Hauntingly good and sure to possess any horror aficionado.
After her estranged grandfather dies, an 11-year-old girl learns that she can not only see ghosts, but also communicate with them.
Lila Clement is always being accused of being too much—too dramatic, too intense, or just taking up too much space. When Grandpa Clem passes away, the family sets off on the long drive from Phoenix to Castle Hill, Ohio. They’ll be staying in the inn he owned for a few weeks, sorting out his affairs. Lila meets Grandpa Clem’s young neighbor, Teddy Hamad, who quickly becomes her confidant after she shares with him that she saw the ghost of her grandfather—who said he was murdered and needs her help. In turn, Teddy reveals that Castle Hill Inn contains a portal for spirits of the departed to pass through to the other world. Teddy, Lila, and her younger brother, Caleb, must solve the murder, help the good ghosts resolve their unfinished business so they can cross over, and stop the malevolent spirits who stand in their way. In this clever series opener, Newbery Medal–winning author Kelly examines fear and grief through memorable characters and fast-paced chapters. The book contains puzzles and augmented reality elements (accessed via QR codes and integrated with Franquiz’s eerie, full-page illustrations) that allow readers to interact with the ghosts and conduct their own investigations. Lila and Caleb are Filipino and white, and Teddy has brown skin.
Hauntingly good and sure to possess any horror aficionado. (Paranormal. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 2, 2025
ISBN: 9781546132431
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 30, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Breathless action and engaging puzzles make this a page-turner.
In this follow-up to The Mystery of Locked Rooms (2024), young escape artists rashly accept a mysterious game designer’s offer to get a sneak peek at a challenging new set of escape rooms.
Worried by announcements of a new, high-tech fun house that might drive their employer, the Delta Game, out of business, middle schooler Sarah and her friends Hannah and West jump at the chance to give Mystery Mansion a try before it opens to the public. More’s at stake than they suspect, but Currie dispenses with the backstory in a perfunctory way at the end. Her real focus—and the chief appeal here—lies in the set of fiendishly clever escape rooms that she’s devised for the trio and the team dynamics that carry them through: Hannah is the reckless thrill seeker, West is the observant brainiac, and anxiety-prone Sarah has a knack for making correct choices. The story cranks up the suspense, and the Deltas call on all the courage and smarts they can muster, sweeping readers along as they work urgently against the clock to complete the course. Hannah is cued white, West is described as dark-haired, and narrator Sarah isn’t physically described.
Breathless action and engaging puzzles make this a page-turner. (Mystery. 8-12)Pub Date: Sept. 30, 2025
ISBN: 9781464234941
Page Count: 248
Publisher: Sourcebooks Young Readers
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2025
Delightful fun for budding mystery fans.
Only children, rejoice! A cozy mystery just for you! (People with siblings will probably enjoy it too.)
Debut novelist Cornett introduces the One and Onlys, a trio of mystery-solving only kids: Gloria Longshanks “Shanks” Hill, Alexander “Peephole” Calloway, and narrator Paul (alas, no nickname) Marconi. The trio has a knack for finding and solving low-level mysteries, but they come up against a true head-scratcher when the yard of a resident of their small town is covered in rubber ducks overnight. Working ahead of Officer Portnoy, who’s a little on the slow side, can Paul, Shanks, and Peephole solve the mystery? Cornett has a lot of fun with this adventure, dropping additional side mysteries, a subplot about small businesses, big corporations, and economics, and a town’s love of bratwurst into the mix. Most importantly, he plays fair with the clues throughout, allowing astute readers to potentially solve the case ahead of the trio. The tone and mystery are perfect for younger readers who want to test their detective skills but are put off by anything scary or gory. The pacing would serve well for chapter-by-chapter read-alouds. If there are any quibbles, it’s the lack of diversity of the cast, as it defaults white. Diversity exists in small towns, and this one is crying out for more. Hopefully a sequel will introduce additional faces.
Delightful fun for budding mystery fans. (Mystery. 8-12)Pub Date: April 14, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-9848-3003-6
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
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