Beyond: A Ghost Story

VOYA - KaaVonia Hinton

Everyone on the Rain Coast in Edgewood knows Jane. She is the teenager who cheated death yet seems suicidal. What many do not know is that when Jane was a baby, she went to the Great Beyond for a few minutes before returning with a spirit who shadows her and forces her to inflict pain on herself. This is the type of book with which readers who like fast-paced tales filled with action will have to be patient. At first, the plot might seem mundane and even a bit repetitive, but halfway through the novel, the suspense increases. It becomes clear that Jane is haunted by a soul that has been tortured, but it is unclear if she will lose her life trying to satisfy it. McNamee has managed to squeeze into a single tale a number of themes, including heroism and friendship, that will speak to a variety of readers. Beyond successfully blends mystery, fantasy, and realism. Ages 11 to 18.

Kirkus Reviews

Jane's shadow having its own spirit is odd enough. Now it has a death wish. Born without a pulse, Jane is no stranger to near-death experiences. Her shadow has forced her to drink drain cleaner and held her down on a train track as a speeding train approached. After a recent nail-gun "accident" to the skull causes her to flat-line, Jane returns to the living with her shadow even more determined to kill her. The first-person narration makes the teen's fear immediate, as she begins sleepwalking along dangerous roads and dreaming of being buried alive. The atmospheric setting--the dark, wet, small town of Edgewood, along Canada's Rain Coast--adds another layer of terror to this intriguing ghost story. When Jane discovers a human skeleton after a landslide, she starts to realize the true nature of her shadow. Certain her constable father and florist mother wouldn't believe her shadow stories, she entrusts best friend and "Creep Sister" Lexi, a budding cinematographer with an interest in film noir, to help her solve the mystery. As in Acceleration (2003) and Bonechiller (2008), McNamee delivers another taut, spine-tingling page turner. A return to the true ghost story without any supernatural romance to ruin it. (Ghost story. 13 & up)

Children's Literature - Brenda Sowry

Not really a ghost story, but a mystery and thriller nevertheless, it will make you afraid to sing the song "Me and My Shadow." In her short seventeen years, Jane has survived being born dead, poisoning, electrocution, a nail in her brain, and numerous other close calls, leading the small community to believe she has a death wish. Her parents are extremely worried about her, but she cannot bear to share her secret with them. Jane feels like an outcast, alone with her secret, until she meets Lexi, a newcomer to the area. They become best friends, calling themselves the "Creep Sisters," and Jane eventually divulges her secret to Lexi, who does her best to protect Jane and help solve the mystery. A touch of romance is intertwined in the story, each encounter quickly halted by Jane's secret. McNamee's clever imagery helps build the momentum from the setting to the nightmares and sleepwalking, through the unexpected conclusion, leaving the reader unable to put the book down. It is a quick, easy read. There are a few typos and grammatical errors in the copy, but they do not take away from the story. The book cover and McNamee's picture on the back flap provide a hint of what's in-between the covers. Reviewer: Brenda Sowry

School Library Journal

Gr 7 Up—Jane has a lot of experience with death. She was born dead, heart not beating when she entered the world. Doctors saved her but she has had several other close calls. Is she accident prone, suicidal, or just plain crazy? Her brushes with death have been explained away as "accidents." But no one really believes that. If she tells her parents or her doctors what's really going on, they'll think she's insane and lock her up in a padded room. Only her best friend and fellow "creep sister," Lexi, knows the truth, that each accident was caused by her shadow taking over her body and trying to kill her. The latest incident, a nail gun to the head, almost did her in and seems to have given her shadow even more power. Now she is sleepwalking and human remains have been found in the woods near her home. Can Jane and Lexi put all of the pieces together before the shadow finally succeeds? Creepy and exciting in equal parts.—Anthony C. Doyle, Livingston High School Library, CA