When ghosts call us home

Title:

Author:

Summary:

When Sophia Galich was twelve, she starred in her older sister Layla’s amateur horror movie Vermillion, which recorded raw footage of her very real reactions to scenes her sister concocted in their old Californian house on the coast―Cashore House. In the years after the film’s release, Sophia’s relationship with her sister became more strained, while her memories of the now-infamous house fueled her nightmares. Vermillion amassed an army of fanatical fans who speculated about the film’s hidden messages, and it was rumored that Layla made a pact with the devil―her soul in exchange for fame and arcane knowledge. Sophia dismissed this as gossip… until Layla disappeared. Now, Sophia must study the trail of clues Layla has left behind, returning to the very place where it all began. As she gets closer and closer to Cashore House’s haunted heart, she must once again confront the ghosts of her childhood. But the house won’t reveal its secrets without a fight. -- Amazon.

Physical Description:

362 pages ; 22 cm.

Genre:

Horror fiction.

Ghost stories.

Subject Term:

Sisters -- Fiction.

Haunted houses -- Fiction.

Motion pictures -- Production and direction -- Fiction.

Horror films -- Fiction.

Missing persons -- Fiction.

Publisher:

Page Street Publishing,

Publication Date:

2023

ISBN:

9781645679639

Publication Information:

Salem, MA : Page Street Publishing, 2023.

Call Number:

YA DEBECERRA

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003687384	New Young Adult	DEBECERRA	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Haunting of Hill House meets found-footage horror in this edge-of-your-seat thriller that explores the power of family ties and the trauma that lurks there.

When Sophia Galich was twelve, she starred in her older sister Layla's amateur horror movie Vermillion, which recorded raw footage of her very real reactions to scenes her sister concocted in their old Californian house on the coast--Cashore House.

In the years after the film's release, Sophia's relationship with her sister became more strained, while her memories of the now-infamous house fueled her nightmares. Vermillion amassed an army of fanatical fans who speculated about the film's hidden messages, and it was rumored that Layla made a pact with the devil--her soul in exchange for fame and arcane knowledge. Sophia dismissed this as gossip...until Layla disappeared.

Now, Sophia must study the trail of clues Layla has left behind, returning to the very place where it all began. As she gets closer and closer to Cashore House's haunted heart, she must once again confront the ghosts of her childhood. But the house won't reveal its secrets without a fight.

Author Notes

Critics called Katya de Becerra's debut What The Woods Keep (Imprint/2018) "a thoughtful and compelling horror fantasy" (The Bulletin) and "a narrative that will keep readers enthralled" (Booklist), while her second novel Oasis (Imprint 2020) earned a starred review from Booklist and was featured in the Book of the Month subscription box. Born in Russia, Katya studied in California and now lives in Melbourne with her husband. She's also a co-host of #SpecLitChat and a writing mentor with the 1st5pages Workshop.

Reviews (1)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 8 Up--Five years ago, when Sophia was 12, her older sister Layla directed a horror film called Vermillion, set at the creepy old Cashore House their parents were renovating at the time. Sophia was the star, and the ghosts were not real--or were they? The film was a found footage, paranormal watch that has since received cultlike status, including an online legend known as "The Path" that can only be taken by true fans. Two years ago, Layla disappeared without a trace. Sophia gets the chance to look for her sister when a director wants to go back to Cashore House for a new documentary about Layla's viral movie, but what horrors will she find? This story starts out slowly, taking time to set the eerie mood of a missing sister and a life-changing horror film. The book is broken up into several parts: one focusing on the house itself, the setting, and background information; then the second part focuses on the path, and gets a little more confusing for readers, yet the mystery will keep most turning the pages. The final sections pick up the pace and reveal more of this twisty mystery to its out-of-the-box conclusion. VERDICT A quiet paranormal horror that, because of its slow pacing, would be a secondary purchase in libraries where these kinds of stories are popular.--Molly Dettmann