Gr 4–7—Amateur sleuth Ginny is disappointed when her summer plans are quashed in favor of her father's
monthlong renovation project of a huge, spooky mansion in Michigan. There's plenty of lore about Woodmoor
Manor, and when Ginny experiences these terrifying supernatural events for herself, she's plunged into a mystery
deeper than she ever imagined. Currie provides thrills and chills in this fast-paced supernatural detective tale.

One of my biggest bookish pet peeves is misleading blurbs and/or titles. This book has both. It is a haunted house story. Not one character goes into the woods or even ponders going into the woods. As a haunted house story it's pretty good, creepy even at times (probably would have been 4 stars if I was in the mood for a haunted house story), but I didn't want to read a haunted house story. I wanted to read about weird creatures in the woods dragging campers away never to be seen again. I know authors have no control over the blurb, but I'm pretty sure they can name a book whatever they want and so I just don't understand why the title would mention something that has literally, absolutely, definitely nothing to do with the story.

Ok, so with that out of the way. I did enjoy the book once I calmed down a bit after realizing the bait and switch. I still think Scritch Scratch is this author's best book and I did chuckle at the ghost tour connection during the epilogue. I like that the common theme in all her books (that I've read) is that these ghosts aren't malevolent. They just want to move on and are trying to communicate the best they can. ( )

I enjoyed the cast of characters in this middle grade, ghost story as well as the atmosphere the author creates. But I was complete let down and underwhelmed by the ending. ( )

“What Lives in the Woods” opens with a young writing enthusiast, Ginny, looking forward to attending a writing workshop with her best friend, Erica. However, her dad has other plans for the family--the family is going to stay at a haunted manor in Michigan for a month, so that he can work on renovations and reimagining the place. Of course, the place is haunted and has spooky rumors surrounding it. Very eerie, but the rest of the family isn’t concerned.

Ginny arrives, and while she was initially hesitant, starts to see the beauty in the town and decides it is just a month long vacation. She goes into town and meets Will, who lets her know that there are some rumors associated with the manor, and that his own brother has seen something in the house. And then more things begin happening in the house--ticking noises, mannequins moving, lightbulbs exploding, etc. All throughout the author has a strong balance of character dialogue, inner thoughts, and descriptions to advance the plot. As a reader Ii was left wondering if there was truly some paranormal happenings, or if the mystery would somehow be resolved in a 100% logical manner--I was hooked! I would encourage teachers to have this book on their shelves for students who like a good mystery with quick pacing. My only minor critique is that the ending wraps up very quickly, and the family somehow seems to be way more wealthy than they were at the start (like a month prior), but it was a nice, sweet ending.
( )

This was a fun, middle-grade, mystery novel. I love that Ginny likens herself to Agatha Christie and I almost feel like she needed to be saying WWAD? whenever a new clue was presented. I love that Ginny and Leo transition from being selfish and wanting to leave the manor to realizing the impacts that would have on their family.

My favorite line was the Mr. Roboto line, I had to stop and read it to the husband so that he could laugh with me.

Overall, a fun mystery and I highly recommend. ( )