This (early) middle grade book was cute and fun to read, especially when I was craving a semi-spooky book now that we are going into summer. And I got so much more than expected when this story offered a bit of historical mystery, adventures, and a touch of romance.

We first find Sydney living in "fabulous" California. Her parents' business is failing and really, Sydney is exhausted at feeling like she needs to keep up appearances with her friends. But then she finds out that her father inherited a house in Delaware. And not only is it not ordinary - it's a funeral home. Sydney is even more surprised when she arrives in the town of Buttermilk River Cove and discovers that the Victorian house is situated right on cemetery grounds.

This makes for an exciting change because finally she thinks she'll move up the social ladder by impressing everyone of her Californian status. Little does she know, no one cares. And she begins to develop a friendship with some of her classmates who are more impressed she lives right next to the undead than anything else.

I expected ghost tales, an actual haunting, perhaps, but what i didn't expect was the historical mystery that ensues. The author did a great job blending the elements of this story with the fact that Delaware is the first state of the Union. It's a state steeped in history and we get the uncovering of an Undercover Railroad, discussions of slaves and the Emancipation Proclamation, and more lighthearted details such as the recipes provided at the end of the book which made me crave hot cocoa made with buttermilk. The ending (or author's note) was also very beautiful and touched me.

This is perfect for tween readers (and adults) out there who enjoy books with a pinch of spooky mystery, friendships, and history. This is especially a great book that demonstrates the importance of being yourself and that honesty really is the best policy.

I’ll be honest; I picked the book because of the cover and then kept it because of the first line: “Even though I hated vampires and just about anything scary, I’d seen Fangs for You five times.”

At the start of the story, Sydney is desperately trying to fit in with the rich pseudo-mean girls of California who do little more than name drop brands they’re wearing. Sydney tries to fit in but she is not wearing designer clothing because her parents just can’t afford them. Her on-again/off-again best friend is Leigh who is the one, when she approves of Sydney’s hair/outfit/shoes, that goes out to eat fancy frozen yogurt with Sydney. Leigh is rich and can afford all the designer things that she deems is important. Sydney thinks she wants this kind of life. Then when her phone breaks and she cannot afford a new one (because Sydney actually had to use her own babysitting money to buy it), AND learns that her parents inherited a cemetery and a Victorian house in Delaware, Leigh doesn’t show much interest in remaining Sydney’s long-distance friend. California-Sydney is completely unlikable in the beginning of the story… but then there’s Delaware-Sydney: a girl just trying to find friends so badly that she’ll do anything to just fit in. The cool thing is that these new friends like her for just being herself.
The Delaware friends are pretty cool, especially Johanna who pretty much constructs a Ouija board- MacGyver style. She also studies a few books over the weekend to learn how to do a séance. And, it just so happens that Johanna is a natural.

There’s a somewhat-believable-not-hokey-at-all ghost. There’s the cemetery IN HER BACKYARD! There’s a scary tunnel that leads somewhere. There are boy crushes who are actually pretty good characters while simultaneously acting like young boys. And, there’s a pretty interesting conclusion.

I loved reading this book. It was high-interest kid-lit, and a great deal of fun. At 244 pages (for my Advanced Readers Copy), I was a bit disappointed that some of the storylines and characters didn’t have more, well, storyline and depth of characterization. For example, Elliott, the landscape designer for the cemetery who wears a clock and decorates the cemetery with holly berries. He was well-read and interesting so there was so much potential there. I wanted him to be more involved in the storyline. While I liked the conclusion, it was wrapped up too quickly and neatly.

But overall, this was a super cute story for your kids, your siblings, or your inner-child.

Thank you for this book. Unfortunately, since it is not in kindle format, I am unable to read it.

Sydney's family has to sell their failing sporting goods business in California but are lucky that they have inherited a cemetery in Delaware. Sydney doesn't want to move, but thinks that everyone will think she's cool because she is from California. She's concerned that they will think she's weird because of the cemetery, but she's got it backwards-- they don't care about California but think the cemetery is cool. Kids from school hang out with her, they try seances, and work on a mystery involving the house's past use on the Underground Railroad.
Strengths: This author's Lost in... books are HUGELY popular. I like her easy writing style.
Weaknesses: I hated Sydney. She was snotty and stuck up and had no patience for her family's situation. Her mother was the same way. Dad came around. Also, they seemed like rather insensitive people to run a cemetery.
What I really think: May have to buy this for this author's fans, but it wasn't a personal favorite.

An Entertaining Friendship and Mystery Story

This is a tricky book and shifts around a bit before it settles in to what it wants to be.

At the outset we have Sydney being yanked from sunny California and dropped into an old Victorian house in the middle of a cemetery in the middle of Delaware. Sydney is not happy about this. The book opens with a lot of Valley Girl whinging and clothing brand name dropping, and I feared this would just be the same-old uppity-snot-gets-taught-a-lesson kind of book.

MILD GENERAL PLOT SUMMARY SPOILERS. Wrong. Sydney actually meets a bunch of fine potential friends at her new school and begins to get acclimated. Further, she comes around on the whole cemetery thing. She thinks her new friends will be creeped out, but they all actually think the cemetery angle is cool, and she begins to think so as well. So, we bypass the whole possible whining, moping, lonely, being difficult chapter and go right to having fun with hauntings.

By the halfway point it's all séances and mysteries, (and a touch of budding romance), as we explore the cemetery and the creepy house and get drawn into a mystery about someone named Ivy Shaw and the meaning behind her hidden locket. All of a sudden the kids are playing Hardy Boys, and instead of some half-hearted ghost story we have an actual historical mystery. Did not see that coming.

The resolution is rather pat, but I guess the fun is in getting there. This struck me as early middle grade. The writing is clear and direct and unembellished. There aren't any big surprises regarding plot or characters or action, and nothing that would strike one as edgy or thought provoking. It's fun and light and mostly about friendship and settling in. That's not a bad thing. (Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)