From School Library Journal
Grade 7-10-A book that will please mystery fans. As the story opens, Lia, 15, is at her great-grandmother Sarah's bedside. Delirious, the old woman begins to speak of Graymoss Plantation, the Louisiana family estate left unoccupied for decades because of a "terrible, fearful evil." After the woman's death, Lia discovers that the house has been willed to her mother, who plans to move the family in and adopt a group of hard-to-place children. Lia is against this idea and vows to prove to her mother that the house is truly haunted. She learns that the ghostly occurrences are well documented and that several locals oppose the family taking up residence at Graymoss. Could one of these people be staging the hauntings? There are lots of suspects and readers will enjoy trying to solve the mystery along with the inquisitive Lia. While the suspense is not constant, the plot keeps readers guessing until the end. Not Nixon's best, but sure to be popular where her other novels circulate.Michele Snyder, Chappaqua Public Library, NYCopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Gr. 6^-10. Despite claims that Graymoss mansion is haunted, Anne's mother is determined to turn it into a foster home for unwanted children. But Anne doesn't want to move to Graymoss. What's more, she has read the diary of Charlotte Blevins, a distant relative who inhabited the house during Civil War times when the spirits first appeared. She encourages her mother to spend a night in the mansion, hoping Mom will be too frightened to continue with her plans. Anne has a change of heart, however, after she meets the children her parents want to care for and resolves to take on the ghosts herself. Aided by a collection of Edgar Allan Poe's stories, she eventually succeeds in driving the spirits away. The ghosts are reminiscent of those in Shirley Jackson's classic The Haunting of Hill House, whispering through the walls and sending books flying through the air. The novel ends somewhat abruptly, and a potentially interesting romantic relationship fizzles out completely, but this is still a page-turner that will satisfy mystery and ghost story fans. Helen Rosenberg


Review
"The plot keeps readers guessing until the end."--School Library Journal

"Typical of Nixon's popular gothics, this title has it all."--The Horn Book Magazine

"Nixon creates a spooky setting fairly dripping with atmosphere, then spins an ever-tightening thread of tension."--Kirkus Reviews


From the Paperback edition.


Review
"The plot keeps readers guessing until the end."--School Library Journal

"Typical of Nixon's popular gothics, this title has it all."--The Horn Book Magazine

"Nixon creates a spooky setting fairly dripping with atmosphere, then spins an ever-tightening thread of tension."--Kirkus Reviews


From the Paperback edition.


Card catalog description
When her mother inherits an old plantation house in the Louisiana countryside, fifteen-year-old Lia seeks to rid it of the evil spirit that haunts it.


From the Inside Flap
Fifteen-year-old Lia comes from a long line of courageous women, dating back to a Civil War survivor who single-handedly saved her Louisiana plantation house, Graymoss, from destruction. But Graymoss is haunted by a terrible evil.

With clues from a diary and Favorite Tales of Edgar Allan Poe, Lia, who doesn't feel as if she's inherited any family genes of courage, must figure out what--or who--the evil wants. When Lia's parents decide to move into Graymoss, Lia isn't sure how to convince them to change their minds. But it's up to her to chase away the horror lurking inside the old house. Can she find the courage to deal with a noisy ghost who wants vengeance?


From the Hardcover edition.

ANNOTATION

When her mother inherits an old plantation house in the Louisiana countryside, fifteen-year-old Lia seeks to rid it of the evil spirit that haunts it.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Fifteen-year-old Lia comes from a long line of courageous women, dating back to a Civil War survivor who single-handedly saved her Louisiana plantation house, Graymoss, from destruction. But Graymoss is haunted by a terrible evil.

With clues from a diary and Favorite Tales of Edgar Allan Poe, Lia, who doesn't feel as if she's inherited any family genes of courage, must figure out what--or who--the evil wants. When Lia's parents decide to move into Graymoss, Lia isn't sure how to convince them to change their minds. But it's up to her to chase away the horror lurking inside the old house. Can she find the courage to deal with a noisy ghost who wants vengeance?

FROM THE CRITICS

Children's Literature - Mary Sue Preissner

Graymoss, the family's antebellum home, looms at the end of the dusty road complete with its own mysterious legend. As great-grandmother Sarah slips to her eternal slumber, she admonishes Lia that this aging edifice must be preserved and protected, but also to be kept at a distance for "the house is haunted by a terrible, fearful evil." Searching for a 130 year-old diary, keeping her parents and grandmother misinformed, and procuring good voodoo to protect her, Lia embarks on a journey, not only to save her heritage, but to affirm that she too is courageous, a legacy left by a family of strong females. A must buy!

