The Doll Graveyard by Lois Ruby (review)

Shelby thinks that her biggest problems are her parents’ divorce and an accompanying unwanted move into an inherited rural house far from her beloved Denver. Little does she know, however, what awaits her there: creepy dolls that seem to want to enact revenge on her for the misdeeds of girl residents past. At first, the dolls just pop up in unexpected places, but when they actually seem to be controlling elements of the house in alarming ways, Shelby knows she needs to get through the secret diary she found, use all of the clues she can gather from the locals, and find a way to calm these dolls. Along the way, Shelby does gain a bit of insight about the complexities of parental dynamics and about how she has agency in choosing her own path and creating her own relationships with friends and parents, but this is primarily an effectively spooky, poignant ghost story. The addition of a few colorful side characters works well as contrasts to the fairly literal, serious Shelby, and their help is instrumental both in convincing her mother that Shelby isn’t crazy and in actually putting the dolls to rest in their little graveyard for good. Make sure this book gets is displayed cover out for full self-promotion impact—the satisfyingly disturbing dolls will draw many readers.