Alone

September 15, 2017
A thriller in a decrepit, isolated mansion--and in the double-occupancy mind of a teen girl.When Seda's professor mother, a horror-film scholar, inherits the crumbling remains of what was once a rural hotel used to host murder-mystery events, the family's supposed to have a quick summer to tidy it up for sale. But her mom stalls and vetoes any prospective buyer who doesn't want to run it as-is, leaving her and her children (Seda and two sets of younger twins, each a boy-girl pair, ages 6 and 4) stuck on the mountain come fall. Seda wishes she could be more alone in her own head, though--she's plagued by her lifelong imaginary friend, Sawyer, who tells her to hurt herself and others. Seda suspects he was her own twin, absorbed in the womb. Sawyer knows it's a bad idea to let the teens stranded by a snowstorm into the house, but Heath, their spokesman, is cute, and Seda's mom insists, roping everyone into a murder-mystery game she's written for Seda's birthday celebration. Just when readers are lulled into a false sense of security--and even Seda notes Sawyer's silence--the elaborate game heats up. Each new bit of information builds, and in a house full of potential victims, readers will be compelled to rush and unravel the twisted mystery. Aside from one Chinese character, the cast is white; at one point Heath playacts Robert E. Lee. A bloody, wonderfully creepy scare ride. (Horror. 12-adult)

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November 1, 2017

Gr 9 Up-Sixteen-year-old Seda and her four younger siblings are trapped by their mother's wishes to renovate an old mansion in the middle of nowhere. At first, exploring the grounds is an exciting adventure. Eventually, Seda is eager to return to school and her friends, but her mother has other plans. Without contact with the outside world, Seda's struggles with the house and believes it is haunted. When four teens become stranded on the property due to a blizzard, Seda begins to make friends. Besides the protagonist's feelings for the house, she also grapples with a voice in her head named Sawyer. Not one, but many plot twists await readers in this young adult thriller. The realistic character development will leave readers on the edge of their seats until the nail-biting conclusion. Fans of Stephen King's and R.L. Stine's novels will enjoy this entry. VERDICT A dark, suspenseful book for any library where horror is popular.-Tracie Marshall, Xavier High School, Cedar Rapids, IA

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2017
Grades 9-12 At first Seda, 16, enjoys exploring the cavernous Bismarck-Chisholm House, the remote mansion deep in the mountains, that her mom inherited. Once a murder mystery hotel, it's still decorated like a gothic horror film set. Months later, however, Seda is tired of her nightmarish new home, where her siblings (two sets of twins, ages 4 and 6) are her only company. Time alone isn't good for Seda, who is plagued by a dark voice she believes is her unborn twin. Seda has a bad feeling when a group of teens takes shelter at the mansion during a blizzard, and it's borne out when everyone agrees to play the macabre game her mother has designed. This is the perfect premise for a chilling tale, and Balog fills every inch with classic horror references, red herrings, and uncertain motivations. As Balog gradually builds tension and paranoia, she manipulates reader expectations to set up several possible endings, yet still manages to end with a shocker. This is fantastically creepy psychological horror.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)