I’m kind of a baby. I get scared really easily. Like, so easily. I’m not jumpy, but more scared of the atmospheric scares. Movies like The Strangers and The Conjuring terrified me beyond belief because of how scary the atmosphere was. The horror that scares me the most is about homes. Haunted houses, home invasions, anything where something or someone unwanted is in the house.

Mine by Delilah S. Dawson is that kind of horror.

Lily, the lead star of the story, is the most dramatic 12 year old in the world. She loves musicals and telling huge stories that may or may not be exaggerated (it really depends on how much of it she can act out). Her parents are moving her to Florida, America’s armpit. She’s not thrilled with the move.

She’s definitely not thrilled by the new house. It is packed wall-to-wall with stuff. Boxes, garbage, clothes, everything. It’s an old hoarder’s house. But, it’s right next to a forest/swamp and on a lake surrounded by McMansions. Lily checks out her room and finds it still completely intact with all of the old tenant’s belongings. It was a little girl named Britney’s room.

Lily starts cleaning out all the old stuff, throwing everything she can away. She moves her bed and starts making it her own room. Then, after visiting with her mom and heading back up to her room, she sees the bed moved back to the original spot and the whole room torn apart. On the mattress, written in ash, is the word “MINE”.

This is a catalyst for a really creepy and cool haunted house story. The story unfolds at such a great pace, filled with scares all along the way. You do eventually learn why Britney is haunting the house and it’s such a tragic story.

One thing I really want to point out is how well Dawson portrayed a 12 year old drama queen. As someone who was a 12 year old drama queen, it is nice to feel seen. The parents are written so well in that aspect as well. You can really see how close to the end of their rope they are with her. Of course, Lily has a dark secret as well as to why her parents are so fed up with the dramatics, but I really hated the explanation. I felt that her dad was really overreacting to something that wasn’t truly her fault. Anyway, that is literally the only bad thing I have to say about this book.

Mine by Delilah S. Dawson is a good, scary read. I literally read it lying in bed in about two hours and that’s something I never do. I can’t remember the last time I read something in one sitting like that and I’m glad I did. Definitely recommended for young horror fans. 5/5, 10/10.

Thanks NetGalley for the eARC! Always happy to read Delilah Dawson.

I don't know why but I didn't realize that Mine was middle grade. For some reason, I thought it was YA. So, I was pleasantly surprised that I actually really enjoyed this story. Not saying that middle grade is bad, I just haven't read many of them since I was actually in middle school. The story is very well done and I enjoyed reading from the point of view of Lily. For a twelve-year-old, she does seem a little mature for her age even though she's a little overdramatic. What young girl isn't overdramatic?
The story has some pretty creepy aspects to it that kept me wondering what was going to happen next. I'm just glad that Lily was willing to help the ghosts despite being scared.

I was going to give this a solid three as the plot was kind of weak and Lily reads a lot like a teenager (I didn't fully realize until most of the way through she's actually 12) but she also is very passive about everything that happens in the book. Overall it's solid but pretty gruesome and graphic, so I'd definitely recommend it for older middle schoolers. However, the ending was... kind of yikes. There was a secret Lily kept referring through to the entire book about why the family had to move. It turned out the big secret was that Lily was performing for her dad's boss at a party and during the performance accidentally knocked a candle over and the house burned down. Which apparently caused the dad to lose his job and blame Lily for the entire thing and caused both parents to label her as a "drama queen" and constantly belittle her concerns. But after the big showdown with the ghost, Lily comes to realize she's not a bad kid and forgives the father. Which, while true, doesn't seem to be quite the right take away for the book. Lily decides to "meet dad in the middle" which again.... Lily did nothing wrong and the fact that the father never apologized or even really had a conversation with Lily about the things he did wrong did not sit well with me. Not to mention the fact that the mother stayed completely out of it the entire time and made excuses for the father.

Full review to come on Instagram closer to Pub Day. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a review copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Children’s for giving me the opportunity to review this book. All opinions are my own.

Pacing: 3/5 It was very much a slow build, but I’m not sure it was in a good way. You usually want a slow build to increase the amount of anticipation you have for the action to start happening, but that’s not really what happened. It didn’t give me enough to build that sweet anticipation, but rather a feeling of “ok, when is this going to get creepy?” I was about 43% of the way through and only 2-3 minor creepy things had happened. I’d expect for a small stand-alone book to be a bit better at serving the creepy/scary aspects a lot quicker. This book is geared towards middle aged children, so maybe it would have been sufficiently creepy for someone not used to the genre; but don’t get me wrong, the book DOES get creepy, just not quickly enough for a short book.

