Ghosts Come Rising

by Adam Perry

Two siblings, brother and sister, have lost their parents. They're stuck in the custody of their gross uncle who forces them to take photographs and doctor them to make it look like their dead loved ones are in the picture. A fascinating process, and a real thing that shady people used to do. When they end up at a spiritualist settlement, the kids start to have real supernatural experiences. 
 

Thirteens

 

by Kate Alice Marshall

Eleanor is the new girl in a tiny town. Her past is sad, and not really something you want to share with potential new friends, but she's doing her best to fit in. Unfortunately matters only gets worse when she starts seeing creepy things that no one else sees... a grandfather clock that appears out of nowhere, a big dog with red eyes, and a bird made of bones. Eventually she realizes that her classmates Pip and Otto see these "wrong things" too, and they find themselves as unwitting participants in a very old mystery. 

Under the Surface

by Diana Urban

Four American students studying French in Paris find themselves lost in the catacombs in this thrilling survival story. Val accepts an invitation to an illegal underground party from a handsome French stranger, Julien, and Ruby, concerned for her safety, follows to stop her. Olivia, four-time teen Jeopardy winner, and Selena, Ruby’s ex-best friend, get swept up in the effort, too. At the mouth of the catacombs, Selena falls and is injured, kicking off a terrifying chain of events. They quickly realize they’re being pursued by armed men in skeleton masks. The kids can’t figure out why these men are chasing them, but it’s clear the men mean them harm as they continue to push the students deeper and deeper into the catacombs. Julien is lost now, too, there’s no cell service, not much food or water, and it’s completely pitch black without their few weak flashlights. This book doesn’t pull punches as tragedy after tragedy strikes the group, revealing character-developing back stories along the way, as well as fascinating details about “cataphiles,” real-life catacomb explorers. The chapters are narrated in turns by Ruby and Sean, still above ground, who loves Ruby but hasn’t yet found a way to tell her. Lots of twists, heart-pounding near-misses, and heart-breaking turns of events make for an exhilarating read. (Please note: this book is only in the high schools.)

What Lives in the Woods

                                                           

By Lindsay Currie

Ginny's dad renovates old houses, and he's got an opportunity to bring Woodmoor Manor back to life and restore it to its former glory. Ginny isn't happy about this, though--she'd rather be with her friends back in Chicago. Making matters worse, Woodmoor has a reputation for creepy events, and Ginny starts experiencing supernatural events herself. Can Ginny figure out what's causing the unexplained events? I really enjoy this author. She has such an easy-to-read style to her writing, and I love her scary, but not TOO scary plots. If you haven't given her a try yet, what are you waiting for?

 

The Lake House

by Sarah Beth Durst

Claire, Revya, and Mariana are strangers on their way to summer camp on a remote Maine island. When their boat driver drops them off, he directs them half a mile up a path to the Lake House, ensures them that they'll be greeted by the camp director, and leaves. When the girls reach the camp, they find to their horror that the house has recently burned down. It’s still smoking, and there are no signs of life. A run back to the dock reveals that the boat is long gone. There’s no cell service, there’s very little food, and they soon discover that whatever happened wasn’t an accident, which means they could be next. Part survival tale, part horror story, part coming-of-age tale–this book has a lot going for it. The action starts immediately, and doesn’t let up. The cast of characters is diverse and multi-faceted. Claire has crippling anxiety, Mariana is gifted at fixing cars and tinkering with machines, and Revya has a background in MMA fighting. Readers will enjoy watching these complex characters grow and change when confronted with unimaginable challenges. A plot twist takes the story in an unexpected direction, with plenty of nail-biting and chills-inducing moments. 
 

Hold Back the Tide

by Melinda Salisbury

Alva knows her father killed her mother years ago, but she doesn't know if he knows she knows... Not for sure, anyway. But she thinks he suspects, and she lives in fear of him finding out how much she hates him. She's 16 now, and she has a plan to escape. She has to be so careful to ensure her father doesn't suspect her plans. But Alva's about to learn something about her father, and her small Scottish village, that will change everything. 
 

Scary Stories for Young Foxes: The City

by Christian McKay Heidicker

I'm so sad this series is over! All the magic of the first book, with lots of wonderful new characters to love, and lots of references to our old friends, Mia and Uly. Just like the first, much of the suspense of this book comes from trying to guess who the storyteller is. This one was a wonderful and emotional reveal at the end that I won't soon forget. 
 

Hide and Seeker

 

by Daka Hermon

Last year, Justin's friend Zee disappeared, right around the same time Justin's mom passed away. Now he lives with his big sister, and is dealing with the fact that Zee is back, but not the same. There's something deeply troubling about him, but everyone says to just give him time. When Zee's mom has a get-together at her house, she invites the neighborhood kids, and hopes that it will help Zee. But all he does is start screaming random rhymes at them, some of which seem like threats, and some like warnings. The next day, one of the neighborhood girls has gone missing, and even stranger things begin happening to the group of friends. Could the disappearances have something to do with their casual game of Hide and Seek? And could Justin be the next to disappear?

