Cooper is a teen struggling with his life. Life went downhill after his dad left the family to start a new one. His mom is constantly busy, juggling multiple jobs and caring for Cooper and his younger sister, Jess. Cooper has to step up to help care for his sister, particularly helping to manage her diabetes. He's also distanced himself from his friends.

For a few months, he's seen a pale, creepy girl watching him from across the way. His ignore or stare-down approach goes away after he becomes intrigued with the mystery of an unknown child from a train crash. The boy was wearing a jacket with the insignia seen on the creepy girl's jacket.

At the same time, Cooper makes friends with the new kid at school, Gus.

Over time, Cooper and Jess realize that Gus is the only other person to see Elena, the girl across the street. The more they dig, the more mysteries appear.

Overall, this was a fun read. The In-Between should appeal to upper elementary through middle school students who want a novel that is a bit creepy and a bit magical.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a free advanced copy of this book to read and review.

The In-Between by Rebecca K.S. Ansari was a suspenseful, creepy middle grade novel that middle grade students will love. The creepy books are coming back in popularity for my students and this one has not disappointed them. They recommend it to each other often. I have purchased copies for most of my teacher's classrooms.

A couple years ago I read Rebecca Ansari’s debut, The Missing Piece of Charlie O’Reilly and absolutely loved it! It was just the sort of magical mystery that I loved and now Ansari has another magical mystery that is in the same vein as her first book. The In-Between just came out last week and I loved this one just as much!!

The In Between is about brother and sister, Cooper and Jess. Jess is doing research for a school project one day and learns about a tragic train accident where everyone that died was identified except one child that had a uniform on with a strange symbol that nobody could figure out the origins of. That same day a girl moves in across the street from them named Elena and there’s something very off about her. … It would be too easy to give away important details so I’m going to stop there and say that you should just read this if you like mysteries that aren’t *too* scary but still keep you in suspense.

The twists and turns in this book kept me on the edge of my seat, just like it did with Charlie O’Reilly and I loved every second! Rebecca Ansari, I am officially a huge fan! This mystery was perfect!

I definitely recommend this one for 4th and up!

One thing you want to know about me is I can not resist a spooky book and this is a great example of spooky. Not scary but spooky. I don’t want to be scared but I want to be creeped out.

In this story, a boy can see the people caught between the realms. It starts with a girl just staring at him from across the street. You know something isn’t quite right in the first few sentances but you aren’t sure what. Within the first page, you want to know more about what is going on. The story is his journey of what is going on and becoming comfortable with his unusual talent. It would be very weird to be only one seeing ghosts.

Kids who like J.A. White and Heather Kassner books would really like this book. Kids looking for stories about finding yourself or being yourself may like this. If you have an unusual skill this may be your book.

I don’t recommend reading this undercovers with a flashlight unless you want maximum creep. I really enjoyed this book and hope other kids do too.

This is an interesting idea but not much more than that. Scenes are padded with a load of unnecessary details. Characters are underdeveloped. The elements of the resolution are well seeded throughout the plot but it's not especially compelling.

The In-Between by Rebecca K. S. Ansari, 2021

Recommended for grades 5-8; ghost story, mystery

Brief Review:

Thirteen-year-old Cooper Stewart is initially baffled by his younger sister Jess’s fascination with a century-old mystery involving an unidentified victim in a train crash. But when she points out that the dead child was wearing a crest matching the jacket of the mysterious girl who recently moved into the house across the alley, Cooper decides it’s time to start asking some questions. Aside from introducing herself as Elena, the girl is unwilling to give any answers. One day, Cooper tries to follow her into her house only to discover that the entire house is an illusion. Together with Jess and a new friend named Gus, Cooper has to figure out who Elena is, why most people can’t see her or her house, and whether she’s connected to any of the historical disasters that Jess finds online when she tries to look for information about the crest. The kids gradually come to the realization that Elena is a ghost who repeatedly comes back to life just to die again in a different disaster every time, and that they must be in danger themselves. Meanwhile, Cooper and Jess are gradually coming to terms with their parents’ divorce several years ago and the fact that Dad has a new family now. These two storylines blend near the end of the book, when Cooper picks up on the underlying motifs regarding feeling “unseen” and the importance of human connection. An exciting, spooky mystery for readers who love plot twists and emotional depth.

