The subject of your childhood nightmares is returning to give you goosebumps. That’s right, Slappy the ventriloquist dummy is back.

The iconic Goosebumps villain will feature in a new R.L. Stine novel arriving this fall. Titled Slappy, Beware! the story revives one of the most memorable (and frightening) Goosebumps villains for the series’ 30th anniversary. (Feel old yet?)

During an interview with E! News, author Stine revealed details about the upcoming release.

“My original title for this book was Slappy’s Terrible Horrible Very Bad Day,” Stine told E! News. “I think Slappy fans will get a kick out of it because, unlike most books in the series, it depicts the absolute WORST day in Slappy’s evil life.”

Here’s the official synopsis for the book:

This is Slappy’s world — you only scream in it! But where did he come from? And can he ever be destroyed? Slappy the ventriloquist’s dummy has only one mission in his tiny, deranged mind: do evil every day, all day. His creator, powerful sorcerer Darkwell the Magician, has warned him that should he fail to cause chaos before the sun sets each day, he will sleep FOREVER. Normally, this is a piece of poisonous cake for Slappy ― but he may have met his match in the Carlton family. Each attempt at evil ends in disaster, and the dummy starts to panic. Will Slappy’s scariest day yet bring an end to his reign of terror?

Slappy, Beware! releases September 20. But fans can also get a little preview of the story now. E! News has published an excerpt from the first chapter. Check it out here – if you dare!

Slappy, Beware! book cover

So, does Slappy’s return fill you with both a healthy dose of nostalgia and goosebumps? I for one trace my unease with dummies directly back to Slappy. But who do you think was the scariest Goosebumps villain of all time?

Source: E! News

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