Poisoned House

July 1, 2011

A scullery maid, a great house, whispered evil and a ghost populate this first-person tale of mid-19th-century London.

Abigail's mother died a year ago of cholera, and the 14-year-old girl misses her fiercely; Mrs. Cotton, Lord Greaves' sister-in-law, is cruel to the staff—Abi in particular—in every possible way. Her mother was servant and nursemaid to Sam, who is now back, injured, from the Crimean War, and Abi hopes the return of Sam will both cheer the ailing Lord Greaves and protect her from Mrs. Cotton. But strange happenings pervade Greave Hall: Keys go missing; filthy handprints appear; unidentifiable noises are heard. Mrs. Cotton finds a way to blame Abi for most of it. Abi must try to puzzle out questions of her mother's demise and other questions about their place in the household. Abigail's fellow servant Lizzie, Lizzie's banishment and the coal boy Adam figure in the story, as does a compliant Ouija board, which leads to a climatic confrontation and another death. Ford suddenly turns a sympathetic character evil without foreshadowing, which may strike readers as unfair, and the conclusion happens rather abruptly, but he ties up the tale very nicely by ending with Abigail's full obituary of many decades later.

In all, scary, compelling and atmospheric enough for a satisfying chill. (Ghost story. 12 & up)

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

Starred review from August 1, 2011

Gr 6-9-The year is 1855 and orphaned serving girl Abigail Tamper, 14, tries to escape Greave Hall, an austere London mansion, in the dead of night. She is hauled back and forced to work for Mrs. Cotton, cruel and devious housekeeper to senile Lord Greave. It isn't just the dreary residents who frighten Abi; there's something terribly amiss in the house. Glasses crash to the floor, rooms are turned topsy-turvy and then righted again when no one is looking, handprints appear in impossible places. Deepening Abi's dread is the upcoming anniversary of her mother's death. She pins her hopes for brighter days on the heir to the house, handsome Samuel Greave, who is returning as an injured hero from the Crimean War. The two played together in childhood, when Abi's mother was Master Samuel's nurse, and they share a brother/sisterlike bond. But the eerie occurrences only increase on his return. Is Abi's dead mother trying to tell her something? Every gothic trope is put to use here: the silent butler, a seance gone wrong, messages via Ouija board, secret alliances, out-of-wedlock pregnancies (two of them), and a last-minute will that changes everything. This ghost story is light fare, chilling, and suspenseful. Readers who ask for "more like this book" might well be primed for something more substantial, like Henry James himself.-Carolyn Lehman, Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2011
Grades 6-9 After a daring but failed attempt to escape her wretched life at Greave Hall, Abi, an orphaned scullery maid on the eve of her fifteenth birthday, begins to notice odd happenings around the house, specifically in the old nursery, where her late mother worked. Abi quickly discovers a dark secret: her mother was murdered, and all signs point to Mrs. Cottonthe cruel, arrogant housekeeper, Abi's reason for running away. It's up to the young maid to help her mother's spirit find peace by proving Mrs. Cotton's guilt. Ford's ghost story, framed as a historical document from 1855, is a quick, suspenseful read but a decidedly gentler brand of horror. Some of Abi's otherworldly encounters are a bit unnerving, a hand reaching out from the beyond here, a ghostly specter in a photo there, but certainly nothing that will keep seasoned horror fans up all night. The strength of the novel is the girl's perseverance despite her disbelief, and the reward for Abi at the end will be just as great for the audience rooting her on.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)