Karma Moon knows never to doubt those things her father has dubbed "woo-woo": fortune cookies, crystals, magic-8 balls.... Before Karma's mom left, she taught her daughter all about the importance of the mystical, paranormal and the just plain lucky. So, in Melissa Savage's enticing Karma Moon: Ghost Hunter, when Karma's dad's documentary film team gets a job filming a haunted hotel, she believes she'll need all the woo-woo she can get to face her fears and help make the film a smashing success.
After receiving a particularly lucky fortune cookie, Karma isn't surprised her documentarian dad gets an important call about a new gig. What does surprise her are the details: Netflix wants Totally Rad Productions to head out to the Stanley Hotel in the Colorado Mountains and investigate claims of paranormal disturbances. If they can catch a ghost on film, Netflix will even give them a second season. As Karma and her best friend, Mags, explore the hotel and its earthly inhabitants--the manager, gift shop owner and her grandson, a psychic who rents an office space, chef, an office clerk--they can't quite shake the feeling that maybe there really is a ghost or two lurking in the shadows.
Karma Moon is an insightful and entertaining look into the world of paranormal investigation for middle graders. The Stanley Hotel provides a fascinating historical backdrop and Savage (Nessie Quest) trusts her readers' critical thinking skills by giving them multiple potential explanations for the hauntings--as well as plenty of suspects for a potential hoax. Karma and Mags are admirably brave characters with a remarkable friendship in this spooky fun mystery. --Kyla Paterno, freelance reviewer