Review: Outgrown Goosebumps? Here's your new read!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 08 4, 2012
There's this old abandoned farm in the middle of endless suburbia, of *course* it's haunted! Josh humors his best friend Zach, who wants to get pictures, and finds more than he bargained for. When Mr. Baxter, their history teacher, finds out what they're up to, he surprises them with support and even better cameras. When Whisper, a new girl, transfers into their school, she and Josh hit it off immediately and find they have more in common than teen hormones! They learn they're Ghost Betweens, people with an affinity for ghosts, who always work in pairs. Mr. Baxter has to teach them what they need to know quickly, because the farm has its secrets... and its up to Josh and Whisper to save Zach and Kendra.One thing that made this book stands out from a lot of other YA titles was that when the guy says or does that monumentally stupid thing that puts a big dent in the relationship, I didn't see it coming until it was already there. In others I've read, I saw it coming and actually stopped reading for a while because I didn't want to look. (Of course I did, eventually.) Thumbs up for that one!The only drawback (for me) in this story was the high school itself. It seemed a little too easy-going, no cliques or bullies to navigate around or through. Not realistic in my experience. On the other hand, that's part of what makes it a good step up from the Goosebumps stories, the focus is on the supernatural horror instead of the real stuff. :-)I think this book hits the sweet spot for readers age 13-16, and maybe a little older.