If your Tween readers are looking for horror, they will be drawn to the nightmarish doll’s face on the cover of The Collector. The story begins with Josie, her mother, and sister moving in with Josie’s grandmother in the country just before the start of school. It is hard enough to make new friends at a new school, but when Josie and her sister start hearing voices calling from the woods life becomes even more stressful. Are the voices coming from the forbidden house in the woods? Who is this mysterious Beryl her grandmother is afraid of? And why can’t they keep their windows open?  A little creepy, but not violent, this book is filled with a lot of horror tropes, but this might work well for readers who are just entering the world of horror.

Recommended for grades 5 through 8.

Elizabeth Andersen, Librarian, Westbrook High School