Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

This book follows a town obsessed with halloween. However, things are not as they seem and a child goes missing every Halloween. No one in the town really ever remembers though, except Mason. He writes everything down in a journal and he is determined to get to the bottom of this mystery with his friends.

This was a great Halloween middle grade book! It had a lot of spooky elements like witches and monsters. I don't think it was overally scary though.

I liked the different relationships explored throughout like friendship and the sibling bond. I think those relationships are important, especially at this age.

I liked how everything wrapped up and overall it was an interesting read. I would definitely recommend!

This is a great introduction to horror for kids and adults alike! There's no extreme gore but there are creepy moments that would have scared me as a kid and entertained me as an adult. I would highly recommend this! Special Thank You to DW Gillespie, Random House Children's and NetGalley for allowing me to read a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

Spooky and fun, with a bit of gore, this middle grade story is perfect for the halloween season! Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this one!

In Pearl, each year a child goes missing on Halloween. No one seems to remember, except Mason. When his sister goes missing, he becomes determined to find her. He and his friends stumble across a whole underground town, run by a nefarious witch.

I really, really enjoyed this one! It was such a quick read, and really good. I think it had just the right amount of spooky for the age group, plus some more fun nods for adults (like an Evil Dead reference). I thought the underground world was really clever and a good way of handling how the witch keeps things secret. This is a great read for middle grade kids close to Halloween, but really can be enjoyed by any reader (above middle grade) at any time of the year! Definitely recommend as a quick, spooky read.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

This book was so fun and cute, I absolutely would have been one of my favorite books if it came out when I was a kid. The plot was simple, but didn't feel too childish and was fairly fleshed out for a middle grade book.

Halloween is a big deal in the small town of Pearl. The entire town comes out for trick-or-treating, and the night ends with everyone smashing jack-o-lanterns in the middle of the street. But Pearl is hiding a secret: each Halloween, a child goes missing, and after a few moments of panic, their parents forget the child ever existed.

Mason Miller is the only one who knows what’s been happening, and he’s determined to protect his little sister when he’s tasked with taking her out trick-or-treating. But when he’s distracted for a moment, a pumpkin-headed scarecrow steals her away, and it’s up to Mason, his friend Serge, and the two girls who have joined them for trick-or-treating, Becca and Mari, to save Mason’s sister and put an end to the annual disappearances.

As they chase after the scarecrow who kidnapped Mason’s sister, they find themselves in the mysterious world of UnderPearl, where a witch has cast a spell that summons monsters of all sorts to one place on Halloween night. Can Mason and his friends end the spell and save his sister before it’s too late?

Students who loved reading Goosebumps in elementary school will enjoy following these seventh-graders on their creepy-but-not-too-scary Halloween adventure, and in addition to the action, they’ll also enjoy this story of friendship and discovering your own heroic qualities.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House Children’s, and Delacorte Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are our own.

This review will be posted at https://threeheads.works/category/blog/ya-books/ on September 30, 2024.

This was a strange, creepy little book. It had a good blend of psychological horror and the creepy factor. The author's take on a weird small town, monsters, and missing persons felt fresh. I can see middle grade readers that are into horror loving this one. I often have a difficult time finding a book that is "scary" enough for upper elementary/middle school readers, so I am happy to add this to my repertoire.

Living in a town like Pearl, which is obsessed with Halloween, seems like it should be fun, at least in theory anyway. Well, that gets put into frightening perspective in D.W. Gillespie’s new middle grade horror novel, Give Me Something Good to Eat. Billed as perfect for fans of Stranger Things and Hocus Pocus, the story is a magical and nightmarish foray into spells, monsters, and what is functionally a curse lurking under the veneer of what should be all fun and games.

Mason Miller has something better and more important to do than take his little sister, Meg, trick-or-treating. Kids are going missing, and he’s one of the few who remembers. So he enlists the help of his closest friend, Serge. And Meg just wants her brother to go back to how he used to be. Most of the character motivations were simple. Mason wants to be the hero of the story, but his drive to solve the mystery is also far more personal. Serge wants to help out his best friend, while juggling Halloween night and a crush. Meg just wants to have fun and is annoyed when the night isn’t turning out how she wanted. It set up a tense dynamic, which offered an opening to the villains of story. It was, effectively, all about cause and effect, despite the good intentions of the character’s involved—they were just kids, and mistakes were bound to happen.

