{"id":96355,"date":"2025-02-18T23:53:30","date_gmt":"2025-02-18T23:53:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/entertainment\/books\/review-of-the-ghosts-of-bitterfly-bay-by-mary-averling-marys-top-ten-addictions-feed-your-fiction-addiction\/"},"modified":"2025-02-18T23:53:30","modified_gmt":"2025-02-18T23:53:30","slug":"review-of-the-ghosts-of-bitterfly-bay-by-mary-averling-marys-top-ten-addictions-feed-your-fiction-addiction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=96355","title":{"rendered":"Review of The Ghosts of Bitterfly Bay by Mary Averling & Mary\u2019s Top Ten Addictions \u2013 Feed Your Fiction Addiction"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\"\"\"\"I\u2019ve joined up with the IT\u2019S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING? kid-lit edition, hosted by Unleashing Readers<\/a> and MARVELOUS MIDDLE GRADE MONDAY hosted by Always in the Middle\u2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Today I\u2019m featuring THE GHOSTS OF BITTERFLY BAY by Mary Averling, a spooky ghost story with a twist \u2013 the main character is a ghost!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Read on for my review of the book, and then make sure you also check out the author\u2019s list of top ten addictions to find out more about her!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n

\"#IMWAYRThe Ghosts of Bitterfly Bay<\/strong> by Mary Averling<\/a>
Published by<\/strong> G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers<\/a> on February 4, 2025
Genres:<\/strong> Contemporary Fantasy<\/a>, Horror<\/a>, Middle Grade<\/a>
Pages:<\/strong> 224
Source:<\/strong> NetGalley<\/a>, Purchased<\/a>
Cover Artist:<\/strong> Alla Khatkevich
My rating:<\/strong>
\"4.5 <\/p>\n

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A ghost must team up with the living girl she\u2019s been haunting in order to defeat a monster out of her nightmares and save her little brother, from the author of The Curse of Eelgrass Bog.<\/b><\/p>\n

Maudie isn\u2019t your typical twelve-year-old girl\u2014she\u2019s the ghost of one. Along with her best friend Kit and little brother Scratch, she haunts a cottage in the woods, doing her best to scare off the vacationers and forget her old life.<\/p>\n

But everything changes when Kit and Scratch go missing. Maudie knows something terrible must have happened, and she\u2019s right: Longfingers\u2014a monster from her own nightmares, with spidery fingers and needle-sharp teeth\u2014has stolen her friends away.<\/p>\n

Longfingers makes Maudie a twisted deal: find the key to a door in a mysterious cabin, or she\u2019ll never see her friends again. With nobody else to turn to, Maudie has to beg for help from Gianna, the living girl she\u2019s been haunting. Together, the girls search for a way to thwart the monster and save Maudie\u2019s friends.<\/p>\n

But Maudie\u2019s keeping secrets about the cabin and her friends. Unless she finds a way to finally face the truth, she may never be able to rescue her friends from Longfingers\u2019s grasp.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n\"add-to-goodreads\"<\/a>\u00a0<\/b>\n<\/div>\n

Buy from Barnes & Noble,<\/a>\u00a0Amazon<\/a>, Bookshop.org<\/a><\/h4>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

A beautifully-written book about facing the fears that haunt us. This is the second book I\u2019ve read by Averling, and I can honestly say her writing style has fully captured my heart\u2014<\/span>it\u2019s lyrical and haunting and full of whimsical details and plenty of surprises!<\/p>\n

Kids who love horror stories will be mesmerized by the rich, unique worldbuilding and the atmospheric setting (a creepy cabin that shouldn\u2019t exist!). Maudie\u2019s quest to save her brother and her best friend continuously twists and turns into new territories, riveting the reader and leaving them wondering what might possibly come next. But best of all, the story is deeply moving and reminds us that facing even our deepest fears is always better than stuffing them down and hiding them deep, where they fester. I loved every minute of this book!<\/p>\n

As a side note, if you haven\u2019t read THE CURSE OF EELGRASS BOG yet, you don\u2019t know what you\u2019re missing. The two books are unrelated, so you don\u2019t have to read Curse<\/em> first, but I highly recommend you read that one too!<\/p>\n

Thank you to NetGalley for the review copy! (But I also bought a copy of my own!)<\/em><\/p>\n\n

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About the Author<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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\"\"Mary Averling grew up across England and Canada, never far from the woods. She has degrees from the University of Victoria and Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge. Since she can\u2019t stay away from libraries for very long, she is currently working toward her PhD at Queen\u2019s University, Kingston. She lives surrounded by all the magical, spooky, heartfelt books she can find. THE CURSE OF EELGRASS BOG was her middle grade debut.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Author Links:<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Mary accidentally sent me eleven addictions (four was in her list twice. Ooops!), but I just decided to go with it. Just one more fun fact to love about her (and since fun facts is literally on her list, this is perfect!).<\/p>\n

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Mary Averling\u2019s Top Ten (Eleven) Addictions<\/strong><\/p>\n

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  1. Books<\/b>
    Gotta get the obvious one out of the way first\u2014<\/span>because of course, I can\u2019t get enough of reading!<\/li>\n
  2. Forests<\/b>
    <\/strong><\/strong>No matter where I am in the world, there\u2019s something about forests that makes me feel calm and rooted. They are always my happy place.<\/li>\n
  3. Monsters<\/b>
    Give me your cryptid stories! Your ghosts and ghouls! I adore creepy creatures.<\/li>\n
  4. Chocolate<\/b>
    <\/strong><\/strong>I mean, treats in general. I definitely have a sweet tooth (mmm, cookies \u2026) but nothing gets me smiling like chocolate. Last Christmas I tried a cheddar salted caramel, and you know what? Turns out I even like chocolate and cheese.<\/li>\n
  5. Dresses
    <\/strong><\/strong>I love the swoosh and the swish. Pants? Eh. My closet is FULL of dresses.<\/li>\n
  6. Road Trips
    <\/strong><\/strong>There\u2019s something magic about long, lazy driving days, blasting music and visiting strange places.<\/li>\n
  7. Museums<\/b>
    <\/strong><\/strong>Unnatural History Museums, anyone? But seriously! Art museums might be my favourite, but I\u2019ve been to puppet museums, and hammer museums, and farmhouse museums, and [continues forever].<\/li>\n
  8. Hiking
    <\/strong><\/strong>A long, bright morning walk (especially if it\u2019s along the lakefront where I live) is the bestest. Up mountains, into woods \u2026 doesn\u2019t matter!<\/li>\n
  9. Fun Facts
    <\/strong><\/strong>The weirder, the better. Tell me about space or cats or peculiar inventions!<\/li>\n
  10. Horror Movies
    <\/strong><\/strong>There\u2019s nothing better than hiding under a blanket and getting proper spooked!<\/li>\n
  11. Birds<\/strong>
    Owls and loons are my favourite, but I couldn\u2019t imagine life without birds.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n
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    Thanks so much for sharing,Mary! I am right there with you on forests. Even reading the word \u201cforests\u201d in your list gave me a happy feeling!!<\/p>\n\n

    MG posts since my last IMWAYR & MMGM:<\/h2>\n