MIDDLE GRADE AND YA HORROR ROUNDUP FOR JULY 2021

26/7/2021

The standard of Middle Grade and YA horror continues to be very high, and I have so many books to review there will be a further roundup in August. For July we have a great selection of six books, including a unique double bill by Tom Deady. This author is well established on the adult horror scene, and is a winner of the HWA Bram Stoker Award, but The Clearing is his debut foray into YA fiction. I’m delighted to say Tom makes an impressive splash and this is solidly backed up by Of Men and Monsters, which although is an adult novella has strong YA vibes. Kathryn Foxfield follows her excellent Good Girls Die First (2020) with another quality read, It’s Behind You, will have teen readers speed reading everywhere when a group of low-rent social media stars get trapped in a haunted cave. YA horror great William Hussey continues his exile from the supernatural with the superb Outrage, which cements this amazing author’s reputation as a voice for the LGBTQ+ movement in dark fiction.

Over the years I have read many Kenneth Oppel novels, this versatile Canadian really deserves to be better known in the UK, and in Bloom (book one in the Overthrow Trilogy) we have a very enjoyable horror science fiction thriller development of Day of the Triffids. Bryce Moore takes us back to 1890s Chicago in The Perfect Place to Die where a naive teenager arrives in the big city looking for her sister, a potential victim of a serial killer. Last (and certainly not least) Rose Szabo’s What Big Teeth arrives in the UK with some hype. Is it YA or adult fiction? It is very hard to tell and this dark fairy-tale defies categorisation when a teenager returns to her monstrous family after many years in boarding school.

The books are presented in alphabetical order by author.

Tom Deady – The Clearing

If you’re after a gateway horror novel for kids aged ten plus, then look no further than Tom Deady’s outstanding The Clearing which is perfect for the top end of primary to the early secondary years. Deady is clearly on fine form, as this roundup also includes his Of Men and Monsters, which although is adult has solid YA leanings, thankfully The Clearing does not feature the same bleak ending and is more in tune with Middle Grade fiction. This engrossing read had everything to get keen kids turning the pages; engaging characters, great pace, threat (but not too scary), a taste of early romance, and friendship which is all cleverly built around a snappy mystery, which develops supernatural overtones and conspiracy in the local community. I have already bought a copy for my school library. Bizarrely, something about it made me think of the 1970s cult film Race with the Devil where Warren Oates and friends are stalked by Satanists, who hide in plain sight. Set in a small and sleepy New Hampshire town, two young girls find themselves in danger after deciding to do a Nancy Drew and carry out their own investigation, instead of going to the police. It was the summer holidays, and they were bored, so who can blame them?

The Clearing has a super cool opening hook which is guaranteed to reel any young horror hound in right from the off. Hannah Green is out walking her dog when the pooch makes a grisly find, a decomposing foot. Instead of going to the police she calls her best friend Ashley, and they begin to snoop, which leads them into a decades old mystery which they connect to the disappearance of a local girl. As they begin to join the dots, other characters are introduced and suspicion falls on a reclusive old woman, Mama Bayole. There were not too many suspects, but this mystery was great fun, with the supernatural story convincingly backed by the friendship story between Hannah and Ashley. Another story strands involves Hannah and her father, who is struggling to cope (as is Hannah) with the disappearance of her mother the previous year. The crisp pace, kidnappings and red herrings ensure the intensity keeps up right to the end, which finishes satisfyingly for a potential sequel. As with most Middle Grade horror, it was very clear who were the ‘good’ and who were the ‘bad’ guys, but it was great fun accompanying Hannah and Ashley on their adventure. AGE RANGE 10-13.

Tom Deady – Of Men and Monsters

Tom Deady’s excellent novella Of Men and Monsters is undoubtedly aimed at the adult market, but it has a very strong YA vibe pumping through it. The thirteen or fourteen-year-old version of myself would have sped through these 88-pages in a single sitting, I might not have picked up on the heavy family abuse overtones but would have loved the convincing coming-of-age story set over a long hot summer and the cute girls hanging around in the background. Nostalgically set in 1975 the narrator Ryan Baxter, his brother Matt and their mother suddenly move to a small seaside town, which is generally empty when season is over. Ryan who is eleven, and in particular fourteen-year-old Matt are very sad to end up in Bayport (MA) but are on the run from their abusive father. However, they quickly make new friends and more importantly, both brothers meet girls.

