Suspense and the Supernatural

I’ve been reading some delightfully suspenseful books lately. A mix of middle grade and YA, with page turning fun and a dose of the supernatural. Check out these great reads below.

The Paladin Prophecy series by Mark Frost (started 2012)

Will’s family always told him not to stand out. But the same day he thinks someone might be following him, he learns he’s scored off the charts on a standardized test, which leads to an invitation to a full-ride to a swanky private school. Supernatural forces seem to have an interest in Will and his family, and the school’s history may lead to answers.

The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow (2015)

The children of rulers are all held and housed together, cared for by AI. If anyone starts a war, the child of that place is executed. To the children living in the cloister-like prison, this is a fact of life. When one of the children starts protesting the status quo, all begin to question what they’ve come to accept as normal.

The School for Whatnots by Margaret Peterson Haddix (2022)

Max and Josie are real but their classmates are Whatnots, androids that create perfectly controlled environments for the children of the privileged. Max is rich and can pay to be there, but Josie must pretend to be a Whatnot herself to attend. When the two learn that not all is as it seems with the manufacturer of the Whatnots, they delve into a mystery that may unravel their world.

The International House of Dereliction by Jacqueline Davies (2023)

Alice’s family is so good at fixing up old houses that the university that provides their lodging never lets them stay any place for long, wanting them to move on to the next fixer-upper. The parents decide they have to stop all fixing when they move next to the International House of Dereliction. Alice befriends the ghosts who live there and strives to fix up their house and help their souls find rest.

Curse of the Eelgrass Bog by Mary Averling (2024)

Kess and her brother are taking care of their family’s Unnatural History Museum — full of supernatural or mythical oddities — while their parents are away. Kess is afraid that they are getting too few visitors to keep paying the bills. When a new kid in town comes to the museum to find answers to a mystery, Kess ventures into the forbidden Eelgrass Bog where curses and witches are said to exist to find answers.