Characters: 2/5 My GOD are the parents toxic, especially the dad; the way Lily is scared of him and cows herself to make sure he doesn’t get too angry. The author doesn’t do much in the way of letting the reader know that this behavior from a parent is unacceptable. The mother doesn’t do much to shield Lily from the abusive name calling either. So while the mother is just your typical “doesn’t believe anything her child says, and constantly gaslights her child” type, she’s not nearly as bad as the father. Lily is a delight, but a tad over dramatic apparently — blame her desire to be a theatre child. Her narration voice never annoyed me, or made me want to put the book down. She didn’t make child-ish decisions, or do anything terribly stupid.

Plot: 4/5 I really enjoyed the overall premise behind the story. I thought it was a refreshing “horror/thriller” and didn’t feel overly familiar to other books in the same genre. The only thing that bothered me was the haunting, and who was being haunted. The purpose would have been achieved if the target of the haunting was different. Even with the slow pacing, I read this book in one sitting and never felt the urge to put it down and do something else.

Ending: 4/5 Not gonna lie, I really wish it had ended differently. I can’t really say why without spoiling the book though. The ending is satisfying, but maybe you’ll understand what I’m talking about if you choose to read this book. Which if you like Middle Grade fiction, I recommend.

Overall Rating: 3.25

MINE is a perfect example of how the tried and true horror formula (the 'different' kid + new house + unbelieving parents) can still produce a great and fairly unique story.
Dawson's descriptions are top tier - enough to convey the setting, and still had me squirming with revulsion! Ugh!! She sets the stage perfectly for Lily as she both explores and endures her new, disgusting home and runs into a full haunting targeting only her. The creeping horror builds into a crescendo as the stakes get upped the more the house is disturbed.
Lily as a character is immediately solid from the get-go, readers know her personality and her "Dramatics", while the mystery behind the family tension remains an intriguing storyline throughout the book. You really want to know what exactly happened that caused the move and Lily's emotional isolation from her parents.
Overall, I thought this was a great read and it kept me engaged and wanting more right to the last page. I couldn't put it down! Solid story, great main character, and a ghost. If you've got a younger reader looking for a good scare - this is it.

Mine has just the right amount of spookiness for an MG reader. When Lily moves from Colorado to Florida with her parents, she can’t help but feel she is being watched. Her sleep is interrupted by nightmares and sleep walking. When her only friend gets injured at Lily’s house, Lily realizes she has to get to the bottom of her problems. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to be an early reader in exchange for my review.

This would be an excellent addition to any classroom library. If I ever do horror book clubs, this is an excellent choice.

The trend of middle grade ghost stories is still going strong. The latest one I’ve read is Delilah S. Dawson’s Mine. I had high expectations for this one, because I’ve been hearing praise for Dawson’s novels for a couple of years now. And, you guys, this book was delightfully atmospheric and spooky with a heartwarming but somewhat bittersweet ending.

Mine ticked all the boxes when it comes to middle grade ghost stories. The setting was in Florida, and Dawson really captured the humid heat and dampness of the location, which added to the overall atmosphere and tone of the story. The house itself seemed like a character in its own right, with plenty of secrets hidden in its old walls. Both of the families who lived in the house, Lily’s and the previous owner’s, had their own stories to tell. And when those stories collided, it turned into a thrilling and also somewhat nightmarish tale with plenty of outright creepy moments.

Lily Horne is into acting. I liked that portion of her character, though in the beginning, it was a source of tension between her and her parents despite the fact that it brought her so much joy. The parents were portrayed as doing their best with their situation, but it seemed, at times, that their frustration could have been handled a bit better. I guess that was the point of the story, the lesson in it. Mine was, in the grand scheme of things, a story about a ghost, accepting oneself, and learning and growing from past mistake, no matter how little or big they were.

Overall, Mine was great. I’d recommend it to readers who have enjoyed the Small Spaces series by Katherine Arden, The Forgotten Girl by India Hill Brown, and What Lives In The Woods by Lindsay Curry (which will be released next month on the 15th).

Disclaimer: this copy of the book was provided by the publisher (Delacorte) via NetGalley for this review, thank you!

Mine by Delilah S. Dawson

I started reading Mine in bed, in the dark, and actually had to put it down to read in the daylight because it gave me the creeps. So as a mid-grade horror novel I think this book succeeds spectacularly. And any kid who loves a good scare will love this book.


