A bit flimsy but good for some chills on a dark night. (Horror. 10-13)
After a family moves to a derelict old house in West Virginia, creepy things begin to happen.
Daniel, given substance by his first-person narration, is frustrated. His imperceptive, unobservant, cardboardlike parents fail to understand the difficult situation the move (forced by his father’s job loss) has placed his 7-year-old sister, Erica, and him in. Wayward kids at their backward school are bullying, Erica’s hearing a creepy voice calling her and taking refuge by focusing only on a new doll, and Daniel is gradually learning of a witch who inhabits the woods and takes little girls from their homes every 50 years—although the exact reason for that interval isn’t fully explained. At first he’s skeptical, but evidence begins to prove him wrong. With the tale periodically presented from the witch’s point of view, the potential suspense entailed by Daniel’s disbelief is completely eliminated. After Erica disappears into the woods, doesn’t come back, and is replaced by a girl who was taken 50 years ago, Daniel, faced with his grief-stricken parents’ disbelief, must confront the witch alone to recover his sister. At that point, the sense of menace rises. A too-neat happy ending undermines the potential for this story to haunt readers’ imaginations.
A bit flimsy but good for some chills on a dark night. (Horror. 10-13)Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-544-55153-4
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Clarion Books
Review Posted Online: June 9, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2015
A heartily satisfying string of entertaining near-catastrophes, replete with narrow squeaks and spectral howls.
Three young ghost trappers take on deadly wraiths and solve an old murder case in the bargain to kick off Stroud’s new post-Bartimaeus series.
Narrator Lucy Carlyle hopes to put her unusual sensitivity to supernatural sounds to good use by joining Lockwood & Co.—one of several firms that have risen to cope with the serious ghost Problem that has afflicted England in recent years. As its third member, she teams with glib, ambitious Anthony Lockwood and slovenly-but-capable scholar George Cubbins to entrap malign spirits for hire. The work is fraught with peril, not only because a ghost’s merest touch is generally fatal, but also, as it turns out, as none of the three is particularly good at careful planning and preparation. All are, however, resourceful and quick on their feet, which stands them in good stead when they inadvertently set fire to a house while discovering a murder victim’s desiccated corpse. It comes in handy again when they later rashly agree to clear Combe Carey Hall, renowned for centuries of sudden deaths and regarded as one of England’s most haunted manors. Despite being well-stocked with scream-worthy ghastlies, this lively opener makes a light alternative for readers who find the likes of Joseph Delaney’s Last Apprentice series too grim and creepy for comfort.
A heartily satisfying string of entertaining near-catastrophes, replete with narrow squeaks and spectral howls. (Ghost adventure. 11-13)Pub Date: Sept. 17, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4231-6491-3
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 28, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2013
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BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
A very promising kickoff with arbitrary but intriguingly challenging magic.
A middle schooler discovers both up and down sides to being able to foretell the future.
Members of the Cleary clan in alternating generations have always been granted predictive powers on their 4,444th day of life, and Celia has been eagerly looking forward to her first vision—until, that is, it comes and reveals that cute, quiet classmate Jeffrey is slated to die in a hit-and-run. Weighing her horror against her wise Grammy’s warnings that fate is inexorable, she contrives a way to head off the accident…only to foresee another fatal mishap in his future. And another. By the time she’s saved his life five times in a row, she’s not only exhausted, but crushing on the hapless lad. (As, unsurprisingly, he is on her.) Reintgen generally keeps the tone of his series opener light, so even after Celia discovers that there’s ultimately a tragic price for her intervention, the ensuing funeral service is marked by as much laughter as sorrow. The author surrounds his frantic but good-hearted protagonist with a particularly sturdy supporting cast that includes gratifyingly cooperative friends as well as her Grammy and loving, if nonmagical, mom. There don’t seem to be many Cleary men around; perhaps that and certain other curious elements, like a chart listing particular Cleary specialties with names such as Dreamwalker and Grimdark, will be addressed in future entries. Main characters read as White.
A very promising kickoff with arbitrary but intriguingly challenging magic. (Fantasy. 10-13)Pub Date: May 31, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-66590-357-8
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Aladdin
Review Posted Online: March 1, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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