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Searching... McMinnville Public Library | Ostow, M. | Searching... Unknown |
Searching... Salem Main Library | TEEN FICTION Ostow, M. | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
Here is a house of ruin and rage, of death and deliverance.
Here is where I live, not living.
Here is always mine.
When Connor's family moves to Amity, a secluded house on the peaceful banks of New England's Concord River, his nights are plagued with gore-filled dreams of demons, destruction, and revenge. Dreams he kind of likes. Dreams he could make real, with Amity's help.
Ten years later, Gwen's family moves to Amity for a fresh start. Instead, she's haunted by lurid visions, disturbing voices, and questions about her own sanity. But who would ever believe her? And what could be done if they did?
Because Amity isn't just a house. She is a living force, bent on manipulating her inhabitants to her twisted will. She will use Connor and Gwen to bring about a violent end as she's done before.
Inspired by a true-crime story, Amity spans generations to weave an overlapping, interconnected tale of terror, insanity, danger, and death.
Author Notes
Micol Ostow has been writing professionally since 2004, and in that time has written and/or ghostwritten over 40 published works for young readers. She started her reign of terror with Egmont with her novel family , which Elizabeth Burns named a favorite of 2012 on her School Library Journal -syndicated blog, A Chair, a Fireplace, a Tea Cozy. Micol's graphic novel, So Punk Rock (and Other Ways to Disappoint Your Mother) , was named a 2009 Booklist Top Ten Arts Books for Youth Selection, a Booklist Top Ten Religion Books for Youth Selection, and a Sydney Taylor Notable Book for Teens. She received her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts, and currently teaches a popular young-adult writing workshop through MediaBistro.com.
She lives and works in New York City, alongside her Emmy Award-winning husband, their daughter, and a finicky French bulldog. Visit her at www.micolostow.com. The author lives in Brooklyn, NY.
Reviews (4)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up-Can a house be evil? Connor and Gwen know that it can. Two families, separated by 10 years, both move into Amity. Once they do, the house will not let go until it's wrenched every bit of terror out of them. Connor's vivid nightmares haunt him even in the daylight. Gwen, brought to Amity by her family to recover from her mental breakdown, senses the danger her family is in, but can't get them to believe her. Ostow's YA horror novel, inspired by the true-crime history of the Amityville Horror house, is told in two distinct voices in alternating sections. The thrilling plot keeps the pages turning and provides a few genuine gasps along the way. The end, unfortunately, feels a little rushed compared to the rest of the novel. Overall, a decent horror entry into a difficult genre for YA. Ostow's story is certainly not a rehash of older materials, but doesn't produce the chills of the source material in quite the same way. Still, steer teen horror fans who aren't quite ready for Stephen King, Peter Straub, or John Ajvide Lindqviste to this one.-Elaine Baran Black, Georgia Public Library Service, Atlanta (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Ostow evokes classic Stephen King with this disturbing story that sees two families terrorized by a malevolent house with a bloody history (loosely inspired by the Amityville Horror). Supernatural and psychological horrors intertwine as the stories unfold over the course of two separate months. Ten years in the past, Connor Webb is haunted by dark dreams of murder and mayhem, pushed to the breaking point by his abusive father and held back only by his twin sister, Jules. In the present, Gwen Hall fears for her brother Luke's sanity, but her own psychological instability undermines her credibility and ability to cope. As the centuries-old house known as Amity calls to each in turn and manipulates them, their stories seem destined to end in bloodshed and tragedy. Ostow (family) skillfully builds tension and keeps readers guessing about how much is real and what's simply in her characters' minds. While the storytelling is steeped in atmosphere and punctuated by unsettling imagery, the voices of the dual narratives are too similar, and the abrupt ending a bit of a letdown. Ages 14-up. Agent: Jodi Reamer, Writers House. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
An evil house manipulates its residents to dark ends in this novel inspired by The Amityville Horror (1977).Connors family moves into the odd, old houseAmityfor a fresh start after the family patriarchs sketchy business practices force their move. Ten years later, Gwens family seeks a new start after a mysterious incident Gwen was involved in, hoping country life will help stabilize her. They both have a close relationship with an opposite-gender sibling and enough personal issues to make them unreliable narrators. The split first-person narrative shows the parallels between their experiences, occasionally repeating revelations, but the protagonists fit into different parts of the houses pattern of violence and horror, which keeps the two stories from feeling stale. The house shares its bag of tricks with the famous Amityville incidentflies, specific and significant numbers, the basements hidden red room, and of course dreams of grisly crimes. The narrative consists of very many short chapters that are most effectively deployed in the rapid acceleration to the climax; earlier, they feel jarringly jumpy. The dark history of the house isnt kept a mysterythe object is dwelling in the horror, not uncovering itand the houses nature is openly evil from the start. The refreshing lack of romance enhances the claustrophobic atmosphere, and while the foreshadowing gives away a lot, the conclusion still surprises.A dark read for a darker night. (Horror. 13 up) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Jay Anson's The Amityville Horror (1977) and its innumerable offspring have enough cultural capital to be subject for fictionalized revision, and Ostow, who performed a similar trick with the Manson murders in Family (2011), is the right writer to give it a whack. The setup is complicated: Connor and his family have moved to the New England home known as Amity, with the 17-year-old feeling the pull of dark forces. Intercut with this is the story of Gwen, who moves into the same house 10 years later, only to watch her brother yield to a similar psychosis. Amityville lore is present in the eye-shaped windows, the red room, the 3:14 a.m. insomnia, and more, though Ostow has replaced the mass-murder past with a history of witchery. This careful explaining smooths out the effectively illogical shocks of the first half, which come on quickly but go like gangbusters: floating red eyes, pus-filled wounds everything but the kitchen sink. (Well, there is a bathroom sink that fills with blood.) Uneven, yes, but those last 30 pages are really freaking scary.--Kraus, Daniel Copyright 2010 Booklist