Madeleine “Lainie” Stanton is born precisely at midnight just as her great-grandmother did a century ago. Madi’e goes by Lainie. A tv station wants to interview her as she is a “millennium baby.” When she does go to do the interview, everything goes smoothly until the interview goes to her great grandmother, Maddie comes up as part of the interview. The interviewer, Tini starts with Lainie’s great grandmother being a millennium baby too. Then Tini smoothly goes on how her great grandmother was executed for killing her boss. When a guy, Seth from her school walks in, Lainie gets very upset especially when she sees a shocking photo of her great grandmother being led to the prison yard where the gallows wait.She tells Seth that he is a “stupid slimy rat” and Tini is a “creepy fake reporter.” Before she leaves, she tells Tini that she has proof that her great grandmother was innocent and can prove it. Lainie doesn’t have proof but is determined to find it. Will she find it? Will she apologize to Seth (as she has a crush on him)?

The author has written an account that has clues throughout the story. The mystery has chills in it. It is a suspenseful mystery as the historical information is discovered and the family drama occurs. While this story has been written for middle grade children but I think any age can enjoy this thrilling mystery.
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This was a fun read, with an intriguing mystery. Lainie is a great MC, and I loved her friends. She had a unique start to life, and getting to know her, her friends, and her family, was a lot of fun. I especially liked her grandpa and great-uncles. I liked that we get to switch between modern day and the past, getting some insight into what happened so long ago, just little pieces at a time. Just enough to keep you interested, but not so much that you get the whole story all at once. A great read for middle schoolers!

Maddie's Ghost is about a girl named Lanie who is about to be interviewed by a TV station for a segment on people born on the first day of the new millennium. But her family fears it will stir up speculation about her great-grandmother, who was executed for murder. Lanie begins to follow clues in an effort to prove her grandmother's innocence. Lanie is a likable main character and I can see kids really enjoying the clue hunting parts.

This book has such a simple yet striking cover. I found the plot intriguing too, as someone who enjoys middle grade books, a story about a young girl whose family history involving a great grandmother who’s hanged for a crime she might or might not have committed, it was right up my alley.

While I liked the story in general, and was looking forward to the resolution about the great grandmother, my main problem with this book was the main character acting much older than her eleven years. As a child, she has almost no adult supervision throughout the book, all the adults in her life were acting like children. And as a child, her ability to skim through legal and scientific documents with such ease was astounding. I couldn’t help but wish this book would’ve been better written as a young adult story rather than middle grade, that way it could’ve kept its credibility concerning the main character.

But it was still an enjoyable story that fit the spooky season.

First of all, this cover is really cool. But so is the book itself! The writing was good and the story was really interesting. I found myself really caring about the characters and itching to see where the story was going. This book is a bit above my current student's reading level, but if I ever move up in the grades, this story will for sure be in my back pocket.

This was the first book I have read of Carol Fisher Saller. I know this is for middle school readers but I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed the spooky vibes and I loved the unique cover!! I loved the mystery behind Maddie's great-grandmother. I fill like this is an Indie author to follow. I would definitely recommend this book.


Thank you NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for allowing me to read this ARC for my honest opinion.

I liked the sound of this book from its description, and the cover design.

Initially, the writing seemed to have a fun, lighthearted tone that appealed to me. However, it took me a while to feel connected to any of the characters, or the story in general. I found most of the characters superficial and just didn't really warm to them.

Given that this was a ghost story, I expected to feel a little bit spooked, but I didn't feel the spookiness or eeriness that I was hoping for. There were a few moments that stood out to me while reading, but not many.

I think I would have enjoyed this book more if I'd read it as a child or teenager. I got the impression that it was aimed at a younger audience, and I think some young adult readers may enjoy it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a free copy to review.

Madeline is just excited at first when a reporter calls her wanting to do an interview about her being born as a millenium baby. But it soon turns out that her family tragedy is being brougbht back to light and she finds herself rushing to find the truth with the help of her friends.

This is a short but well written suspense story for a younger audience. I feel like parts of it are a little out of touch with how kids this age would react to whats happening around them and while i loved the family dynamic it felt likw there should have been more parental intervention. Other than that i enjoyed reading it!

Thank you to the author and net.galley for letting me read this arc.

MADDIE’S GHOST is middle-grade fiction, contemporary psychological suspense, woven around a young girl’s race to solve a 1930s mystery involving her great-grandmother.

I would have loved to read this book when I was in middle school (I still loved reading it as a 37 year old woman). Loved the protagonist and the story.

"Maddie's Ghost" is an edge-of-your-seat mystery and ghost story with strong female characters. Lainie's Uncs and Grandpa Jack add to the warmth and charm of the story which helps to balance some of its darkness. Recommended. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.