Monster Blood II
| File:Goosebumps -18 Monster Blood II.jpg | |
| Author | R.L. Stine |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Tim Jacobus |
| Language | English |
| Series | Goosebumps |
| Genre | Horror fiction Children's literature |
| Publisher | Scholastic, Inc. |
Publication date | April 1994 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (Paperback) |
| Pages | 121 pp |
| ISBN | 0-590-47740-4 |
| OCLC | 29967797 |
| LC Class | CPB Box no. 2029 vol. 6 |
| Preceded by | Why I'm Afraid of Bees |
| Followed by | Deep Trouble |
Monster Blood II is the eighteenth book in R.L. Stine's Goosebumps series.
Plot
Evan is playing with Trigger when he notices his dog has gotten larger. He picks up on this while inside his giant dog's mouth. Evan frantically begs Trigger not to bury him in the backyard. Suddenly Evan wakes up screaming in his science class. Mr. Murphy, his science teacher, mocks Evan for having fallen asleep in his class. Evan calls his teacher dumb. Mr. Murphy punishes Evan by forcing him to stay after class to clean out the cage of the class hamster, Cuddles. Evan defiantly walks up to the hamster cage, plucks Cuddles from the wire structure, and hurtles him out the open window. Then that is revealed to also be a dream.
In the hallway after class, Evan is tripped by a bully with the name of Conan Barber. Evan informs the reader that everyone refers to him as Conan the Barbarian. When Evan first arrived to Atlanta, he tried to tell Conan the story of his adventure with Monster Blood. However, Conan declared that he "doesn't tolerate wise guys." After helping Evan up off the floor, Conan offers him a free punch in retaliation for the tripping. Evan lightly taps Conan with his fist as Mr. Murphy wanders by. Mr. Murphy scolds Evan for taking out his aggressions on innocent classmates and sends him back into the classroom to begin the hamster cage cleaning.
Evan manages to lose the hamster. Eventually he tracks down the little guy and then proceeds on a chase. Cuddles escapes out the window. Eventually Conan catches the hamster and demands that Evan sing a song to get Cuddles back. Mr. Murphy shows up again and repossesses the hamster. Evan finds Andy, whose family is visiting. Her sample of Monster Blood has enlarged. The kids bury it in the woods. Back at home, Evan visits his father, who has been crafting giant abstract sculptures out of sheet metal in the garage. Evan pauses in front of a giant aluminum cylinder that his dad calls "the Wheel," which has been accepted into an art competition held at Evan's school.
The next day at school, he bumps into Andy in the hall, but can't chat because he's on his way to try out for the basketball team. As soon as he enters the gym, Evan is felled by Conan, who throws a basketball into his face. Biggie Malick, Conan’s friend, tells Mr. Murphy (who is also the basketball coach) that Conan was just tossing Evan's face the ball in a friendly manner. After practice, Evan shows Andy his hand, which had been crushed by Conan in condolence after he failed to make the team. Andy comes up with a plan to get back at Mr. Murphy: They'll dig out the Monster Blood and feed a small bit of it to Cuddles, just enough to turn the hamster into the size of a dog. However, when the two go to retrieve the Monster Blood, they discover it's been swiped, presumably by Conan. Evan accuses Conan of stealing the Monster Blood and Conan retorts by stuffing Evan into a locker.
Andy and Evan decide to break into Conan's house to steal back the Monster Blood. Evan complains that it's too dark to see anything and Andy snaps back that "It usually gets dark at night." After Conan and his parents leave, the two prepare to sneak inside when Trigger shows up. Leaving the dog outside, the two children sneak in and make their way upstairs to Conan's room. Andy spots the tin of Monster Blood next to Conan's tennis trophies and Evan decides to open the lid and stick his fingers inside. Conan and his parents arrive home while the two kids are still inside, forcing Andy and Evan to sneak out the window and cling perilously to the concrete ledge outside. Conan turns on some rap music and begins singing and dancing. Conan's parents then call him downstairs to enjoy some cake and ice cream. Evan and Andy sneak back inside and make their way out of the house.
Andy manages to pull the tin of Monster Blood off Evan's hands and Evan makes Andy promise to bury the Monster Blood. She reluctantly agrees. The next day, Evan stays home sick, so he's quite shocked upon his return to school to see that Cuddles has grown to the size of a rabbit. Evan knows the Monster Blood is responsible, but Mr. Murphy blames Evan for overfeeding him. Evan feels betrayed by Andy, whom he is sure is behind the hamster's growth.
Andy feeds Cuddles the Blood as a 'goof', englarging the hamster to dog size. Even barely leashes it. He's left at school overnight. Unfortunately he grows and attacks Mr. Murphy. Evan tries to use his father's sculpture, as a trap but the hamster destroys that as well. The enraged animal continues to threaten others. Evan eats a sample of the Blood and tries to overpower the animal. He fails, but the expiration date of the substance kicks in and both return to normal. Evan is hailed as a hero and given full care of Cuddles. The story ends with Andy acquiring more Blood from her well-meaning parents and Cuddles nibbling on a mysteriously acquired sample.
In Other Goosebumps books
The events of Monster Blood II are the subject of a TV documentary in Return To Horrorland.
See also