The Doll's Eye

November 15, 2016
You know what they say: be careful what you wish for....It's bad enough that the house reminds Hadley of a "decomposing log," but almost as soon as the white 12-year-old and her family move into their new home, Hadley feels like someone--or something--is watching her. Then comes the glass eye, and the mysterious dollhouse (an exact replica of the creepy old house on Orchard Drive), and then the questions. Where is the doll the eye belongs to? To whom does the dollhouse belong, and why was it left behind? What is sweet "Granny," the doll maker who lives above the garage, hiding? Who moves the dollhouse's occupants around when Hadley's not looking? When Hadley makes a series of wishes that cause her entire world to unravel, she finds herself living a perfect--but frightening--new life. A second, first-person narrative parallels Hadley's and gradually reveals the frightening history of the house and its first family, who lived there more than a century ago. Distinctive imagery (Hadley's stepfather has "the personality of gelatinous zooplankton") enlivens the tight prose. An ever present and always-growing sense of dread accompanied by an atmosphere of chills and mystery make this perfect for reading in the closet under the cover of night. (Horror. 8-12)

COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

February 1, 2017

Gr 4-7-Twelve-year-old Hadley wishes things were back the way they were when she and her mom were on their own. Hadley loved having her mother to herself, but ever since her mom married Ed, things have not been the same. To top it off, they've moved into a new home with Ed and his irritating six-year-old son, Isaac, who is always underfoot and in Hadley's business. At first, she likes the big old house they've moved into on Orchard Drive. Feeling left out of the new family dynamic, Hadley explores the house and discovers interesting secrets. The previous owners disappeared mysteriously and left behind an exact dollhouse replica of the house in the musty old attic. Hadley also finds a doll's eye rolling around on the floor. She soon makes a friend, Gabe, who is obsessed with insects and dirt. It's Hadley's mistake in trusting Gabe to look out for Isaac one day that seems to trigger the frightening series of events that eventually lead to the disappearance of her family. A sweet but odd grandmotherly woman lives above the garage of their home, and she lends a mysterious sense of foreboding that permeates the book. The old woman appears to know more than she is willing to reveal, especially when Hadley hears sinister knocking while visiting her apartment. An alternating narrative every other chapter exposes the fate of the previous family. All of these events culminate in a terrifying conclusion that builds with addictive momentum as the root of the evil in the home is unleashed. Two parts "Hansel and Gretel" plus one part "Rumpelstiltskin," this skillfully woven story of horror and suspense will have readers quaking in their boots. Hand to fans of Holly Black's Doll Bones or Betty Ren Wright's The Dollhouse Murders or to anyone who wants a goose pimple-inducing scare.

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.