Through the Black Gate

Cáceres, Alfredo. Through the Black Gate 

June 30, 2026 by Atheneum Books for Young Readers
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

In this graphic novel, Irene's mother and father has both been killed in a tragic house fire in Valdivia, Chile. The family cat, Moses, barely survived, and Irene believes that the spirit of her father is trapped in the cat. A book of her parents' also survives. She goes to live with her Aunt Ruth, as well as Ruth's nephew Francis who is living with her while studying music at a local conservatory. Moses keeps trying to escape and run back to the remains of the house, so is kept in the basement of Ruth's bed and breakfast. Francis wants to discuss ghosts, but Ruth warns him not to, given Irene's recent losses. When Francis plays a tune on his guitar, however, Moses is enveloped in a glowing aura. Irene decides to take the bus to the house, where her parents were studying the flora and the magnetic fields in the area, to try to make sense of what happened. Francis goes with her, and they realize that the house isn't so much burned as it is cut in half. Another song of Francis' opens a portal, and the children find themselves in a land halfway between life and death. Irene's book indicates that this is fairly safe, as an explorer returned without incident, but there are many threats. Francis does meet his former guitar teacher, Sam, who passed away at the age of 84, and she tries to help them. The biggest threat comes from the Ferryman, who takes people through the Black Gate, and Irene and Francis must harness the power of music to save themselves. They are not able to retrieve Irene's parents, and Moses stays behind, but they eventually make it home to Ruth, enriched by their experiences.

This was similar to Santat's The Aquanauts in the stark brutality of the parents' death, but isn't as graphic. This might be popular with readers who enjoy graphic novels dealing with ghosts or the afterlife, like Colossal's Ghost Town: A Graphic Novel, Hahn, Franquiz, and Peer's All the Lovely Bad Ones, Escabasse's Taxi Ghost, Lai's Ghost Book, Fearing's Welcome to Feral, or Kress and Khang's Ghost Circus. The illustration style was unique, and this had a deeply allegorical feel to it. The author thanks Lora Senf in the afterword, and I can see fans of her The Clackity appreciating The Black Gate.

I wish there had been a way for Irene and Francis to have their adventure without having both parents killed. It wouldn't have been a bad idea for her to find and rescue them. I am never a fan, personally, of the middle grade trope of killing parents so children can have adventures.