NNtG: Ghosts of Fear Street #05: Stay Away From the Tree House

Time for another climb into the tree that is Ghosts of Fear Street. Fitting terminology this time around as we're dealing with a haunted treehouse. Can't say it's the plot from these books that has had me the most excited to check out, but time and again it's the underrated ones that get me. Will this book bear fruit or am I barking up the wrong tree? Either way, Stay Away From the Tree House.

I like this cover. It's definitely a very busy cover, and definitely the most Jacobus-like of the Ghosts covers. A heavier focus on color, semi-warped perspectives, random lightning and trees. Plenty of trees. Not as lush as Jacobus trees, but really, who can compete? Our ghostly kid works as a semi-scary focus with his green eyes and "leaping at the reader" pose. One of the more eye catching covers of the series.

Dylan Brown really wants to see a ghost. It's just not fair. Given all the stories surrounding Shadyside and especially with him living on, where else, Fear Street, he has never had such luck. Now murderous teens, maybe he's seen his fair share, but a full-on phantom of the funk flavor? Nope. But today will be that day that Dylan S. Brown finds a ghost. While not a ghost, he does get scared by his older brother Steve who is a skeptic about there being any possible ghosts of Fear Street. But Dylan brings up the story of Zack Pepper back in Who's Been Sleeping in my Grave? Oh how I love me some continuity. Not the same ghostwriter either which is even nicer. 

After Steve tricks Dylan into thinking that the neighbor's dog Pokey (Into the Janette Sebring Lowrey-verse?) is a ghost, the two boys hear a loud crash. It's their dad chain-sawing trees quite poorly. Never use Joe Chin Chains for them! But in the newly made clearing, Dylan sees what looks to be a treehouse in Fear Street Woods. Steve is against going, but the two check things out. It's an old two-story treehouse that looks to be partially destroyed. Dylan spots what looks to be some shadowy blob with red eyes staring at him, but Steve doesn't see it, so it must be the manic visions of crazy old Dylan Brown. 

But Dylan is certain that he's seen his first ghost and looks to find out what's going on. So he offers to do Steve's chores if he'll help him rebuild the treehouse. Steve's against it until Dylan presents the possibility of a pulley. Reader beware, pulleys are awesome! As they discuss the optics of pulley-based tree living, they see lights coming in the forest and go out to investigate. They don't find ghosts, at least that we know of at this point, but instead two girls around their age named Kate and Betsy Drennan. They aren't from Shadyside, they're vacationing in Vermont, which is as good an alibi as "someplace far away". When Dylan and Steve mentioning fixing up the treehouse, the girls panic, saying it's impossible to do so. Kate is about to blab why, and that it involves some kids who tried, but Betsy hushes her up for now. Also they tell the boys to [[TITLE OF THE BOOK]] because it was bound to pop up sometime.

The next day the boys begin work on the treehouse, but Steve forgets his tools and leaves. In the meantime, Dylan goes up top and sorry he's not home right now, he's walking into spiderwebs. But leave a message and he'll call you back. My references are as dated as these books, folks. Steve shows up and the two leave their toolbox by the tree, ready to work on it for real the next day. On the next day, Dylan thinks Steve is up on the tree hammering, but when he climbs up, the hammer drops, almost giving his noggin a floggin. But he sees Steve isn't actually on the treehouse at all, but still on the ground. Conveniently Kate and Betsy show up and mention that it must be the ghost as apparently a fallen hammer was part of whatever happened last time. You know, for "two girls from Vermont" they have quite the knack for exposition.

And speaking of exposition, it's time for the story of the treehouse. Three kids built the treehouse years ago. They slept in the treehouse that evening, but a massive storm picked up. Lightning struck the treehouse, engulfing it in flames and killing the three kids. Now the treehouse has been haunted by the kids ever since, intent on keeping anyone from trying to fix it. This includes falling off a rung, which Dylan did at one point. Poisonous spider bites, which given the cobwebs creeps Dylan out. And the old Donkey Kong, a kid named Duncan being struck with a hammer.  The next day, Dylan continues working on the treehouse when he sees the words STAY AWAY clawed into the tree bark. I know this kid really wants to see a ghost, but the only ghost he's bound to see is his own. Also, Steve continues to just not be around whenever these hauntings occur. 

