Thaw

March 1, 2011

Gr 7 Up-A high-interest, modern-day horror series. Each story features unusual teen problems that occur in a small New England town. In Skin, Nick Barry's face starts to break out in a rash while his bones feel like living ice. An extreme anger starts to pulsate within him. With the help of friends, he slowly discovers an ancient evil possessor hiding within him. In Thaw, strange and awful things start to happen as the teens start to lose their grip on reality. After Dani's best friend, Jake, is kidnapped by an infamous thawed-out cult leader, they both enter an alternate, yet dangerous reality that might cost them their lives. In The Protectors, Luke's angry stepfather works as a mortician, while his mother conducts seances. Living in a funeral home that has its own secrets starts to take its toll on Luke when his mother dies in a car accident. Sounds of screams and rattling chains plague his dreams. Is his mother really dead? He soon discovers a secret as terrifying as he once imagined. Each short book delivers an entertaining horrific tale, leaving appreciative readers gasping for breath.-Krista Welz, North Bergen Public Library, NJ

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2011
During a power outage in Dani's town, twenty-seven cryogenically frozen prisoners thaw and mysteriously disappear. They--and Dani's best friend, Jake--are in an alternate reality created by a cult leader, a world Dani has to enter to rescue Jake. The premise is too complex for such a short book, but reluctant readers may enjoy the high-interest, often gruesome plot.

(Copyright 2011 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)