On January 12th 2012, it was announced on various indie author and reader boards that author L.C. Evans had passed away the previous evening finally losing a hard-fought battle with cancer.
I have had no previous personal dealings with LC, but The IndieView is leading a tribute and being a site that supports indie authors and their readers, I’ve elected to participate in her tribute in the most obvious way – to review one of LC’s works.
Shane finds himself faced with the prospect of attending summer camp again. To spite his parents he chooses the worst-sounding camp possible, but will his rash action come back to bite him?
Night Camp is a book probably aimed towards 9 – 12 year olds and would make a good reader for boys in particular. Shane and his cousin Brad end up in a camp where all the activities are at night and the campers sleep during the day. The tabloid-wielding Brad becomes convinced that camp leaders, Colin and Trevor are actually vampires and in convincing Shane, commences an investigation to find proof and a way out of what has now become a very dangerous camp experience.
This story was a lot of fun and written well for the target age group. The simplicity in style didn’t blunt the intrigue at all and I found myself eagerly anticipating how the author was going to resolve the mystery. Additionally, you did get some insight into Shane as a main character: his reactions to feelings of abandonment, his discomfort around girls and his growing unease about the decisions he was making.
Young children do like to get a bit of a scare and I think this book delivers without becoming too sinister or alternatively, too watered down. I think the younger set will get a kick out of it. There may even be a lesson or two in there, but I didn’t feel like I was being bludgeoned to death with them which is always appreciated.
Is it for adults? It clearly isn’t the target audience, but I certainly didn’t resent the experience, so I think adults could enjoy it. There are many moments of embarrassment felt by the characters which might seem a little silly to an adult, but I think the author has done a good job writing from a child’s point of view. If the reader can appreciate the story from that same point of view I believe it loses that silliness.
I don’t read children’s fiction often, but this was a fun visit. I hope this story can make its way into the hands of children so that they can experience the anticipation, creepiness and overall enjoyment of reading Night Camp.
Rating: 4/5
Price at the time of review: $0.99 US
Available: Amazon,Smashwords,Sony,Diesel,Kobo
Author site: http://lcevans.com/L.C._Evans_Author/Home.html
GoodReads page: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6470725-night-camp
Great review Caleb, and thanks for the supreme effort.