Hide and Seek (Point Horror)

Lissa has always kept to herself. She hasn’t got any friends. She never goes out. She doesn’t want to be noticed. All she wants to do is finish school and go away. So why would someone want to kill quiet, withdrawn Lissa? Why is someone following her every move? Maybe it’s just a weird, twisted game. Or maybe not…

Jane McFann Hide and Seek (Point Horror) Book Cover

GOT U COVERED 📕

Author: Jane McFann

Published: 1995

Series: Point Horror

Tagline: It isn’t a game anymore. It never was…

Description: A picture of a green bird falling from a red-skied forest with surrounding bare trees.

She had tried everything she could think of to avoid dying.

Now she was hidden in the last place she could find to hide, and she knew that it wasn’t good enough.

The footsteps were getting closer. - pg. 1

SYNOPSIS 📖

Lissa prefers to blend in the background. The more invisible she is the better for everyone. But now she has a different reason for hiding. Someone is after her and if she’s found, it may be deadly. As she hides in the forest, she reminisces on her life and its tragic events. Could some clues help her survive? But the memories are bittersweet. Some bonds have meant a lot to her and others have caused her harm. Can she dig deep within her memories to figure out why someone would want her dead?

Lissa listened carefully. Silence. Too much silence. There were not the usual noises of the woods: birds, squirrels, insects.

It was completely silent. He must still be there, close by. - pg. 67

THOUGHTS 💭

Point Horror? More like Point Drama. This book is nothing like I expected it to be…in fact, I don’t think anyone (even after reading the blurb) will know what they’re in for.

The first thing that captured my attention was the difference in writing style and structure. These books often tend to follow a certain formula (if not structure) and as the reader, you become familiar with certain story beats and cliches over time. However, with Hide and Seek I found myself immediately interested in the story not only because of what was being told, but how it was being told. In the book’s entirety, we follow Lissa as she takes us through important memories of her life that have led her to the danger she is in at the present day. It’s by going on this somber memory-lane journey that we can get to know her, what hardships she faces, and how these have deeply affected her life.

Because these memories are so deeply intimate and personal, it felt as if I was a fly on the wall during a therapy session or reading the diary entries of a girl who is trying to make sense of herself, her place in the world, and the treatment she has faced. But how can you solve a puzzle when you’re not exactly sure what the picture is supposed to look like 🤷🏽‍♂️. That’s sadly how Lissa would prefer it. To be unsolved and unnoticed.

While reading the book, I found myself going back in time to my memories where I felt just like Lissa did. There were so many times when I wished to be left alone, to be invisible to the world around me. Emotions and feelings that I don’t often feel when reading a Point Horror book.

There is some deep relational commentary in this book too. PTSD, generational trauma and patterns, marital and parental roles, and verbal and physical abuse…to name a few, so if you’re easily triggered by these issues especially related to parent-child relationships, you may want to go in with caution.

For most of this book, I felt two emotions: sympathy and anger. Lissa is of course where most of my sympathy went towards. She is akin to Carrie White, a misunderstood and mistreated character. Then all my anger and irritation went to Lissa’s parents. What the actual hell? The dad first and foremost can go fuck himself with one of his paintbrushes and the mom is bordering the line of pathetic. It’s only because she too has to deal with a shitty husband that I felt a tiny bit sorry for her, but honestly lady…do better.

Overall I did enjoy this book. By no means is it going to give you the slasher-esque thrills that you’re used to, but it is a pleasant change of pace and tone within the Point Horror series. If you’re looking for a book that delves into more complex issues and character development, this is for you. However, if you’re looking for some good ol’ popcorn fun, I’d give this a skip.

I grade this book a B+

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