Review ~ The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington

Publication Date: January 1, 2013
Publisher: Scholastic Print
Source: NetGalley provided by publisher for honest review

Goodreads  ~  Amazon 

A haunted house, a buried mystery, and a very angry ghost make this one unforgettable thriller.

Jade loves the house she's just moved into with her family. She doesn't even mind being the new girl at the high school: It's a fresh start, and there's that one guy with the dreamy blue eyes. . . . But then things begin happening. Strange, otherworldly things. Jade's little brother claims to see a glimmering girl in his room. Jade's jewelry gets moved around, as if by an invisible hand. Kids at school whisper behind her back like they know something she doesn't.

Soon, Jade must face an impossible fact: that her perfect house is haunted. Haunted by a ghost who's seeking not just vengeance, but the truth. The ghost of a girl who ruled Jade's school — until her untimely death last year. It's up to Jade to put the pieces together before her own life is at stake. As Jade investigates the mystery, she discovers that her new friends in town have more than a few deep, dark secrets. But is one of them a murderer?

My Review:

The Dead and Buried has the potential to be an epic haunting tale.  Jade moves with her family, finally landing in a bigger house in a more populated town.  What she doesn't know is the big beautiful house they just moved into still has one of its previous residents, lurking...waiting...haunting.

Ghosts scare the crap out of me and the ghost in this story was no exception.  Cold bursts of air, dark shadows, electrically charged air...no thank you.  These were the aspects that worked really well in The Dead and Buried.

Jade is a fairly well rounded girl.  She is friendly and caring, especially where her younger brother is concerned.  She's non-confrontational but still brave enough to face the impending doom loitering in her house.

Kayla, the girl who died in the house is pure evil.  In life and death.  She epitomizes the term 'mean girl' and I hated her.  She's rude, ruthless, manipulative and vindictive.

Many of the other characters seemed one dimensional, they lacked much substance.  Donovan, the romantic interest,  had a bit of mystery to him and Alexa, the nerdy friend, had some quirkiness.  It just wasn't enough to deliver me a real connection.

When Kayla makes her presence and her reason for not 'moving on' known, Jade is forced to investigate her mysterious death or risk the life of her little brother.  Here is where the story started to fall apart for me.   Kayla possesses Jade's little brother in order to convey her messages and threatens his life if Jade does not help her.  This could have worked if the story was a much darker and horrific one. It's not though, it is creepy but not terrifying.  The reactions to the haunting are not as ghastly and alarming as they should be, especially with a possession. 


It was also fairly predictable.  I had the perp fingered way too early for my liking.  Many of the twists were anticipated.  The first quarter of the book had me pretty excited and I wish that the rest of the book would have held that same feel for me.


Perhaps my expectations were too high going into this one. I was hoping for a pure frightening tale, maybe I should have looked for that in a YA book.  Perhaps if I was much younger The Dead and Buried would have fit this bill perfectly.  I would recommend it for a younger crowd looking for a creepy ghost story that will scare you enough to get a nice adrenaline rush but not cause any nightmares.