As a twelve-year-old, I read nothing but ghost booksânot monsters, horror, or mystery, but ghosts. Though I debuted as an author in teen fantasy, a middle grade editor discovered my talent for spooky atmospheres, and I was once again drawn into the world of lost souls. In fact, when I was working on my first spooky novel, The Haunting, my editor requested the book to remind him of the works of Mary Downing Hahnâone of my favorite authors as a child. Iâd found my calling. It just happened to be from beyond the graveâŚ
Imagine finding a beautiful dollhouse where its occupants reenact the night of a murder from decades agoâŚcreepy, right? Betty Ren Wrightâs The Dollhouse Murders is a unique ghost story where the ghosts communicate their tragic tale through miniature doll versions of themselves.
Its mystery and old family secrets make this book one of my all-time favorites.
Dolls can't move by themselves. . . . Or can they?
This special anniversary edition of the hair-raising mystery that's kept readers up at night for thirty-five years features a foreword by Goosebumps creator R.L. Stine.
Amy is terrified. She hears scratching and scurrying noises coming from the dollhouse in the attic, and the dolls she was playing with are not where she left them. Dolls can't move by themselves, she tells herself. But every night when Amy goes up to check on the dollhouse, it's filled with an eerie light and the dolls have moved again! Are the dollsâŚ
I went through some very tough times growing up. I was an undiagnosed autistic teen, terribly shy, with no real guidance, and I was often bullied and bewildered. But my heart was filled with only goodwill and good intentions, and a yearning to connect meaningfully with others. So, stories of adversity, of characters making it through very tough times, through traumaâthese stories were like shining beacons that said, âsurvival is possible.â Now that Iâm a grownup writer, itâs at the root of what I want to offerâhopeâto todayâs kids who may be going through similar tough stuff. Survival is possible.
I love every book by this author. Mason is a different kid, learning-disabled, but with a heart full of goodness. He is bullied and discounted and put down and misunderstood, but his persistent goodness wins out.
I rooted for Mason, for his good heart, every step of the way.
From the critically acclaimed author of Waiting for Normal and All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook, Leslie Connor, comes a deeply poignant and beautifully crafted story about self-reliance, redemption, and hope.
Mason Buttle is the biggest, sweatiest kid in his grade, and everyone knows he can barely read or write. Mason's learning disabilities are compounded by grief. Fifteen months ago, Mason's best friend, Benny Kilmartin, turned up dead in the Buttle family's orchard.
An investigation drags on, and Mason, honest as the day is long, can't understand why Lieutenant Baird won't believe the story Mason has told aboutâŚ
I love books about everyman/everywoman characters facing danger, puzzles, and romance with a sense of humor. I love the suspense that builds throughout a whole book and the tension that can develop in just a paragraph. Itâs easier for me to imagine Iâm the protagonist and lose myself in the pages if Iâm not reading about a superhero or a serial killer. With so many choices out there, itâs easier to find another person whoâs seen the same TV show, for instance, but books are my true love because they are limitless and offer so many choices. Itâs a privilege to be able to share some favorites.
A precocious thirteen-year-old girl with a sense of humor gets into big trouble and has to deal with it without adult help. Whatâs not to love? Ingrid is a vivid character in a great small-town setting with believable characters and plenty of tension.
And I loved the fact that she has to deal with obstacles adults donât generally face, like not being able to drive. First of an outstanding trilogy, for my taste.
"My all-time favorite. Astonishing." (Stephen King)
Down the Rabbit Hole is the first book in the Echo Falls mystery series by bestselling crime novelist Peter Abrahams. Perfect for middle school readers looking for a good mystery.
Welcome to Echo Falls, home of a thousand secrets. In Down the Rabbit Hole, eighth grader Ingrid Levin-Hill is in the wrong place at the wrong time. Or at least her shoes are. And getting them back will mean getting tangled up in a murder investigation as complicated as the mysteries solved by her idol, Sherlock Holmes.
