The House in Poplar Wood

Gr 5 Up—In the atmospheric world of Ormsbee's latest, Death, Memory, and Passion are all very much living beings, with one person playing each role in every town. The Vickery twins have always known their place within this paradigm. On one side of their house, Felix Vickery aids his father in serving Death, trying to keep the red candle of life burning for those they can help, and storing away the candles that are extinguished in Death's trunks. Lee Vickery, meanwhile, lives in house's other half with his mother, spending his days after school in the service of Memory. After Passion's ill-advised decision to bring the Vickery parents together, resulting in the birth of the twins, an agreement was drafted as punishment to keep both parents separated, wherein one twin would reside with each of them in a different side of the house. While no one in the Vickery household is happy with this arrangement, attempting to get out of the agreement is punishable by Death himself. Enter Gretchen Whipple, daughter of the town's mayor and the second born in a family of summoners, who are charged with keeping Passion, Death, and Memory in check. Her proposition: if the siblings will help her solve the mystery of a school mate's death, she'll do her best to help them escape. Quirky, spooky, and thoroughly enjoyable, this will appeal fans of Trenton Lee Stewart and Colin Meloy, as well as readers generally looking for an absorbing fantastical mystery.