House of Dark Shadows by Robert Liparulo (Dreamhouse Kings #1)

When the Kings move from L.A. to a secluded small town, fifteen-year-old Xander is beyond disappointed. He and his friends loved to create amateur films . . . but the tiny town of Pinedale is the last place a movie buff and future filmmaker wants to land.

But he, David, and Toria are captivated by the many rooms in the old Victorian fixer-upper they moved into–as well as the heavy woods surrounding the house.

They soon discover there’s something odd about the house. Sounds come from the wrong directions. Prints of giant, bare feet appear in the dust. And when David tries to hide in the linen closet, he winds up in locker 119 at his new school.

Then the really weird stuff kicks in: they find a hidden hallway with portals leading off to far-off places–in long-ago times. Xander is starting to wonder if this kind of travel is a teen’s dream come true . . . or his worst nightmare.

Let me just start by saying that this book was surprisingly scary. There were so many legitimately creepy things like sounds and footprints that made it hard to read at night. It was action-packed and really fast-paced.

Ultimately, I was really intrigued by the premise of a house with portals to other times and worlds. The execution, however, was a little shaky. There were a lot of the rules of the world that didn’t really make sense to me at first. Also, there wasn’t as much time-traveling as I was expecting based on the synopsis.

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