Gloam

What a fun horror book.

The book opens up Gwen and her family moving into their grandmother's home. With the passing of their Mom, their step-dad Henry has to sell their house and take them to a house that holds many secrets. Since the house is on a remote island, Henry has to find work off the island which means someone needs to watch the kids. It seems perfect when Esme Laverne arrives for the position but Gwen knows something isn't quite right.

There were so many good things about this book. Since it was a middle grade book, the pacing went by fast. I loved this because a lot of details aren't always necessary. The story was told in a way that was easy to imagine without getting lost in too many words. From start to finish, this story flowed and I loved the way the family had to adjust to their new lives all while dealing with the horrors surrounding them.

While the story was a great one, the heart of the book truly lies with the characters. Gwen will do anything to protect her siblings and ensure no harm comes to them - even if they fight back and don't want to believe her. I think what is great about Gwen is that even though she is scared herself, she will put her family first. Another great aspect of the book was Henry. He is the stepdad of the family and yet, he is trying his best to ensure their safety. Throughout the book, Henry's struggle of trying to be a single dad, a new place, and juggling everything that comes his way is apparent. However, the love that Henry has for his family is unparalleled and really brought depth to this book that couldn't have been achieved otherwise.

Esme was the perfect villain and her portrayal was so well done. She seemed perfect on the outside but Gwen could see right through her and never backed down. I thought this was such a great good versus evil story.

Overall, Gloam by Jack Mackay was a fantastic read. With enough scary spots for a Middle Grader to read but enjoyment for an older audience. The story was well set with great pacing. While the story itself was great, the characters are the heart of the story. Gwen and her family really shone with how they were trying to handle all the changes that were happening to them. Gwen was a great heroine and I adored Henry. I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who is interested.

AUDIO REVIEW
I was lucky enough to listen to this on audio and what a treat it was. The narrator's deep accent helped really solidify the setting of the area. She did such a great job bringing the emotions of Gwen and her family to the listener's ear. But what really stood out was her depiction of Esme. The almost too sweet tone of Esme's voice immediately makes your skin crawl and was the perfect amount of creepy. If you like audiobooks, I highly recommend listening to this one.

Gwen's mother has died, and her father lives far away. She and her younger brother, Roger, and twin sisters, Hazel and Hester, are being cared for by their stepfather, Henry. The family moves to Gloam Island, since the children have inherited their grandmother's home, Somnolent House. They haven't visited in a while, and the grandmother died a year ago, so it is rather damp and neglected, and filled with somewhat creepy objects, like taxidermied animals and pull cords for the lights decorated with eyeballs. The island itself is remote, and accessible only by a causeway that floods every night. The children try to make the best of their new life, but when Henry engages a babysitter, Esme Laverne, so that he can go on job interviews, Gwen is not happy. The woman is creepy, and Gwen feels that she should be able to watch her siblings by herself. Esme encourages Henry to take down many of the creepy objects, since the younger children are scared, but Gwen pockets one of the pull cord amulets because it makes her feel closer to her grandmother. Esme isn't a good child minder, although she will tell Henry about things that happened, like pulling Gwen's hair, in a way that makes her seem more sympathetic. Gwen visits the Rickety Den, the chidlren's treehouse, and the tree talks to her, warning her that she is in danger, and that Esme isn't what she seems. The twins are plagued by nightmares about the "Stitchy Man". When Gwen suspects that Esme has killed her grandmother's cats, the children start investigating and try to find a way to get rid of her. The house is being consumed by black rot, but the children do manage to get rid of the Stitchy Man. They get in trouble for also destroying the grandmother's bedroom, but things escalate. Gwen kills a monster in the well, and finds a key to the basement. Will the children be able to neutralize Esme before she hurts them?

Everything is changing for Gwen, but she doesn’t want to admit that things are different since she’s too busy taking care of her younger brother and twin sisters to deal with any feelings. Gwen and her family have just moved into their late grandmother’s house, and things don’t seem to be so great there. It seems that something is going on in that house. Unfortunately for Gwen, Henry, her mother’s husband, has decided that they need a babysitter and has hired Esme Laverne. Gwen instantly takes a dislike to Esme and doesn’t trust her, even though the rest of her family seems to adore Esme. How is Gwen going to keep everyone safe? Will she be able to face her fears and defeat the monsters that are now in her house to keep herself and her family safe?

What I Liked: This book does an amazing job of setting the scene before anything happens that will actually scare you. You get to know Gwen really well and trust her, which is important to the rest of the story because of how others don’t believe what she says. As the story is told in third person with a narrator who knows all, there is no space to question Gwen because you are seeing these creepy things play out in real time.

The author does a great job of building suspense, and it's fascinating to see the premise of this story play out. The children are to confront their greatest nightmares to defeat Esme, and the overall message is the importance of supporting one another through tough moments. This book also highlights the importance of feeling your feelings and letting others help you through those moments. Gwen refuses to let herself grieve the loss of her mom because she’s so busy taking care of her siblings that she doesn’t realize that the grief has caught up with her until she is forced to face it.

This book has illustrations at the start of each chapter, which add an element of creepiness to the story. The descriptions of the nightmares bring them to life as you feel that you are living through these dreams with each of the children. While adults might not find a lot of the nightmares scary, children will find these fears relatable as the fears develop according to the age of the child having the nightmare.

Final Verdict: Gloam is an eerie and spooky read perfect for children ages 8 and up, as they will be intrigued enough to finish the story but not too scared that they won’t be able to sleep at night. This book is great for children who are fans of Goosebumps and/or scary stories to tell in the dark. This is an outstanding book to teach children how grief can manifest itself, and how to seek the support of others and allow them to help you when you can’t help yourself.