This book was very nostalgic for me. I read RL Stine growing up and was excited to see what he could do in some short stories. The first few were a little more on the neutral side, I didn't find them scary in Stine's normal way, but by the end of the book, they got really good. He shows that you don't have to rely on gore to make a good horror store and instead draws on fears to make the story scary. One of the ones that left me thinking was the stopwatch- the existential terror of the end made it a true horror story while still entirely appropriate for children. He made me fall in love with the horror genre as a kid and as an adult, he still draws me in

I'm horrible at writing review of short story collections, and scary fantasy stories also short circuit my brain, but this is an essential purchase for middle school and elementary libraries!

The thing that I liked best about the first Stinetinglers book was that Mr. Stine prefaced each story with what inspired the tale. While I have collections of short stories edited by Stine (Fear, Nightmare Hour, Scream and Scream Again), it was good to see some original stories. It's circulated well, and I know that my students will also look forward to this one, even though I'm not as big a fan of this cover, which has a very 1990s vibe to it, maybe on purpose. Great stories for fans of this author as well as Lubar's Weenies story collections. I know just the student who will want to check this out first!

Perfect book of nostalgia of the classic R.L Stine books of my childhood. Perfect book to read and bond with your child through a collection of creepy stories.

There is just something about R.L. Stine that I will never stop loving. I’ve almost constantly got a goosebumps audiobook for cleaning days, fear street book for days I don’t know what to read, short stories for short attention span days… you get the point.
I was excessively excited when Netgalley gave me the chance to read this one. I didn’t read the first one yet but have the audio version saved for my next cleaning day. Anyway, on to the book- I enjoyed it. It didn’t match my nostalgia for the old books, but updated horrors for an updated world. Definitely little stories I would read again.

3.5/5 rounded to 4 out of my love for Stine.
*thank you netgalley for allowing me to take a trip down memory lane

Short stories can be very difficult to review, in my opinion. It’s a collection of stories where I may enjoy some and may not enjoy others. However, I think the most subjective way to review would be to take the average of all of the stories. Since these are stories for children, I am reviewing them as such.

Lucky Me
This was a hilarious read. I loved the ending and the absolutely wild things that happened. Such an eye-roll ending but I think that is classic R. L. Stine.

Lost and Found
Another story where the main character willingly gets into an animal enclosure at the zoo???

Mind Blowers
This one is classic R. L. Stine. Brought me back to my childhood reading his books.

The Stopwatch
I really enjoyed this story. Stories about manipulating time are fun to read about and this was no exception.

Kids Rule
I think kids could really like this story but I wanted more to it. It felt very basic and didn’t really go anywhere. I wish there was more story after they went through the mirror.

Spider Salad
I am waiting for a story that has the “eek” factor or creatures that I knew and loved from R. L. Stine. This one was close with the “eek” but simply because I’m not a fan of spiders.

The Ghost in the Wall
Nothing too interesting and I feel like similar stories like this have been told already.

The Thief
I really enjoyed this story. However, this story made me realize (for the umpteenth time as an adult) that my mom never left me nearly enough notes…and by “nearly enough” I mean she never even left me one.

A Bad Birthday Party
*Spoiler* This story (and I guess even the last story) were the only “creature” stories but we only get the creatures in the last few sentences.

What’s in the Claw Machine?
I understand that these are suppose to be horror stories for kids. However, I feel like some of these stories just end without any explanation. I think that is part of the allure of the stories but some just were disappointing, including this one.

After reading this collection of stories by R. L. Stine, I would love to go back and see if the books I read growing up had the same feel as these. I remember the stories being creepier and more involved than these were. I understand that these are short stories but a lot of them felt incomplete.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me review this book. I grew up reading Mr.Stine’s books and this was a fun and quick read. I liked that he gave a bit of a backstory before each story.