The Stranger Things and Hocus Pocus comparison is apt. The story, very early on, felt like an echo to the start of the film, while the TV show’s comparison won’t make much sense until after the story takes off, and Meg winds up being the next kid to vanish on Halloween night. That in itself provided one of the more intense sequence of scenes in the novel, where the anxiety, fear, and frustration was almost palpable—but it was only the start. The pop culture references aren’t what make the story. Instead its Gillespine’s spin on the monster genre and creative usage of spells and magic—as well as how intrinsically it was linked to the underlying horror, tension, and stakes of Give Me Something Good to Eat—that does.

Give Me Something Good to Eat is another good foray into middle grade horror, and I would recommend it to those who have enjoyed books like It Came From the Trees by Ally Russell and Bumps in the Night by Amalie Howard.

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Delacorte Press) via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, thank you!

Fantastic Halloween vibes. This story resonates creepy. Great characters and very atmospheric. Fast paced and compelling.

Not only is this a Halloween story, it is a story about family and friendship. It's about hope, resilience, and perseverance. It's also a celebration of team work. Such great subtext packed within the eerie webs of this book.

A great read for the Halloween season, or for any time of year if you're looking for a dose of Halloween.

Every autumn I do a search for books set on Halloween and I’m always surprised how few I find. “Give Me Something Good to Eat” not only has a seriously eye-catching cover, but it also gave me that Halloween spooky-cozy story I’m always searching for. The synopsis describes it as Stranger Things meets Hocus Pocus, and I definitely felt the Hocus Pocus connection, but the vibe felt more Halloweentown than Stranger Things....though I did feel the "kids on bikes" connection.

I really loved the timeless appeal of this novel. While it’s definitely aimed at a middle-grade audience, the well-developed characters were slightly older, more mature and much more fleshed out than what I typically find in middle-grade. I particularly loved the character Serge, who felt realistic while modeling a maturity and kindness that is missing from a lot of middle grade.

If you think Halloween is the most magical time of the year, you’ll love this book. It's also a great choice for those looking for a scary story that's not gory or over-the-top. While the ending was completely satisfying, and the story nicely wrapped up, I have high hopes for a sequel!

"Give Me Something Good to Eat" by D. W. Gillespie is a delightful and thrilling journey into the heart of Halloween. The story is perfect for fans of "Hocus Pocus" and "Stranger Things," combining a sense of nostalgia with fresh, original storytelling. Gillespie captures the spooky charm of a Halloween-obsessed town, Pearl, where the decorations and costumes are just a facade for something much darker. The protagonist, Mason Miller, is a relatable and brave young hero who, unlike the rest of his town, remembers the children who go missing every October 31st. This premise immediately draws you in and sets the stage for an engaging and eerie adventure.

Mason's quest to save his sister, Meg, takes readers into an alternate version of their town, where monsters lurk around every corner and danger is ever-present. Gillespie's world-building is impressive, painting a vivid picture of this underworld that is both fascinating and terrifying. The narrative is well-paced, keeping readers on the edge of their seats as Mason and his friends confront the witch who has cursed their town. The sense of urgency and the constant threat make for an exciting read that middle-grade readers will find hard to put down.

"Give Me Something Good to Eat" succeeds in delivering a spooky, fun, and heartwarming story about bravery, friendship, and the power of memory. It's an excellent read for the Halloween season and sure to be a hit with young readers looking for a good scare.

Mason is a 7th grader who has always noticed something weird in his little town of Pearl. Kids are going missing every Halloween night. The weird part is that adults in town forget immediately after a child is kidnapped. Mason hasn't forgotten his best friend in the 2nd grade or the girl who disappeared last year. When his sister Meg is taken, and his three friends must find her before it's too late. One part Hocus Pocus and one part Stranger Things, this is a middle grade horror novel that delights the reader. I feel that not all questions were answered at the end, and it was very dark. Probably more difficult for the parents than the kids.

This was a deliciously spooky book. It’s perfect for Halloween and dark for a children’s Middle Grade. I loved that the book wasn’t afraid to be draw on heavier topics in an amazing way to understand what was happening. I enjoyed how the main character realized he needed his friends to get his sister back. The descriptions of the monsters and the creativity made for an excellent book. It’s a book you need to pick up.

