The Peculiar Night of the Blue Heart, by Lauren DeStefano

If there is one request I get from students the most it is, "Stacy! I want a scary book!" This is always tricky business, because invariably this question is not coming from an 8th grader. It's coming from a 4th-6th grader. And honestly, there aren't that many titles. This is one of the reasons I am so thankful for DeStefano.  I first got to know her through The Curious Tale of the In-Between, which is so absolutely creepy and scary in a subtle way. I am incredibly happy to have gotten my hands on The Peculiar Night of the Blue Heart, which is perhaps even scarier.

Lionel and Marybeth live with Mrs. Mannerd in a home for orphans. They are among the youngest in the home and couldn't seem more different from one another. Lionel is somewhat of an animal boy. He would rather eat with the animals and be outdoors with the animals than do anything as seemingly silly as eat at a table with untensils! Marybeth, on the other hand, has perfect manners, is a quiet child, and does things like brush her teeth and comb her hair without even being asked. While everyone else in the house thinks that Lionel is weird, Marybeth does not.

Marybeth often follows or accompanies Lionel out on his journeys into the woods to see the animals. Lionel often talks about the animals he is friends with, and just recently he has been talking about a fox with a blue coat that he saw but is unable to track. One rainy night, Marybeth sees a streak of blue running outside of her window. When she goes to wake Lionel, she is admonished and chased away by one of the older boys he shares a room with a decides that she will go track the animal on her own. She heads out into the dark and rainy night toward the river. As she plummets into the river she is surrounded by a blue light before she surfaces.

When Marybeth shows up back at Mrs. Mannerd's house at the end of the following day, everyone is relieved to see her alive. Lionel is one of the first to realize that the Marybeth that returned to the house is not the Marybeth who left. She is not wearing her glasses anymore, has not plaited her hair. When one of the older boys steals her breakfast because she is too slow, she does something that is decidedly not Marybeth. She lunges across the table and bites his neck!

What was that blue light in the water that surrounded Marybeth?  And how did it get inside of her?

What follows is an absolutely chilling tale of ghostly possession, friendship, madness and family. Moody and atmospheric, readers will be able to picture the settings and feel the tension and desperation Lionel feels as he tries to save his friend.

Breathtaking!

(Publishing 9/13/16)

Real Life Tween Review - The Imaginary, by A.F. Harrold

I figured, since I live with you real live tweens, it is high time that I have them write some of the book recommendations that appear on this blog.  Tween 2 read The Imaginary before school was out, and she loved it!  The following is what she has to say about it!

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I had just finished a book, and as always, I was looking for a new one. Just like most kids, I like it when a book sticks to me. Sometimes I read the first two chapters of one book and I do not like it and then same with the next, and so on. As usual I asked my mom/librarian for a suggestion. She usually gives me like 8 books and I don’t like any of them, so it is usually hard for her to give me suggestions. This time she gave me this book, and it hooked me right from the introduction. I checked it out and just read it.

The one thing that keeps Amanda happy is her imaginary friend Rudger. After all, she is an only child.  There is just him and her. They are best friends. But Amanda’s mother thinks there is something wrong with Amanda. Amanda loves to imagine. Rudger and Amanda always go on adventures in the backyard. Then one day Mr. Bunting comes to the door.

Mr. Bunting hunts Imaginaries. Rumor has it that he eats them! He sniffs them out and this time he has sniffed out Rudger. With Mr. Bunting’s (well let’s say) “assistant” he has almost got Rudger in his clutches! With Amanda unconscious in the hospital, Rudger is alone with nobody believing in him.  He is starting to fade away with Amanda not being able to imagine him. All at once he is trying to get to Amanda, escape from Mr. Bunting, and not fade before it is all done. On his way he meets some other imaginaries that help him. But can he make it before fading?

A.F. Harrold has created humor, with scary moments and magic all in one plot. This book was super amazing! Emily Gravett has so many great and detailed pictures. The illustrations and the book work in harmony together. This is a must read book! Ten out of ten stars! **********

Fablehaven: Rise of the Evening Star

So, it's been a year since Kendra and Seth have lived at Fablehaven with their grandparents and discovered that their home is really a preserve for all types of magical creatures. School will be out in a week, and Kendra is looking forward to a bit of time off. Everything seems fine until a new boy named Case shows up. All of Kendra's friends think Case is hot, but the kiss of the fairies has left Kendra with the ability to see Case for what he really is...a hideous, deformed magical creature of some kind.

Kendra has to tell Seth. Who else would believe her? Before the two of them can decide what to do, Errol shows up. Errol claims to be a friend of their grandfather, and possesses enough information to make Kendra and Seth believe he is just that. But after Seth and Kendra help Errol provide the means to send Case packing, grandpa calls up and lets them know they've been fooled. And that it's time for them to come back to Fablehaven.

While the first installment of the series was dark, Rise of the Evening Star seems almost more so. When the kids arrive, grandma and grandpa are living with 3 specialist who are supposedly helping to bring down the society. Coulter, who has been grandpa's friend for years, specializes in magical relics. The massive Tanu is a potions specialist. And Vanessa is learned in weapons and magical creatures. Dale and Warren are still on the compound. And soon, it is clear, that there is a traitor among them.

Who can Kendra and Seth trust? Who really wants the best for Fablehaven. Why are the fairies so mean to Kendra? And what new horrors lurk in the woods?

Brandon Mull can write one heck of a scary story. The plot flies along as the kids get into adventure after adventure. These books are truly exciting, and I found myself seeking out quiet spots whenever I could get in a few chapters. It's going to be so hard to wait for the third installment, but in the meantime, I will pick up Mull's stand alone The Candy Shop War to tide me over.

Fans of Horowitz's Alex Rider should love Fablehaven. Fast paced with enough gore to satisfy any reader!