The Howling Ghost (2) (Spooksville)

Product Description

Go on a ghostly hunt for a missing boy in this second book in New York Times bestselling author Christopher Pike’s Spooksville series—now on TV!

Cindy is playing by the ocean with her younger brother, Neil, when a ghost appears out of nowhere and grabs the little boy and carries him away. Cindy tries to tell people what happened, but everyone assumes that Neil drowned. Cindy is left heartbroken, with no one to help her find her brother.

Until Sally reads about what happened. Sally believes in ghosts—and she knows there are plenty of them to be found in Spooksville. With Adam and Watch, Sally goes to Cindy and promises to help get her brother back. But what none of them knows is that this ghost is a very nasty one—and she’d rather turn them
all into ghosts than return Neil.

About the Author

Christopher Pike is a bestselling author of young adult novels. The Thirst series,
The Secret of Ka, and the Remember Me and Alosha trilogies are some of his favorite titles. He is also the author of several adult novels, including
Sati and
The Season of Passage. Pike currently lives in Santa Barbara, where it is rumored he never leaves his house. But he can be found online at Facebook.com/ChristopherPikeBooks.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

The Howling Ghost

1
The day the howling ghost kidnapped Cindy Makey’s kid brother, Neil, was rotten from the start. Cindy began to expect bad times ever since her family moved to Springville, or Spooksville, as the kids in town called it. At first—even though she disliked the place—Cindy didn’t believe half the stories she heard about it. But after the ghost came out of the light-house and grabbed Neil, she was ready to believe anything.

“Can I walk on the jetty?” Neil asked as they reached the end of the beach, where the rocky jetty led out to the lighthouse.

“I don’t think so,” Cindy replied, stuffing her hands in her pockets. “It’s getting late and cold.”

“Please?” Neil pleaded, sounding like the five-year-old he was. “I’ll be careful.”

Cindy smiled at her brother. “You don’t know what the word means.”

Neil frowned. “Which word?”

“Careful, dummy.” Cindy stared at the churning ocean water. The waves weren’t high, but the way they smashed against the large boulders of the jetty made her uneasy. It was as if the surf were trying to tear down the structure. And the tall lighthouse, standing dark and silent at the end of the jetty, also made her nervous. It had ever since she moved to Springville two months ago. The lighthouse just looked, well, kind of spooky.

“Pretty please?” Neil asked again.

Cindy sighed. “All right. But stay in the middle, and watch where you put your feet. I don’t want you falling in.”

Neil leaped in the air. “Cool! Do you want to come?”

Cindy turned away. “No. I’ll sit here and watch. But if a shark comes out of the water and carries you out to sea, I’m not going in after you.”

Neil stopped bouncing. “Do sharks eat boys?”

“Only when there are no girls to eat.” Seeing Neil’s confused expression, Cindy laughed and sat down on a large rock. “That was a joke. Go, quick, have your walk on the jetty. Then let’s get home. It’ll be dark in a few minutes.”

“OK,” he said, dancing away, talking to himself. “Watch out for falling feet and girl sharks.”

“Just be careful,” Cindy said, so softly she was sure Neil didn’t hear. She wondered why the dread she felt about the town hadn’t touched her brother. Since their mother had moved them back to their father’s old house eight weeks ago, Neil had been as happy as one of the smiling clams he occasionally found on the beach.

But Cindy knew the town wasn’t safe. In Springville the nights were just a little too dark, the moon a little too big. Sometimes in the middle of the night she heard strange sounds: leathery wings beating far overhead, muted cries echoing from under the ground. Maybe she imagined these things—she wasn’t sure. She just wished her father were still alive to go