Horror Book Review: The Dead Children's Playground by James Kaine

 

This week’s Horror Book  Pick is James Kaine’s THE DEAD CHILDREN’S PLAYGROUND. Published in August 2024, the book in on the bestsellers list for Ghost Suspense and Horror Suspense.

The Dead Children’s Playground has received positive reviews for its chilling story and for being an entertaining page-turner. The book is the first book in a series called American Horrors. The series will focus on terrifying urban legends and folklores across America.

Customers who bought The Dead Children’s Playground found the book to be intense with the right balance of creepiness and emotions. The book has been praised for its fast pace and haunting story.

The only negative seems to be about the place where the story is based. Residents of the location have remarked on the errors in geography and architecture.

The author has well stated in the beginning of the book that even though he has used a real location, he has taken some liberties since the story is a work of horror.

Quick Book Review of THE DEAD CHILDREN’S PLAYGROUND

 The year is 1962 and the place is Huntsville, Alabama. We meet Abel Hargrave who is a hulking man and being chased by the townsfolk. He is dim-witted which is why he doesn’t understand why his friendship with the children in this town has caused an uproar and made the parents so unhappy that they are beating him up.

He is chased all the way to a quarry where while he is being beaten, he overhears voices remarking on the missing children being found. All of them. This causes the mob to become even more enraged and it is implied that Abel is being accused of murdering the children and hiding their bodies.

He is strung up and hung until he dies.

The scene will remind you of Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street.

Cut to the present day, and we meet Nineteen year old Kayla and her nine year old sister Kylie who are moving to Huntsville with their parents Gretchen and Roger.

Kayla has turned to attiring herself in dark clothes and even dyed her hair black while her sister still maintains auburn hair that they’ve inherited from their mother.

Kayla is clearly ticked off about moving all the way to Alabama and also about making the long drive there. It doesn’t help that her mother, Gretchen, keeps throwing barbs at her for not going off to college. Her father, Roger, is however the neutral parent.

In the car, Kayla checks her phone and finds out that her best friend, Morgan, is dating popular boy Aidan. But Morgan had never told Kayla about it which upsets her.

When they arrive, Kylie lets out a cry and when Gretchen overreacts, we learn that Kylie was previously sick and has recovered but that her mother is still overly concerned about her health.

At their new house, Kayla is busy texting someone when Kylie spots a girl beckoning her from the woods. Kylie follows her and ends up at a playground near the cemetery.

Kylie then thinks about death and what it would feel like. These are morbid thoughts for a nine year old, but as it is implied, Kylie is not an ordinary girl.

The story works well as a young adult novel. There is pace and there is a hint of mystery. You are quickly introduced to the characters but also their thoughts and their motivations.

Kayla has had a tough year with her sister being sick and then moving away from her friends only to feel like her best friend was never really her friend.

Kylie has been sick and based on the plot summary, she had cancer and is currently in remission. She has gone through a hard phase in her life, and feels uncomfortable with her mother being overprotective.

Then again, Kylie is following strange girls into the woods even though she knows she’s not supposed to wander off alone.

The author capably gets into the mind of the young girls and how they would behave in a given situation.

The characterizations are well done and the story flows smoothly enough to ignite curiosity about where it intends to lead.

To Read or Not To Read?

James Kaine’s THE DEAD CHILDREN’S PLAYGROUND is a definite must read for this spooky season. The creepy vibes are evident in the story and you will want to know what is going to happen next.

I would enjoy reading this book for sure.

Get the book