So, despite all the worries and the girls mentioning how sleeping in the woods was what caused this horror, Dylan and Steve end up sleeping out in the woods. Dylan ends up finding a cat when suddenly the treehouse begins to explode, sending wood and nails flying everywhere. The kids run off, but get caught by their dad, not happy about their camp out craziness. They don't bother telling him so thankfully no Goosebumps Parents. But they are CONCERNED Parents given Dylan's paranormal paranoia. So hey, decent parents for once, the rarest unicorn. But the two go back out to the treehouse and this time see two ghosts. Actually, it's two girls, Kate and Betsy, who admit they were behind all of the hauntings the whole time which, given the best name they could come up with for ghost boy sounded like Dylan, I mean, duh. Wait, did they deadass throw a hammer at him? 

So now Dylan's out for revenge. I mean, he almost died via hammer so he's justified. He pictures taping the girls' mouths shut which, calm the hell down, book. Instead he decides to fix the treehouse again since it's definitely not haunted probably maybe. That night, the brothers see lights in the treehouse and head up there, thinking it's the girls but it's actually a ghost boy this time. He grabs the boys and tells them that they can't leave just yet. The ghost introduces himself as Corey and he was actually the boy who died in the treehouse. He was also the blob thing Dylan saw earlier. He says that all the building of the treehouse has given him strength and given him a new human form that he can finally leave the treehouse. The boys agree to help Corey leave on the condition he helps get even with Kate and Betsy which, in terms of dumb ideas that's a rather high one. A week passes and the brothers finish the treehouse while luring Kate and Betsy inside to be scared by Corey. But, what a shocker, it's revealed they're ghosts too! 

The three ghosts surround Dylan and Steve and thank the boys for finding Corey for them. See, the three were all siblings who died in the fire that night in the treehouse. When the brothers found the treehouse, the two girls suddenly showed up, first believing they were brought back to haunt the boys, but instead they learned the truth that this would be what would reunite the three of them. The ghosts thank Dylan and Steve before... leaving to heaven I guess?

After that happened, Steve and Dylan find themselves lost in the woods, only to run into a ghostly boy in a sailor suit with blonde curls. Turns out meeting ghosts might be overrated.

Lisa Eisenberg is our ghostwriter this time. Her main contributions appear to mostly be riddle and joke books. So definitely up Stine's alley then. And this is also a one and done, which is a shame as this book isn't that bad. Can't call it anything spectacular, it's one of the more borderline books I've read in Ghosts of Fear Street. Definitely the most close to a mid-tier Goosebumps book. Of course Kate and Betsy were ghosts. The twist is pretty predictable, especially given the really weak misdirect. But it all paces itself to about 100 pages and is easy to digest, so even if it's very bog standard, it's still a decent read, though lower in the tier list for me. 

I like the dynamic between Dylan and Steve. They feel like a pair of brothers who get on each other's nerves, but ultimately do care for one another. Though Steve seems more willing to let Dylan get easily scared a lot, which I guess makes him one of the more believable older siblings we've covered. Kate and Betsy are okay antagonists, but their real involvement in the horror really plays a role in the climax. Their attempts to scare and ward off the brothers are at least interesting, though for real were they just hoping to kill Dylan with a hammer? Ending is cute though the twist feels it only exists BECAUSE the conclusion of the treehouse story is a bit too sweet. And maybe that it feels just like The Ghost Next Door, but you know...

So, in the end, not much to really say with this one. Far from a bad book but kind of the epitome of a middle ground book. You don't feel like your time was wasted as it's a quick read and what's offered isn't anywhere bad enough to make you annoyed. So, the mildest win ever with the lightest of recommends. Just wish it had more of a hook to really make it stand out, but sometimes you just have to see the forest for the trees. Stay Away From the Tree House gets a C+.