SPOOKY STORIES

The Swallow: A Ghost Story
Charis Cotter
(Tundra Books)

The Night Gardener
Jonathan Auxier
(Puffin Canada)

There are plenty of books about ghosties and ghoulies and long-leggedy beasties and things that go bump in the night, but few are as finely wrought as these two. Both titles are steeped in Gothic creepiness that runs up the reader’s spine like a bony finger. The Night Gardener, with its orphan heroes and haunted house, evokes classic horror stories, while The Swallow (by Q&Q reviewer Charis Cotter) twists and turns its way to a surprise ending that even the most jaded middle-graders will find thrilling.