J.L. Lipp has worked a sort of magical realism into a fascinating story that had me interested from beginning to end. The book read rather quickly for me, as it is only 126 pages, so I finished it all in one day. Even though the members of the Monsters’ Anonymous Club (MAC) are all explained in terms of their personalities and skills that make them fit to be part of the group, the three main characters were Jeremy, his kid sister Kimmy, and their neighbor, David.

Jeremy and Kimmy got the book off to a rousing start, playing a scary prank on their mother, making her think that Kimmy was dead. Little did they know, but a spirit had taken over their mother’s body, causing her to become a creature who seemed completely bent on doing away with her children if she could have her way about it. Jeremy and Kimmy did the only thing they could think of – escaped from their house and ran to their good friend David’s house down the street. What followed was a barrage of ideas for what might have occurred and how to deal with it. New clues were constantly coming up, leading the members of the Monsters’ Anonymous Club to Mr. Crankle’s house, where they used the power of ESP and other stealthy maneuvers to help them solve the mystery of Mr. Crankle’s death as well as save one of their good friends who was taken “hostage” by the ghost of Mrs. Crankle who resided inside.

Even though this book could be considered a bit scary for some kids, based on the talk of monsters, death, and mentions of the afterlife, the story does a nice job of being believable without having to suspend too much disbelief. It makes me curious what other situations the Monster’s Anonymous Club has helped to solve without their parents’ or anyone else’s knowledge. Maybe Lipp will write about other scenarios in the future!

There were a few spots where continuity (in terms of the name of the old man who lived on 3rd Street) and grammar were not spot-on, but the overall premise of the story and the character development was well-written and intriguing.

You can find ‘The Monsters’ Anonymous Club: Don’t Play with Dead Things’ here: http://www.amazon.com/Monsters-Club-Dont-Play-Things-ebook/dp/B00T8OIXEY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1434045295&sr=8-1&keywords=monster%27s+anonymous+club