Tony Koltz

The Choose Your Own Adventure series offered an option every few pages to choose how the story would continue. According to your preference, you would follow its instructions by turning to the appropriate page of the book as indicated by your choice. This was a popular and revolutionary idea when the series was first launched in the early 1980s, driving it to incredible sales levels for many years until it was overshadowed by variants on the idea that took the concept to more elaborate show more lengths (e.g. Fighting Fantasy) and especially by other interactive media.

The plot: You get mixed up in investigating a remote Pacific south seas island controlled by an evil organization that is out to conquer the world.

Observations: the series hasn't seen a mix of undercover work and science fiction like this since Your Code Name is Jonah #6, way back at the beginning. But in this case you're not very prepared, nor do you understand very much about the organization you've stumbled upon.

Personal memories: it's like James Bond for kids with all the weird villains, traps and technology. There's a cool factor here, but it feels like you are always in reaction mode. show less

The Choose Your Own Adventure series offered an option every few pages to choose how the story would continue. According to your preference, you would follow its instructions by turning to the appropriate page of the book as indicated by your choice. This was a popular and revolutionary idea when the series was first launched in the early 1980s, driving it to incredible sales levels for many years until it was overshadowed by variants on the idea that took the concept to more elaborate show more lengths (e.g. Fighting Fantasy) and especially by other interactive media.

The plot: you and your uncle visit the Carpathian Mountains to prove the existence of vampires. A lot of the story takes place on a train as the title implies, but just as much doesn't.

Observations: it's gothic horror again, on the immediate heels of the gothic Batterslea Hall. For a series that had the freedom to cover all the genre bases, back-to-back coverage of the same one seemed to happen a lot. This book uses the word 'gypsy' many times, no longer a politically correct term for the Romani. show less