I loved this truly creepy tale that takes an innocent kids' game and turns it on its head. The author isn't afraid to go to dark places, while keeping it safely in the realm of middle grade. The characters are relatable, and the plot moves quickly. I will definitely keep this in mind to recommend to lots of kids, and it would make a great read aloud!

Sweet

by Emmy Laybourne

Laurel is nervously excited about getting to go on a celebrity cruise paid for by her wealthy friend's dad. Nervous because it's a cruise designed to promote a new weight-loss product, and because her childhood tv crush is hosting the footage of the trip, Ryan Seacrest-style. The product, Solu, is a sugar substitute touted to bring on rapid weight loss, and it works. Laurel, due to an extreme bout of sea-sickness, doesn't partake. Neither does Tom, her celebrity crush, because he's already in great shape and doesn't want to mess up his process. These two, and the few other cruisers who don't take the product, very quickly see that there's something a little off about Solu, and things take a dark and dramatic turn.

The characters in this book are a little shallow and one-dimensional, but the story is so fun you won't really care. And endings to books like this are hard to do right--this one is total greatness, down to the very last line. Lots of fun!

Small Spaces

by Katherine Arden

Truly creepy/scary books are not easy to come by at the middle grade level, but this one definitely gets there. Ollie has just lost her mom--it's just her, her dad, and her books now. She loves books, so when she sees a woman about to throw one into the river, she knows she has to rescue it. The woman is straight up distraught the Ollie has her book, but she's not giving it back. She starts to read it, but hasn't finished it before her class field trip to a farm goes downhill really quickly. Is the book connected to what's happening to Ollie's classmates, and can she save them from a truly bizarre fate?

The Dogs

by Allan Stratton

Cameron's mom lives in fear that her ex-husband will find them someday and cause them harm. Cameron was so young when they got divorced that he wonders if his mom is over-exaggerating his father's potential for violence. He's not allowed to see him or talk to him, and the older he gets, the more Cameron resents his mom, and the situation. After weeks of seeing a car parked in front of their home, she decides they need to move. Again. She rents an old farm house in the middle of nowhere. Their landlord is the creepy old man who lives one farm over. And then, Cameron begins to see the boy whenever he closes his eyes. Who is this boy in the coonskin cap, and what does he want with Cameron?

I absolutely loved this quiet little thriller! A middle grade mystery with a believable premise, some actual scary moments, and characters readers can connect with? Yes, please!

The Empty Grave

by Jonathan Stroud

With a deep sigh, I say good bye to this amazing series. Stroud kept the quality of all five books consistently engaging, which is no easy task. Every book in this series has one major mystery the crew needs to solve. This one, in addition to that, manages to also wrap up the biggest mystery of all. That's right. We get to find out what started the Problem. And it's no lame cop-out of an ending, either. A fantastic conclusion to one of my favorite book series of all time.


Lucy, Lockwood, George, Holly, and last but not least, Skull...a sad farewell!

The Borden Murders

by Sarah Miller

Anyone who knows me at all knows I have a bit of an obsession with true crime, and this murder is one of the most famous unsolved cases in history. I really didn't know much about the story before reading this book, but I always sort of assumed Lizzie did it. Now I'm not so sure. The author did a great job keeping her own ideas out of the mix. The examination was completely impartial to either side, and at the end, you're really left still scratching your head. Unfortunately there's just not that much verifiable information on the case that has survived, so it felt a little like the author was stretching for material. The best part of the book was the end, as the author described Lizzie's life after the trial. She truly was a strange woman, and the Bordens were an unusual family. Did she do it? Maybe. But the results of the trial were fair. There was in no way enough evidence to convict her.

The Creeping Shadow

by Jonathan Stroud

After leaving Lockwood & Co. at the end of The Hollow Boy, Lucy finds herself freelancing for different agencies around the city. Her life is sort of sad. The skull is basically her only friend. She works, eats, sleeps. Until one day, Lockwood appears at her door with a proposition for her. Penelope Fittes needs Lucy's listening skills, and would like to hire them all to work an especially gruesome case. The Ealing Cannibal brings the group back together, at least temporarily, but when someone starts stealing relics, Lockwood & Co. needs to keep working as a team to find out who, and more importantly, why.

I just can't get enough of these books. The fact that I'm frantically turning pages in fear for these characters I've come to love so much, and laughing at the same time, is just a great reading experience.

And the cliffhanger on this one! AHHHH!

What Waits in the Woods

by Kieran Scott

Callie is the new girl at her school. She's surprised herself with somehow making it into the popular crowd, AND getting a cute popular boyfriend. She hates all things outdoors, but thinks she has to agree to this camping trip to maintain her popular status. At first, the trip is okay, but soon her friends tell her the story of the "Skinner," a crazy serial killer at work in those same woods in the 80's. Then weird things start to happen to her group--crazy laughing, glimpses of a white shirt between the trees, and crude voodoo dolls fashioned from twigs. Something is very wrong in these woods, and they won't all make it out alive.

