Horrid

Title:

Horrid

Author:

Leno, Katrina, author.

Personal Author:

Leno, Katrina, author.

ISBN:

9780316537247

Edition:

First edition.

Physical Description:

327 pages ; 22 cm

Abstract:

Following her father's sudden death, Jane North-Robinson and her mother are forced to move to the old North house in Maine, where Jane uncovers her family's disturbing secrets.

Following her father's death, Jane North-Robinson and her mom move from California to the dreary, dilapidated North Manor in Maine, where her mother grew up. As autumn arrives, Jane finds solace in old books and memories of her dad. She makes new friends, but struggles to tamp down her anger when facing bullying. Then Jane discovers that the "storage room" her mom has kept locked isn't for storage at all: it's a little girl's bedroom, left untouched for years and not quite as empty of inhabitants as it appears.... -- adapted from jacket

Reading Level:

Ages 14+. Little, Brown and Company.

Subject Term:

Fathers -- Death -- Fiction.

Moving, Household -- Fiction.

Family secrets -- Fiction.

Secrecy -- Juvenile fiction.

Eating disorders -- Fiction.

Sisters -- Fiction.

Secrets -- Fiction.

Ghosts -- Fiction.

Parapsychology -- Fiction.

Geographic Term:

Genre:

Summary:

Following her father's sudden death, Jane North-Robinson and her mother are forced to move to the old North house in Maine, where Jane uncovers her family's disturbing secrets.

Holds:

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Shelf Number	Status
Searching... East End	Book	FICTION LENO	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Westover Hills	Book	FICTION LENO	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

From the author of You Must Not Miss comes a haunting contemporary horror novel that explores themes of mental illness, rage, and grief, twisted with spine-chilling elements of Stephen King and Agatha Christie. Following her father's death, Jane North-Robinson and her mom move from sunny California to the dreary, dilapidated old house in Maine where her mother grew up. All they want is a fresh start, but behind North Manor's doors lurks a history that leaves them feeling more alone ... and more tormented. As the cold New England autumn arrives, and Jane settles in to her new home, she finds solace in old books and memories of her dad. She steadily begins making new friends, but also faces bullying from the resident "bad seed," struggling to tamp down her own worst nature in response. Jane's mom also seems to be spiraling with the return of her childhood home, but she won't reveal why. Then Jane discovers that the "storage room" her mom has kept locked isn't for storage at all--it's a little girl's bedroom, left untouched for years and not quite as empty of inhabitants as it appears... Is it grief? Mental illness? Or something more ... horrid?

Reviews (1)

Kirkus Review

A spooky New England town gets a couple new residents. Jane arrives in Bells Hollow, Maine, hoping to rebuild her life in the wake of her father's unexpected death. After selling their California home to settle debts, Jane's mother, Ruth, has relocated the small family to the childhood home left to her by her estranged parents. The house, North Manor, is the subject of whispers and rumor in the small town. Jane makes friends at school and gets an after-school job in a bookstore that contains a coffee shop, but all the while there's a creeping dread in the back of her mind: Something is very wrong with this place, and her mother isn't being completely honest with her. As Jane stumbles through anxiety, mystery readers will itch for the big reveal. The author crafts spooky set pieces and an intriguing cast of supporting characters, but Jane's repetitive cycle of grief, dread, anxiety, repeat comes very close to wearing out its welcome. Luckily, just when it reaches the boiling point, secrets are revealed and twisted upon, serving up an explosive finale that reframes the slower bits and ends the book on a high note. Main characters are White; Jane's school friend Susie and her boss, Will, are Black. A deliberately paced thriller with a frightful twist. (Thriller. 13-17) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.