I really enjoyed the relationship between the two brothers and their mother and their struggles to escape the shadow of their father and had fond recollections of my own childhood summers which seemed to go on forever. However, I was not convinced by eleven-year-old kids having girlfriends and talk of “going through the bases”, come on ELEVEN, when I was that age, I was somewhat behind Ryan who gets his first kiss over the course of the novella. The supernatural element was very cleverly introduced into the story, with Ryan finding a huge pile of old comics in the attic, then bonds with his brother through shared reading, before filling in a coupon which leads to the arrival of a strange package. The uneasiness which this begins is cleverly balanced with the trials of first love and the dangerous shadow of the father, the silent telephone caller. In the end it was a moving story, perhaps the ending was a tad too bleak for YA readers (and me!) but it was a great little book which said and crammed a lot into its engrossing 88-pages. AGE RANGE 14+

Kathryn Foxfield - It's Behind You

Kathryn Foxfield impressed me greatly with her 2020 debut Good Girls Die First in which a group of teens get stranded on an abandoned pier and get picked off one by one by a malevolent force. Her follow up, It’s Behind You is another very entertaining read and fans of past-paced thrillers, with a strong emphasis on social media are in for another treat. It is probably not as dark as its predecessor, nor does it have the body count and is obviously a lighter read. However, it does have some very claustrophobic scenes when the gang are stuck underground and there is a potential killer, or supernatural entity stalking them. As some of these characters were loud You Tube ‘almost’ stars or wannabe actors I would not have minded a few more grisly killings! But the novel pulls back on that potential direction and instead convincingly blends characters (which genuinely grow on you), interview segments, a few comic scenes, folklore and ultimately having to pull together in order to survive and put their phones down for five minutes.

Like Good Girls Die First I sped through It’s Behind You and if it finds the right young teenagers, they will most certainly devour this frothy fun in a few days. Considering the novel was about a reality show that promises to scare you to death, the plot is not dominated by social media, although it does play a key part. Lex tells the story via a first-person narrative, and amusingly is told by the producers that she has no chance of winning the cash prize and is there as comic support to the other four contestants. But this girl has her own moves! The group aim to spend the night in the supposedly haunted Umber Gorge, where there were disappearances some years earlier. Lex starts off very confrontational, but really grows on you, and it was a great read when the production crew started to ramp up the scares, until things really went off-the-wall wrong. In the background we have the malevolent spirit, the infamous ‘Puckered Maiden’ which may or not be real, but I enjoyed the direction Foxfield took this element of the story. This was another very easy to read winner from an author to watch with some fun twists, great atmosphere and a really annoying You Tuber called ‘Python’! What is it with You Tubers that makes me want to punch them? AGE RANGE 12+

William Hussey – The Outrage

Whilst The Outrage is not a horror novel, I make no apologies, as a new novel from the great Bill Hussey is always something to celebrate. I’ve reviewed Bill numerous times in the past and although he has written some terrific YA horror novels, he is fast becoming a very distinctive literary voice in the LGBTQ+ movement. His last novel Hideous Beauty dealt with the fallout after a gay teen relationship was exposed on social media, but The Outrage explores a single-sex relationship in a much more sinister and scarily dystopian environment. The action is set in a near future version of Britain where gay relationships are banned and the government, the Protectorate, once seen as a loony fringe party enforce the ‘Public Good’. This means that women must keep their hair from being too short, films which show positive gay relationships are banned and those who are gay have to keep it hidden, otherwise they will end up in a prison camp for reconditioning.

To any teen reading this who has grown up in an era where homosexual people can marry and Pride is routinely celebrated, both the foreword by Jay Hulme and the afterword by Hussey are essential reading. They put it into context and make it clear that the equality LGBTQ+ currently have in the UK has not always been that way and is hard earned, with Hussey recalling ‘Section 28’ which made the promotion of homosexual activities illegal when he was growing up. The story focusses on two gay teenagers Gabriel and Eric and tells their story in tandem, ‘before’ and ‘after’ whilst they try to live in a society where being homosexual is a crime. Things are made worse by the fact that Eric is the son of the chief inspector at Degenerate Investigations and Gabriel is a natural rebel who enjoys rocking against the system. There were so many things I loved about this book; the beautiful unapologetic relationship, the background characters who were secretly in the rebellion and the references to the Underground Railroad, which helped slaves escape the south in America. The scariest thing about the book was how real if felt, with some sections feeling eerily familiar, or still practiced in many countries. Bill Hussey has written some great YA horror novels, but his last two efforts, which both have powerful LGBTQ+ messages have taken his fiction to new heights. AGE RANGE 13+

Kenneth Oppel – Bloom (Overthrow book 1)

I have been a fan of Kenneth Oppel for a number of years and have a large number of his books in my school library. I also have a particular soft spot for Kenneth as his superb novel, The Nest (2015) was the first YA book I reviewed for Ginger Nuts of Horror back in 2015. If you have never tried Oppel I urge you to look him up, he masterly moves around the genres, taking in horror, historical fiction, fantasy, thrillers and comedy. This latest book Bloom changes direction once again and takes in the end of the world, or the beginning of the end, as this is the opening part of a trilogy, all of which were published quite close together. I recently heard Kenneth talk at a south London book event about his comedy fantasy Inkling, which is another cracker which shows the sheer versatility of his work. This is yet another clever change of pace and his very original riff on the Day of the Triffids story, or more generally killer plants trying to take over the world. I really enjoyed Bloom as soon as I finished it ordered book two and three for my school library! In his talk Oppel surmised that because of Covid-19 kids might not have the appetite for this ‘end of the world’ type of novel, I hope he’s wrong and I will definitely be recommending it widely.

