Name: Sarah Sammis's review of Now Entering Addamsville by Francesca Zappia
Item: Now Entering Addamsville
Rating: 4
Author: Sarah Sammis

Francesca Zappia

Now Entering Addamsville

Darkness

Sarah Sammis

Now Entering Addamsville by Francesca Zappia is set in a small former mining town in Indiana. Since the mine closed, and since the Firestarter murders, the town has retooled itself as a paranormal tourist destination. Zora Novak though knows the dark truth and will do whatever it takes to keep her town safe.

Zora's hard work, though, is threatened by the arrival of the Dead Men Walking ghost hunting show, and by the return of her conman father from prison. While he's been gone, she's been living at home with her sister, Stella.

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Kim Tyo-Dickerson

This novel definitely has a Stranger Things/Buffy the Vampire Slayer vibe that is a lot of fun. Addamsville is a small town in rural Indiana full of ghosts and so famous for its ghosts and its abandoned coal mines that the ghost hunter tourist business is mostly what keeps the town alive. Addamsville's reputation leads to the arrival of an obnoxious reality TV crew of ghost hunters who plan to film an episode from inside the haunted mines. What no one knows is that there are worse things than ghosts out there deep in the mines and stalking the woods surrounding Addamsville. Supernatural monsters called firestarters circle the town, preying on the ghosts that haunt the streets and destroy the living who can't see the dead. Local teen Zora Novak and her mom used to hunt firestarters together, driving a deep-rumbling, souped-up Chevelle, at least until five years before when Zora's mom disappeared into the woods and never came back. Now all Zora has left of her mom is the Chevelle and her mom's mission to get rid of firestarters.

Zora is a reluctant, badass heroine that is desperately trying to hold onto her secret double-life of supernatural combat, keeping the mostly undeserving townspeople safe, and disgruntled teen grieving her mom. She barely sleeps and eats, lives in a trailer outside of town with her older sister Sadie and works at the local ice cream stand when not at school. Her dad is in jail for conning most of the town out of a bunch of money, which doesn't help her situation at all. She keeps everyone at arm's length while smoldering with her own fears about what happened to her mom and doubts about her demon killing skills after losing multiple fingers in her last battle with a particularly strong firestarter named Ludwig. Fire haunts Zora's dreams night and day, and to make matters even worse, she has been accused of being an arsonist since she shows up wherever there are flames. When a new fire breaks out and kills old George Masrell, there are new accusations that Zora caused it. However, Zora can see that Masrell's ghost is being eaten by a firestarter, and that sets in motion a reckoning between Zora and her town and the monsters.

This is a suspenseful horror story that ends with a big unsolved mystery at its center, unfortunately, but the engaging cast of supporting characters have all kinds of potential for a sequel. It would be great to have more background into Addamsville's supernatural history and to have the mystery of what happened to Zora's mom solved. Perfect read for tweens and teens grades 7 and up.

Candyce Kirk

Katie

This book slaps.

Okay but for real, this was so good! Now Entering Addamsville follows Zora, a high school senior who has Baggage with a capital B. Her ghost-seeing, demon-hunting mother disappeared a few years ago, and her father, dealing with his grief in a supremely negative way, swindled a bunch of people in town out of substantial amounts of money and ended up in prison. Zora, who can also see ghosts and hunt demons, has to try to save her town from the worst demon of all, with her non-ghost-seeing but super annoying cousin tagging along.

This was so fun! It was such a great balance of creepy, mysterious, and funny. Zora's was such a great perspective to read from. The way the ghosts and demons work, and all the mythology surrounding the incredibly haunted town of Addamsville, were established very well. This kind of urban fantasy, paranormal adventure could easily have gotten confusing, since Francesca Zappia did put a twist on the traditional ghosts and demons, but she set up the story very well. The mix of small-town politics with the supernatural elements were balanced perfectly. I loved the villain as well! I was thoroughly creeped out by him without being completely scared out of my skin.

One thing I wish had been discussed better were the side characters. There were a lot of them that basically didn't get any page time, and it felt like they were just there to pad out the inevitable Scooby Gang without adding anything of actual value to the story.

