#58 "Something's fishy... again!"
Billy and Sheena are back with an all-new adventure. They are again spending the summer with their uncle on his floating lab in the Caribbean. But something even Stranger than last summer is going on under the water. The fish are growing to monster sizes and are hungry, very hungry! ( )

I'm nearing the end of my Goosebumps read-through and it is rapidly becoming quite the rocky ride. I'm not certain just how many of the books were ghostwritten, a true Goosebumps aficianado I'm sure could tell you that, but the quality has definitely gone downhill. While some of the previous books included things such as - character development, suspense, and a decently linear plot with a cringe-worthy ending, this book had no such thing. It was action from the get-go, and little of the classic 90s conservationism that made [book: Deep Trouble] an altogether decent read.

We're back with the Deeps on Dr. Deep's ship in the Caribbean. Where before they had discovered mermaids, this book ignores that pretty much entirely and no mermaid makes an appearance. No, this story is about something different - and that something isn't even the teased sea serpent from the first book. Nope. This book is about various marine creatures eating plankton and growing to shocking sizes which... isn't really that compelling.

There's no real characterization, and the giant sea-creatures aren't really that threatening. There's no rhyme or reason as to why some grow and others don't, nor why Dr. Deep was unaware that another scientist was working in the same area he was staying in. The action is pretty mediocre, and although the characters carried over from the first book, I didn't really relate to or like any of them. This book was just a mess. ( )

## Something's fishy...again!

This is not good. The original Deep Trouble was a fun, early entry about marine biology and, oddly, mermaids. It was clever and unpredictable with a focused narrative, dragged down a little bit by simply being about mermaids who cry underwater, and not the monsters or ghosts the series is known for. Deep Trouble II, however, just about takes the cake for most offending Goosebumps story.

[N.B. This review includes images, and was formatted for my site, dendrobibliography -- located here.]

Billy, Sheena, and Dr. D all return from the first outing in an all-new adventure completely unrelated for the first story. There are no mermaids here -- simply large animals who grow larger by eating genetically-engineered plankton created in secret by a mad scientist who plans to solve world hunger through illegal research and conspiring to murder children. It's as silly and random as it sounds. It's also no surprise that Deep Trouble II also rejoices in the casual vilification of science that's, frankly, gross at this point.

After the crew share some close encounters with over-sized snails, goldfish (which they kill without remorse), sharks, and jellyfish, an antagonizing scientist -- Dr. Ritter -- and his two goons invite themselves into Dr. D's boat and start making threats. Dr. Ritter has been creating a new type of plankton using genetic modification that turns any 'fish' -- and the definition of fish is quite flimsy here -- that eats it into a giant. His research is illegal and dangerous, and in finding witnesses, he decides he has to kill them. Helped by two oversized 'gulls, they narrowly escape and find themselves stranded in an ocean full of giant beasts. From there, unrelated happenstance propels the plot forward to one silly and unbelievable twist ending.

Deep Trouble II isn't scary, thrilling, or interesting. It's just insulting to readers of all ages.

R.L. Stine's Goosebumps (1992–1997):
#57 My Best Friend is Invisible | # 59 The Haunted School ( )

Goosebumps. This is the series that kept me reading through my childhood. More than any other series, Goosebumps kept me interested in reading, and R.L. Stein is a wonderful children's writer. I applaud his efforts, and can't express enough my gratitude for the series. ( )

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