VOYA - Bill Mollineaux

Through her dying great-grandmother Sarah, thirteen-year-old Lia Starling discovers that Graymoss, her family's pre-Civil War plantation, is not only still standing but also well kept. Sarah also reveals that Graymoss is haunted by a terrible evil. Lia's mother, who doesn't believe in ghosts, is thrilled to inherit Graymoss because its size will enable her and her husband to fulfill their dream of "adopting a housefull of what are considered unadoptable children." Upon visiting Graymoss, Lia and her parents encounter five people who dwell upon the evil spirits haunting Graymoss, preventing anyone from spending the night there. Of course, all five would benefit if Graymoss is not occupied by the Starlings. As strange happenings occur, readers will wonder if they are caused by evil spirits or one of these locals. Once again Nixon has woven a tale that grabs and holds her readers as Lia, using the Civil War diary of Graymoss's last resident and a copy of Favorite Tales of Edgar Allan Poe, unravels the mystery. (Could this turn the reader on to Poe?) As with Nixon's other books, there is more here than just a good mystery, including things teenagers can relate to. At the beginning of the story Lia is a bookish, shy, and introverted girl who has to contend with a family of exceptionally brave women. An only child, she is at first understandably against her parents' adoption plans, and if she has to move, she will have to leave her only friend. Romance is not absent, as Lia meets Jonathan, a real hunk. One of my seventh-grade students summed it up best when she said "It's a really fun read! It really kept me guessing 'cause everyone was a suspect." VOYA Codes: 4Q 4P M J (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses, Broad general YA appeal, Middle School-defined as grades 6 to 8 and Junior High-defined as grades 7 to 9).

KLIATT

To quote KLIATT's May 1998 review of the hardcover edition: Ghost story around a haunted plantation in Louisiana sums this plot up. From Civil War days, the family home is reported as being filled with evil, and it has remained uninhabited. When Lia's mother inherits the place, she and her husband want to turn it into a home for children. Since Lia likes her status as only child, she at first hopes her parents will be discouraged by the hauntings. Later, when she realizes how much good they could do by providing a home for these children, she determines to rid the house of the evil presence. This takes some detective work with information from an old diary, and bravery in confronting the place after dark. Lia changes from a shy bookish type at the beginning of the story to a young woman willing to fight for what she believes in. Taken as a whole, this is entertaining for middle school students who enjoy slightly scary ghost stories. Nixon succeeds in creating the necessary atmosphere to sustain the plot. KLIATT Codes: J—Recommended for junior high school students. 1998, Random House/Dell, 184p, 118cm, $4.99. Ages 13 to 15. Reviewer: Claire Rosser; January 2001 (Vol. 35 No. 1)

School Library Journal

Gr 7-10-A book that will please mystery fans. As the story opens, Lia, 15, is at her great-grandmother Sarah's bedside. Delirious, the old woman begins to speak of Graymoss Plantation, the Louisiana family estate left unoccupied for decades because of a "terrible, fearful evil." After the woman's death, Lia discovers that the house has been willed to her mother, who plans to move the family in and adopt a group of hard-to-place children. Lia is against this idea and vows to prove to her mother that the house is truly haunted. She learns that the ghostly occurrences are well documented and that several locals oppose the family taking up residence at Graymoss. Could one of these people be staging the hauntings? There are lots of suspects and readers will enjoy trying to solve the mystery along with the inquisitive Lia. While the suspense is not constant, the plot keeps readers guessing until the end. Not Nixon's best, but sure to be popular where her other novels circulate.-Michele Snyder, Chappaqua Public Library, NY

Kirkus Reviews

Lia, 15, is against her mother's plan to move the family to Graymoss, a plantation house in Bogue City, Louisiana, where she and Lia's father plan to adopt a dozen children and turn the house into a group home. Lia, a timid bookworm, is fond of her status as only child, and painfully aware that she is unlike the other women in her family, a brave and adventurous lot dating all the way back to Charlotte Blevins, who lived in Graymoss during the Civil War. She's been told that the house is hauntedþpossessed by evil spirits that whisper and shriek and push people down stairsþand apparently no one in Bogue City will set foot in the house after dark. Lia hopes that her mother's plans will disintegrate once she's seen for herself the terrors the house holds. In the end, though, it's Lia who has a change of heart and musters her courage to drive the evil from Graymoss. Nixon (Murdered, My Sweet, 1997, etc.) creates a spooky setting fairly dripping in atmosphere, then spins an ever-tightening thread of tension. The ghosts in this story are compelling, although Lia is less so: Her reversal in feelings about the potential adoptees, after one sentimental meeting, is a bit slick. Nevertheless, fans will find the final exorcism of the ghost riveting. (Fiction. 10-12)