The Witching Hour (Midnight)

Fallenstein, J.

ISBN 10: 1512427713 ISBN 13: 9781512427714

Publisher: Darby Creek Pub, 2017

Synopsis

What do you do when you're new to a town where unexplainable things keep happening? Rosie moves to Middleton right after Mackie, a star on the high school football team, has died—and Mackie's death may have been his best friend Omar's fault. Rosie tries to help Omar get over his grief as the whole town blames him for the accident, but Mackie's ghost doesn't seem to be satisfied. What can they do to stop the haunting?

About this title

Review

"A group of teens tries to survive a spooky night. Mexican-American teenager Mateo is excited to cruise the long and windy Pacific Coast Highway with his three school buddies in the jeep he fixed from the ground up. Mateo's ready to kick the dust of his small town off his shoes, get his immigrant parents off his back, and head to Cal Poly University to become an automotive engineer. In the meantime, Mateo and his pals plan on spending this particular night away from their phones and on the open road enjoying the evening's blood moon. Legend tells of spirits that spend the blood moon interfering with the living, and it doesn't take long for Mateo and his friends to encounter some spooky doings of their own. The author crafts a solid-enough little ghost story, leaning on propulsive action and simple characterization (only Mateo approaches three dimensions) to build up to the big scares. The enterprise reads like a Goosebumps book for teenagers. The novel's greatest strength is its mercenary pacing, getting in and out with a lesson learned and scares enjoyed before readers get remotely restless. Readers fond of sophisticated horror should look elsewhere, but those with little time or who are just dipping their toes into tales of things that go bump in the night will find enough to satisfy here. Series companions Dark Star, Graffiti, and The Witching Hour publish simultaneously. A superfast, sturdy-enough creep show."--Kirkus Reviews

--Journal

"This new series follows the separate stories of teens living in a town called Middleton who have eerie and sinister experiences with which they must grapple. Try and his friends have a suspense-filled camping trip at lake Helen, where teen shave been mysteriously disappearing, in Truth or Dare. In Graffiti, a series of unexplained accidents lead couples to believe that they will be haunted by a ghost if they break up, and Lucia must solve the mystery before something tragic happens. The Witching Hour centers on new girl Rosie, who must help a boy who believes he is being haunted by the former star of the football team after being blamed for his death. Tyrell begins seeing a mysterious light signaling to him and a phantom girl after a near-death experience in S.O.S. VERDICT The slim volumes, written at a fourth grade reading level, have somewhat predictable plots but will be intriguing to middle and high school readers interested in suspense and the paranormal."--School Library Journal

--Journal

About the Author

J. Fallenstein likes to scare herself by asking "what if?" She sometimes writes scary stories that answer that question. You can find her at midnight in Minnesota wide awake wondering what that noise was.

Edition details

• Publisher: Darby Creek Pub
• Publication date: 2017
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1512427713
• ISBN 13: 9781512427714
• Binding: Library Binding
• Number of pages: 88