Review for An Appointment with Fear by Chad Lee Erway

Image from Goodreads

This is the beginning book in a series by Chad Lee Erway. This series follows a teen named Jesse and his friends as they form a detective agency in a small town that is not what it seems. To be specific they form a supernatural detective agency called Masterminds Incorporated.

The story begins with Jesse, having just moved to a new town in Massachusetts and it begins with the usual teenage angst. He didn't want to move, he was fine where they used to live, etc. But that is when the storyline changes to something a bit more sinister and dark. Jesse develops pretty quickly in this first book but that was to be expected; he is barely a teenager after all.

Again I really don't want to spoil this at all but if you enjoy reading books such as the Hardy Boys or teenage/young adult supernatural/fantasy books, then I highly suggest trying out this first book to see if the series is right for you.

For me, I don't think I'll go looking for the rest of the series but not because I didn't like the series nor the author's writing. It just didn't sit well with me that the adults in the book, while they do help, are in the end pretty useless when it comes to defeating the threat in An Appointment with Fear. And honestly, it seems like utter nonsense who the kids, twelve and thirteen year olds at that, defeat the main threat by themselves. (If you have read the book, then you will understand how true that sentence is)

All-in-all however, it is a very well written book but I just don't feel like I am the right age to read this book as I find my mind wandering a bit and actually becoming angry at how the adults and other children of the town acted like nothing had happened and questioned nothing. It is similar to how I felt after watching IT and how the adults in the town refused to see what was right in front of them and a group of kids had to be the ones to get rid of the threat.

So I do recommend this book, but perhaps to a younger reader such as a middle-schooler; though I will say that the book does get dark at times, especially when Jesse is confronted with the main threat at several turns in the story. With this being the case, I do not think that all children should read this book but that is up to their parents. And it doesn't have to be just for younger readers, anyone can read it if they want to; but for me, I'll pass on the rest of the series.