I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The Dollhouse
A Ghost Story
Written by Charis Cotter
Published by Tundra Books
on August 31, 2021
Genre: Middle Grade, Mystery, Paranormal
Length: 360 pages
Ages: 9 - 12 years
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Synopsis:
A creepy, mysterious dollhouse takes center stage in this atmospheric middle-grade mystery for fans of Doll Bones and Small Spaces.
Alice's world is falling apart. Her parents are getting a divorce, and they've canceled their yearly cottage trip--the one thing that gets Alice through the school year. Instead, Alice and her mom are heading to some small town where Alice's mom will be a live-in nurse to a rich elderly lady.
The house is huge, imposing and spooky, and everything inside is meticulously kept and perfect--not a fun place to spend the summer. Things start to get weird when Alice finds a dollhouse in the attic that's an exact replica of the house she's living in. Then she wakes up to find a girl asleep next to her in bed--a girl who looks a lot like one of the dolls from the dollhouse...
When the dollhouse starts to change when Alice isn't looking, she knows she has to solve the mystery. Who are the girls in the dollhouse? What happened to them? And what is their connection to the mysterious woman who owns the house?
My Thoughts:
When Alice's parents decide to split up, her mom finds a job as a live-in nurse taking care of the elderly Mrs. Bishop who recently took a tumble in her beautifully preserved 1830's Georgian-style home called Blackwood. Once they are settled in, an interesting series of ghost sightings, all-too-real dreams, and a secret dollhouse in the attic plague Alice's every waking moment.
As Alice falls deeper into the mystery of Blackwood and its secret dollhouse, her own reality begins to shatter around her. Can she find the answers even as she slips into her own dark imagination?
I loved Small Spaces by Katherine Arden so I jumped on the chance to read this and wasn't disappointed!
The mystery of the dollhouse and the house's original occupants will take you for a spin and the spook factor will keep you on the tip of your toes! I was thoroughly absorbed in this mysterious ghost story and didn't want to put it down!
I especially loved the attention to detail when describing Blackwood and its interior and also that the MC had just enough knowledge of the architectural style (thanks to an old-house-obsessed father) that we are given a little info on it upfront. As a big fan of spooky, old houses--both in literature and real life--that tickled my fancy a lot and helped me imagine the house better as I was reading.
Middle-grade readers will love this!
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