sunniek's review against another edition
5.0
I love the return of all our favorite characters from the original Hocus Pocus. This starts with the tale of 1693 and 1993 and then moves to the present of 2018. Max and Alison's daughter is braving her family secret of the night that the Sanderson sisters came back. Not believing the truth, her and her friends find the book and somehow bring the sisters back, sending her family to Hell. Will she be able to get the back before the sun rises?
hszatkowski's review against another edition
1.0
The written version of the movie was good, but the second part was terrible I didn't even get through the first pages.
andreacaro's review against another edition
5.0
This was two books in one. The first was a novelization of the 1993 film Hocus Pocus. The second is a bit longer, taking place 25 years after the first film was set and following Max and Allison's 17 year old daughter, Poppy.
The novelization of the film is exactly what it says on the tin - there are minor additions in it to set up the sequel, but you're still getting the exact same plot, the exact same characters, the exact same dialogue, the exact same ending. My childhood. I loved it.
Realistically, the sequel was bound not to stand up to the first part of the book and that's fine. I didn't really have any lofty expectations about what I was going to get with the new material and I think that's the reason why I rate this entire book so highly.
FIRST THING THAT'S KINDA COOL - Poppy, Max and Allison's 17-year-old daughter, is not heterosexual. Nope. She has a crush on one of her best friends, Isabella. Isabella is black. So the inclusion of LGBTQIA characters and POC characters is pretty cool.
So anyway, Poppy is pretty fed up with her parents being anti-Halloween as well as living with the belief she thinks they're kind of nuts because of their wild story about what happened with the Sanderson sisters so many years prior. Randomly, they decide to throw a Halloween party. Turns out it's because Halloween falls on a blood moon, when magic is supposed to be at its peak, and Max and Allison feel like Poppy will be safer at home.
So, naturally, Poppy skips the party with her friends to try out a Ouija board at the old Sanderson house to prove her family's story wrong. What she doesn't know is that Isabella's ancestor is Elizabeth Sanderson, sister to Winifred, Mary, and Sarah. When the original witch trio disintegrated, their spellbook did not and found its way into Isabella's hands. The book is inherently evil - a fun twist I thought was smart - and through the Ouija board fed Poppy and her friends a soul trade spell. The spell brought the sisters back from Hell and banished her parents and aunt Dani (yes, she makes a cameo) to Hell in their place. The clincher is, unlike the original film, the spell isn't over at midnight, the spell becomes permanent at midnight. So Poppy and her friends (including crush Isabella, who gets turned into a Boston terrier) have to go on a wild hunt for a missing magical bloodstone that they must destroy before it's too late.
One of the fun things about this was seeing how the witches handled modern technology. Mary gets a whole of a cellphone and dubs it a "memory box" and it was funny seeing her trying to figure out, then Sarah figures out a way to sing her song hypnotizing children to her via phone calls. One thing about Mary - there was a weird part where she sang about independence from Winifred, but not much was done with that in the story. It felt like a missed opportunity to add depth.
Also, the sequel was full of Sarah running around screaming words over and over i.e. the way she did with AMOK AMOK AMOK in the film. It was a nod to the original movie, I realized, but it was a touch much at times.
Whatever, I loved this.
The novelization of the film is exactly what it says on the tin - there are minor additions in it to set up the sequel, but you're still getting the exact same plot, the exact same characters, the exact same dialogue, the exact same ending. My childhood. I loved it.
Realistically, the sequel was bound not to stand up to the first part of the book and that's fine. I didn't really have any lofty expectations about what I was going to get with the new material and I think that's the reason why I rate this entire book so highly.
FIRST THING THAT'S KINDA COOL - Poppy, Max and Allison's 17-year-old daughter, is not heterosexual. Nope. She has a crush on one of her best friends, Isabella. Isabella is black. So the inclusion of LGBTQIA characters and POC characters is pretty cool.
So anyway, Poppy is pretty fed up with her parents being anti-Halloween as well as living with the belief she thinks they're kind of nuts because of their wild story about what happened with the Sanderson sisters so many years prior. Randomly, they decide to throw a Halloween party. Turns out it's because Halloween falls on a blood moon, when magic is supposed to be at its peak, and Max and Allison feel like Poppy will be safer at home.
So, naturally, Poppy skips the party with her friends to try out a Ouija board at the old Sanderson house to prove her family's story wrong. What she doesn't know is that Isabella's ancestor is Elizabeth Sanderson, sister to Winifred, Mary, and Sarah. When the original witch trio disintegrated, their spellbook did not and found its way into Isabella's hands. The book is inherently evil - a fun twist I thought was smart - and through the Ouija board fed Poppy and her friends a soul trade spell. The spell brought the sisters back from Hell and banished her parents and aunt Dani (yes, she makes a cameo) to Hell in their place. The clincher is, unlike the original film, the spell isn't over at midnight, the spell becomes permanent at midnight. So Poppy and her friends (including crush Isabella, who gets turned into a Boston terrier) have to go on a wild hunt for a missing magical bloodstone that they must destroy before it's too late.
