Dark Souls by Paula Morris

Summary: Dark Souls by Paula Morris (author of Ruined) is another great addition to my collection of mysterious and slightly creepy teen novels.

Miranda and her family, including her older brother Rob, are visiting York, England during winter break.  For their parents, it is a working vacation; their mother is conducting a musical performance at the local cathedral while their father is presenting at a historical conference.  But there is another motive for this family vacation; getting Rob & Miranda away from home and the bad memories of a fatal accident that loom over them there.

Miranda is glad for the chance to get away from the stares, the whispers, and the guilt.  Wandering the streets of York is new and exciting – and becomes even more so when she meets Nick, a boy about her age who knows all the secrets of the town.  Even better, Nick & Miranda have something in common – they can both see ghosts, and York is full of them.

One of these ghosts lives just across the street from where Miranda is staying.  She is fascinated with this handsome face that peers out to window and seems to reach out to her, trying to tell her a secret.

Rob also finds a distraction. Sally’s family owns a local pub.  She doesn’t know that Rob is still reeling from a tragedy.  He likes that she just sees him – no past baggage involved.  When somebody targets Sally’s family pub, he is determined to help at any cost.

Miranda and Rob have to overcome their individual issues to save Sally’s family business and themselves in this fast-moving and suspenseful novel.  I loved Ruined and I think Dark Souls  is just as good, possible better.  A worthy lazy summer read! (Or a great by-the-fire winter one!)

Themes:
Family
Death
Grief
Courage

Age Appropriateness:
12 and up

Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: mild
Violence: mild

School of Fear by Gitty Daneshvari

Summary: Four children, each with a crippling phobia:


Garrison is afraid of water. This is made more unfortunate by the fact that he lives in Florida, where everyone goes to the beach or has a pool.

Madeleine is afraid of bugs and spiders. She is constantly surrounded by a cloud of pesticide and stays covered with a layer of mosquito netting.

Lulu is claustrophobic. She won’t even ride in an elevator.

Theodore is afraid of dying – not just of his own death, but of the death of anyone he cares about or even knows. His family has to check in with him regularly to confirm their status as still living.

The four have never met before this summer, but now will be united by the scariest event of their lives; a summer at the School of Fear. It’s an unusual school with unusual methods. Each student will conquer his or her fear in six weeks. And the headmistress of the school, a past-her-prime beauty queen, will use whatever methods are necessary to make sure they all make satisfactory progress.

Throw in a quirky, elderly caretaker, a depressed bulldog, and an attorney with questionable motives and you have a fun, fast-paced book for kids and adults. The humor reminds me of Lemony Snicket; wry and dryly funny with plenty of sarcasm.

School of Fear by Gitty Danashvari is a great read for a dull, rainy day with plot twists that will keep the reader guessing.

Themes:
Courage
Friendship


Age Appropriateness:
10 and up

Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: none
Violence: mild