Source: Preordered purchase. This is a review of my personal reading experience.
The In-Between is a middle grade horror novel by Rebecca Ansari.
Cooper is lost. Ever since his father left their family three years ago, he has become distant from his friends, constantly annoyed by his little sister, Jess, and completely fed up with the pale, creepy rich girl who moved in next door, who won’t stop staring at him.
So when Cooper learns of an unsolved mystery his sister has discovered online, he welcomes the distraction. It’s the tale of a deadly train crash that occurred a hundred years ago in which one young boy among the dead was never identified. The only distinguishing mark on him was a strange insignia on his suit coat, a symbol no one had seen before or since. Jess is fascinated by the mystery of the unknown child—because she’s seen the insignia. And, she tells Cooper, he has too.
It’s the symbol on the jacket of the girl next door.
As they uncover more information—and mounting evidence of the girl’s seemingly impossible connection to the tragedy—Cooper and Jess begin to wonder if a similar disaster could be heading to their hometown. Thus begins an unforgettable adventure about the forgotten among us and what it means to be seen.
The In-Between is a book you have to STICK WITH! The pay off is worth it in the end.
In The In-Between, Cooper and his sister Jess are trying to solve a mystery they discover on the internet.
Coop
and Jess aren't very likeable in the beginning of The In-Between. The
family dynamic is a hard one. It makes the kids bitter and they don't
get along. Jess has diabetes which I did appreciate seeing here. The
characters (and their friends) go through a lot of development in The
In-Between, and I wound up loving them all by the end.
Honestly, I considered putting this down which would have been a shame because everything came together beautifully by the end.
The
world building and the supernatural setting that was embedded in
Chicago was interesting. The In-Between was a really unique ghost story
and will probably wind up being one of my favorite middle grade releases
from this year.
A quick note - after reading numerous ghostly MG
books, I've finally learned MG ghosts usually equal child death. I
should have realized this sooner. I loved this book and I highly
recommend it; just know - much like Scritch Scratch, it was inspired by a
real disaster.
4/5 stars
⭐⭐⭐⭐★
