The Secret of Grim Hill [Paperback]

Linda DeMeulemeester (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 25, 2007 | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: Grim Hill

Cat Peters just transferred to Darkmont High, and is already desperate to get out. There's no way her mom can afford the tuition at Grimoire, the posh, private school nearby, so when Cat hears that Grimoire is offering a full scholarship to the winners of a soccer tournament, she jumps at the chance! Once she makes the team, everything starts to go Cat's way. It's like the whole town is under a spell, and all they care about is the tournament. Elated by her new celebrity status, Cat doesn't pay much attention when her little sister, Sookie, and their bookworm neighbor, Jasper, try to tell her there's something ... just not right about the old school on the hill. Their worries are confirmed when they uncover a mystery about an entire soccer team that disappeared many years ago. But strangely, no one in the town remembers the incident. When Sookie goes missing, Cat is forced to take Jasper seriously, and the two must figure out what is happening to the town. The investigation leads Cat to a book about ancient fairies and Celtic mythology, and she soon realizes that there is something truly wicked at work inside the walls of Grimoire.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The last words hint that the adventure isn't quite over yet, which is good news for readers. ... solid tween appeal ..." --The Globe and Mail --The Globe and Mail

About the Author

Author Linda DeMeulemeester has worked in the fields of literacy and education for many years, as a teacher and program adviser. In 2001, she graduated from the Clarion West Workshop for writers of science fiction and fantasy in Seattle, and has had several short stories published in magazines. The Secret of Grim Hill is her first novel, and was inspired by her "inner eleven-year old" who loves adventure and believes in magic. Linda lives in Burnaby, British Columbia.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Lobster Press (May 25, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1897073534
• ISBN-13: 978-1897073537
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,577,841 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Girl Characters Rule!, August 23, 2007

By 

Jarla Tangh "Her Tangh-i-ness" (Mattapan, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Secret of Grim Hill (Paperback)

Move over you Quidditch fans!

Voted most spunky heroine since Pippi Longstocking!

Put your skort on and kick some ball!

There aren't enough realistic female characters for young people

to sink their teeth into until now! Everyone wants to be a Cinderella

or a Snow White right? Wrong! Cat Peters is the the girl who wants to get

into the exclusive school Grim Hill more than anything, or so she thinks....

All it's going to take is winning a simple soccer match.

Join Cat when she her friends find out what's really going

on at Grim Hill, and it's not sitting around waiting for

her coach to turn back into a pumpkin, or biting into a

poisoned apple! Cat finds out the things that often matter

most are the people dearest to your heart, even above

hanging out with the cute boys. I especially liked the touch

about how the power of love reaches across the plane of

time and into the otherworldly. Recommend the really cool

interpretation of Halloween rituals.

The Secret of Grim Hill, loved it!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, April 30, 2008

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Secret of Grim Hill (Paperback)

After an awful first day at her new school, Cat Peters decides that she will do anything to escape from Darkmont High. When she hears that Grimoire--the private school that sits alone on a forest-covered hill--is offering full tuition to the winners of a soccer competition to be held on Halloween, she makes up her mind to put all of her energy into it. She's ecstatic when she makes one of the two teams--the Witches--and suddenly, her life begins to shape up. Everyone now wants to be her friend, teachers let her leave class early for soccer practice, and the entire town is cheering her on to win the game.

The only two people who do not seem to so excited about it are Cat's little sister, Sookie, and their nerdy neighbor, Jasper. Cat can't help that she doesn't have time to do things with Sookie now that she has so much soccer practice, and she doesn't need a nerd for a friend now that she's finally fitting in at school. But is Cat's acceptance by her peers, and the rest of this town, really normal, or has soccer really taken over? And why is it that, when something seems to conflict with the game or practice, it seems to be eliminated in the worst way?

I must say that the ending of this book surprised me by not going in the direction I expected it. Instead, it appealed to a topic that I find fascinating, and I enjoyed seeing this author's take. A fun fantasy mystery for the younger reader.

Reviewed by: Allison Fraclose

5.0 out of 5 stars Loved it!, June 19, 2011

By 

JC - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Secret of Grim Hill (Paperback)

Fun read! Started reading and got swept away. Great, spooky ending. Can't wait until a movie is made of this!