Lily is a drama queen relocated from Colorado into a hoarder's house in Florida. The mess and bugs are enough to send chills up my spine but then Lily encounters a ghost who is not happy new people have moved into the house. When the ghost starts going after Lily, her parents get angry - they don’t believe her, and think she is getting back to her drama queen ways.

I really loved Lily as the main character. She is complex and well-rounded. She struggles to balance being the kid her parents want her to be with surviving the crazy terrifying haunting she is living through.

While I have issues with how her dad is treating her, and how the relationship with him is wrapped up at the end I recognize that comes more from a parent place than a problem with the story. I think that representation of not-perfect family dynamics is important. Especially in mid-grade novels when you are beginning to see how your family is different from everyone else. And in this, the story succeeds wonderfully.

Helping the ghost move on allows Lily to realize that Colorado was an accident and she is not a bad kid, no matter how angry her dad is. And again, a message that I think many kids will need to hear. You are not a bad person, even if your parents are angry.

Mine is a scary ghost story that any mid-grade horror lover will absolutely enjoy.

Mine by Delilah S. Dawson is a middle grade horror novel. One I think is much needed in the middle grade genre. In this we follow Lily a young girl who moves from Colorado to Florida with her family for a fresh start. Lily loves being dramatic and has a passion for musicals and theatre. The house they arrive to is not what she expected it’s haunted. Things in her room start to move, the words mine, get written on items. Lily now has to face these horrors all the while her parents do not believe her.

I enjoyed this quite a bit. The first 70% was amazing. After that though it started to fall flat, I gave up caring about Lily and her journey. There were so many times that I was generally spooked and I believe that if I was the target audience I would have been very scared.

What I did not enjoy was how long it took to get to the climax and the ending let me down. Lily’s Dad, in my opinion, was unnecessarily verbally abusive to her and was always angry at her. What was the point of that?

It was still a very good read.
3.75 stars.

Delilah Dawson cannot write a bad book. Mine is a recommended first purchase for public MG and Jr. High school collections.

Thank you to Delacore Press, Delilah S. Dawson and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

Previously published at https://www.mysteryandsuspense.com/mine/

When we first meet Lily, she is traveling with her mom and dad to Florida from her home in Colorado. She is moving away from the only home she has ever had, and she is anxious and scared. When they get to the remote Florida home, they are saddened to realize the actual house has been neglected for years.

Not only that, but the previous occupant was a hoarder and there is garbage piled floor to ceiling. The Author, Delilah Dawson, is descriptive with her words; describing a house that is not at all welcoming and reeks of death.

Something has happened in Colorado, an incident she refers to throughout the book but Lily’s parents keep telling her that Florida will be a fresh start, though from the beginning they seem quite dismissive of Lily’s fears. From the first night in her new home, she starts experiencing paranormal activity, which is immediately disparaged by her parents as her over-dramatic behavior. The celestial activity is quite unsettling, even for an adult reading a children’s fiction novel. There is blood that gushes from faucets and laundry rooms filled with spiders and visions of a small child with green eyes. While her father starts work the very next day after they arrive, Lily and her mother get to work on the house, emptying it of garbage and filling the dumpster with bags and bags of questionable items left behind; stuffed animals, stained sheets, and dead snakes among the items thrown away.

Once Lily can venture out of the house and explore, she is happy to meet a dog, who appears to be abandoned by the previous family. As his tag says his name is Buddy, with the address of her house. She also meets Rachel, a young girl that lives nearby. To Lily, Rachel is a confidante for all the strange things happening at the old house. Sadly, the first time Rachel comes to visit, she is pushed down the stairs by Britney, whom they have discovered is the ghost of a young girl who drowned in the lake behind the house. After Rachel falls down the stairs and has to go to the hospital, she no longer answers Lily’s texts and she is on her own once again. Will Lily be able to figure out what Britney wants and help her spirit to move forward?

Mine is an amazing and frightening ghost story, similar to the Goosebumps series by R. L. Stine, which interestingly was banned in some places by parents over eager to protect their kids from all things scary. Once Lily figures it all out and gives Britney what she wanted, there was only peace and understanding. If I was a child reading this, I would need that last chapter for some closure. The setting of the novel, with the steamy humidity of Florida in July, the creepy house full of spiders and roaches and the swampy pool, filled with dirt and algae, really set the scene of horror. Delilah Dawson’s novel is a quick read, enough to scare the little ones (and the older ones!) but bring it all together in the end for a happily ever after.

Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Children's for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Mine is about twelve year old Lily as she moves from her home in Colorado to Florida. She quickly realizes the house isn't what it seems.

I love middle grade and this had everything I adore about it. A young girl whose parents don't believe her due to her naturally dramatic nature. A big scary house surrounded by a swamp. I loved Lily had her flare for the dramatics. She was a very fun and believable twelve year old..
I liked the themes the book was playing with. How it talked what being labeled a bad child does to you and how traumatizing that can be for children.
The writing was great and it kept hooked for the whole book.

I felt like the beginning was the strongest point in the story and that it felt like it dragged in the middle for me. It never picked up the tension again but I did enjoy the ending,

Overall 4/5 I enjoyed this book a lot.

Lily isn’t thrilled about her family’s move from Colorado to Florida. In Colorado, she had her drama club and her friends. In Florida, she has a house full of garbage and boxes and a room full of things another girl owned. Lily tries to be on her best behavior and stop her natural dramatic tendencies that her parents keep punishing her for, but as more and more strange things start happening around their new home, the more frightened she becomes. It seems the ghost of the girl whose room she now has doesn’t want to give it up yet…

MINE is a middle grade horror novel from Delilah S. Dawson that features an absolutely terrifying ghost, Britney. There were several scenes that had me literally shuddering (especially the ones involving spiders). What takes Britney’s character to the next level is the sense of sadness behind her story. We don’t get answers until close to the end, but the clues along the way give the impression that, while nothing excuses the terror Britney is inflicting on Lily, she isn’t pure evil.

Change is a major theme in MINE. Moving, especially to a completely new state far from home, is a challenging experience, especially for a 12-year-old. Lily is navigating a completely changed environment while also trying to change her own behavior. She feels shame and guilt over what she did that led to the move, but she also struggles with fighting against her own dramatic personality. She has to learn the balance of being herself and forgiving herself when accidents happen, all while trying to figure out what Britney wants.

Overall, MINE is a fast-paced story of ghosts, change, healing, and moving on. MINE is a great readalike for those who enjoy Mary Downing Hahn and Lindsey Duga.

I haven't read a good MG horror book in years, probably since the popularity of Scholastic's Poison Apple Books when I was in elementary and middle school (The Dead End, This Totally Bites, Her Evil Twin, Curiosity Killed the Cat, Midnight Howl, etc). While I don't think a new one has been released since maybe 2014, I still have all of them on their own shelf in my room, as a reminder of how much I loved the line. (Yes, I know how young this makes me seem. But I needed to include the fact because MINE is the exact kind of book that would've been published as a Poison Apple Book. Actually, it was better than most of them).
MINE follows thirteen-year-old Lily Horne as she and her parents move from Colorado to Florida into a fixer-upper house. Lily soon discovers that the piles of trash and cockroach infestation are the least disturbing things about the house-- her room is trashed when she's gone, messages like "MINE" and "GO AWAY" are left behind, and she keeps having nightmares, some of which involve sleepwalking. Lily's parents don't take her seriously when she brings any of these things up, as she's known to be dramatic most of the time, so she knows she has to deal with everything alone. Soon, she finds a new friend in Rachel, a wealthy local girl who makes living in Florida slightly less miserable. Rachel also knew the house's previous inhabitants, and tells Lily exactly what she's been suspecting all along: that a little girl, Britney West, died while living there, and her ghost is rumored to still be around.
Lily is determined to figure out what it's going to take to get Britney to leave the house alone, but Britney isn't going to stop at anything to drive the Hornes away. Even if it means hurting Rachel.

Now for the review part. I didn't expect to cry while reading this book, but I did! Even though the description makes her sound unlikable, Lily is a character you'll want only the best for. I hated seeing her parents not believe her, but I loved seeing her go from a stereotypical moody teenager to helping out with the house and looking forward to her new school. While Britney's story and character were what initially made me cry, it was impossible not to cry in a happy way as Lily makes the best of her new life and her parents finally come around. Seeing the house go from an abandoned dump to a nice living space was one of my favorite things about this book, too.
The description also makes it sound like Lily caused some kind of dramatic event that led to her being shunned from Colorado, but that's not what happened. It was a complete accident. But I was willing to overlook this because of how good the rest of the story was.
Along with the Poison Apple book comparison, the plot reminded me of a movie I would've watched on Disney Channel in my preteen years.
I recommend this book to YA horror fans as well as MG ones, and this book is honestly better than a lot of YA horror books I've read. YA horror sometimes tries too hard to combine as many plot points at once and confuse the reader, but this book isn't like that at all. If you like horror with a happy ending, read this.

