Okay so I wasn't a huge fan of book one but I wanted to give book two a try to see if I would enjoy it. This one was kind of a dud and got a bit to queer for me. I don't mind having queer characters but not a fan of a romance. I didn't realize it was going to be that way or I wouldn't have continued, so maybe I just forgot it was in book one or that was added I can't remember but won't be continuing the series.

As a lover of Scooby Doo and cruise ships, this was an obvious book pick for me. I loved the creepiness, but I felt like the whole story went by too fast. I kind of wanted to be more immersed in the cruise ship setting, and while there were bits and pieces there, it wasn't enough for me, personally. Although the cruise ship part missed the mark for me, I felt the authors did a great job with character growth in this book with Emma and Kiki's mom. I also would've loved more conflict between the other paranormal group (don't remember what they called themselves, just that all their names started with T) before the climax with Emma. I loved the ship's POV. She went hard. And she was scary. So that was a good time.

The Ghost Gang is back! I love ghost-hunting so I really enjoyed this follow up to Horror Hotel! It wasn't QUITE as good as the first but well done.

I had such high expectations for this one because I really enjoyed book one... but I feel like it should have been a standalone. I didn't feel like this added much to the story nor did the characters have anymore redeemable redemption after what they did in book one (I mean hello they hid bodies and neglected to content the police all for their youtube channel... That's a bad look to then not have any repercussions).

A modern Mystery Gang—minus the adorable pooch—sets sail on the RMS Queen Anne and gets caught up in solving a time-traveling murder.

This superb, spooky tale on the high seas makes for an engrossing read for middle schoolers. Chrissy, Chase, Kiki, and Emma use their powers as influencers for good, delivering a fun adventure.

While the book can be read as a standalone, be aware that there might be some confusing references to the previous installment.

Cursed Cruise by Victoria Fulton and Faith McClaren is an exhilarating and haunting follow-up to *Horror Hotel* that perfectly continues the thrilling adventures of the ghost gang. The authors deliver an engrossing blend of suspense, mystery, and supernatural elements that had me eagerly turning the pages. I loved revisiting the beloved characters and their new, chilling escapades, which are filled with clever twists and heart-pounding moments. This sequel is a fantastic addition to the series and a must-read for fans of the first book.

This was sadly a DNF for me. I didn’t enjoy my time reading this story. I didn’t connect with the characters at all and found it a bit boring.

Super intresting, fast-paced and dynamic. A creaative choce for a thriller and a great setting for a horror and mystery. So compelling and unique.

DNF at 60%. I tried, y’all, but it just did NOT hold my attention. I liked the first book okay and wanted to like this one, but I could not hang. The authors’ misuse of “sus” happened three too many times in the 150+ pages I read and the cringe was just too powerful for me to continue.

Review posted on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5666284519

I received this book for free for an honest review from netgalley. Thank you for the opportunity

Very spooky. Great fun

What a great second book!! I loved this. It was great to see more of these characters and to watch them grow!!! I loved seeing them in the ship and competing with other teams.

3.5

Although I felt that this book was not as good as its predecessor, it still was a quick and fun read with a decent amount of atmospheric thrills to appeal to YA horror readers. The plot itself also includes a ghostly whodunnit, bridging the gap between horror and mystery, which I thought was a nice addition.

The story follows the same gang of ghost hunters as they board a cruise ship with the intention of filming a test pilot for a possible television show. Their plans go awry almost immediately once they realize the ship is more deadly than anyone could have predicted. In order to stop themselves from succumbing to untimely fates, they must solve a decades-old mystery about a young woman who committed suicide on the ship many years ago while also figuring out how to end a dark ancient curse.

This book was a very quick read, which I was thankful for because I’ve been experiencing a bit of a reading slump after reading too many books last week. Due to it’s shorter nature, the writing is very fast-paced and lends itself to horror readers who are more about quick thrills than about slow-building anticipation.

Personally, I would have preferred for the authors to explore the ship’s past more, as I felt that things were moving a bit too quickly for my tastes. The introduction to the idea that the ship was cursed felt very contrived as if they knew they wanted a curse to be involved but weren’t quite sure how to make it happen. I actually wasn’t a fan of the curse plotline at all, because I also felt it was both introduced too quickly and solved too quickly.

The decade-old murder mystery though, I absolutely loved that aspect of the book. It was a creative way to give the characters more agency, forcing them to act before it was too late. I honestly think the book would have been more enjoyable for me if the authors had leaned more into the murder mystery aspect, and forgone the curse altogether.

I’m not sure if this series will continue with another installment, but I would definitely be interested in reading it if that happens.

READ BOOK ONE IF YOU HAVEN'T OR THIS BOOK WILL SPOIL IT FOR YOU!

Cursed Cruise is the sequel to Horror Hotel, and thankfully this time the authors got it right. They took notes of what didn't work in book one and switched things around for the sequel. The premise was not based in reality this time, making the plot fresher. They spent more time delving into the individual characters, as well as their tangled web of relationships. This fleshing out really helped add the necessary dimension the first book needed. Unfortunately, there was almost too much focus on that and no enough focus on the actual haunting/mystery. There was also a subplot (intentionally vague to not spoil) that just didn't really sit well with me. It seemed unnecessary and ill-fitting. Still, a VAST improvement from its predecessor and I would be willing to read a third in this series!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's-Underline for this ARC. I am leaving this review voluntarily and all views expressed are my own!