Long Review:

I’ve been pretty excited about this book ever since I heard that there was a new Rebecca Ansari book out there. I thoroughly enjoyed her previous book, The Missing Piece of Charlie O’Reilly from 2019, for its unique premise, its blend of the realistic and the fantastical, and its immersive setting. I’ve gotten accustomed enough to reading children’s literature from a professional perspective that I’ve become a little jaded, and it’s unusual now for me to encounter a book that really fascinates and grips me, but that one did. (Looking back at my initial review for it, I see that I gave it a mild critique for its somewhat corny ending, but honestly, over the past year and a half, I’d completely forgotten that and only remembered it as a book that I thoroughly enjoyed.) I’m pleased to announce that Ansari’s new book is just as enjoyable with a similarly atmospheric and spooky vibe. It’s a little different in that the fantastical elements aren’t undeniably supernatural until almost halfway through the book, and I personally feel like it’s geared just slightly younger. But as far as appeal factors go, it’s pretty similar. 

Thirteen-year-old Cooper Stewart is furious at his father for walking out of his life and starting a new family. He’s also under a lot of stress due to his mother’s busy, two-job schedule and his ten-year-old sister Jess’s diabetes. But Jess has apparently taken comfort in trying to solve a century-old mystery she read about online. After a train crash in 1928, one of the victims was a young boy who was never identified. The only clue was a crest on his clothing which happens to match the jacket of the mysterious girl who recently moved into the house across the alley from Cooper and Jess.

Although Cooper doesn’t understand Jess’s fascination with the long-past railway disaster, he’s been just as curious as his sister about the new girl. She seems to spend all of her time just sitting on a swing and watching Cooper’s house, but she’s never spoken to him and she doesn’t even go to his school. He knows her family is rich, because her house had been abandoned and dilapidated until the girl’s family moved in and completely renovated the house within just a few days while the Stewart family was out of town. Cooper and Jess assume that the girl goes to a fancy private school and that the crest on her jacket can be used to identify the school, but their internet research doesn’t turn up any leads. So Cooper agrees to ask the girl directly. She introduces herself as Elena, but is unwilling to give Cooper any more information.

Meanwhile, Cooper has bonded with a new kid at school named Gus. Gus tells Cooper that he has moved in with his grandmother, the dour old lady who the neighborhood kids call a witch, while his parents figure out what to do about their failing relationship. Cooper sympathizes with Gus and finds himself opening up to his new friend more than he has been able to do with his old friends. After Gus happens to walk into a conversation between Cooper and Elena, Cooper and Jess end up letting Gus in on their mystery.

The plot thickens when Cooper goes over to Elena’s house and it looks completely different than what he’s always seen through the windows. It turns out that Elena’s beautifully remodeled house is just an illusion; it’s still the old abandoned ruin that had been there before. The only thing there other than debris and a spooky raven is a letter, presumably written by Elena, which Cooper takes with him to read in full later. When Cooper comes home bruised and bloody from touching broken glass, he and Jess realize that his mother has never been able to see Elena or her house. Only Cooper, Jess, and Gus have seen the illusion house and the mysterious neighbor girl. 

Jess is certain that Elena is a ghost, and although Cooper is initially skeptical, the letter from her house raises questions that he can’t answer in any other way. The letter describes waking up in 1911 New York and going to work at the Triangle Waist Company, aware of imminent disaster. “I hate dying by fire,” the letter says. With a little additional research, Jess and Cooper confirm that the Triangle Waist Company building was the site of a disastrous fire that killed 146 people that day. Although they’re still unsure exactly what Elena’s role is, they know that they’re in serious danger. And since Gus is the only other person who can see Elena, he must be in danger, too. 

Through their continued investigation into Elena’s illusionary house and her relationship with tragic disaster, as well as Cooper’s heart-to-heart conversations with Gus, and the eventual brush with death that they had been anticipating all along, the siblings bond and come to terms with the seemingly-unrelated conflicted feelings they have about their father and his new life. By the end of the book, this thrilling supernatural mystery has turned into a feel-good story about the importance of human connection, both in the sense of family relationships and of friendships. There are also interesting themes and motifs regarding feeling “unseen” or “invisible”, the power of the written word, and holding on to good memories.

The mystery of Elena drew me in and kept me flipping pages to figure out what, exactly, was going on. I suspected it was going to be a version of an old Jeff Daniels movie called "Grand Tour - Disaster in Time". It was similar in some ways but this book had it's own unique twist on the idea that took events in a different direction. The impending disaster seemed glaringly obvious to me but I'm assuming it will be less so to teen readers. SO, I was tearing through the book until we finally got to the disaster and the resolution of that. All good. But then things dragged on for too long after the resolution and I wanted to be done with the book.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Harper Collins for an E-ARC of this title.

