1-2-3-4, I Declare a Thumb War by Lisi Harrison & Daniel Kraus: Review & Giveaway

1-2-3-4, I Declare a Thumb War by Lisi Harrison, Daniel Kraus
Illustrator: Flavia Sorrentino
Series: Graveyard Girls #1
Published by Union Square Kids on September 6, 2022
Genres: Horror, Middle Grade
Pages: 256
Source: Blog Tour, The Publisher
My rating:

Meet Whisper, Frannie, Sophie, Gemma, and Zuzu, five friends who tell eerie tales by night and navigate middle school drama by day.

MISERY FALLS, OREGON, IS ABUZZ AS the 100th anniversary of the electrocution of the town’s most infamous killer, Silas Hoke, approaches. When a mysterious text message leads the girls to the cemetery—where Silas Hoke is buried!—life can’t get any creepier. Except, yes, it can thanks to the surprise storyteller who meets them at the cemetery, inspires the first-ever meeting of the Graveyard Girls, and sets the stage for a terrifying tale from Whisper that they’ll never forget.

This slightly scary, extremely addictive story is the first in a five-book series by New York Times bestselling authors Lisi Harrison and Daniel Kraus.  

Amazon, Audible, B&N, iBooks, Kobo, TBD, Bookshop.org

Beware! This truly creepy middle grade tome will terrify its readers–and they will be delighted! 

I have to start by saying this book is not for the faint of heart. It gets downright gory in one part, so not every kid will be happy to read this. However, the most frightening and terrible part of the book is actually a story within a story (a tale that one of the characters makes up and tells), so it doesn’t actually happen to any of the characters, which allows for a little sense of distance from the horror. The story is also based on a somewhat funny and ironic circumstance, so that helps as well. In fact, what the story within a story does best is fuel the kids’ imaginations for the final half of the book, keeping them always on alert and ready to freak out whenever a new creepy circumstance brings the tale to mind.

The book follows five middle grade girls who live in a town that’s said to be haunted by the spirit of a madman. The girls are fond of ghost stories and they spend the week of the anniversary of his death both hoping to come face to face with his spirit and terrified of the idea! But the true horrors lie in their day-to-day lives as each girl struggles with the complexities of their relationships. Whisper is miserable about her dad’s live-in girlfriend and his family, Frannie is dealing with a best friend turned mean girl, Sophie struggles with perfectionism, Gemma wants to prove to her mom that she can be trusted and help save her mom’s business, and Zuzu doesn’t want her popular best friends to know that she’s really into horror. These problems shape the story as the girls pursue their goal of truly scaring themselves!

Kids who love R.L. Stine will be thrilled with this terrifying tale!

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via Rockstar Book Tours so I could provide an honest review. No compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

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