Dead Voices by Katherine Arden is the second book in the Small Spaces series.
After escaping the maze and the smiling man, Ollie, Coco and Brian have found comfort in each others company. They just want to forget about what happened to them and move on. So when Ollie’s dad gets a free ski vacation from work, they all pack their bags and think nothing of it.
A snowstorm strands them at an all but abandoned ski lodge, they can’t help but worry. The power goes out and as night settles in and the lodge gets colder, the trio start hearing strange voices and seeing odd shapes in the dark. When a strange ghost hunter shows up, things get even weirder.
Ollie, Coco and Brian may have thought they left the maze behind them but just because they want to be left alone, doesn’t me they will be. Can the three of them find their way out of trouble once again?
Oh my god, my heart was racing, I got goosebumps… I did not want to read this one at night. I seriously felt like I was reading The Shining for kids. That being said it was fantastic just like Arden’s Small Spaces.
In the first book, the narrator was primarily Ollie but in this one it alternated between Coco and Ollie and I think this was a really smart move. Coco brought a really fun, calculating aspect to the story and I just loved her confrontation with the main evildoer in this book. Ollie had first shot, Coco second, guess it’ll be Brian’s turn in the next book. Ollie and Coco are very different so seeing how they each think adds a nice layer to the story.
I like how there are so many twists and turns to these stories. That the answers are there all along but aren’t necessarily “visible” or don’t make sense until later in the story.
This was a spooky read and great one for 5-6th graders who want to read something scary. This one gets 5 stars from me.
That’s all for now!
-M-