Written by Phil Hickes Illustrated byOriol Vidal Published by Barrington Stoke (an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers)
The Last Day of October is a superbly spine-tingling middle-grade horror story where the past comes to haunt the present with terrifying effects … an absolutely gripping page-turner that kept me spellbound, and shivering, throughout.
The small town of Column Falls, Oregon has been decorated for Halloween, ready for trick-or-treating to commence, but Cody is seeking something altogether more scary. And what could be scarier than visiting the haunted ruins of McBride House where legend has it that the ghosts of the children who were trapped in the house appear on the last day of October.
Persuading his friends Sean and Duri to go with him, the trio head into the woods where they discover the McBride house with an open door and a light in an upstairs window. Eager for adventure, Cody convinces his friends to step inside, but will they discover the terrifying truth before it is too late?
Oh my goodness! This is everything I love about middle-grade horror. It’s genuinely spine-tingling with a brilliantly eerie atmosphere that kept me on the edge of my seat. The sense of anticipation and dread builds inexorably as the children realise the horrifying fate that awaits. I loved the setting of an old house in the woods surrounded by fog, the stillness and sounds, the prescient warning and the unsettling feeling that something has been set in motion that cannot be stopped. This really is the perfect autumnal spooky season read, but one I think best enjoyed before darkness descends – and preferably tucked up under a cosy blanket with some hot chocolate. No, on second thoughts, no hot chocolate – its guaranteed to spill as you shiver with fright!
The stunning illustrations, with a focus on light and dark, complement the eerie atmosphere and hidden terrors of this story perfectly.
Treat yourself to a genuinely spooky read which might just have a few tricks to play … perfect for readers of 9+.
Thank you to Barrington Stoke for sending me a copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
This book is published by the wonderful Barrington Stoke who publish dyslexia-friendly, super-readable and accessible books for children of all ages. This is suitable for 9+ with a reading age of 8.
Written by Alex Atkinson Cover illustration by Miriam Serafin Published by Usborne
Spooksmiths Investigate: The Cinderman is a deliciously spooky, humorous mystery with a chilling edge guaranteed to send shivers down your spine.
Twelve-year-old twins Indigo and Rusty live in a 400-year-old house on the outskirts of the village of Greyscar which also happens to be a funeral home. Despite this, they do not believe in ghosts … until Indigo accidentally finds a hidden door behind a bookcase and decides to investigate.
In the dark room behind the bookcase, she finds something on a table and decides to bring it back to the funeral parlour. The old, dented urn which she has brought back frightens her when its lid rattles making her drop it … releasing an ash cloud that escapes through the open window, but not before she hears its voice …
The next morning, she wakes to an eerie silence and looks outside to see that everything has been coated in a layer of ash and, worse still, her parents are acting very strangely … as are all the other villagers … as if they have no control over their actions.
But why are the twins not affected by this smothering ash? It is not long before they discover that they are immune to the effects of the ash because they are spooksmiths who can see and communicate with ghosts. And Indigo has accidentally released a terrifying ghost on the village: the Cinderman who intends to turn everyone into zombies and hide the village from the outside world under a layer of ash.
And so begins a spine-tinglingly spooky mystery that kept me on the edge of my seat as I followed these two daring investigators as they race against time to learn the secrets of the Cinderman. What power does a name hold? Can they learn the Cinderman’s weakness before sunset? Or will Greyscar become a town of zombies trapped in ash and ruled over by a terrifying ghost lord?
I loved the inexorable building of tension as danger increases and time runs out which made this a real page-turner and totally unputdownable. The atmosphere was incredibly eerie and creepy with the ash encapsulating the town and people being controlled like puppets by an evil entity. The ghosts who help the twins in their mission are fantastic – and bring some brilliantly humorous moments as well as some poignant ones!
I really liked both Indigo and Rusty whose initial bickering and arguments change to support and teamwork as they learn to work together in their mission to defeat the Cinderman. As they find themselves in more and more peril, they come to realise the importance of family and friendship which gives them the strength, courage and determination to continue their pursuit of the terrifying Cinderman. I also have to mention Phrank who I absolutely adored – and who brought lots of humour!
A spooky and humorous horror-mystery, with family and friendship at its heart, perfect to snuggle up with on a dark evening for a frighteningly fantastic reading treat.
Thank you to Usborne for providing me with a proof copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
I love spooky children’s books so have decided to make October a month where I read some newly released ones, but also catch up with some that have been waiting patiently on my bookshelves.
I have taken the synopsis from Waterstones website.
