Last Exit to Feral

Fearing, Mark. Last Exit to Feral (Frights from Feral #2)

September 5, 2023 by Holiday House

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

Following their exploits in Welcome to Feral (2022), Freya and Monica get drawn into a mystery involving the decrepit Messner Mansion. It was abandoned in 1939 after Ichabod Messner, a cantankerous teacher, went missing. It has the appeal that many abandoned buildings have to tweens, especially in a town like Feral where there are alligators in the Bottomless Pond and curses abound. When Freya and Monica go in, they accidentally  unleash Ichabod's ghost from a well, and also meet Emma and Barnaby Halvorsen, child ghosts whose uncle was Ichabod. They all need to figure out how Ichabod became so twisted before the first day of school so that his spirit doesn't wreak havoc on Humbert H. Humphrey middle school. They use maps, check out ghost sightings, and eventually find a tunnel to explore. They let MORE ghosts out, including a horrifying Teacher as well as a Franken-Farmer but also find out information about Ichabod's past; he was a well respected and decorated teacher up until a point. Can the children figure out why the teacher went so badly wrong, and can they set his spirit at ease so that the new school year is safe?

Strengths: Why aren't there more horror books about the spirits of disgruntled teachers? Or the murderous ghosts of them? Teachers are both very familiar to students, but also a bit mysterious. Do we really live in the building? (I wish. I've had plans to loft a bed in the back room and hang my clothes undernearth for YEARS. But Pongo has to be able to live there, too.) Freya and Monica have quite a romp as they look for clues and find new areas to explore, and the illustrations remind me (appropriately!) a bit of Thaler's 1989 The Teacher from the Black Lagoon. I can see handing this to children who are wearing Stranger Things t-shirts!
Weaknesses: Pretty sure that a house that's been abandoned for over 80 years would not be safe to enter. I guess the excuse is that Feral has all kinds of creepy things going on there. 
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who enjoy scary graphic novels like the Creepover series, The Pathfinders series, or Stine's Just Beyond books. Also reminded me a bit of Gilman's 2012 Professor Gargoyle.