Queen of the Dead

Queen of the Dead (Ghost and the Goth Series #2) by Stacey Kade. Published by Hyperion, 2011.

Ghost Alona continues to hang around on earth. Alona is evidently still tied to Will who sees lots of ghosts (not just Alona). Everyone has settled into an arrangement that allows Will to help other ghosts without being completely overwhelmed by outrageous demands. School is pretty horrible for Will and his mother still worries about him- no changes there.

Will and Alona go to Mrs. Ruiz’s house to help her move on (the house is scheduled for demolition, which will not go over well with Mrs. Ruiz). Unfortunately, this doesn’t go smoothly. For one thing, Mrs. Ruiz doesn’t want to leave and reacts rather violently and physically to Will and Alona.

Will is also rather stunned to discover another complication in the form of Mina. Mina claims to be part of something called the Order and belittles Will as a “Casper lover”. Mina’s relationship with the Order is convoluted at best. She doesn’t seem enthused about the possibility of Will working with the Order and is extremely jealous of his abilities. Will can’t figure out whether the Order are heroes or villains. Either way, Will’s excited to learn about the existence of other people who can see ghosts- he’s not alone.

Then there’s the whole love triangle. Will likes Alona. Alona seems to like Will, but there is undeniable chemistry between Will and Mina too. And Alona and Mina hate each other. Add in the ghosts and the ghost hunters and that means there’s plenty of action!

This story of ghosts, friends and romance is recommended for grades 8 and up.

Visit author Stacey Kade's website