The Haunting of Hillside School

Synopsis: Nine year old Claire Posey is in school, attending her after school pottery class, and looks out of the window. She is shocked to see a girl's face staring at her for a moment, but then the girl disappears. She mentions the incident to her cousins David and Jeff Bridger, and they decide to investigate the mystery to find out if it was a ghost. Later, when having supper with their trusted family friend Mr. Wellback, he tells them about the terrible tragedy of Nettie Tuttle (who lived in the mansion, which is now the Hillside School), and the tragedy of his classmate who was found dead in the school basement. Soon, the gang start hearing someone playing the piano near the music wing. They enter a room where they think the music is coming from, but are shocked to see the room filled with cobwebs, with a dust covered piano inside. As soon as they come out of the room, they start hearing the piano playing again, and smell cinnamon in the air. The kids also hear that Hillside School is going to be turned into a vacation resort, and that they would have to transfer to Fairfield. Is there a ghost in Hillside School trying to stop the school from being a resort? As Jeff, David, and Claire continue to investigate the mystery, they come across different clues, but are they brave enough to solve the mystery? Review: This is the first book I read from the "Cabin Creek Mysteries" stories, and I really enjoyed it. Each chapter reveals something new for the three characters, adding another clue to the mystery. Each chapter seemed like a new adventure for the gang, even though they were searching for clues behind the mystery of the girl. Some areas of the book which I really found particularly interesting to read were when the children hear someone playing the piano playing and smell cinnamon, or when someone locks them in the shed outside the school. The illustrations were also beautifully and realistically drawn, and I especially liked the ones drawn for the old piano and the canoe near the docks. If you love reading classic Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys, you will definitely enjoy Cabin Creek Mysteries.

My son is in third grade, and loves these books. An easy read, he read two in one day, but are some of his favorites!

This review is being written by my 8 year old grandaughter, Mary. I loved this book but,I love all the other Cabin Creek Mysteries also.I can not wait until the 2 other books come out in February and May. I give all the books 5 stars but if there were more stars allowed, I would give all of them 1 million!

My son is 8 and has been a reluctant reader until about the past month or so. He's just begun to read chapter books, and this one has kept him up late many evenings. It must be pretty suspenseful because he kept running out of his room to tell me how excited he was to turn the page and find out what happened next. Here's a review in his own words: "Cabin Creek Mysteries is awesome. I've been reading lots of books and my favorite is The Haunting of Hillside School. It is the best book I've ever read so far. It has good description. I want to read all the Cabin Creek Mysteries." I'm definitely going to get the others in the series.