This book left a lot of unanswered questions, but not so many that I was frustrated. It was just enough to make me desperately want the next book to find out what happens next! I also loved the south-central Indiana setting. I've lived in that general region for the last five years or so, so I'm intimately familiar with this type of town. Though Addamsville is fictional, it feels so authentic to the Hoosier state. I had no idea Francesca lived here before I read this book, but I could tell even before I read her bio at the end that she must have at least lived here in the past. She shows how you can be sick and tired of a place and still love it to death.

Ugh this review is a mess but TL;DR: if you want to read something slightly creepy but not too scary for the Halloween season and you like sassy heroines in small, sleepy towns, this is the book for you.

Lauren

2.5*

I spent majority of this read being very confused. I love Francesca Zappia’s writing but this one just didn’t do it for me.

Malin Alexander

4.5 stars
Surprised at how good this was. Felt very Buffy the Vampire Slayer to me, and really hope there'll be a second book to answer all the remaining questions. Only thing I disliked was how much the main character just couldn't catch a break for 90% of the book... like come on, give her ONE small victory every now and then? Otherwise really liked her and how effortlessly badass she was, she felt like she was everything so many other authors have tried their MC to be without success. Loved the scooby gang type of friendships and family bonds found in this, too.

Anastaciya

Ugh... it's a hard one to explain, not the plot, but my rating. It was okay. In the beginning the characters seemed 2D and I couldn't make myself care for them. Then when the action picks up and the stakes get higher, we are left kind of in the middle, with not much info, and more questions, just like the characters 🤷🏻‍♀️

Lovisa

Inte lika bra som hennes förra, men absolut värd att läsa! Älskade att de kom ihop ett gång som skulle lösa allt!

Casie Blevins

This is a book that didnt know what it wanted to be. Characters were both very bad, and not bad at all. Something could have an impact, and also have no impact at all. Something was very dangerous and also not dangerous at all. I give up.

Lynn Braden

Addamsville, Indiana is a town like no other. It's inhabitants include not only people but also ghosts and firestarters. The firestarters have made Zora's life difficult. Not only has she been accused of starting fires they have set, but her self-appointed job is that of firestarter hunter. Zora is able to see ghosts and uses them at times to help her find the "entrances" where firestarters have come into our world and where they must be sent to get them out. With Zora's father being released from prison in a few days, this isn't the time for her to get involved in a hunt for another firestarter, but Ludwig, the firestarter that took her fingers, is back and she must find him before he destroys the town.
Now Entering Addamsville incorporates so many different story elements in such a clever way that it is continuously moving forward at a fast pace. Zora is an interesting protagonist that deals with a difficult life in ways that make her sympathetic and relatable. A fun, very well-written story with a variety of twists and turns and ambiguous characters that keep the reader guessing right up until the end. I would love to read a sequel to this book.

Alyssa S.

honour

Emily Perkovich

Anja Hansen

Flavia Machado

Maegan Kennedy

Carley Whitehead

Mackenzie Bruce

Maya Rice

From Francesca Zappia, the acclaimed author of Eliza and Her Monsters! When Zora Novak is framed for a crime she didn’t commit, she must track down the true culprit and clear her name before it’s too late. But in a small town obsessed with ghosts, getting people to believe the truth might prove to be impossible. Stranger Things meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer in this eerie murder mystery. “A darkly humorous, rapid-fire read in which the living are sometimes scarier than the dead.”—Kirkus When someone burns down the home of the school janitor and he dies in the blaze, everyone in Addamsville, Indiana, points a finger at Zora. Never mind that Zora has been on the straight and narrow since her father was thrown in jail. With everyone looking for evidence against her, her only choice is to uncover the identity of the real killer. There’s one big problem—Zora has no leads. No one does. Addamsville has a history of tragedy, and thirty years ago a similar string of fires left several townspeople dead. The arsonist was never caught. Now, Zora must team up with her cousin Artemis—an annoying self-proclaimed Addamsville historian—to clear her name. But with a popular ghost-hunting television show riling up the townspeople, almost no support from her family and friends, and rumors spinning out of control, things aren’t looking good. Zora will have to read between the lines of Addamsville’s ghost stories before she becomes one herself. Acclaimed author Francesca Zappia has a perfectly pitched teen voice that shines in this inventive novel. Now Entering Addamvsille is perfect for fans of Brittany Cavallaro, Victoria Schwab, and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Includes interior spot illustrations from the author.

Darkness &
Now Entering Addamsville by Francesca Zappia

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