CURSE AT ZALA MANOR
BBH McChiller
Monster Moon authors Lynn Kelley, Kathy Sant, and Maria Toth write under the pseudonym of BBH McChiller for this fun, spooky mystery series for kids ages 8 to 12. This picture was taken at the Book-a-Palooza event at the Corona Public Library in Corona, California, March 2010.
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 Hardback available at:
Amazon Barnes & Noble Or order from your favorite bookstore: ISBN 978-1-933277-10-3 Now available as an eBook for $2.99: Amazon Barnes & Noble Smashwords (iPad, Kobo, Others)  BBH McChiller authors:
Maria Toth, Lynn Kelley, and Kathy Sant |
On the set of the Inland Empire Alive show (IMEG)
Just finished the interview by Host, Dennis Baxter, for the Inland Empire Alive show on KCSB-IMEG, to be aired on October 16, 2010.
Monterey Vista Elementary
Lynn Kelley and Kathy Sant visited Monterey Vista Elementary School in Monterey Park, CA for the Read-In. After visiting classrooms, the readers were treated to an Appreciation Luncheon, a spread of delicious food and entertainment by some of the students.
 Above: Brain enjoyed the fun at the Book-A-Palooza. He's Maria's brain child and appeared in an episode of Homework Hotline.
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Ms. Greene's 6th graders at Haynes Elementary School in Ontario, CA surprised us by performing a play of Curse at Zala Manor. It was awesome! Then Kathy, Maria, & I read the last three chapters and answered questions about writing.
 Maria Toth at Monterrey Elementary School in San Bernardino.
 We visited Cooley Ranch Elementary
School's fifth grade classrooms during Read Across America week. Above, I'm holding up two different pictures of Cyclops Clyde, a short story that is on the Monster Moon website. The class is voting on which picture they like the best. |
Book Reviews of Curse at Zala Manor:
"Funny...creepy, gross kiddo read."
Michele Lee, Booklove
"In the vein of "The Goonies" and "There's a Batwing in My Lunchbox" comes Monster Moon: Curse at Zala Manor....This book has it all: secret tunnels and talking animals, mad science and real monsters. Perfect for in-class reading in elementary schools and early middle schools. Equal parts scary, mysterious, gross and silly, it's pure fun. Definitely recommended for all collections aimed at fostering a love of reading."
Monster Librarian
"...Fast-paced suspense...Chapters are short and language is simple enough for reluctant readers. "
School Library Journal
From Aghoo Review:
Monster Moon: Curse at Zala Manor
BBH McChiller 5 Stars for Story,
5 Stars for Cover Art,
5 Stars for Format/Quality,
5 Stars for Originality,
3 1/2 Stars for Read-Aloudability
Synopsis:
It’s almost Halloween, and twelve-year-old AJ Zantony’s world is threatened by an ancient curse that releases wicked pirates who had been trapped for centuries in his Aunt Zsofia’s creepy mansion, Zala Manor.
The pirates–a vampire count, a pegleg skeleton, and a zombie–have three goals: to find a lost treasure, unleash the restless dead from their graves, and to settle a very old score by destroying the Zantony bloodline.
AJ has to stop them before midnight during Aunt Zsofia’s annual Halloween party. Except he has a big problem–monster phobia! He’s scared to death of monsters. But if he doesn’t act fast, the streets of Craggy Cove will be crawling with zombies.
Will AJ overcome his fear and stop the monsters or bail out? Will Craggy Cove become Zombie Central? Who will be alive when midnight tolls?
This book is awesome! As a lover of the horror genre and ghost stories and mysteries this book really takes the cake. It has everything, from a creepy house to secret passageways, to ghost and zombies and more! I knew from page 1 that I would fall in love with the book. It is rich with family secrets that gives the reader an urge to keep reading.
My favorite series, even to this day, is Nancy Drew. I love when characters come together to solve mysteries and uncover hidden truths. The deeper and darker the secret the more interested I become. Books like this make me want to keep reading until my eyes are red and sore and I am so sleep deprived that the fiction of the book starts to seem real to me. I honestly can not say enough about how good the writing is.
The characters are very well defined. I like Aunt Zsofia and her curious vehicle of choice, a bright pink hearse. Even the last name, Zantony, is given depth as the kids journey to discover more about AJ’s lineage. I loved it. It truly had everything a person could want when reading a book. It lacked in nothing. Even the cover art is amazing featuring the two main characters in the book standing in front of a crypt that reads “Zantony”. This book is a must read!
(See review by Children's Literature Magazine at top of the page.)
Michele Lee, Booklove
"In the vein of "The Goonies" and "There's a Batwing in My Lunchbox" comes Monster Moon: Curse at Zala Manor....This book has it all: secret tunnels and talking animals, mad science and real monsters. Perfect for in-class reading in elementary schools and early middle schools. Equal parts scary, mysterious, gross and silly, it's pure fun. Definitely recommended for all collections aimed at fostering a love of reading."
Monster Librarian
"...Fast-paced suspense...Chapters are short and language is simple enough for reluctant readers. "
School Library Journal
From Aghoo Review:
Monster Moon: Curse at Zala Manor
BBH McChiller 5 Stars for Story,
5 Stars for Cover Art,
5 Stars for Format/Quality,
5 Stars for Originality,
3 1/2 Stars for Read-Aloudability
Synopsis:
It’s almost Halloween, and twelve-year-old AJ Zantony’s world is threatened by an ancient curse that releases wicked pirates who had been trapped for centuries in his Aunt Zsofia’s creepy mansion, Zala Manor.
The pirates–a vampire count, a pegleg skeleton, and a zombie–have three goals: to find a lost treasure, unleash the restless dead from their graves, and to settle a very old score by destroying the Zantony bloodline.
AJ has to stop them before midnight during Aunt Zsofia’s annual Halloween party. Except he has a big problem–monster phobia! He’s scared to death of monsters. But if he doesn’t act fast, the streets of Craggy Cove will be crawling with zombies.
Will AJ overcome his fear and stop the monsters or bail out? Will Craggy Cove become Zombie Central? Who will be alive when midnight tolls?
This book is awesome! As a lover of the horror genre and ghost stories and mysteries this book really takes the cake. It has everything, from a creepy house to secret passageways, to ghost and zombies and more! I knew from page 1 that I would fall in love with the book. It is rich with family secrets that gives the reader an urge to keep reading.
My favorite series, even to this day, is Nancy Drew. I love when characters come together to solve mysteries and uncover hidden truths. The deeper and darker the secret the more interested I become. Books like this make me want to keep reading until my eyes are red and sore and I am so sleep deprived that the fiction of the book starts to seem real to me. I honestly can not say enough about how good the writing is.
The characters are very well defined. I like Aunt Zsofia and her curious vehicle of choice, a bright pink hearse. Even the last name, Zantony, is given depth as the kids journey to discover more about AJ’s lineage. I loved it. It truly had everything a person could want when reading a book. It lacked in nothing. Even the cover art is amazing featuring the two main characters in the book standing in front of a crypt that reads “Zantony”. This book is a must read!
(See review by Children's Literature Magazine at top of the page.)
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