A collection of stories, bite size tales of terror, from the ever iconic R.L Stine! As a huge fan of Stine, I had high hopes for this book and I wasn’t disappointed. Filled with creepy and weird stories, it is sure to thrill any kid or young adult who reads it.

<b>Disclaimer</b>: I received an ARC copy of <i>Stinetinglers 2</i> from Feiwel Friends via NetGalley in exchange for a review. The opinions shared in this review are entirely my own and have not been influenced by receipt of this ARC.

R.L. Stine is well-renowned as the master of the children's horror novel, but it's uncommon to see much short fiction from him. This may be one side effect of the popularity of <i>Goosebumps</i>; any other work he does is overshadowed in the public's eye by his most popular series. But what <i>Stinetinglers</i> demonstrated last year was that Stine's instincts for stories remain as sharp as ever, and <i>Stinetinglers 2</i> is just as exciting.

More than anything, <i>Stinetinglers</i> and <i>Stinetinglers 2</i> represent Stine's style of horror, with each story acting as a set up to a terrifying punchline. Each stories introduces a character with a unique problem or situation, and follows up with a story that builds to a big scare, a big laugh, or sometimes both. <i>Stinetinglers 2</i> also feels much more consistent than the first collection did, and Stine's storytelling here feels even more cohesive with every story. Some of his tales in this collection do feel like they come out of left field, but his stories' logic feel much more consistent in this collection, and the big scares and big laughs well-earned.

What I especially love about this collection is how much Stine intersperses his stories with real-life problems that many kids face. Although there are tales of monsters and aliens throughout the book, each story incorporates real-life frustrations that children face, like being bullied or feeling like they have no agency. The kids in this book struggle to be heard by their parents, struggle to make friends, or find themselves frustrated by their new circumstances. These emotional beats serve to underpin the broader horror elements, and also serve in turn to present moral dilemmas for the characters--with surprising outcomes that open doors to conversation with children about how a story might have ended differently had the characters made different or better choices.

Stine leaves a lot of that moral-making to the readers, though, and resists overt moralization through his stories. The irony and twist endings serve real purpose in opening those channels for conversation, such that each story can be a valuable tool in assisting readers in interrogating their feelings. As a book for middle-grade readers, I think this is can make for a valuable communal experience; it's a book full of stories that are meant to be shared and explored together, much like the old comic books Stine draws from in his style.

<i>Stinetinglers 2</i> is packed with great, entertaining stories that I think make for perfect genre literature, even better than the previous installment. And if the quality of these stories is any indication, I'd say that the <i>Stinetinglers</i> series (assuming there will be another) is going to be some of Stine's finest work.

This was a really fun read! I always love Stine's stories and what I especially love about this collection is that he always includes a little insight into why he wrote each story.

All ten stories are very entertaining. I felt it added a personal touch to each story to preface each story with the inspiration behind each one. Excellent storytelling!

With students always asking for horror books, this collection of short stories won’t stay on our library shelves for long! The traditional RL Stine creepy story is just as good as an adult as it was as a kid!

I grew up reading R.L. Stine, like most people of my generation. His writing never failed to thrill me. Sometimes funny, sometimes spooky, it walked the line of what I felt that I could handle as a kid who was easily frightened. All the same, like a lamb to the slaughter, I kept coming back from more. As an adult, and now a massive fan of all things horror, I read through every one of the classic run of Goosebumps and have slowly been making my way through Fear Street. I was struck by the maturity of a lot of Stine's writing. Why did these stories strike me so deeply as a kid? What was it that made me keep coming back? Stinetinglers 2 answers some of those questions.

Each of the 10 stories features an introduction by R.L. Stine about where the inspiration for the story came from. It's interesting seeing the different childhood experiences that inform his fears. Getting lost in a zoo, for instance. What if children were the boss of the adults - what might that result in? For every run of the mill story, there is an unexpected Twilight Zone-esque one. All feature a level of humor, whether ironic or just outright funny.

