Tag: Sterling Publishing

Illustrations – Flavia Sorrentino

“Come, ghost,

Come, monster,

Come, devilkin,

Tonight’s story is about to begin.”

The Graveyard Girls are trying to make contact with Silas Hoke, Misery Falls infamous murderer. The mystery surrounding him was amped up when they recently found his grave. His empty grave.

A missing corpse that had yet to be un-missing.

They tried reaching him via Ouija board and they made contact, just not with Silas.

I like all of the Graveyard Girls but enjoy spending time with them even more when they’re all together. That’s when we get to hear their scary stories, after all. The story in this book is photography based, ‘Scream for the Camera’, and it’s a fun, creepy one.

Each girl is dealing with something difficult in this book.

Something weird is happening.

Sophie has a crush. Although I’m not anti bad boy, I was very anti the way he was treating Sophie and not the hugest fan of how this part of the story resolved.

Gemma is busy working off her G-Tone mistake.

Whisper is on the hunt for a grave robber. Her investigation begins at home.

Frannie dreams of stardom. It’s a shame about the theatre curse.

Zuzu’s old friends don’t know about her new friends yet but that’s the least of her problems. It’s very possible that she’s possessed.

I love the focus on friendship and the overarching mystery, which I’m guessing will continue over the course of the series. Gemma’s story was my favourite in this book.

I would have absolutely adored this series as a kid and, to be honest, probably would have found it scary at times. I’m keen to see how the individual stories and the mystery surrounding Silas Hoke play out.

Favourite no context quote:

“We don’t have time to be eaten by a plant!”

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Union Square Kids, an imprint of Union Square & Co., for the opportunity to read this book.

Once Upon a Blurb

It’s been a month since the events of 1-2-3-4, I Declare a Thumb War, when the Graveyard Girls — Gemma, Whisper, Sophie, Frannie, and Zuzu — discovered Silas Hoke’s empty grave. A month, and no answers. That changes when messages from the other side start to creep up on the Graveyard Girls. Gemma’s good-luck charm. The skull in Whisper’s spilled milk. Sophie’s vanishing phone. Frannie’s theater curse. And Zuzu’s possessed Jōurnal. Who is trying to reach them … and why?

The good news: There might be one person with some answers. The bad news: She’s a mortician … with a deadly secret.

Speaking of bad news, straight-A Sophie is quickly sliding down the scale to becoming a B-flat friend. She is spending way more time hanging out with “Danger Me” and way less time with the Graveyard Girls and her schoolwork. Will her scary story be enough to win back her pals, or will her picture-perfect life become the ultimate photo bomb?

“Legend has it that every year, on the anniversary of his death, one girl sees a flash of lightning – just like Old Sparky – and hears the thonk-thonk of Hoke’s wooden leg getting closer. Then – poof! She’s never heard from again.”

Sixth graders Whisper, Frannie, Sophie and Gemma are the Grim Sleepers. For the past two years they have had monthly sleepovers where they take turns telling scary stories. In Misery Falls, Oregon, though, the scariest story of all is that of Silas Hoke, the town’s infamous murderer.

Each year, the town hosts Hoke Week, a series of events leading up to the anniversary of his execution. This year, it’s the 100th anniversary since Silas’ death and the “atmosfear” is decidedly spooky.

The first in a new five book series, this was a fun read. The four Grim Sleepers are:

💀 Whisper, the track star. Whisper lives with her father and Miles, her ten year old brother. Unfortunately, Tina, her father’s girlfriend has also moved in and she’s brought Paisley, her daughter, and Rayne, her son, with her. Paisley is one of the popular girls in Whisper’s class. Ugh!

💀 Frannie, the actress. Frannie has twin baby brothers, Sami and Balthazar. She doesn’t want to speak about her falling out with Miranda.

💀 Sophie, the straight A student. Sophie puts an immense amount of pressure on herself to be as good (or better) than Jade, her older sister.

💀 Gemma, the leader. Gemma is the Grim Sleeper who truly believes in the supernatural. Layla, her mother, and Harmony, her aunt, run a metaphysical supplies store called Spirit Sanctuary.

Although she’s not one of the four friends we meet in the beginning of the book, Zuzu quickly became my favourite character. She’s creative and she’s into horror movies. There’s a big part of herself that she keeps hidden and I can’t wait to see her character grow throughout the series.

Although it’s beyond a cliché at this point to have a friendship group consisting of the leader, the dramatic one, the jock, the smart one and the creative one, middle grade readers likely won’t have come across this too many times yet. Despite the cliché, I liked the girls. They each have their own struggles relating to school or family and being able to read chapters from all of their perspectives helped me to care about what happened to each of them.

I may have missed something but throughout the book Frannie keeps the details of the falling out between her and Miranda a secret from her friends. Later, though, we’re told that the whole school knows the story.

One of the characters plays Camille Saint-Saëns’ Danse Macabre, which I’d never heard played on the piano before. I’m exhausted and all I did was watch someone else play it.

I’m looking forward to continuing this series.

I know this town. Its corners. Its alleys. Its hiding spots. Most of all, its dead ends.

And Misery Falls is one giant dead end. Escape is impossible.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Union Square Kids, an imprint of Union Square & Co., for the opportunity to read this book.

Once Upon a Blurb

Meet Whisper, Frannie, Sophie, Gemma, and Zuzu, five friends who tell eerie tales by night and navigate middle school drama by day.

Misery Falls, Oregon, is abuzz as the 100th anniversary of the electrocution of the town’s most infamous killer, Silas Hoke, approaches. When a mysterious text message leads the girls to the cemetery – where Silas Hoke is buried! – life can’t get any creepier. Except, yes, it can thanks to the surprise storyteller who meets them at the cemetery, inspires the first-ever meeting of the Graveyard Girls, and sets the stage for a terrifying tale from Whisper that they’ll never forget.

This slightly scary, extremely addictive story is the first in a five-book series by New York Times bestselling authors Lisi Harrison and Daniel Kraus.