Thursday, June 5, 2014

Help for the Haunted by John Searles

This book was pretty compelling, right up to the end. 

Sylvie, a bright and motivated 14 year old, lives in a pretty discouraging home.  Her parents "heal" the haunted.  Her older sister is a rebel.  The book is a murder mystery.  Early in the story Sylvie's parents are murdered in a local church.  Sylvie may be the only one who has answers to the identity of the real murderer.

Over all I enjoyed the book.  The strands of the mystery are many and interwoven.  I would have personally chosen a different ending, but that is because I am always looking for cross-over books (adult books for young adults).  I will hesitate to recommend this book without forewarning (in my conservative state). 

One strength of the book is that there are many adults and a few young adults who actually support Sylvie and are actually somewhat helpful.  The main characters are relatively nuanced.  Generally I can recommend this as a summer read.