Sometimes, secrets don’t stay buried forever. Sometimes, they need to be set free… Twelve-year-old Edie and her younger brother Pip are spending half term at Fortune Farm, high in the Irish mountains, with their grandmother Lolly. They haven’t visited Fortune Farm for YEARS and Edie has been dreading it for MONTHS. They spent all their holidays there when Dad was alive. And Edie doesn’t like thinking about Dad – even the happy memories haunt her too much. When Edie uncovers a clue that could lead her to long-lost Viking treasure, it’s just the adventure she needs to take her mind off Dad. But the adventure soon takes an unnerving and dangerous turn, and Edie discovers that Fortune Farm has more secrets, mysteries and ghosts than she had ever dared to dream. A spine-tingling adventure about the power of memories and the restless spirits that whisper on the wind…
Mallory Vayle would list her interests as being normal, books about ponies and very definitely NOT talking to dead people. But when her parents’ carriage takes a leap off Gibbett Bridge – an accident for which there appears to be no explanation – she is taken in by a strange aunt the family disowned years ago and brought to her new, and very spooky, home. Aunt Lilith, a charlatan psychic, is quick to monetise Mallory’s prodigious skills in talking to dead people and starts to advertise grand seances (ticketed obvs) in her spiritual news sheet. The ghosts of her parents also take up residence in the house but are cruelly snatched away by the shadow of Hellysh Spatzl, the grimmest, wickedest necromancer in all of history. To get them back, Mallory will have to learn how to use the talents she hates and raise the old hag from the dead.
Indigo and Rusty might live in a funeral parlour, but they don’t believe in ghosts. That is, until Indigo drops an old urn, accidentally releasing the Cinderman: a terrifying ash monster, who will smother their town in ashes and turn everyone into zombies, unless they can stop him by sunset. Using their newly awakened Spooksmith skills, Indigo and Rusty set out to enlist the help of other ghosts. But can the Blasted Banshee and Chuckles the Phantom Toddler really help them find the Cinderman’s true name and put him in his grave for good before Ashmageddon strikes?
The village is alive with rumours about the Tall Man and Tom lives in his house. Tom hears a boy in the cellar offering a ‘special’ acorn to a rat, Captain Rat, whom he begs to find the key to his leg-iron. The cellar is empty but Tom knows that the boy is real and he’s convinced that he is trapped in a brutal past and the Tall Man’s prisoner. Each time Tom tries to help the boy, the Tall Man’s ghostly presence intensifies. Who is the boy in the cellar and can they escape Tall Man?
When orphans Ben and Jennet arrive in the seaside town of Whitby to stay with Alice Boston, they have no idea what to expect. A lively 92-year-old, Miss Boston is unlike any other foster mother they’ve known. Ben is gifted with ‘the sight’, which gives him the power to see things invisible to other mortals. He soon encounters the mysterious fisher folk who live under the cliffs and discovers that Alice and her friends are not quite what they seem. But a darkness is stalking the streets of Whitby, bringing with it fear and death. Could it be a ghost from the Abbey? Or a beast from hell? Unless the truth is uncovered, the town and all its inhabitants is doomed.
It is the summer of 1919 when Henrietta Abott (Henry for short) and her family – Mama, Father, Nanny Jane and her baby sister who everyone calls Piglet – move to Hope House. Tragic events have left the family fragile, hoping the new house will bring with it the fresh start they all so desperately need. But Mama is ill and when Henry’s father takes a job abroad the family is left under the care of Doctor Hardy, a man Henry doesn’t trust. As Doctor Hardy exerts more control over the family Henry finds herself drawn-in by the house – its secret stairways, hidden doors, unexplained sounds and shadows in the candle’s guttering flame. Then there is the mysterious firelight that glows in the distant trees beyond the garden, in the close-knit darkness of Nightingale Wood. What Henry finds there will change her whole world forever.
Penelope Tredwell is the feisty thirteen-year-old orphan heiress of the bestselling magazine, The Penny Dreadful. Her masterly tales of the macabre are gripping Victorian Britain, even if no one knows she’s the author. One day, a letter she receives from the governor of the notorious Bedlam madhouse plunges her into an adventure more terrifying than anything she has ever imagined. Why are the patients of Bedlam waking every night at twelve minutes to midnight? What is the meaning of the strange messages they write? Who is the Spider Lady of South Kensington? Penelope is always seeking mysteries to fill the pages of her magazine. But this isn’t any ordinary story, it’s the future. And the future looks deadly…
Tibor is a child of the night, a werwolf, adopted by his guardian, a powerful vampir. He and his friend Roza are on the deadliest of quests, and one that will test their very immortality. And they’re not the only ones hunting for the Midnight Treasure. Battling with bears, wrestling with vampirs and racing against the clock, Tibor and Roza must decide who to trust. And whether they will dare reveal the secrets … of the Midnight Treasure.
Have you read any of these? Do you have any other suggestions of spooky books to add to my TBR?
Book Craic 