Ohhhh! For Halloween! The Horrible Hex!!

The Horrible Huckleberry Hex
By Alani M’echel Weathers
Publisher: Infinity Publishing
ISBN-10: 0741453282
ISBN-13: 978-0741453280
SRP: $9.95

Reviewed by The Kids Book Connection

Are you ready for a spooky story? Cross Goosebumps from R.L. Stine
and a bit of Scooby Doo, and you’ll come close to what you find in The Horrible Huckleberry Hex by Alani M’echel Weathers.

Eleven-year-old Jordan Davis, jumps in Aunt Desiree’s van to go on his first camping trip with his younger brother and twin sisters: Danny, Tiffany and Celeste. Little does he know that this camping trip will soon take a dangerous turn.

After setting up camp, the family hikes down a trail where they discover an ancient oak tree decorated with huge, juicy berries. Jordan soon discovers, however, that there might be more to those berries than them being huge and juicy. When he bumps into his friends, Kevin and Lei, they warn Jordan that those berries shouldn’t be consumed, especially by adults.

Jordan and his friends must race against time as they try to save Jordan’s siblings, and themselves, from an ancient curse that might doom them all!

Some of you might be too young to remember, but in the 90’s, Nickelodeon aired a show titled, Are You Afraid of the Dark?. A group of friends belonging to “The Midnight Society” would meet at a secret
location in the woods and one member would share a scary story with the rest of the group. The Horrible Huckleberry Hex is similiar,except for young Jordan Davis and his family, it’s not a story, it’s
really happening and it’s frightening.

The entire story is told from Jordan’s point of view and he is the only narrator, sharing the story and sometimes addressing the reader,which instantly connects that reader to the story. I would alsocompare it to Goosebumps by R.L. Stine because of its hair-raising action, and Scooby Doo deserves some mention because of the hilarious antics that this adventure creates. Weathers did an amazing job of combining all these elements, an ancient curse, and a diverse cast of characters to come up with a huge winner.

This book should be on every middle grade reader’s wish list. With a captivating and engaging storyline, a touch of humor, and several yummy-looking recipes The Horrible Huckleberry Hex by Alani M’echel Weathers is sure to thrill everyone who reads it!


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