Book Review | Ghost Girl by Ally Malinenko

Source: preordered purchase. This is a review of my reading experience.

Ghost Girl is a middle grade horror novel by Ally Malinenko.

Perfect for fans of Small Spaces and Nightbooks, Ally Malinenko’s middle-grade debut is an empowering and triumphant ghost story—with spooky twists sure to give readers a few good goosebumps!

Zee Puckett loves ghost stories. She just never expected to be living one.

It all starts with a dark and stormy night. When the skies clear, everything is different. People are missing. There’s a creepy new principal who seems to know everyone’s darkest dreams. And Zee is seeing frightening things: large, scary dogs that talk and maybe even . . . a ghost.

When she tells her classmates, only her best friend, Elijah, believes her. Worse, mean girl Nellie gives Zee a cruel nickname: Ghost Girl.

But whatever the storm washed up isn’t going away. Everyone’s most selfish wishes start coming true in creepy ways.

To fight for what’s right, Zee will have to embrace what makes her different and what makes her Ghost Girl. And all three of them—Zee, Elijah, and Nellie—will have to work together if they want to give their ghost story a happy ending.

I loved Ghost Girl!

Growing up I picked up every book I could find that possibly had a ghost in it. All of the amazing middle grade and young adult books that exist today weren't available back then. My inner Jen still gets excited every time I get to pick up a middle grade horror - especially the ones that center around ghosts.

While Ghost Girl is certainly a ghostly book, it is much, much more than that. And most important (to me) - it's scary! I love when a horror book turns out to be scary, and Ghost Girl joins the ranks of Hide and Seeker, The Girl and the Ghost, Root Magic, and Where the Woods End for having some amazing horror content!

Like Hide and Seeker, it will also hit you right in the feels. I love the characters of Zee, Elijah, and Nellie. Their character growth and their friendships are wonderful! I grew to love them so much.

If you read middle grade or have someone in your life who reads middle grade, I highly recommend Ghost Girl. I can't wait to read more from Ally Malinenko!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5/5 stars

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Book Review | Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand

Sawkill Girls is a YA horror novel by Claire Legrand.

Who are the Sawkill Girls?

Marion: the new girl. Awkward and plain, steady and dependable. Weighed down by tragedy and hungry for love she’s sure she’ll never find.

Zoey: the pariah. Luckless and lonely, hurting but hiding it. Aching with grief and dreaming of vanished girls. Maybe she’s broken—or maybe everyone else is.

Val: the queen bee. Gorgeous and privileged, ruthless and regal. Words like silk and eyes like knives, a heart made of secrets and a mouth full of lies.

Their stories come together on the island of Sawkill Rock, where gleaming horses graze in rolling pastures and cold waves crash against black cliffs. Where kids whisper the legend of an insidious monster at parties and around campfires.

Where girls have been disappearing for decades, stolen away by a ravenous evil no one has dared to fight… until now.

This is going to be a hard review to write, but I'm determined to review all of the books I finish reading. Sawkill Girls just didn't work for me. It has gotten a lot of love so there is definitely an audience, but I'm not in that population.

There was a lot going on with Sawkill Girls. Instead of being a blend of genres, it felt like it meandered from one to the next. It was a very long read for me, but a lot of reviewers I trust dug it so it might still be a good fit for you. The writing within the story was great. I would be willing to read another horror novel from Legrand. I just didn't mesh well with this one.

⭐⭐★★★