Are you looking for a spooky story to keep you up this All Hallows’ Eve? Here are some bone-chilling middle-grade tales guaranteed to send shivers down your spine!
The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle by Janet Fox is a fast-paced page-turner that will keep your knees knocking long after you turn the last page. With a strong, brave heroine, a thoroughly-terrifying villain, and a one-of-a-kind storyline, it’s a spooktacular read. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman is another one of my go-to reads each Halloween. A creative spin on Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book, this story takes place in a graveyard. Instead of being raised by wolves in a jungle, Gaiman’s main character Bod is raised by a host of ghosts, werewolves, and other creepy creatures of the night. Gaiman is a master storyteller, and this is a dark and imaginative tale that will cast its spell on you.
A Curious Tale of the In-Between by Lauren DeStefano has an old-fashioned ghost-story feel, with pages steeped in mist, haunted ruins, and long-forgotten and wronged spirits. This is like “The Sixth Sense” for a younger audience. Once you start reading it, you won’t be able to put it down. The Humming Room, by Ellen Potter, is a fantastic modernized spin-off of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s The Secret Garden with a ghostly twist. The writing is lovely and lyrical, and the descriptions of a former tuberculosis sanitarium add a dreamy, haunting mood to the tale. It’s a great read.
Pick up any one of these books from your local library or bookstore, turn down the lights, and be prepared for some delightfully fun scares!
