YA horror from way back when so if you had to read any of them, I'd highly recommend this one. It's still got some cheese about it but it's pretty good about it.

Ban Factor: Medium - Despite the title, there's relatively little going on between the pages. There's some slight ghosty, beyond the grave stuff but it's pretty dim. Still, some could still review it as godless.

Freaky Friday :|: 44 (On Saturday)

I didn't entirely forget to post yesterday. I remembered wanting to after posting the winner for the Christmas contest even though it was late. But I forgot in that 3 hour period between posting and shutting off my computer. So I'll give that a half-forgot.


Title: Double Date
Author: Sinclair Smith
Published: November 1996
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Pages: 170
Summary:

As practical jokers Travis and Christie take clean-cut Tracy and Kyle to an abandoned ski lodge, they cook up a story about the place being haunted. Little do any of them know that the lodge is a vicious murderer's hideout. (from bn.com)

You know, anything with bloody scissors on the cover is bound to be good. Granted, this summary sounds the weakest out of all of Sinclair Smith's books but it's guilty by association. The chances of it being at least decent are very high and that alone is worth the read.

Freaky Friday :|: 43 (A Day Late)

Do you blame me? Oh well . . .


Title: Second Sight
Author: Sinclair Smith
Published: April 1996
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Summary:

Grayson was blind, but thanks to an operation, she can now see. However, deadly visions of a murder begin to appear before her and it feels as if she is at the scene of the crime. Something doesn't quite add up and then Grayson realizes that she has seen more than one murder. (from fantasticfiction.co.uk)

Well that's interesting. Not sure how I feel about it, just on a premise level. I don't know how horror it is but it's definitely mystery. But I guess that can be scary too. Still, considering the other books, it would be worth a shot, I think.

Freaky Friday :|: 42

Title: Amnesia
Author: Sinclair Smith
Published: January 1996
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Summary:

From the author of The Waitress and Dream Date comes a suspenseful new thriller that plays on a classic horror premise. Young adults will be spellbound by this riveting tale of a girl who awakens alone in the dark and doesn't know where she is or who she is--until a terrifying stranger takes her "home." (from fantasticfiction.co.uk)

Reader Review:

when i first started reading point horrors Amnesia was the first book i read and it scared me, but i was only 11, since then i really recommended sinclair smith to other point horror fans because i think her books are great, since im 16 know and have grown out of point horrors and im reading steven king, i still think Amnesia is one of the best books i've ever read. (from bn.com)

This one kind of reminds me of the premise of The Maze Runner by James Dashner. His is a book of a boy that wakes up someplace where he has no idea where he is and barely knows who he is. Dammit. Now I'm curious as to how the two compare. Sinclair Smith is a win at this point as far as I'm concerned, and I've never read any of her books.

Freaky Friday :|: 41

Title: The Boy Next Door
Author: Sinclair Smith
Published: February 1995
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Pages: 160
Summary:

Randy falls for the strange boy who moves into the deserted house next door and soon shares his fun in scaring people--but his tricks begin to turn deadly, and she realizes she does not know him at all. (from fantasticfiction.co.uk)

Summary 2:

The bestselling author of Let Me Tell You How I Died delivers nail-biting new chills and thrills when a young girl discovers that the charming boy next door is really very dangerous--and that he's not really living next door. He's in the crawl-space under her house. (from bn.com)

The second summary sounds so much more creepy! The more I post about this author, the more I want to read these books, I'm telling you! Being creeped out (at least fictionally, anyway) is fun!

Freaky Friday :|: 40

Title: The Diary
Author: Sinclair Smith
Published: October 1995
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 208
Summary:

Delia can't stop herself from reading the diary that mysteriously appears in her locker one day. Then, little by little, she becomes more and more like the girl whose words she reads, seeing the world as if through her eyes...A dead girl's eyes! (from fantasticfiction.co.uk)

I had to double check this one to make sure I hadn't picked up information from Let Me Tell You How I Died. The two sound very similar. But I don't know whether this is a possession story or a reincarnation one. Still, this guy has a good track record so far so I'd probably pick it up.

Freaky Friday :|: 39

Title: Let Me Tell You How I Died
Author: Sinclair Smith
Published: May 1994
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.
Pages: 160
Summary:

The bestselling author of Dream Date spins an out-of-this-world story about a murderer stalking a young girl--who begins to suspect she might be the reincarnation of the murderer's earlier victim. (from bn.com)

Customer Review:

delia can't stop reading the old diary which mysteriously appears in her locker one day.little by little,she starts to become more like the girl whose words she reads- even having her memories and seeing the world through her eyes. a dead girls eyes. soon delia is convinced that she was the girl who wrote the diary-in a past lfe. but the terror is about to come alive once more. for the girl who wrote the diary was murdered. and the killer is after her again... an awsome book! (from bn.com)

While reincarnation isn't a big thing in terms of originality, I like it with the premise. It's a nice escape from the reincarnated lovers/lives that seems to be making headway into YA. It's almost bordering on possession from the description of the customer review. Sounds like something I could get into reading, that's for sure.

Freaky Friday :|: 38

Title: Dream Date
Author: Sinclair Smith
Published: March 1993
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: 160

Katie thinks she's met the perfect guy--in her dreams. Then he starts making strange, threatening appearances in real life and Katie finds herself in a waking nightmare--and finding it harder and harder to distinguish between what's real . . . and what isn't. (from bn.com)

Wow. That sounds really cool. Ok. Must scour used book stores online for this one. I love the whole dream/reality what's real, what isn't type of thing and this sounds right up my alley. I think I really need to find this one. Like now.

Freaky Friday :|: 37

Title: The Waitress
Author: Sinclair Smith
Published: 1992
Publisher: Scholastic
Pages: Roughly 144 pages
Summary:

The food is great. The service deadly. Dying for a good meal? Come on over to the Dog House, where Paula works after school. It's a great place to meet friends--if they are still alive. At the Dog House accidents can happen, and they often do. You could wind up with more than just an upset stomach. You might just wind up dead. Of course, when things go wrong everybody always blames the waitress. Now Paula's first job might be her last. (from fantasticfiction.co.uk)

Well this sounds interesting. Now I'd like to get my hands on this. It's Point Horror so it's gotta have some goodness, right? But am I the only one that's reminded of that Simpsons' Tree House of Horrors episode where the kids at Springfield Elementary were being made into food by the teachers and the principal?