Cassidy Blake's life is fairly atypical: her parents are ghost hunters and the authors of several volumes of afterlife knowledge. To top it off, Cassidy's best friend is a ghost--they met when the "corporeally challenged" Jacob saved Cassidy's life. Soon after her near-death experience, Cassidy discovered that she was able to see the world of the dead through a metaphysical partition that "isn't inherently scary, or bad. It's just another kind of space," which she and Jacob call "the Veil." An avid photographer, Cassidy enjoys taking photos, and goes on photographic missions through the Veil with Jacob, because the "[n]inth rule of friendship" is "ghost-watching is a two-person sport."
Much to Cassidy's chagrin, her parents have landed a gig in Edinburgh as hosts for a television program showcasing the world's most haunted locations, and she must go with them. Cassidy and Jacob have had adventures together, but they are unprepared for Edinburgh's spooky surprises. There, Cassidy feels the pull of the Veil more strongly than ever before, but what's on the other side might not want to let her--or Jacob--come back. Teaming up with new friend Lara, who shares her gift, Cassidy learns more about the Veil and tries safely to navigate the phantoms and hauntings in the city of ghosts.
Victoria Schwab's first foray into middle-grade fiction, City of Ghosts is an eerie but not-too-frightening story with witty dialogue and plenty of adventure. Schwab's portrayal of practical Cassidy and mischievous Jacob helps ground the narrative, keeping the fantastical elements from overshadowing the characters. And Schwab's "dark and menacing" city of Edinburgh is a character unto itself, so alluring that readers will undoubtedly want to travel to Scotland and look for ghosts and ethereal creatures themselves. --Clarissa Hadge, bookstore manager, Trident Booksellers & Cafe, Boston, Mass.