“Laurie, I’m warning you. Stay away from Fear Street. You’re going to get yourself into a lot of trouble.” — Rick

While it might not win any awards for innovative plotting and character depth, this is terrific fun and has to be one of Stine’s best Fear Street books. If teenagers during the ’80s and ’90s wanted something a bit grittier, where the young adults were more worldly, they had Christopher Pike to turn to, and a lot of his stuff was marvelous. But R.L. Stine was also extremely popular (perhaps more so), writing more for the mainstream young adults. The Knife is a splendid example of his soapy but fun kind of thriller featuring a very likable protagonist this time in Laurie Masters. It also has the Fear Street connection.

Laurie Masters is a very nice high school girl from Shadyside. She’s doing volunteer work at the hospital along with her friend Skye. A fun prolog indicates that something terrible will happen and Laurie will be in great danger before we reach the end, and Stine sends the reader swiftly on their way. Laurie wants to break up with Andy Price, the hospital administrator’s son, but is struggling with it. Meanwhile she meets a young child in the hospital named Toby Keane, who tells Lauire the woman picking him up is not his mother at all. Laurie is even more unnerved when she sees a handsome young volunteer named Rick stash some surgical knives in his pocket. Her apprehension escalates when she finds herself in the new, under-construction Fear wing of the hospital.

Well, it isn’t long before Laurie finds a certain nurse’s body in the dark and creepy Fear wing — murdered with a surgical knife, of course — but by the time she brings someone back, the body is gone! You can probably guess that a nice girl like Laurie is going to try to help Toby too, but he lives on Fear Street. Are the two things connected? And if so, will going to Andy’s father, Dr. Price, help? Some of what’s happening you’ll guess, but Stine does a terrific job of keeping us interested. Laurie’s a nice protagonist, and Stine does a good job of putting us in that world of late-teens — on the verge of adulthood, but not quite there yet. He also does a good job of showing the world of student volunteers at a hospital, who have little if any sway in the hospital pecking order.

Stine finishes in an exciting flourish, with Laurie trapped and bound in the Fear wing, not knowing who to trust when her rescuer(s) finally arrive. Don’t forget the knife, or that dark elevator shaft! The Knife may not be deep but it is great fun. I’d liken it to an above-average Harlequin Intrigue written for a slightly younger audience. Stine was very prolific, and not all of his stuff was on the same level, but I’ve been lucky with the two I’ve re-visited so far, enjoying Sunburn and now The Knife. Highly recommended for a fun retro blast! ( )

3.5 ( )

RL Stine wasn't perfect, but he was fun when I was younger. I read a lot of his stuff and always hunted them down in bookstores. Remember enjoying this one.

There are a lot of things they want to keep secret at Shadyside Hospital and Laurie Masters, student volunteer, innocently stumbles onto the hospital's sickest secret.

this book was a chilling horror book. It is about a hospital with many dark secrets and a girl who try to solve it all. (by austin smith). ( )