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Erica Robyn Reads

a horror book review blog

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[Book Review] Say Cheese and Die! by R.L. Stine

March 21, 2019      Erica Robyn      12 Comments

Say Cheese and Die goosebumps book

Say Cheese and Die! by R.L. Stine is a tale about a group of kids that go into an abandoned house and find a camera. But it’s not just any old camera… this is an evil camera.

This is a book with a pretty simple premise, but to this day, it’s still one that has stuck with me ever since the first time I read it!

When I saw a copy at my local Goodwill, I just had to snag it so I could re-read it. While some of the story is a bit outdated, I still really enjoyed the re-read!

Let’s dive in!

My Thoughts on Say Cheese and Die! by R.L. Stine

Like I had said above, the premise was rather simple; a group of kids are bored one day and decide to go into an abandoned house. Once inside, they wind up in the basement where one of the kids discovers a camera hidden in a cabinet. He feels that the camera is hidden for a reason, but can’t resist.

To test it out, the boy that found the camera tells another boy to pose. After the flash goes off, the camera spits out an instant print. Excited to get back downstairs to see it, the boy who had posed leaned on the railing on the stairs, but the railing gives way and he falls to the ground.

When they hear someone walking upstairs, the kids escape the house, taking the camera with them.

Later, when they are safe again, they remember the photo. When they look at it, they immediately see that something is wrong. The photo, while it was taken when the boy was posing, shows the boy mid-air as he was falling from the stairs.

They try to brush this off as just a odd occurrence, but each new photo that is taken ends up coming true! But is the camera predicting the future, or causing the bad luck?

At the very beginning of the book, I thought, “Oh boy… this is not going to be as amazing as my first read…” This was simply because some of this is rather outdated now. However, the story quickly picked up and I was totally sucked in.

I love how realistic the banter between the kids was. They really seemed like a group of kids in the 90’s just hanging out, looking for something interesting to do in a small, boring town. Complete with the sarcasm, pushing each others buttons, and light picking on one another.

The plot, while predictable, was still so much fun! I mean, how eerie is an evil camera that either predicts or causes accidents and other bad things to happen?!

My Final Thoughts on Say Cheese and Die!

I had so much fun re-reading this one! If you were a fan of the Goosebumps series as a kid, I definitely recommend giving this one another go! It’s a very quick read, which could be awesome for a readathon! It’s not a very deep, or super developed tale. But it is a tale that will suck you right in as you breeze through the story.

I’d also recommend this one to the targeted age range. While the creep-factor was much lower on this read through for me, I still remember how scary I found it the first time around. This is such a great tale to introduce younger readers to creepier reads!


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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. ShootingStarsMag says

    March 21, 2019 at 8:01 am

    You know…I don’t think I’ve ever read a Goosebumps book. I do want to re-read some old faves soon though.

    -Lauren

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      March 21, 2019 at 4:28 pm

      Oooh! You should try one! They’re so fun! πŸ˜€

      Reply
  2. Erica says

    March 21, 2019 at 11:23 am

    I LOVE R.L.STINE!!!!
    I want to read this book. An evil camera? 90’s sarcasm? I’m in!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      March 21, 2019 at 4:30 pm

      Me too!! I definitely recommend this one! πŸ™‚

      Reply
  3. Paige Schildkamp says

    March 21, 2019 at 2:14 pm

    I remember reading these books as a kid! Ahhhh…nostalgia. πŸ™‚

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      March 21, 2019 at 4:29 pm

      Right?! I LOVED them! I wish I still had my collection!

      Reply
  4. Catfairy says

    March 22, 2019 at 7:10 pm

    Goosebumps was my jam as a kid! My favorite book is the Tower of Terror! I actually got to meet him!

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      March 23, 2019 at 1:04 pm

      YAS! I love that tale!! And oh my gosh, that is awesome!!

      Reply
  5. Olivia Roach says

    March 23, 2019 at 1:36 am

    I used to read Goosebumps when I was a child and binge read a lot of them because they scared me so much and they are really quick reads! I am glad you enjoyed this one.

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      March 23, 2019 at 1:08 pm

      I used to binge read them as well! One I had read all of the copies my mom and grandma bought for me, I used to get a whole stack from the library to bring home! πŸ™‚

      Reply
  6. Lauren @ Always Me says

    March 29, 2019 at 6:39 pm

    I loved the Say Cheese and Die books! πŸ˜€

    Reply
    • Erica Robyn says

      March 30, 2019 at 8:03 am

      I need to read more of them for sure!! Such a creepy idea!

      Reply

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Erica Robyn of Erica Robyn Reads
Hello! I’m Erica, a Mainer living in New Hampshire who runs on hot tea, good books, and loud music. Join me as I seek out amazing horror tales and help support the indie horror community!
 

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