Thank you Netgalley and the Publisher for allowing me to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

This book was fine. It is supposed to be YA, but I felt like it read a lot younger, besides the occasional language. The story itself was okay, but I didn't love it. It felt a little all over the place to me.

**3.5-stars**

Cursed Cruise, by Victoria Fulton and Faith McClaren, is the second book in the Horror Hotel series. These books follow a group of teen ghost hunters, Chrissy, Chase, Emma and Kiki, who have their own YouTube show. In the first book, which I haven't read yet, the teens stay at a haunted hotel in L.A., that I am imagining to be like the Cecil Hotel.

The events of that book are referred to here, but I don't feel you need to read that one first. I didn't and don't feel my enjoyment of this was impeded at all. However, I will say, after reading this, I definitely want to go back and read that one now. It sounds like it was intense, and I think the setting of the hotel would be really fun.

In this one, the teens get invited on the first voyage of a recently recommissioned cruise ship, the RMS Queen Ann, which gave me total QE2 vibes. I've read mysteries set on the QE2 and really enjoyed them, so was excited to see something similar in a Teen Horror novel. The ship has a dark history, with many deaths and dark happenings occurring aboard over the years. It's assumed to now be haunted.

The Ghost Gang is not the only ghost hunting team making this maiden voyage though. There's another group, a bit older and more experienced then our mains, that cause a bit of tension. They're not very kind and the groups have a bit of a competitive spirit amongst them. They both have their sights set on a syndicated television slot. Chase, from our group, really has his heart set on getting that show.

There's also a bit of romance in the group, with Chase and Chrissy in a relationship, and Emma and Kiki in a relationship. They do have an adult chaperone as well; I think it was Kiki's Mom, although she wasn't too big of a presence, I still liked having her there. We follow along as the teens get settled into their cabins and begin investigating the history of the ship and the bizarre occurrences happening aboard. Chrissy is the one with the most connection to the supernatural, so we get a lot of those aspects from her perspective.

I thought it was interesting that the author's included the ship's perspective. You don't see that very often, but when you do, I tend to enjoy it. I like the feel of a place, or thing, becoming a character unto itself. It's interesting and I thought it was fun here.

Overall, this was good. I think the authors delivered on what was intended. If I were going to pin this down to a recommended age category, I would put it into a more Tween Horror niche than YA Horror. I feel like this is more advanced than a Goosebumps, but may best be enjoyed by Readers aged 11 to 14. It's a great stepping stone to more advanced Horror. I know I would have loved it had it been a part of my Point Horror line-up from the mid-80s. Totally cool.

Thank you to the publisher, Underlined, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This was cute. It definitely had a nostalgic feel for me!

Cursed Cruise has the 4 members of the Ghost Gang boarding a refurbished haunted cruise ship to search for ghosts and boost their channel. The ship is known for ghost sightings, especially the Woman in White, a bride that committed suicide before the wedding.

I thought that the imagery and haunting experiences of the four characters were very well done. The atmosphere often turned creepy and the visual descriptions really brought the ghosts to life (excuse the pun). The ghost gang had decent representation and, while the quartet were all in high school, they had a chaperone that put the kabosh on any relationship actions that would have made this inappropriate for the tweens.

My complaint about this book is that they seemed to rely heavily on the assumption that you had read the first book in the series. Not only was there a lot of referencing the first book and it's villain, but I felt like they didn't spend much time letting you get to know the characters. Because I hadn't read the first book I struggled to really get a feel for their base personalities, especially when they 'just weren't acting like themselves'. I also felt like there were a whole lot of things going on in this book and they weren't all cohesive. I understand that there were hundreds of ghosts hanging out on this boat, but why was each character chasing a different ghost and why was there no real crossover other than it's an evil ship?

This book had a lot of potential, but without getting a real feel for the characters I just didn't care. I do still think that kids will like it, which is why I am giving it three stars.

This book was really good and I first thought it would be ok to read as a stand-alone and it was but..... they did mention quite a few things from the last book and I feel like I would have really enjoyed reading the first book in the series (Hotel Horror) first and then this one.
So we have a "Scooby doo" type gang but without the Scooby lol instead you have vibes from the tv show The Medium and movies like The Conjuring and others in that field of the Warren's it was awesome. Even better in this book is there is Ghost Ship (you know the movie) type vides as well and a few twists and turns.
It had more of a mystery/thriller type feel for me with a touch of horror. Some horror type parts but I am a back person to say if it was scary or not bc I don't really get scared from books. boo mee right lol

I love books like these with curses and ghostly thing so this was a favorite of mine and I say you should def read this book (but heads up read book #1 in the series first, wish I did).
I loved the characters and their relationship(s) even the mom was cool and made this book so much fun. I also feel (well i hope) that this series is not over and somehow the Ghost Gang will give us more of what we want. Great ending also.