5 stars
An incredible new middle-grade horror novel that gripped me from beginning to end.

I was hesitant going into the book, because any time I read a middle grade or young adult with a “drama queen” main character, I cringe a little, remembering how many ‘sassy,’ insufferable, and unrealistic characters I’ve read from adults who clearly do not understand how teens talk, think, or act. Lily, however, is a refreshing, believable, and deeply relatable character, a ‘drama queen’ because she loves performing for an audience and deeply connects with musical theatre, who has the introspection and awareness of her audience required of a gifted actress. She’s struggling under completely understandable and relatable pressures, like a new move, her family’s newly-strained financials, and feeing judged and blamed by her parents for being a teenager with all that that entails.

Upon moving to a gross fixer-upper in Florida, Lily tries her best to make the best of things and fit herself into the space she digs out from the previous residents’ trash, but discovers that she is unwelcome when the ghost of the girl who lived there before her demands she get out and return what’s “Mine.” The haunting scenes are genuinely spooky, and mesh nicely with the family tensions Lily has to deal with.

I grew up reading middle-grade ghost stories, and this ranks as one of the best I’ve read. I wish I’d had it as a kid, and envy the kids who get to read it now.

I received this book for free for an honest review from netgalley #netgalley

Wow awesome book. I would recommend for 12 and up it is quite a bit scary but it really is really good just setting is awesome and the main character is very relatable.

This was a great upper middle grade/lower YA horror novel that took the horror to pretty high levels for the age range but reigned it in right before it got too intense. I loved the Southern gothic/swamp gothic vibes (and having recently moved from central Florida near where this takes place...it was all too familiar, in a deliciously evocative way). I also thought our main character was pretty well developed, though the book did traffic in the 'terrible/clueless parents' trope that's so foundational to the genre and plot development more generally. In this case, the gaslighting these parents perpetrated on their daughter was fairly next-level, and the father in particular was a wretched specimen whose behavior (peripheral to the main story/horror plot) made me want very bad things to happen to him. Alas, it's middle grade, so he comes out alright, but I was still wishing up to the final page... As for the horror arc itself, it's fairly well done and even somewhat scary for adults (at least this adult), though it does get into heavier topics like child neglect and the (perhaps obvious) death of a child.

Lily is not happy that her parents are moving her to move from Colorado to Florida, even though something went on in Colorado that they don't talk about. Florida will be a fresh start, but the house they have bought has been neglected for years, and they must clean out the former owner's possessions. Her father rushes back to work, and her mother has a part time position, so much of the work is left to Lily, who would much rather be on stage. Filling up the dumpster with rotten food, old clothing, and moldy furniture is not fun, but even less fun is the whispers and odd things that keep happening, like writing under Lily's mattress that says "Mine". Lily is happy to see a friendly dog nearby, whom she calls Buddy, and glad to make the acquaintance of Rachel, who lives nearby. It's a relief to be able to describe the bizarre happenings to Rachel, since Lily's parents just assume she is creating drama because she is unhappy about the move, and refuse to believe her that the house is haunted. When the girls find a ouija board, they learn a bit more about the ghost attached to the house, but things also go badly awry. Will Lily be able to figure out the mystery, get rid of the ghost, and finally get settled in her new home.
Strengths: The cover is fantastic, with a Mary: The Summoning vibe. There is always a need for books about ghosts who mean people harm, and I would certainly be scared of this ghost. The fact that Lily has gotten herself into difficult positions by lying and being a drama queen makes it possible for both of her parents being around, and I very much appreciated that they weren't killed off. It was also good that Lily found a friend in Rachel, even if there were some bumps in that relationship. The details about the abandoned house are gross, which will delight some younger readers. The whole Florida setting is well done, with a Watt Key level of dampness! This will be hugely popular with my students.
Weaknesses: The problem with being an adult reading books for tweens is that sometimes I have no patience with the characters, since I view the situations from a parental standpoint. Your parents don't want to move, either, honey, and you don't hear them belly aching. Moving into houses that are haunted is a well established trope, but wouldn't it be scarier if the main character LOVED the house and it was haunted?
What I really think: My Betty Ren Wright books are all in horrible condition and need to be weeded. The recent influx of books like Mine, Ireland's Ophie's Ghosts, West's Long Lost, Anderson's Thirteen Witches, and Savage's Karma Moon: Ghost Hunter mean that I can finally get rid of those and offer my readers in search of a spooky book fresher choices.