Stay awake. Stay alive.
After going head-to-head with a demonic doll, life for Diego now is surprisingly good. He’s settled into Mexico City, he’s joining clubs at school, and he, Jandro, and Itzel are tighter than ever. Better yet, he hasn’t dreamt of one doll since he left La Isla de las Muñecas. Though Tomas remains under Itzel’s watchful eye, “living” in her house, things finally feel normal for the three amigos.
Until kids start mysteriously falling asleep…and never waking up.
When Diego hears rumors of a boogeyman with the power to enter children’s dreams and steal their souls, he knows there’s a connection between the sleeping illness that has fallen over his school and this monster.
But beware of El Cucuy, because once you enter his domain of dreams, he’ll do everything in his power to make sure that you don’t…wake…up.
It’s wild that the end of the year is in sight! I feel like as I go through the year, I’m always making a loose mental tally of my favorite reads of the year, with the goal of posting a Reel or something on Bookstagram to share my favs. And I think (I’m not sure) that I might have read enough middle grade horror this year to have a separate list/post of my favorite 5-10!
And one of the books that will certainly be on that list is Cassandra Ramos-Gomez’s LOST ON DOLL ISLAND. I genuinely think that book is as much fun as you can have reading middle grade horror, and the trio of friends in it completely won me over! I was lucky to have read it when I did, shortly before the second book in the DOLL ISLAND series came out!
When I initially heard about DON’T WAKE UP, I wasn’t totally sure if it would feature the same cast, but I was ecstatic to find out that it does! I would definitely recommend reading the books in order…I always do! But this is less a direct sequel and more like the continuing adventures of our amazing main characters, Diego, Itzel, and Jandro!
Diego is really settled now in Mexico City, with his mother having moved there from Texas in between books. The gang do continue to visit Doll Island to spend time with Abuela Ximena and Don Jaime, and they are doing a bit of brujería training! Well, it’s really mostly Itzel who is interested in magic, as she comes from a long line of curanderas (healers).
Tomás is still safely trapped inside the creepy doll, and as much as he still scares the kids a little bit, he’s less of a threat these days. So things feel relatively normal for Diego, Itzel, and Jandro.
Soooo then of course several of their classmates fall into very mysterious comas and rumors about El Cucuy (the Mexican boogeyman) begin swirling all over the school.
Oof! Diego, Itzel, and Jandro need all their bravery & cleverness to try and figure out what’s going on, and to help their classmates. They’ll even need to make some very unexpected new allies in order to solve the supernatural mystery that’s plaguing their school.
DON’T WAKE UP features some incredibly spooky scenes that take place in the kids’ school! There’s a sequence in the school basement that felt like something right out of one of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies, but age appropriate of course!
I love what Cassandra Ramos-Gomez is doing with this series, and I really hope there’s more to come! The blending of real spooky places (like Isla de las Muñecas) and/or Mexican folklore (El Cucuy) gives the stories such a unique & authentic vibe.
And real talk, you will not find a more fun, loveable, and easy-to-root-for group of kids than Diego, Itzel, and Jandro. They all love each other so much, but they are just kids finding their way through life, figuring it out as they go. So they occasionally butt heads & hurt each other’s feelings. But they always find a way to work it out & come together when it really counts!
I’m such a fan of the first two books in the DOLL ISLAND series, and as I said, I’m really hoping there’s more adventures in the future for these great characters! Either way, can’t wait to see what’s next from Cassandra Ramos-Gomez, she’s a phenomenal writer!