Cooper is dealing with the loss of his family as he knows it while trying to move on. In the midst of handling his emotions and helping his sister Jess realize she too must accept that things have changed, a new girl moves in to the rundown house across the street. The mysterious neighbor sits on the porch and will not let Cooper alone in his misery. Her stares from across their yards draws him in and makes him want to know why she appears to be obsessed with him. Meanwhile, his sister has connected the girl to an unsolved mystery and tragedy from years ago. The two siblings bond researching the mystery trying to uncover how the two might be related, and what the girl's sudden presence might mean. Cooper and Jess are not prepared for the truth nor do they understand the danger they have uncovered from their digging. Another masterful story from Rebecca Ansari with twists and turns that will keep the reader on the edge of their seat.

This slightly spooky and creepy book was one of my favorite reads this year. I loved the sense of fantasy and the mystical aspect of it. So many things are a mystery, until you get to the last chapter and discover who Gus and Elena really are. I loved this book so, so much and it was a great read. Perfect for readers ages 9-12.

Cooper is angry that his father has left him, his sister Jess, and his overworked mother in a run down neighborhood in Chicago and is now in California with his new wife and son. The rage spills into other areas of his life-- he has trouble getting along with his friends because their families are intact, and he is especially angry with the quiet, uncommunicative girl, Elena, in the newly renovated house next door. He managed to be kind to his sister, and to help her manage her diabetes, but he is somewhat relieved when a new boy at school, Gus, befriends him. Gus is having trouble fitting in, having been sent to live with his irascible grandmother while his parents are divorcing. The two boys bond over this, and also over one very odd fact. Cooper, Jess, and Gus can see Elena's house differently than everyone else. To them, it is decrepit and abandoned. When Jess is obsessed with an old train accident, and an unidentified boy who died, Cooper and Jess realize that Elena's school sweater has the same crest on it and start to investigate. what her connection might be. They eventually find that Elena and her sister were killed many years ago, but never died, and seem to travel from tragedy to tragedy, living in "the in-between". Because the three children can see Elena and the true state of her house, they worry that they are next in line for the tragedy they suspect that Elena will precipitate. Will they be able to find out what Elena's true purpose is, and to save themselves?
Strengths: There are lots of twists and turns in this that I don't want to spoil! The real life portions of the story, with Cooper's absent dad, frazzled mother who is ready to move on, and responsibility for his sister's well-being, is solidly well constructed and believable. The constant dinners of various egg dishes was funny but made complete sense! The in-between is built and revealed in an understandable way. Elena and Gus are interesting characters, for various reasons, and there's a lot of hidden depth that we eventually see. Definitely an interesting story, and I love the cover.
Weaknesses: This started out on the slow side, and a lot of time was spent on Cooper's various feelings of sadness, which also slowed down an otherwise interesting story. If this discussion had been replaced by ghosts haunting Cooper, it would do better with my students, who are always in favor of killer ghosts!
What I really think: This was sort of a mix of Scarrow's Time Riders and Plum's Before I Die if it had been written by Judy Blume or Linda Urban. It was fine, but everyone else seems to be far more excited about it than I am.

How easy it would be to reveal too much with this delicious middle-grade mystery by author Rebecca K.S. Ansari!

Eighth-grader Cooper Stewart has been withdrawn and angry ever since his doctor father abandoned his family in Chicago to create a new one in San Diego. A loner now, Cooper is estranged from his friends, his 10-year-old sister Jess and his worried, overburdened single mother. But his sister Jess stumbles on a mystery about a 100-year-old train crash far away, one in which there was an unidentified dead boy. A boy with the same crest as the rich, aloof girl next door. Cooper’s persistence in solving this mystery could bring Cooper back from his lonely abyss. Unless it dooms him first.

Young or old, this suspenseful, creepy novel will keep you reading much too late into the night. I didn’t finish it in one sitting, but I sure came close. So many twists and turns! I never saw the ending coming, either.

In the interest of full disclosure, I received this book from NetGalley, HarperCollins Children’s Books and Walden Press in exchange for an honest review.

I actually reviewed this title for school library journal but my digital copy was corrupted so I had to use this one

At first, I thought this book would be somewhat similar to "miss peregrine's home for peculiar children", however, around midway through the book, I was proven totally incorrect.. I became quickly engulfed in the plot while reading, and there is an interesting mysterious element to the characters. The plot twist near the end of the book was not something I expected, and I seriously applaud the author for such a resolution.

I just could not get into this one, which is too bad. It sounded like something I'd be really into, but it didn't grab me. It's probably a fine book; it just didn't really do it for me.