Long Lankin

By Lindsey Barraclough
(Candlewick, Hardcover, 9780763658083, 464pp.)

Publication Date: July 10, 2012

Other Editions of This Title: Hardcover, Paperback, Compact Disc, Compact Disc, MP3 CD, MP3 CD

Categories: Horror & Ghost Stories, Fairy Tales & Folklore - General, Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Magic

Selected by Indie Booksellers for the Summer 2012 Kids' Next List

“Long Lankin is a figure of horror from an old English ballad, portrayed in this novel as a bogeymanTrue to its roots, the story embodies the sense of an irredeemable evil lurking just below the surface, waiting its time to snatch childhood away. Cora and her younger sister, Mimi, go to visit their Aunt Ida in the countryside, and their arrival awakens in Ida the terror of her own childhood in this retrospectively told story. Long Lankin delivers an atmospheric and engaging rendering of an ancient evil brought to bay.”

-- Kenny Brechner, Devaney, Doak & Garrett Booksellers, Inc.

Description

In an exquisitely chilling debut novel, four children unravel the mystery of a family curse — and a ghostly creature known in folklore as Long Lankin.

When Cora and her younger sister, Mimi, are sent to stay with their elderly aunt in the isolated village of Byers Guerdon, they receive a less-than-warm welcome. Auntie Ida is eccentric and rigid, and the girls are desperate to go back to London. But what they don’t know is that their aunt’s life was devastated the last time two young sisters were at Guerdon Hall, and she is determined to protect her nieces from an evil that has lain hidden for years. Along with Roger and Peter, two village boys, Cora must uncover the horrifying truth that has held Bryers Guerdon in its dark grip for centuries — before it’s too late for little Mimi. Riveting and intensely atmospheric, this stunning debut will hold readers in its spell long after the last page is turned.

About the Author

Lindsey Barraclough was born in Essex, England, and has worked as a music teacher. Long Lankin is her first novel. She lives in London.

Praise For Long Lankin…

This atmospheric, pulse-pounding debut makes the most of its rural, post–World War II setting, a time and place where folklore uneasily informs reality. Barraclough controls her narrative with authority, shifting voices and tenses to provide both perspective and the occasional welcome respite from tension. . .A good, old-fashioned literary horror tale for sophisticated readers.
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

This debut horror story set in Britain during the late 1940s starts slowly but weaves a chilling spell that will immerse readers in this world and hold them through to the breathless conclusion. . . .A spine-tingling selection.
—School Library Journal

This book is on these lists:

Another Book List by heydayepic
Great New Teen Books for Summer by bbo

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