You will read this book as pace. It's a great thriller, full of frightening surprises, exciting escapes and a terrific blend of horror and science fiction style ideas. The main characters are relatable teens dealing with broken relationships and believable real-life stuff (like acne, crushes and the school magazine) until a mysterious rain covers everything. The rain is followed by black grass growing incredibly fast all over town and you later realise the whole world. It is almost like the rain is alive or intelligent. The grass isn't the worst of it and there were some outstanding plot twists, involving genetics, about where it comes from and grows. As the terror ramps up, so do the mysteries surrounding the three main teenagers and the sudden bodily changes they are experiencing. It's a combination that makes the book a truly riveting read. Now I must read book two before a kid borrows it. AGE RANGE 10+

Bryce Moore – The Perfect Place to Die

I enjoyed Bryce Moore’s The Perfect Place to Die which was predominately set in Chicago during the 1890s, with a seventeen-year-old girl travelling from Utah in search of her sister. During this historical period there was massive population migrations from rural states to the big cities, with the new arrivals being treated like country bumpkins with straw in their hair. This is effectively conveyed in the early stages with main character Zuretta being conned by the first person she meets, losing even the clothes she was wearing and forced to go to the police in her dressing gown. The story has a great sense of time and place and I found myself enjoying this dangerous, but nevertheless lively and bustling city. The action is set during the World's Columbian Exposition, bringing even more people to the city for jobs in hotels and visiting the Exposition. Arriving from Utah, Zuretta is concerned that her weekly letters from her nineteen-year-old sister abruptly stopped and finding the police unhelpful begins her own investigation.

Considering she was a Mormon from a small backwater in Utah Zuretta was way too street savvy for a seventeen-year-old girl, however, I guess she learned her lesson when she lost her clothes. Along the way she hooks up with a Pinkerton Detective and the story, in a roundabout way, looks at the situation of women in this period and their lack of opportunities. Zuretta becomes a maid in a hotel, as do most women. The Perfect Place to Die also has a strong true crime vibe and is based on a genuine series of murders, if you are familiar with these crimes (I wasn’t) then that could provide a major spoiler. Also, although it was a murder mystery, the plot lacked any major twists, and the big reveal was no surprise. Zuretta is certain her sister worked in a hotel known as The Castle and ends up getting a job there and quickly finds out this was an odd place to work, due to unfriendly management and a strange structural design. Every chapter is introduced by a quote from the journal of the killer. A lot of research went into this book, and it was an entertaining blend of historical fiction, thriller and an earnest look at how tough it was for women to get ahead in this era. Zuretta cracks it in the end though. Go girl! AGE RANGE 13+

Rose Szabo - What Big Teeth

There has been a fair bit of interest in What Big Teeth since its release in America earlier in the year and it is easy to see why. Billed as “Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children meets The Addams Family”, thus was a very strange, beguiling and very difficult to categorise dark fantasy. The American Amazon site lists it for ages 14-18, which I would agree with, however, adults could read this without ever catching on it technically was a teen novel. This is very mature YA which bleeds very closely with adult fiction, the fact that many existing reviews do not even mention it is YA would back that assumption up. It is most definitely aimed at older and capable readers, as it is very slow, atmospheric and lacks many of the traditional features of a YA teen novel, such as friendship, romance or a particularly big finish which resolves all. Alternatively, we are presented with one girl’s attempt to reconnect with her monstrous family after years in the wilderness. Part of the fun of the novel way trying to figure out what type of creatures Eleanor Zarrin’s family are? Hints and slights are dropped here and there, but it is never truly clarified, and the novel admirably refuses to tread any of the tropes connected to Paranormal Romance or popular authors such as Sarah J Maas or Leigh Bardugo. Also, the word ‘werewolf’ is never used and there is nothing in the family history to say this is what they are, but they are ‘wolfish’ in some way, vividly drawn and altogether unpleasant.

The story is bizarre and takes its time setting its stall out in a dark gothic setting and will undoubtedly be too slow for younger readers. However, it is not particularly violent, and I would not recommend restricting any reader from trying it, although a certain level of emotional maturity will be required. Eleanor has been at boarding school for years, abandoned by her family, What Big Teeth begins when she returns to the remote New England family home, and it becomes quickly clear her family members can turn into monsters. It is initially vague whether Eleanor is the same as the rest of the family, an incident from years earlier is referred to, as is a confrontation at school where she bit another girl. Thinking of the potential teen readership again, not a huge amount happens in the first half of the novel, but things begin to move in the second half after a death and the arrival of her grandmother who begins to shake the family up in all sorts of ways. Eleanor is more like her Grandmere than she realises, and a strange relationship is formed between the pair. As the novel develops, we realise everybody is even less human than we thought. I loved the vagueness of the setting, the time period and Eleanor’s search into what and who she exactly she is. Some of the imagery in the final third was really wild and blew me away. In some ways What Big Teeth a very dark coming of age with Eleanor an outcast in her tight-knit family searching for answers to which nobody is prepared to give and, in the end realises there are more than one type of monster, and some are more powerful than others. AGE RANGE 14+