The Turnkey of Highgate Cemetery by Allison Rushby
Published by Candlewick Press on July 24th 2018
ISBN: 0763696854
Pages: 256
Goodreads

Stopping a Nazi spy before he can share his devastating plans with his German leaders is no small feat for a twelve year old.  Take into account that Flossie is also a ghost further complicates the matter but Flossie is a determined Turnkey, the keeper of one of London’s major cemeteries.  It is her job to keep her “residents” calm and dormant in their death. When Victor Brun catches Flossie’s attention, she comes to realize that he is a Twilight, someone who is not fully dead and at rest but rather someone who can continue to communicate with the living.  With the help of many of her other ghost friends and her fox Advisor, Amelia, Flossie begins to unwind Victor’s ambitious plans of how to conquer London. With references to World War II, readers may find this an interesting, alternative historical fiction. Despite the very strangeness of this story (ghosts who work in cemeteries, why Turnkeys have Advisors, how Turnkeys can simply close their eyes to move around the world), Flossie is a very likable character and readers will root for her to succeed.  

Reviewed by Suzanne Dix, Westbrook Middle School, Westbrook