I could see some of the stories scaring the more tentative readers, but if they're anything like me they'll keep coming back for more. This was a good read, and a fun look into the writing process.

Stinetinglers 2 by R. L. Stine was received directly from the publisher and I chose to review it. Like most people above the age of 40, this author has been around my entire adult life, with my children reading his stories and TV shows, etc. When I saw he was "coming back," I asked for and received the opportunity to read and review these short stories. I tend to enjoy short stories as authors' abilities to keep me interested have waned significantly over the years. These stories held my attention but some annoyed me in that they ended too abruptly. That being said, if you or persons you buy gifts for like young adult horror stories and want to introduce others to these type stories, give this book a read.

4 Stars

Two kids embark on a field trip to the zoo...and stumble upon a creature they never expected to meet. A boy makes a machine that puts kids in charge...but at what cost? A child is sure his new house is haunted...but is it just in his head? And each story comes with a personal introduction from Stine himself.
Description: Laced with Stine’s signature humor and a hefty dose of nightmarish fun, Stinetinglers 2 is perfect for fans of Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and Stine’s own Goosebumps books who want even more scares. These chilling tales prove that Stine’s epic legacy in the horror genre is justly earned. Dive in, and beware: you might be sleeping with the lights on tonight!

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced reader copy of this book! RL Stine has been my go-to author since I was a child so I was so excited to read this one!!
And of course, RL Stine does it again!

R.L. Stine is my favorite. He has been since I was in the sixth grade. All of his books are truly amazing. They take you to a different world, and it’s impossible to guess how the stories will end!

This was a great book with some great short stories! Definitely recommend for any age, if you love R.L. Stine!

Second book by this author I've read and I enjoyed this one a bit more then the first book which says something since middle grade isn't something I tend to read as much

Nostalgia once again! Yay! Mr. R.L. Stine has written another collection of middle grade horror and I just could not help myself. Oh, who am I kidding? I'll always instantly buy a copy of anything the guy writes.

"I didn't see the elephant until it was too late." A boy gets a lucky charm from a store called Odd Things that seems to bring nothing but harm.

"I felt the spider legs pickle my skin." A boy has a "thing" about spiders.

"I'm Jimmy Lupo, and I may be the loneliest kid Greever Falls." A boy without friends decides to use his thirteenth birthday party to get revenge on everyone in his class who has been mean to him.

Ten short stories all together. A few were pretty darn good (the ones I mentioned), most were just okay, and a couple were bleh. This felt like it was written for a much younger audience than middle grade and the stories were basic, too simple for middle graders. Not my favorite Stine book.

As a kid I would collect and read R.L. Stine Goosebumps books and since then my kids have read and collected them also. And now this book which as soon as I seen it on @netgalley I requested it for me and my kids to read of course. There is ten different stories all unique with scary humorous, stories so if you are a RL. Stein or goosebumps fan I recommend picking this one up. This would be a great book to read with your kids or to give away as a gift Thank You netgalley

Lately, YA and Middle Grade horror have been both comfort food and palate cleanser. Somehow a lot of it passed me by as a kid. Which is okay because I'm getting an exceptional amount of joy out of reading so much of it as an adult. I've loved revisiting the older stuff. But I don't want to be a grouchy old millennial who thinks everything was better when I was a kid. Especially as we're in such a good time for YA and MG horror (and probably other genres but I don't read them much). Stinetinglers 2 (which I've been unable to find in searches because I kept reading it as "Spinetinglers" and thinking there was a conspiracy against one of the best-selling children's novelists of all time) hits the spot. Ten spooky tales, each with an author's intro, make up this collection. Each one has the charm and fun that has made RL Stine so beloved for decades. This book will be perfect for a kid just getting into horror or for a lifelong Stine reader.

I always enjoy reading books from R. L. Stine, I've read his books since I was a kid and it still brings a good time still. I had enjoyed the first collection of Stinetinglers and this improved upon the first. I enjoyed each story and my favorite was the Ghost in the Wall.