The story manages to combine the fantastical and ordinary, and is at once peculiar and familiar, ghoulish and whimsical, macabre and heartfelt. I thoroughly enjoyed this unique, little book. It's just a wonderfully compelling story. Their not fitting in is less the result of their time in imaginary lands, than the cause of it. They are very much real teenagers, of the kind who don't fit in.
It's scary the extent to which I recognize these kids. This is a beautifully well-done story, with very subtle and persuasive character development. They have to find the killer themselves, before they can't hide what's happening anymore. Tension and suspicion rise rapidly, and Miss West and all her students are afraid that authorities will find out and close down the school. Christopher carries a bone flute with him, and talks about bones dancing. Nancy is the new girl, and her roommate was the first killed. A girl whose gift is her exceptional eyes is killed and her eyes taken out-very carefully. Sumi is killed and her very talented hands are stolen. But at least they're among people who understand, people they can trust. They all hope to get home again, and they all know their chances are really, really low. Jack (Jacqueline) and Jill (Jillian) are identical twins who spent time in a horror movie come to life, where Jill fell in love with a vampire and Jack trained to be a Mad Scientist.
Kade sojourned in Faerie, and was thrown out when they realized he was only biologically female Kade is a transgender boy. Nancy's roommate, Sumi, spent time in a "high nonsense" world and is in love with a Candy Corn farmer who is now, she assumes, lost to her. Nancy spent time in the Halls of the Dead, learning stillness, silence, and patience. They stumbled through doorways that shouldn't have been there, and found themselves in worlds where they felt more at home than they ever had in their "real" homes. Nancy is the newest arrival at Eleanor West's Home for Wayward Children-in reality, children like Nancy, who have experienced unreality in the form of fantasy-like alternate worlds.
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