River Readers

Ember and Ness are best friends in this grim tale. When Ness dies, Ember learns there is an inbetween place where Ember still exists. She believes she can bring Ness back to the real world. I struggled to finish this one because it was so grim and there were questionable aspects of the story. Ember learns of her friend's death not from her father but from the school principal at an assembly. Then she is basically kidnapped and traded for a dead dog by her uncle. Of course this lets her know about the inbetween place but still uncle should have been punished.

In the summer of 1862, a group of young artists led by the passionate and talented Edward Radcliffe descends upon Birchwood Manor on the banks of the Upper Thames. Their plan: to spend a secluded summer month in a haze of inspiration and creativity. But by the time their stay is over, one woman has been shot dead while another has disappeared; a priceless heirloom is missing; and Edward Radcliffe’s life is in ruins.

This was a book with a bit of a scare to it, because it was not obvious where the evil of the hall was coming from and in the end I was surprised at the main culprit. It is a sad story in many ways, but it also makes you think about how you would feel about the people you leave behind. I'm not sure I would want to be tied to a place for eternity. Makes you think about what the afterlife might bring according to your beliefs.

A girl unravels a centuries-old mystery after moving into a haunted house in this deliciously suspenseful read that Kirkus Reviews calls "just the ticket for a cold autumn night."

Tessa Woodward isn't exactly thrilled to move to rainy, cold Chicago from her home in sunny Florida. But homesickness turns to icy fear when unexplainable things start happening in her new house. Things like flickering lights, mysterious drawings appearing out of nowhere, and a crackling noise she can feel in her bones.

The New York Times best-selling author of Promise Not to Tell returns with a simmering literary thriller about ghostly secrets, dark choices, and the unbreakable bond between mothers and daughters...sometimes too unbreakable.

Sarai has lived and breathed nightmares since she was six years old.

She believed she knew every horror and was beyond surprise.

She was wrong.

In the wake of tragedy, neither Lazlo nor Sarai are who they were before. One a god, the other a ghost, they struggle to grasp the new boundaries of their selves as dark-minded Minya holds them hostage, intent on vengeance against Weep.

Bestselling adult author of The Bear and the Nightingale makes her middle grade debut with a creepy, spellbinding ghost story destined to become a classic

Marjorie Glatt was just thirteen years old and trying to hold what was left of her family together. Since her mother's death, her father was just barely hanging on and it was left to Marjorie to run their family business, a laundry service.

Wendell was a little ghost who was looking for a friend. He left his ghost town and found himself at the laundry run by Marjorie. This is a cute story about friends, love and loss.

Tessa has just moved to Chicago from Florida and isn't happy about it. She had to leave sunny beaches and her best friend. And she has moved into a haunted house. She keeps hearing crying noises and something is drawing on her sketchpad. With the help of her new friends Andrew and Nina, she has to figure out who is haunting her and why. 

So one of of my biggest pet peeves is poorly edited books and this one had som eglaring mistakes that would have been such an easy fix and should have been spotted by an editor. 

Annie Browne transfers to a new school and is afraid she won't make friends. On the first day, outcast Elsie latches on to Annie and insists they be best friends. Except Elsie is not the kind of friend Annie wants. She lies and tattles and is super possessive and mean. When Elsie gets sick Annie becomes friends with the other girls in her class and they ostracize Elsie when she returns. The girls are bullies to Elsie and each other. When the Spanish Flu hits their town they start attending funerals for the sweets and cakes. One day they end up at Elsie's funeral without realizing it.

L.A. is no place for widows. This is what forty-four-year-old Hannah Bernal quickly discovers after the tragic death of her handsome and loving husband, John. Misery and red-rimmed eyes are little tolerated in the land of the beautiful. But life stumbles on: Hannah’s sweet three-year-old daughter, Ellie, needs to be dropped off at her overpriced preschool, while Hannah herself must get back to work in order to pay the bills on “Casa Sugar,” the charming Spanish-styled bungalow they call home.

This story was not what I was expecting. I was much more confused than I like to be. It took me longer to figure out the twist than I liked. I understand how we got to the end, but I'm still not sure I liked it.

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

Cassidy Blake's parents are The Inspectres, a (somewhat inept) ghost-hunting team. But Cass herself can REALLY see ghosts. In fact, her best friend, Jacob, just happens to be one.

Marjorie Glatt feels like a ghost. A practical thirteen year old in charge of the family laundry business, her daily routine features unforgiving customers, unbearable P.E. classes, and the fastidious Mr. Saubertuck who is committed to destroying everything she’s worked for.

Wendell is a ghost. A boy who lost his life much too young, his daily routine features ineffective death therapy, a sheet-dependent identity, and a dangerous need to seek purpose in the forbidden human world.

Marjorie Glatt feels like a ghost. A practical thirteen year old in charge of the family laundry business, her daily routine features unforgiving customers, unbearable P.E. classes, and the fastidious Mr. Saubertuck who is committed to destroying everything she’s worked for.

Wendell is a ghost. A boy who lost his life much too young, his daily routine features ineffective death therapy, a sheet-dependent identity, and a dangerous need to seek purpose in the forbidden human world.