Horror Book Preview-- Midnight At The Barclay Hotel by Fleur Bradley

 

Title: Midnight At The Barclay Hotel

Author: Fleur Bradley

Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers

Release Date: August 2020

Best Sellers category: Children’s Ghost Stories

This week’s horror book may be the kind which even kids will enjoy. MIDNIGHT AT THE BARCLAY HOTEL by Fleur Bradley is just the comfort reading you will enjoy. But don’t worry, there is enough mystery to also keep you engaged. And a murder.

However, since this book is also for kids, don’t expect any graphic details. 

But is this book you need to read or skip?

MIDNIGHT AT THE BARCLAY HOTEL Plot

When JJ Jacobson’s mother receives an invitation for an all-expenses-paid weekend at the Barclays Hotel, he convinces her to not only accept it, but let him come along too. 

Barclays Hotel is supposedly a haunted place closed down for years. JJ expects to do some ghost hunting in the place, but soon abandons his plans when his mother is accused of murder. 

With the help of his new friends Emma and Penny, JJ decides to solve the mystery to clear his mother’s name. In the process, he may find a ghost or two. 

My Take On The Sample

The book opens with a prologue where Mr. Barclays’ invitations are being sent. We see the letter of invitation and the fine print as well. While the letter promises a weekend of luxury, the fine print immediately negates this. 

In fact, you may chuckle at the disclaimer where the five-course meal may turn out to be a one-course meal. So much for the luxury stay. Ghosts and vermin are promised, too. Leaky ceilings?

The story is clearly set up to be both humorous and mysterious. 

Part One is titled: Liars, Liars. Or The Players. We meet JJ, a boy who doesn’t like to go to Book Clubs, but his father forces him to attend. He does like to go ghost hunting, though, and even has equipment to do this. 

When he finds an envelope addressed to his mother, who is the CEO of a company and always on the phone, he is thrilled to discover it is an invitation to the Barclays Hotel, one of the most haunted places in his vicinity. 

He convinces his mother to accept the invitation and take him with her because, after all, she did miss attending his art exhibit and gave him an IOU. 

But his mother is still apprehensive about accepting the invitation since she has a secret. In the end, she decides to accept the invitation to honor that IOU and the secret. 

Mysterious. What could the secret be about?

In Chapter 3, we meet one of the other invitees, Buck Jones, a cowboy. He remembers his interaction with Mr. Barclays as he ponders the invitation. He didn’t exactly end things on good terms with Mr. Barclays, but the prospect of a five-course meal and a vacation prompts him to accept the invitation. 

No one is reading the fine print, are they? It even mentions towards the end of every chapter that the guests are not reading it. 

Next, we meet Chelsea Griffin, who is a librarian. She is short on cash and keeps expecting to win the lottery any day now. While the invitation initially disappoints her as it is not a notification of her lottery winnings, she too accepts the invitation, but only because she has a whopper of a secret and has no choice but to accept. 

Towards the end of the sample, we meet retired detective Frank Walker. He still watches detective stories. And receives his invitation as well. 

All these invitations were sent by courier. All of them come with a fine print that no one reads, because it is in fine print. 

All of them have secrets? Just how is it tied to Mr. Barclays?

READ OR SKIP?

READ, of course. You don’t have to be a kid to enjoy this story. Midnight At Barclay Hotel seems like a decent whodunnit with doses of humor. It will be interesting to find out the secrets of each guest and the motive that led to the murder. 

The characters are interesting, and the writing gives the story momentum. Despite the introduction of several characters, they are properly spaced out and given interesting personalities. 

Midnight At The Barclay Hotel appears to be fun and spooky. 

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