Wait Till Helen Comes
A Ghost Story
HarperCollins · Print & ebook · April 21, 2008
Ghost story master Mary Downing Hahn spins a suspenseful yarn about two children who dislike their malicious younger stepsister, Heather—and tensions that escalate when Heather starts talking to a ghost named Helen.
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- Who it’s for
- A suspenseful ghost story pairs eerie danger with the prickly strains of becoming a blended family.
- Themes
- Blended-family tension, Stepsibling conflict, Supernatural danger
- Pacing
- Fast
Nearest books
Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved. Most of these share its genre: Ghost Stories.
The ClackityLora Senf62% matchAlso shares Paranormal
The Girl in the Locked RoomMary Downing Hahn75% matchAlso shares Paranormal
In a Dark, Dark Room and Other Scary StoriesAlvin Schwartz58% match
Wait Till Helen Comes Graphic NovelMary Downing Hahn, Scott Peterson91% matchAlso shares Stepfamily Stories
All the Lovely Bad OnesMary Downing Hahn79% matchAlso shares Paranormal
Eerie Tales From the School of ScreamsGraham Annable61% match
The Dollhouse MurdersBetty Ren Wright58% match
Took Graphic NovelMary Downing Hahn, Scott Peterson78% match
For older readers: Plain Bad Heroines, All the Dead Lie Down, The Only One Left
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Start with this bookAbout this book
Ghost story master Mary Downing Hahn spins a suspenseful yarn about two children who dislike their malicious younger stepsister, Heather—and tensions that escalate when Heather starts talking to a ghost named Helen. In a chilling ghost story that is also an insightful family drama, Molly, 12, and her brother Michael, 10, are wary of their sneaky seven-year-old stepsister, Heather.
Continue reading
Ever since they became a blended family, Heather has lied, tattled, and created tension between their parents. Worst of all, Heather claims she has been talking to a ghost named Helen, and she warns Molly and Michael that Helen is coming for them. Molly feels certain Heather is getting herself into some kind of danger, but every time she tries to help, Heather maneuvers to get her into trouble. The whole family is at odds. It seems as if things can't get any worse. But they do—when Helen comes. Also available as a graphic novel!
Family Tensions, Ghostly Unease
A suspenseful ghost story pairs eerie danger with the prickly strains of becoming a blended family.
Come here for
- A ghost story where sibling wariness and family friction sharpen the suspense
- A child’s unsettling warnings that the adults struggle to take seriously
Expect
- A chilling, sustained narrative with tension that keeps escalating
- Family drama tangled with supernatural menace
Where it sits
| Ghost Stories | 93% |
|---|---|
| Paranormal | 37% |
| Stepfamily Stories | 36% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- The Classics
- Stories About Divorce
- Sibling Stories
- Stepfamily Stories
Show all 8 publisher categories
- Horror & Ghost Stories
- Magic & Fantasy
- Big Feelings
- Paranormal
- Authors
- Mary Downing Hahn
- Publisher
- HarperCollins
- Published
- April 21, 2008
- Format
- Print & ebook
- Theme
- Blended-family tension · Stepsibling conflict · Supernatural danger
- Reading lane
- The Classics