Grave Mistakes: A Dead Family Novel
★★
Grave Mistakes follows Molly Dade, a middle schooler with a really strange family. Molly’s mom and brother were killed in a freak accident at their house, and now they’re a ghost and a poltergeist, respectively. Her younger sister is a zombie, and they have to keep this all a secret. But it seems like dad’s new assistant cemetery worker might know their secret. To top it all off, once her brother regains his memories of the accident that killed him, they learn that someone might be after their family. But who? And why?
This was a fun read with Addams family vibes, a unique plot, but with that said, there were a lot of plot holes that could have been left out, and several useless red herrings. It sets the book up for a potential sequel, but if that does not come to fruition, readers might find this book a little frustrating. The pacing is also slightly off with the book, and includes a seemingly unnecessary time jump
The characters in this book had a lot of potential, but overall, I felt it was very lacking. For such a loving family, I felt that Molly’s family lent her very little support and were not there for her emotionally. Molly and her brother were the only ones really acting like adults, while the grownups in her life were a little too carefree for the overall serious tone of the threat to her family.
Overall, this book is okay, but it had a lot of unfulfilled potential. I hope there’s a sequel so readers can tie up loose ends!
Reviewed by Brie M.