<-- Original Post Date: May 5, 2010 -->

Review by Steven R. McEvoy – www.bookreviewsandmore.ca

This third book in the Skeleton Creek series was a surprise. I thought there were going to be just 2 books, and greatly enjoyed Skeleton Creek and Ghost in the Machine, and after some books this summer where book three did not live up to expectations I approached this with a little trepidation. With Patrick Carman I should have known better. This book was awesome. It lived up to the quality, skill in storytelling and creativity of the first two, maybe even surpassed them. Like the other two Skeleton Creek books, this one is told in two parts. The book is Ryan’s journal, hand-written, and Sarah’s videos. Every few chapters you get a code and go to a website and watch a video. Unlike the first two books, Sarah and Ryan are working on a problem together but doing it in different locations. Ryan is stuck in Skeleton Creek and Sarah’s family has moved to the east coast. She is driving across the country for film school at UCLA, but unknown to her parents, visiting haunted sites along the way to collect clues she and Ryan have solved that they found in the hunted dredge.

But both of their lives are getting more and more complicated. Ryan has to solve the clues fast enough so she will not have to backtrack and lose too much travel time. Ryan feels like he is being watched and Sarah’s videos seem to be capturing th?Only time will tell. But as they uncover clue after clue they realize the stakes are higher than they ever expected. The Crossbones has a long history of destroying people who got in their way and now Ryan and Sarah find themselves in their crosshairs.

I read the book twice, first just reading the book, the second time through watching the video’s where indicated. I did this to see if the book can stand on it’s own, and it does, even just reading Ryan’s journal it is a great story, but when you watch the video’s it becomes truly magnificent. Patrick Carman is a master storyteller, he is creative, and has a wide breadth of different stories, and genre’s and even for various age groups. Every book of his I have read I have thoroughly enjoyed and always anticipate his new books. This one left me eagerly anticipating book 4 which is not due out for a year. This is another great book by a great author!

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The third book in the Skeleton Creek multimedia series launches today! With 5 million videos watched and half a million books in print, I’m excited for readers as the story gets bigger, bolder, and scarier! Get ready for a haunted road trip full of hidden clues and ghostly sightings. Find Skeleton Creek III at your local bookstore or online.

Book Fair Highlight: Skeleton Creek 3
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And here’s a little secret for Skeleton Creek readers: Skeleton Creek, Book 4, will be out in the spring of 2011. The Raven awaits!