One of the fun things about this was seeing how the witches handled modern technology. Mary gets a whole of a cellphone and dubs it a "memory box" and it was funny seeing her trying to figure out, then Sarah figures out a way to sing her song hypnotizing children to her via phone calls. One thing about Mary - there was a weird part where she sang about independence from Winifred, but not much was done with that in the story. It felt like a missed opportunity to add depth.
Also, the sequel was full of Sarah running around screaming words over and over i.e. the way she did with AMOK AMOK AMOK in the film. It was a nod to the original movie, I realized, but it was a touch much at times.
Whatever, I loved this.
abookishkat's review against another edition
4.0
I did not know what to expect going into this book. I have always loved the movie and was excited to get to enjoy the original story in a different format, but also get to see where the characters are today. I really enjoyed this. It was a lot of fun and gave me cozy feelings the whole time reading it.
vampiricvixe87's review against another edition
3.0
Another cute, Halloween type read for my October list.
The first half was a bit boring since it was almost word for word the first Hocus Pocus movie. The second half was a bit better and also vastly different from the sequel. I can definitely see why people said it made up for what the sequel movie was lacking.
The only I didn't care for was the ending. Maybe I'm a softy but I preferred how the sequel ended in the movie versus the book.
The first half was a bit boring since it was almost word for word the first Hocus Pocus movie. The second half was a bit better and also vastly different from the sequel. I can definitely see why people said it made up for what the sequel movie was lacking.
The only I didn't care for was the ending. Maybe I'm a softy but I preferred how the sequel ended in the movie versus the book.
constant_reader's review against another edition
4.0
Good sequel. I wouldn't mind if they made it into a movie.
darquedreamer's review against another edition
4.0
So, part one of this bootastic book began with the novelization of the movie. It was pretty exact, except for a few added pieces to further develop the characters, and to lead up to the sequel. It was worth a read, even though I felt like it missed some of the beloved humor from the movie.
Part two began 25 years later, in 2018. This is where the real magic began to happen for this book. Allison and Max ended up together after that fearful night dealing with the Sanderson sisters, and they had a child name Poppy.
The Dennisons raised Poppy with the rule that they were never to discuss the history of Salem or the Sanderson sisters, and that she was never to go to the Sanderson house. But, being hit with a bit of teenage rebellion on All Hallow’s Eve, during a blood moon no less, Poppy decided to show off to her crush, Isabella, and broke in to the Sanderson house with a Ouija board. Needless to say all hell broke loose, literally.
It was pretty fun getting back in to the world of Hocus Pocus. I loved finding out what happened to Max and Allison, and I loved seeing a few of the original characters back in action fighting the sisters. Even though I felt that the novelization of the movie lacked the humor we all grew up loving, I felt that it was here in the sequel.
The sequel kept up with the times of 2018 by adding in cell phones and up to date lingo. It also added more humor and adventure to the beloved story most of us grew up loving each Halloween, and it added new friendships and lessons. I adored the lgbt characters added in to the mix, and really loved the enemies to friends trope that was thrown in. It was a fast, festive read that put me in the mood to greet my trick or treaters later! 3.5 stars.
Part two began 25 years later, in 2018. This is where the real magic began to happen for this book. Allison and Max ended up together after that fearful night dealing with the Sanderson sisters, and they had a child name Poppy.
The Dennisons raised Poppy with the rule that they were never to discuss the history of Salem or the Sanderson sisters, and that she was never to go to the Sanderson house. But, being hit with a bit of teenage rebellion on All Hallow’s Eve, during a blood moon no less, Poppy decided to show off to her crush, Isabella, and broke in to the Sanderson house with a Ouija board. Needless to say all hell broke loose, literally.
It was pretty fun getting back in to the world of Hocus Pocus. I loved finding out what happened to Max and Allison, and I loved seeing a few of the original characters back in action fighting the sisters. Even though I felt that the novelization of the movie lacked the humor we all grew up loving, I felt that it was here in the sequel.
The sequel kept up with the times of 2018 by adding in cell phones and up to date lingo. It also added more humor and adventure to the beloved story most of us grew up loving each Halloween, and it added new friendships and lessons. I adored the lgbt characters added in to the mix, and really loved the enemies to friends trope that was thrown in. It was a fast, festive read that put me in the mood to greet my trick or treaters later! 3.5 stars.
bookedwithgloria's review against another edition
3.5
Ehhhh … it was okay for the most part. I loved having the old characters involved in the book but also why are we left with a cliff hanger…? Isn’t billy good? I have so much questions.
stephanie6082's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
Read with Sara for our book club. The first half (the first movie) was SPOT ON with the movie, like word for word. Since it was written 25 years after I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing but it was nostalgic af. The second story I read right after watching the second (new) movie, so maybe that colored my opinion. It wasn’t bad, a little campy at times, but overall a cute story.
Read with Sara for our book club. The first half (the first movie) was SPOT ON with the movie, like word for word. Since it was written 25 years after I don’t know if that’s a good or bad thing but it was nostalgic af. The second story I read right after watching the second (new) movie, so maybe that colored my opinion. It wasn’t bad, a little campy at times, but overall a cute story.