Overall this was okay. Her characters were good and the setting in Blight Harbor was imaginative. Evelyn and Desdemona, the two main characters were well done. Evelyn, a young lady, lives with her aunt, Desdemona, in Blight Harbor, a small town that has, per capita, more ghosts than any other place in the country. Desdemona explores the supernatural and is concerned about a former slaughter house on the edge of town. As she is investigating she enters a doorway into a ghostly realm haunted by a deceased serial killer and trapped there by a being called the Clackity. It is up to Evelyn to try to rescue her from the ghost of the serial kiiler and free them both from the grip of the Clackity. Senf's writing is good, though the story drags in places. My biggest struggle is that it is somewhat predictable. But I am not the target age group. For a young person reading this it is probably a good story. For them the characters might be more relatable. ( )

Welcome to Blight Harbor, the seventh most haunted town in America per capita where ghosts live in all the houses and witches and other supernatural beings are considered normal. Evie Von Rathe lives in the town with her aunt Desdemona who writes an advice column in the local paper (hilarious!). When a visit to an abandoned slaughterhouse goes terribly wrong, Evie’s aunt goes missing somewhere inside the building and it’s up to her to save her. The Clackity is a very dark, nasty creature that Evie must outwit on her quest to find her aunt, encountering a cast of other unsavory characters along the way. With every challenge Evie grows stronger and more confident in herself. There are SO MANY awesome pieces to this story that it’s impossible to list them all. I loved the good sparrow friends that assist her, the near blind witches she meets that are not as they first appear to be, the penny-eyes ghosts that are also prisoners, and the most horrible of all - the ghost of a former serial killer that is responsible for all of the torment. I absolutely loved this book! Fans of Neil Gaiman, John Bellairs, Edward Gorey and any Tim Burton film will enjoy this creepy yet heartwarming gothic tale. The artwork is also perfect. ( )

this was really fun while we were reading it, but when i think about it, i'm not sure how well it holds together in the end. i would like more of a sense of blight harbor, the town, and the people in it, as they were the most interesting piece of the story. the scary part - having to enter the 7 houses and face her challenges/fears - was exciting but didn't really make a lot of sense. probably it could be set up a little better to feel more a part of the necessary story. still, this was a fun read and we were all into it as we went along. ( )

I was really hoping that I would love this! Unfortunately, it felt flat and underdeveloped. Blight Harbor is described as an amazing town where ghosts are real and the local librarian is a witch, and we spend about four chapters there. Instead, we spend the majority of this book in a strange alternate dimension that is not nearly as interesting as the town itself just hopping from house to house.

Also, did we really need two baddies? The only purpose Pope seemed to serve was to keep Evie quickly moving along. His character's potential was wasted and since the Clackity could possess animals and people in the other world it was also unnecessary.

I am not the intended audience, so maybe I'm being a bit harsh, but it all just felt a little lackluster. ( )

The Clackity is a 2023 Lone Star novel.

Evelyn (Evie) lives in the most haunted town in America. Evie's parents disappeared, so she lives with her Aunt Desdemona. Aunt Des knows a lot about the ghosts and spirits of the town as does Lily, the librarian at the public library where Evie works. Blight Harbor really presents itself as a good place to live, but you do have to be aware of the spirits. Ghosts will probably haunt your house. Many are perfectly friendly. Feel free to ask for advice if your ghost proves less than friendly. There's little buildup at the beginning. You meet these three characters, get a feel for the haunted town, and we jump right in. Evie loves then town and the ghosts. When Aunt Des goes to the abattoir (slaughterhouse), Evie goes with her. She's always wanted to see what ghosts could be there, but it's the scariest building in town. Aunt Des always says no--until now. When Evie arrives and sees Des staring at a wall with birds on it, they realize something is very wrong and quickly leave. The next morning, Evie awakes to find a note saying that if her aunt doesn't return, go to Lily. Evie realizes that Aunt Des went back to the slaughterhouse. Defying the directions to find Lily, Evie returns to the slaughterhouse.

Evie must save her aunt. She fails to tell anyone where she is. She could disappear just like her aunt and parents. She walk in, sees her aunt and then her aunt vanishes. When Evie finds the spot and realizes how to follow her aunt, she accepts the challenge. Here's the deal. A famous serial killer haunts this place; she'll have to deal with his evil ghost. The Clackity ("ghost-thing" at the slaughterhouse) insists on this in order to send her off to save Des--bring the ghost back to him. Evie will have to go through 7 houses, finding Des in the last one before the sun goes down. The birds on the wall magically disengage; they are protectors. One attaches (for lack of a better word to Evie), which gives her protection and guidance. What follows requires you to remember what it's like to dream. In a dream, nothing really makes sense. Crazy things happen and places morph. That is what this journey is like. Each house is different and offers different terrifying challenges. You meet witches, ghosts, and weird dolls. Dolls are always freaky, in my opinion.

This horror novel will delight many of you. Enjoy! ( )