I am so glad to read this books and thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity, I might not have found out about it with out their help. :)
The above review is my own, honest and voluntary.

1) There’s a cursed ship! The Queen Anne was the sister ship of the Titanic and has now been refurbished to serve as a cruise ship. More than a hundred people have died on board which makes it a prime haunting location. The Ghost Gang was invited for the first voyage to get the ship some press and is determined to give their dedicated viewers another suspenseful case! I loved the cruise ship setting and the sinister atmosphere! In between the chapters there’s sometimes an intermission written from the POV of the ship and you can’t help but feel like the Queen Anne is alive … and hungry for blood. This case is bigger than anything Chrissy and co. investigated before and I loved the rumors of a curse that has befallen the ship

2) The Ghost Gang is back together for another case. I loved Chrissy, Chase, Kiki and Emma in the first book and was so happy we got another book with them! Their channel has blown up even more since the Hearst Hotel case and Chase is hoping that they might finally get recognized by Hollywood. Their new (sleazy) manager isn’t a big help though and Chase isn’t willing to compromise his ideals just to get a pilot episode. I loved how everyone was dedicated to keeping the Ghost Gang’s core values like they were instead of changing themselves for a TV channel! This time there’s also a special guest on the trip: Kiki’s mom Billie has to accompany them, but she doesn’t really understand all this ‘ghost stuff’ no matter how much Kiki wishes she’d accept her hobby!

3) We see how the last haunting affected all of them. I loved the insight into the characters and their relationships. Chrissy’s the most affected by the ship as she’s a natural psychic and her boyfriend Chase is terrified when she gets contacted by another spirit that won’t let her go! He’s struggling with being professional for their channel but also being worried about the most important person in his life. Kiki’s still not sure what to think about her mother being on board as they’ve drifted apart lately. She wishes her mom would accept their ghost hunting and her new girlfriend Emma. I loved the complicated mother-daughter dynamic, as Billie loves her daughter but isn’t as accepting as she could be. Kiki also feels helpless because Emma’s been struggling and not talking to any of her friends. Emma was hit the hardest by the Hearst case and has some lingering trauma from being attacked and almost dying. She has no idea how to open up to her friends! I loved that the personal issues of the characters were woven together with the dangerous case to create an ominous atmosphere!

4) There’s a rival YouTube crew on board 👀 They aren’t a huge part of the story, but it was interesting to see the Paranormal Patrol, one of the biggest rivals! They have a huge YouTube following as well and are the antithesis of the Ghost Gang. Led by Tina – a fake psychic who claims to communicate with her dead sister – they are all about the special effects and drama, instead of helping the dead move on. Chrissy’s especially annoyed as respecting the dead and helping them move on is important to her. It’s especially interesting to see both groups interact as Hollywood seems to want people like Tina and her crew who are edgy and dramatic!

5) The story is engaging from start to finish! I flew through this book as it was so engaging! I was fully immersed in the mystery of Queen Anne, the rivalry with the other ghost gang and the scary things that started happening. This case is much bigger than the last one and with the ship being sentient to some degree, the crew is in a lot of danger. Chrissy feels like there’s something wrong from the beginning and things just get more intense afterward! I really hope we get another adventure with the Ghost Gang in the future, I love reading about their cases 🥰

"𝑰𝒕'𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒅. 𝑰'𝒎 𝒔𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒍𝒅. 𝑰 𝒅𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝑰 𝒂𝒎. 𝑰 𝒅𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝑰 𝒈𝒐𝒕 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆. 𝑰'𝒎 𝒔𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒅."

Special thanks to @tbrbeyondtours & @victoriaxfaith for this #gifted eARC and having me on this book tour.

👉🏼 swipe for synopsis ➡️

MY REVIEW:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I just LOVED this book. I've really been getting into YA Thrillers, and this was a perfect one. Kept me on the edge of my seat, tons of freaky moments, spirits and ghosts galore, and finally getting revenge for a decades old murder! - and all done by 18 year olds!!!!! I mean, what more can you want?!

I was sad however, that I didn't get to read the first book in this series, but unlike other books in a series - this one covered all the bases from where the last book left off. So this didn't change my rating at all. I did not feel lost at all, and I feel like I am part of the "Ghost Gang" at the very end of this.

I loved the combination of friendship, relationships, and teamwork.
I sincerely hope they continue this series because I love this gang and hope they go on more awesome crazy ghostly journeys.

Check out the link below for upcoming book tours!
https://tbrandbeyondtours.com/

QOTD ❓️⁉️❓️ Have you ever been on a cruise? Where did you go?

AOTD - I have never, and I don't think I ever will.

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#CursedCruise #TBRBeyondTours #VictoriaFulton #FaithMcClaren #thrillerlover #booklover #bookcommunity #bookbuzz #tbrpile #tbr #yathriller #mysteryandthrills #thrillerfriendsunite #booktour
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Cursed Cruise by Victoria Fulton and Faith McClaren is a thrilling ghostly adventure aboard the RMS Queen Anne that's perfect for fans of YA horror.