Before I start I will say this blog will be full of spoilers from the start and throughout. (you have been warned)
Like the front cover, this book had so much potential. Invisible child ghost hand pulling you to a watery grave: scary. The hand belonging to a child that your brother drowned: scary. Drowned child seeking revenge on murderers family: (slightly clichéd) but scary. This list is scary, if it happens to you or you witness it. But to make people feel like they are there or experiencing it, you must AT LEAST use language from this century! Using Ye Olde English is OK if the story is set in Ye Olde England (clue in the name) but this story is not set in Ye Olde England because there are digital cameras and phones and email and PHOTOSHOP for crying out loud.
In all fairness the plot could be scary. But the execution is terrible - I am not joking when I say I am more scared of the HOMEPRIDE advert! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdcrHnzq9o8 copy this into Google and don't get too scared.
What this book needs is really immersive language and slow drip-fed clues, so it is actually possible to work out who the hand belongs to before the book tells you, to keep people gripped (which this book really needs help with). There is nothing more gripping than a mystery horror mixed with needing to know if you were right about the ending. But, that being said this book mustn't fall into the trap of giving away the plot before the end (usually this can be avoided strategically with the use of a strange turn of events and someone you always assumed was not the villain because they "seemed nice", turning out to be the villain)
Long story short: due to a use of out dated and old language this book is only scary if you are
a) scared of hands/children/both
b) a haemophiliac and holding any fine edged object (such as any non-scary page from this non-scary book) has the risk of spraying your blood all over the walls like some disgusting Jackson Pollock (if you don't get this joke do a google images search on him)
