Tunnel of Bones by Victoria Schwab

Cover Art Courtesy of Goodreads

I read the first book in this middle grade series, City of Ghosts, last fall, and felt like it was a very middle of the road read. I enjoyed it fine but really wanted more than it delivered. Still, I'm a big fan of Victoria Schwab and wanted to see where this story went, so I picked up book two, Tunnel of Bones, when it was recently released, and decided to use it as the "Book with Red on the Cover" challenge for Spookathon. I'm glad I did! I liked this one a lot more than the first book.

Cassidy Blake can interact with ghosts. Not only that, but after almost dying, it is her life's purpose to send ghosts to the beyond. Wouldn't be too bad, except for the fact that her parents host a show about the paranormal, leading the family to travel to the most haunted places in the world. This time, they're in Paris, and when the family goes to explore the Catacombs, a poltergeist is released that begins wreaking havoc on the city. 

I still want to know more about the side character Lara, but I liked how her and Cassidy developed a friendship that continued into this read. I also still thought the parents were clueless with Cassidy literally disappearing all the time, but I've written that off as a suspension of disbelief that is necessary for these adventures take place.

I really saw Casssidy growing in this one: not only maturing, but really coming into her own with her ghost-banishing talent. You get to see her grappling a lot with encountering danger versus fulfilling her purpose, ultimately deciding that there's a difference between being scared to do something and TOO scared to do something. Fear doesn't define action. The overall plot in this one was much better than the first as well, and the poltergeist story line really kept me intrigued. We hope to go to Paris in a few years, so I'll definitely write down all the haunted places mentioned in this book for my visit!

While I think this was originally supposed to be a duology, it looks like there will be a third book, Bridge of Souls, releasing some time next year. I heard rumors that this would be taking place in New Orleans, and if so I can't wait to read it!

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars