(2) 4-6 Illustrated by Naomi Franquiz. In this supernatural murder mystery, the versatile Kelly (2025 Newbery medalist for The First State of Being, rev. 5/24) skillfully balances otherworldly horrors with more realistic middle-school angst. Eleven-year-old Lila Clement panics when she learns that she has to go to Ohio for two weeks for her estranged grandfather's funeral. She's never met the man; "What difference did it make if she were there or not?" Her two best friends have become distant and critical, and she's desperate to stay in Phoenix to try to work things out. Nevertheless, she finds herself beginning summer break with her parents and younger brother at her grandfather's creepy Victorian inn, having to learn about her own family member from Teddy, a kid next door who was close to "Grandpa Clem." Lila's personal problems are quickly overshadowed, however, when Grandpa Clem's ghost appears to her and informs her that he was murdered and needs her help to open a portal to the afterlife. Lila, her brother, and Teddy join forces to figure out what happened to Grandpa Clem and end up involved with the victims of a 156-year-old tragedy. Lila is a sympathetic, fully realized protagonist whose insecurities ring true. Spine-tingling scenes featuring revenge-seeking ghosts and evil forces that feed on fear are as vivid as depictions of Lila's sense of loss at not getting to know her grandparents. Three haunting black-and-white ghost portraits are interspersed, with QR codes for interactive elements.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2025