Not gonna lie, this book was WAY better than I expected! For being #37 in the series, you'd think that R.L. Stine would be running out of ideas but NOPE! This book had an amazing twist ending (that I did see coming) but I still enjoyed it none the less. The surprise and suspense in this book was absolutely amazing, spooky and hilarious (since I'm an adult now... as a kid, it was absolutely horrifying!).

Dwayne and Stephanie live in a city where there's a Haunted House on display all year round. There's ghost stories and crazy theories about the place, which is perfect for them since they love scaring everyone in the neighbourhood. In said Hill House (honestly wondered if The Haunting of Hill House had any relation to this book but it's probably just a ghostly coincidence), there is a mystery about the boy who lost his head. Our dynamic duo get themselves into some massive trouble and must find said head to try to free themselves. Along the way, there's ghosts, dumb adults (a staple in the Goosebumps universe) and spooky stories!

I seriously love the ghost stories and goofy pranks riddled throughout this book. As an adult, I don't find myself scared as much with these books but I was excited in anticipation for the ending. I have to say this is one of the better Goosebumps books and I'd definitely recommend it! It's a fun and wild ride!

Four out of five stars! This creepy book was a real treat! ( )

Nostalgia read. I was obsessed with Goosebumps as a kid.

Reading these as an adult you notice how predictable they can be but the stories perfectly capture the Halloween feeling. ( )

Nostalgia read. I was obsessed with Goosebumps as a kid.

Reading these as an adult you notice how predictable they can be but the stories perfectly capture the Halloween feeling. ( )

#37 "Major headache!"
Dwayne and Stephanie love the creepy tourist attraction called Hill House. It's dark and spooky and supposedly haunted by a thirteen-year-old boy with no head. One night Stephanie and Duane decide to go looking for the boy's severed head and things end up getting a little too real for them. ( )

Reader beware, you're in for a scare!

[a: R.L. Stine|13730|R.L. Stine|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1194380070p2/13730.jpg] is the master of some pretty strange writing. [b: The Headless Ghost|125623|The Headless Ghost (Goosebumps, #37)|R.L. Stine|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1391584542s/125623.jpg|120988] isn't one of the best entries in the Goosebumps series, but it does feature what I consider to be some of the strangest kids. The main characters are obsessed with all things scary, which isn't that big of a surprise. What is a surprise, though, is the fact that the way their obsession decides to manifest is by them haunting the neighborhood. Every night, at midnight, they sneak out of their houses and terrorize the younger children. They stare through windows, through spiders through the open ones, howl and wreck havoc, leave strange things in mailboxes. These are meant to be two twelve year olds, and kids we're at least a bit sympathetic to. It worries me to think how much more they might have done if they'd continued down that path as teens. I mean, come on.

Anyway, the plot revolves around the kids deciding that they need to up their game. Scaring kids is all well and good, but why not try something really scary? Thankfully there's the Hill House, a nice nod to [a: Shirley Jackson|13388|Shirley Jackson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1444840075p2/13388.jpg], where supposedly one ghost ripped another ghost's head off many years ago. Now the headless ghost wanders around trying to find its ghost head so it can finally rest. Guess what? The kids decide they can find the headless ghost's ghost head. Thrills and chills await.

The book had a nice sort of campfire story quality to it that I enjoyed. It was a bit gothic, though that's likely stretching it considering how these Scholastic books tend to be written. The atmosphere was nice, the plot fairly engaging, and the characters not too annoying. The twist at the end (there always is one) didn't entirely make sense, but that's par for the course for Goosebumps. It was still fun, and I liked the fact that this one actually showed some of the process of the kids growing up and finding other interests, as kids so often do. ( )