A Ghost Hunter's Guide to the Most Haunted Houses in America - Terrence Zepke

                I’m not sure if I believe in ghosts but after I read this guide to the most haunted houses in America I’m pretty sure I won’t be staying overnight in any of these places any time soon. For some reason this book completely creeped me out, but in a good way. The author presents each house with some “fun” facts, the history of the house, and the hauntings that have or are taking place there. She also provides a few words about where the house is located and whether it can be visited or not. Almost all of the houses have pictures attached which I really enjoyed. It’s nice to be able to visualize the place where all of the horrid and gruesome things happened that supposedly brought about the hauntings. Ms. Zepke’s style of writing is entertaining and, unlike a lot of guide books, the information is not dry or monotonous. Even if I never visit any of these places, I enjoyed reading about them and the murders and deaths that occurred there. This is due in part to the excellent writing style. It is clear by Ms. Zepke’s writing that she has a keen interest in the subject of ghosts and provides her own thoughts on the places in the book she has visited. I was unsure whether this would format to my ereader due to the pictures but it worked amazingly well. The cover and title will draw in anyone with an interest in ghosts and the book will tell them where to find them.

Danny Boyle and the Underland - William Graham

                I’m always looking for books that would interest preteens and it’s quite hard to find good ones for that age group. I came across William Graham’s Danny Boyle series and fell in love with the characters, the setting, and the adventures. This book has everything a preteen looks for in a story: great characters, action, adventure, and a believable story. Danny Boyle is a twelve year old boy who is always looking for adventure. When his uncle tells him about a world under the ground he decides to find it and enlists the help of his best friend, Chip. Unfortunately, his little sister secretly follows them and gets herself kidnapped. They all end up not only finding the world under the ground but fighting in a war between the two tribes who live there. I enjoyed reading this book. The characters are completely believable for their age group. The author has done an excellent job of writing for and about ten to twelve year olds. The relationship between Danny and his sister reminded me of my relationship with my older brother. The book is short, around one hundred pages on my ereader, so it’s perfect for blossoming readers. I read the digital form of this book and it formatted well. For me the cover wasn’t all that interesting and may need to be a little more eye catching to grab a preteen’s interest but the story was excellent.

The Harmony Scroll - Edita Petrick

Gabriel is a little boy with a curse that lies dormant inside of him. The Peacetaker curse will mean devastation to the world and more than a few terrorists would love to get a hold of Gabriel so they can try to activate the curse. The only thing that will save Gabriel from the curse is the golden scroll. Stella, Gabriel’s adoptive mother, and Carter, a contract operative for the government, will do whatever they can to find it. The story travels around the world and is filled with twists and turns, a true action-packed thriller. I made the mistake of not reading the first book in the series and felt like I was playing catch-up the whole way through. Sometimes you don’t need to read the previous books in a series because enough of a back story is provided by the author to give a sense of the story. In this case however I think I would have enjoyed the story even more had I read the first book. I loved the historical aspects of the story and the author delves into the history of the golden scroll which added to the believability. I enjoyed the character of Carter, a gruff but likeable man, but Stella never really became a favorite of mine. I read the digital version of this book and it worked well on my ereader. The cover is attractive although it was the storyline that drew me in, not the artwork on the cover. A great book, just be sure to read the series in order.