This is a mystery story about Frank, who lives with his parents who renovate historic houses for a living. They move often, based on each new project and Frank is getting pretty tired of moving. He's established friends in his town and he's looking forward to spending the summer reading and hanging out. Except that his parents announce they are moving (like right now) to the Florida Keys (where his beloved grandfather lives) AND they should never have to move again. But it turns out the lighthouse where they're living (and renovating) has some pretty weird things going on, including at least two ghosts. It was a fun, spooky kind of read.

Amazingly fun and adventurous book that has just the right amount of spooky for young readers. Fast-paced and engaging, young readers will love this one.

This was such an enjoyable middle grade book. If you’ve ever felt like an outcast, different, or like you didn’t have friends, The Curse on Spectacle Key is the book for you!

Frank’s family moves around… a lot! His parents are remodelers, so once one project is completed, they buy another and move on. He isn’t able to make any long lasting relationships or really get to know anyone, because one day he’ll come home and find out it’s time, yet again, to move.

His parent’s next big project is the lighthouse on Spectacle Key in Key West. A beautiful historic building that’s falling apart and needs some major renovation. Along with all of the work comes a haunting past… and a ghost? Good thing Frank loves ghost stories, because he’s going to have to figure what to do quickly before he’s forced to pick up and move AGAIN!

I felt a kinship to Frank. Not only because we share a name, a love of books, and also that the book was set in Florida (where I live), but because he has such a big heart and a sense of doing what’s right. I wanted him to find friends and feel like he had a home to come back to. He was so sweet and all I wanted was the best for him.

I loved the mystery aspects. You move into a dilapidated historical lighthouse in a quaint town… there is always going to be something wrong. Whether it be the evil lady on the town council, the toilet needing to be fixed, or the ghost living with you… there will always be some sort of adventure to solve all of your problems.

This was a really sweet elementary/middle-grade story. I think this book will appeal more to the younger set, ages 8-12, rather than middle schoolers/teens. The story was creepy enough for young children without scaring the daylights out of them.

As a military family, I also think this will appeal to military kids who are forced to move all over the country numerous times. My own son had been to 6 different schools by the time he was in 7th grade, so I feel like military children will really identify and understand Franks's loneliness and frustration at having to move so often, as well as the terrible feeling of making friends only to have to leave them every couple of years.

I received an ARC of this book (thank you to NetGalley and the publisher), and while there were a few continuity issues I ran into, I won't get into them as I hope they'll be picked up by editors before publishing.

11-year-old Frank is a likable main character. He's a good kid with a good heart and has a happy and loving home life. The setting of the Florida Keys was one I really enjoyed, and I think kids will find it different and a little exotic. The mystery/curse of Spectacle Key was well done, yet terribly sad. I won't give anything away, but the author did a great job of tying everything together, and I think this book will go over well in elementary schools.

This middle grade novel is absolutely perfect for any young reader (or adult) who enjoys a little mystery and folklore. The main character is 11 year old Frank who befriends an invisible girl. Together with Frank's sci-fi inspired dog named Mary Shelley, the two kids work together to try and solve the mysterious happenings around Frank's newest home, Spectacle Key. I'd highly recommend this book to my students and can't wait to put it in my classroom library!

2.5 stars, rounded up. I requested this ARC thinking it was a middle grade book, but I think it's actually aimed at around 3rd through 5th grade readers. I like reading books for that age group as well, but unfortunately this one started out promising and then ended up being mostly a miss for me. I really liked the beginning chapters, the main character is likable and engaging and I liked his family and their unique living situations as well.
But once the creepy elements started, the story fell apart for me. There was just too much going on, too many threads, and so much of it seemed so odd and silly. I felt like the book couldn't quite land on a tone, it was never full on spooky (like Mary Downing Hahn books for this age group, for example) but it also didn't feel completely cozy? There's some depressing backstory for some of the characters that felt at odds with the overall vibe of the book. And there were some elements that were so completely unbelievable and odd that I almost felt like the author was going for a Lemony Snicket type of story, but again, the overall tone didn't match that.
There was just way too much going on. And while I think it's fine to have supernatural elements, they need to make sense, and the reactions of the people in the story should be at least somewhat believable. That just wasn't the case here, at least for me. It was really a shame because I liked the main character and his family so much. I ended up wishing it had been just a realistic story about their move to the lighthouse, or at least a less convoluted ghost story with more believable elements and a firmer grasp on tone.
I do think some young readers might still enjoy it, but overall this fell short for me.

Frank Fernandez has never lived anyone for longer than a year, but his parents have promised they'll stay in Alabama for two. So when they reveal that they're actually moving over the summer, he's crushed and angry. His parents renovate interesting buildings to turn them into homes, and their newest venture is the lighthouse on Spectacle Key. It's cool. It's remote. And, most importantly, it's haunted. Things just seem to constantly go wrong with the house, and after Frank explores the ruins on the island, things only get weirder-- the doll he brings home moves on its own, there's a weird sniffle and a sweet smell that seem to follow him around, and there's a girl who nobody can see but Frank.
Frank is determined to help this girl, who remembers almost nothing of her life, except that she's eleven years old-- and that she was born in 1921.
Together, the two children investigate the mystery of her past and the strange happenings on Spectacle Key.

I absolutely adored this book and have already recommended it to a friend who I know would love it, as well. It's sweet, funny, and spooky, as well as interesting and well-written. I found myself caught up in the intrigue and couldn't wait to find out the key to the mystery, while simultaneously not wanting the book to end.

Frank's parents restore structures, make them beautiful homes, and flip them. After a decade, they finally decide to settle in a dilapidated lighthouse. Frank is glad he won't have to move again!

The problems begin immediately; freaky weather, things breaking, disappearing tools, normally cheerful renovating parents fighting all the time, and then things get spooky. Like the cloth doll that keeps moving to the windowsill.

But Frank is a scientist. There must be an explanation! Except he can't think of one for the invisible girl he can see and touch--but nobody else can--except his dog.

If you're like Frank, you will hope for less craziness, but kind of expect more. Frank is a smart kid.

This is a fun adventure mystery about eleven year-olds, but entertaining for many ages. It's one of those summertime mysteries that are just tense enough to keep you thinking and interested. I recommend it!

4 Stars

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the free preview of this ebook; the review is voluntary.

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