Creepy Pick: The Murmurings

The Murmurings
by Carly Anne West
Simon Pulse
2013
370 pages

Sometimes a book is so strange, so chilling and creepy, it stays with you. The Murmurings is that book. Be forewarned.

Sophie's sister Nell is found dead and Sophie knows it wasn't suicide. Nell kept hearing voices in her head before she was admitted for treatment to Oakside. She ran away  from the hospital and was found hanging upside down from a tree near an old ghost town. Sophie misses her once popular and beautiful sister; she worries that she might be going crazy, too. Sophie is starting to hear the murmurings and she can't concentrate or sleep.

Sophie wishes her mother would snap out of it. Since her sister's death, her mother has turned to alcohol and depression, rarely leaving the house, forgetting to eat, and barely existing. Sophie can't turn to her mother for help because her mother is not cognizant.  Evan, a football player from school, shows interest in Sophie--they study together and have a picnic; Evan reveals he has lost his cousin Deb; she was once a patient at Oakside, too. Evan and Sophie begin to investigate the hospital.

Just what is going on at that "hospital?"What secrets did Nell uncover? Did someone from the hospital kill Nell? Evan show Sophie a blog he's discovered online that explains the murmurings and exposes the hospital and evil Dr. Keller. Sophie decides to get answers, putting herself in grave danger and opening a door for the Takers. When Sophie realizes  the secret identity of a patient  known only as MM, she can't wait any longer. If she doesn't save MM right now, MM may die.

The Taker reminds me of Harry Potter's deatheaters, both in appearance and behavior--the Taker is horribly grotesque and evil. It feeds on the soul and kills its victims.

Recommended for readers who love creepy books grade 9-up. No sex. Some language. F-bomb. Mature situations. 

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

High School Picks

Shutter Island
by Dennis Lehane
Harper Collins, 2003
325 pages

Shutter Island is one crazy dream of a book. U. S. Marshal Teddy Daniels and his partner are sent to Shutter Island to investigate the disappearance of an escaped patient from Ashecliffe Hospital for the Criminally Insane. Soon, they are neck deep in mystery--how does an insane woman escape from a locked room? What are the cryptic clues Teddy is receiving and who is leaving the clues? What really goes on in Ward C? Are the doctors a super-secret government medical team investigating drug experimentation and mind control? Since the story takes place in 1954, Lehane is able to use history fact and fiction to present a sense of disbelief yet belief that the U.S. government would actually use a mental hospital to experiment on mental patients.

In a superb twist, Lehane makes readers question what is really going on--who is in charge, who is really insane, who is sane, and what constitutes sanity? Is the whole island an experiment to control thoughts and behaviors? There is no one better than Lehane at capturing character through subtle action and dialog. Shutter Island ranks right next to Mystic River as a great character study. Any budding novelist should read Lehane to get dialog right. He is the master.

The movie starring Leonardo di Caprio as Teddy should be a spooky tale.