Publication Date: 5 March 2020

The Blurb

When Hedy and Spencer start receiving messages on dusty picture frames, Christmas at their grandfather’s spooky house turns into a mission to solve the mystery of their grandmother’s disappearance. What is their magician grandfather not telling them? With the help of a (talking) mounted stag head, an (also talking) bear rug, and other (currently) disembodied spirits, and against the resistance of gargoyles and ravens, Hedy and Spencer set out to find the truth.

The Review

Magic, mystery and menace abound in The House On Hoarder Hill as the van Beer children set off a chain of events, unlocking long dormant secrets and lies.

Disbelief quickly turns into a desperate race to unravel the secrets locked away in the dusty, unused rooms. Heady and Spencer need to learn who they can trust and believe in each other while conquering the fears that simmer beneath the surface.

The setting in the remote house is wonderfully spooky and atmospheric, with the young characters bringing warmth and light that has been missing from their Grandfather’s home.

Their instant bond with cousins, Jelly and Max, was so reminiscent of family gatherings as a child where I’d race off with cousins, picking up where we’d left of as if no time had passed between the last meeting, even if it had been a couple of years.

While some of the stranger inhabitants of the house will have you giggling and wishing you had one too, other are menacing and malevolent with their presence always lurking in the shadows.

You can read the opening chapters over on the Chicken House website.

Great for fans of:

• The Midnight Hour by Benjamin Read and Laura Trinder
• The Fire Maker by Guy Jones
• Christmas Dinner Of Souls by Ross Montgomery
• Small Change For Stuart by Lissa Evans

Huge thanks to Laura and Chicken House for sending me a copy.