While no great piece of literature, this book was really fun. It reads exactly like a teen horror movie, complete with lots of dumb teen decisions and drama.  I really was surprised by the resolution--I was totally on the wrong track, and I love that! I think you guys will really enjoy this one!

Cuckoo Song

by Frances Hardinge

When Triss wakes up from an illness, she's confused, disoriented, and has a fuzzy memory. Her little sister hates her, and since she has nothing but love for the girl, she can't figure out why. The "why" is something you'd never guess in a million years, and I love that about this wonderfully weird story. As it unfolds, it continues to be a surprise at every turn.

Frances Hardinge is a genius. This is historical fiction, a commentary on war, an exploration of grief and sibling rivalry, a twisted fairy tale, and a horror story. I absolutely loved every minute. I can't wait to use this as a read-a-like right next to The Thickety in the  library. Creepy, thought-provoking, and incredibly well-written.

Enclave

by Ann Aguirre

Deuce lives in College Enclave, an underground society that has formed in what's left of New York City's subway system in a dismal future. Life expectancy caps out at around 25 due to poor nutrition and the great likelihood of disease. People have specific functions: breeders produce and care for children, and the hunters provide the meat (most likely rats). They also protect the others from the Freaks--humanoid creatures with sharp claws and teeth that eat human flesh. For years those in the Enclave have survived this way, but the Freaks, once mindless eaters, seem to be getting smarter. The Enclavers can no longer feel safe in the tunnels. When an unfortunate event forces Deuce topside, she begins to see there's a world outside of what she's always known, but it's not much safer than the one she hails from.

This is the first in a trilogy, and I haven't decided yet if I'll go on, which I guess means I probably won't. The first half of this story was awesome. I loved the underground world-building. But once she took us topside, the plot lost steam, and the world was not nearly as well thought out. A fun read that I think a lot of you guys will like, but there are far better out there in this overcrowded genre.

The Nest

by Kenneth Oppel

I started this book yesterday, and I finished it yesterday. Talk about intense.

Steve's parents have a new baby, but he's sick. He's in and out of the hospital, and his parents say it's something very rare that the doctors don't know much about. And then one day, Steve gets stung by a wasp and has an allergic reaction bad enough that the ER doctor prescribes him an Epi-pen. That night, he has a dream. A very strange looking angel tells him that she and the other angels will fix the baby. Steve knows it's just a dream, but it makes him feel better, until he meets the "angels" again, and realizes that maybe their intentions are not what they first seemed.

As Steve becomes more aware of what is actually happening, the story gets more and more frightening. Kids will just be terrified of the wasps; adults, and especially parents, will want to give the kids they love an extra hug. Shudder. What a strange and unforgettable ride.

The Hollow Boy

by Jonathan Stroud

There's an outbreak of the Problem in Chelsea, and it's worse than any of the agents have ever seen. All the major agencies are working it to no avail, and as usual, Lockwood & Co. hasn't even been consulted. Lockwood has hired a new assistant for the group, Holly Munro, who is as cute and perfect as she can be. Lucy hates her, and so does the Ghost Jar, which leads to some pretty hilarious sarcastic comments from him. Thanks to George's fabulous research skills, the team does eventually get to work on the Chelsea outbreak, with help from some unlikely people. Is it scary, you ask? Oh, you bet it is. The Whispering Skull somehow lost the edge that I found so appealing in The Screaming Staircase. It was more hard-boiled detective than terrifying ghost story. But the fear factor is all back in The Hollow Boy, and then some. Stroud doesn't talk down to his readers, or pull any punches, and he leaves us with a killer of a cliffhanger. Absolutely on my favorites list, and I can't wait for the next one.

In the After

by Demitria Lunetta

Amy is living in a world that has been destroyed by scary green creatures that eat humans.THEY are really fast, and really nasty. She only survived because her mom, presumed dead, was paranoid, and had many years ago had their house surrounded by an electric fence. That seems to keep THEM away. One day, on a supply run, she comes across Baby, a toddler that she takes home with her and begins to think of as a little sister. For years, they survive on their own, but it doesn't last forever, and they eventually have to leave, taking them on to another place that seems safer on the surface. But is it just danger in another form?

Granted, there are some serious plot inconsistencies. For example... Amy is worried about the sound her breathing makes while she runs on a treadmill. Has Lunetta ever run on a treadmill? Cause they are loud. You know, with the foot pounding and all. THEY have supersonic hearing and could possibly hear her breathing. But they won't hear the running? I don't get it.

But... despite many eye rolling moments, I found myself kind of obsessed with this book, and involved enough that from time to time I got startled any time I heard a noise while reading. I really did find myself pulled into this world. Characterization? Eh. But as far a plot tension goes, she nailed it. I powered through it, and was extremely irritated with myself that I finished it on a Friday and had to wait until Monday to check out the sequel.