Olivia can’t understand why she and her twin Emma have grown apart so quickly. But more and more it seemed like it was Emma and her friend Ruby, with Olivia tagging along, until Emma and Ruby had an argument. Now all three are alone. So why does Olivia take the blame for Emma and get stuck with community service? She’s not really sure. Now she has to spend three days a week at Camp Chrysalis and is horrified to discover that she’s stuck with Ruby - and, as she later discovers, Ruby and Emma’s rival crush Garrett. At first they are relieved that they won’t be picking up trash, but cleaning out the old Live Oak Mansion. They’re not so pleased when they start clashing - and discover that there’s something alive in the house. Something evil.

A ghost story, a friendship story, a story about growing and changing, this has a little something for everybody.

The story is told in text exchanges between Olivia and Ruby and in alternating viewpoints. Readers will get swept up in the spooky mystery of the house, but also become invested in the stories of the individual girls, so different and yet slowly growing into a better friendship than Ruby and Emma ever had, for all their similarities. This book definitely reminded me that middle school girls go through a lot of drama (boys aren’t immune to it either, but the girls seem to have more of it) but Ruby and Emma, with the support of their families, do a good job weathering the storm and giving great promise of the people they will become.

Verdict: Hand this one to readers who like spooky adventure stories but also those who enjoy more introspective slice-of-life, realistic fiction.

ISBN: 9780399169618; Published October 24, 2017 by Putnam; Review copy provided by publisher; Donated to the library

Olivia and Emma are twin sisters. Olivia is the "good" twin. Emma is the "fun" twin. Although their personalities are very different, they've always been best friends. But lately Emma has been spending less time with Olivia. In order to prove her devotion to her twin, Olivia takes the blame when Emma gets caught shoplifting. This means that Emma will still get to go to the "fun" summer camp and Olivia will have to serve summer detention at a "camp" for delinquent kids. It only gets worse when she realizes that Emma's former friend, Ruby, will also be serving time in detention. Olivia and Ruby couldn't be more different and Olivia secretly thinks Ruby was a bad influence on Emma.

For punishment, the director of the detention camp has decided that the kids will clean and catalog the contents of the old Live Oak mansion. Very soon it is apparent to both Ruby and Olivia that something very strange, and perhaps supernatural, is going on at the mansion. On the first day Ruby hears a music box playing, but no one seems to be able to hear it except Olivia. This proves to be a commonality that bonds the girls together despite their undeniably different personalities. With each passing day in the mansion, both girls witness strange things happening. Doors closing on their own. Talking dolls. A mysterious key. It's soon evident that they must get to the bottom of what's going on. It will require doing a little "breaking and entering" which doesn't thrill Olivia since that requires actually committing a crime. But she sees the good in Ruby and knows that she needs to help out her new friend.

It's a good story about sisterly bonds, jealously, judging people, accepting people, self analysis, and ultimately becoming a better person and understanding other people's perspective, all within the structure of a mystery story. Best for the upper elementary crowd, but a few middle school students might be interested. ( )