Mehsi's Reviews > The Terror Behind the Mask

A father brings back a mask from one of his travels… but is it really there to protect? Or does it bring evil?


I am still rereading the You’re Invited to a Creepover. I don’t have them all any more as I got rid of a couple I wasn’t a big fan of, but I got most. I don’t want to rush through them so for now I am reading through them slowly. Such a shame that no more of these books are coming out.

In this one we have an evil mask. I am already not a big fan of those fancy masks, they are often quite scary and from the descriptions this one sounds like a terror. It was supposed to be a good mask, but apparently dad never heard of manners and despite repeated no from the maker decided to just snap some more photos. How dumb are you? And he knows what he brought home. He knows he brought horror into the place. The mask itself and all that happens when it is in the house (or later in the treehouse) were delightfully spooky and creepy. It definitely was a good idea to read this one at night. 😉 Not only do we have spooky nightmares that seem very real, but also storms, creepy premonitions and more. The author wrote a great story surrounding this mysterious mask.

Jasmine was such a fun character, though I did feel sorry for her. She misses her dad, she is still afraid of things that go bump in the night (then again, same here girl), and now there is a scary mask in the house that gives her major goosebumps and nightmares. I did love that she stood up for herself at points, and even took some matters in her own hand (I definitely would have done what she did to the mask at one point). I loved how brave she was at points and how she tried to get her fear under control.

I loved that there was a focus on explanations of words. It reminded me of the Unfortunate Events series. It never felt too much it all just fitted in at the right times.

I loved Mardi Grass, though I am sad that we never got to see it as the book ends before that.

We don’t see much of the dad and I wasn’t sure if I was happy with that. I get that he has an important job, but hey dude you also have a 12-year old daughter who needs her father. It is great that grandmother can be there for her, but she needs her parents, which in this case translated to dad. I also wasn’t too happy with how he treated Jasmine’s fears and how he handled it all scientifically. I am sorry, but if my daughter was uncomfortable with something I brought in the home? I would give it to someone else or donate it to a museum (given what the dad gets it does fit for that place). Not keep it in the house.

I am not sure how I felt about Lisa, in the beginning I definitely wasn’t a fan. If my best friend shows that she is uncomfortable if she hears about hauntings, ghosts, and the likes? I wouldn’t have put on a show on tv, nor would I have told her spooky stories, nor would I have freaking scared her in the middle of the night with an object she is terrified of. Later on she does understand that what she did wasn’t right and I am glad that she learned from Jasmine’s outburst. Later I could definitely see why these girls are such good friends and I loved how often they had sleepovers.

The ending, OH BOY. It’s been 4 years since I read it so I didn’t know the ending any more and I have to say I was shocked! I definitely would have loved to see two epilogues, the afterwards, and the new beginnings. Not just the new beginnings.

All in all, I had tons of fun reading this one. It was delightfully spooky and positively creepy. Note to self, never get scary masks in the house (then again, given my adversity, that won’t happen). I would recommend this book.

Review first posted at https://twirlingbookprincess.com/