When Mason’s sister, Meg is snatched by a scarecrow on Halloween, Mason becomes concerned when the adults don’t remember Meg. Taken by a witch, Mason and his friends know they must save Meg before she succumbs to the witch’s draining spell. If they don’t, the whole town is doomed. To save Meg, Mason and his three friends will have to journey into Under Pearl, a dangerous underworld full of monsters. Can the quartet save Meg and the whole town before it’s too late?

The plot is engaging and ties to Halloween nicely. The world building is well done. The characters are original, likable, and draw readers into Mason’s world. The creatures are creepy and showstopping. Readers who like horror, adventure, and fantasy will want to pick this one up. Recommended for library collections where such books are popular. 4 stars, Gr 4 to 7

Please note: This was a review copy given to us by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No financial compensation was received.

Fun quick and spooky read for middle grade lovers! Really enjoyed the atmosphere and is one I will recommend during the Halloween season!

This is for Halloween lovers! It’s a fantasy book with witches, monsters and missing children, Who takes the children on Halloween night? Is it the principal, is it the dark forest? Will they be recovered? Why are they taken? If you love all things Halloween with mystery then this is the book for you!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's, and D. W. Gillespie for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

So for disclaimer, I don't usually read middle-grade fiction. There are exceptions, naturally, but by and large I stick to adult and YA novels. I say this to preface the fact that the second I read the first chapter of this book, I knew this would be one of those exceptions, and I was 100% not disappointed.

This is the story of Mason Miller, a tween living in the Halloween obsessed town of Pearl, North Carolina, as he and his friends seek to rescue his sister from the clutches of a witch, and from that description alone you can tell that this book is pure Halloween fun. This is the author's first professionally published book, but honestly, I would believe it was his twentieth, because everything here is just so masterfully crafted. The characters are vibrant and lively, the world is richly defined, the plot moves along at a really nice pace, and the horror lands hit after hit. While this is ostensibly middle-grade, it absolutely feels all-ages, finding the perfect balance of being something that anyone can enjoy.

This book is an absolute must-read for any fans of spooky, creepy fun, as well as anyone who has a love for the Halloween season. Cannot recommend this book enough!

E ARC provided by Netgalley

Mason lives in Pearl, North Carolina, where Halloween is a Big Deal. He and his best friend, Serge, decide to go trick or treating, and he's disappointed that he has to take his younger sister with them. Serge is interesting in Becca, so invites her and her friend Mari to go with them, which disappoints Mason. The group knows that children have often gone missing on trick or treat night, and joke that their Assistant Principal, Mr. Kirby, might be behind the disappearances. When Meg is separated from the group, they go looking for her only to see her be absorbed into a creepy tree root creature when the even creepier Mrs. Vernon is nearby. The cops refuse to help, and when Mason gets home, his mother and father don't even remember Meg! Mason understands a little bit about what is going on; when he was younger, his best friend Marco went missing, so Mason has kept a notebook filled with information about the array of children who are unaccounted for in Pearl over the years. The group travels into "Underpearl", which is much like Pearl, but a haven for monsters who want to have a place where they can act like humans. They meet a girl named Gloom who helps them out a bit, and have to fend off giant spiders, scarecrows with pumpkin heads, zombies, and other monsters. Meg has indeed been taken by Mrs. Vernon, who is a witch who steals children so that she can turn their souls into candy and their bodies into creatures known as the Skinless who act as her servants. Mason and his friends must find a way to get the witch to destroy the spell that keeps Underpearl going, so that children no longer have to be sacrificed. Will they be able to save Meg and make sure that the curse is lifted from their town?
Strengths: The cover of this is absolutely creepily awesome, and the story is tied in with Halloween nicely, although it could be read at any time of year. The fact that Mrs. Vernon was distilling the souls of children into candy to feed to the monsters was very clever, especially since it allowed Mason to get back the soul of his sister as long as he had one piece of it. The story of the town is well developed and sets a good background for all of the terrors that the children must face. There's a happy ending, which is always nice, even in a creepy tale!
Weaknesses: I think I was supposed to be a little sympathetic to the monsters and their need for Underpearl, but wasn't quite able to feel that. It should be noted that I read this on a bus to D.C. with a bunch of 8th graders, so don't have as good an understanding of the whole book as I should.
What I really think: I am definitely ordering a copy for the library; I don't need too many details to know that missing sisters, evil witches, and battles with vampires make for an excellent middle grade horror title that fans of Cervantes' The Cursed Moon, Duga's The Replacement, and Currie's The Girl in White will love.