You Don't Really Want to Sleep Tonight . . . Do You?

"These are the secrets I have kept. This is the trust I never betrayed. But he is dead now and has been for more than forty years. The one who gave me his trust, the one for whom I kept these secrets. The one who saved me . . . and the one who cursed me."

Will, age 12, is an orphan and assistant to Dr. Pellinore Warthrop. This doctor's specialty is monstrumology, the study of monsters. A grave robber comes visiting in the middle of the night and brings them both the deadliest case they have ever seen. And the nightmares will never end . . .

The reviews say:
"This gothic thriller will appeal to kids who like scary with high brow Dickensian writing...Yancey builds the action towards the climactic cemetery scene while also deftly handling the changing interpersonal dynamic between the doctor and Will. Readers who enjoyed Yancey's Alfred Kropp* series...won't want to miss this one. Recommended."--Library Media Connection

"Yancey takes...gore and violence...to thrilling new levels in this sophisticated tale."--School Library Journal

"This story is gothic horror at its finest and most disturbing. A cross between Mary Shelley and Stephen King, the tale will force readers to stay up late to finish and then remain awake, afraid to shut off the lights...The richness of the language, the strain of wry humor, and the perfectly drawn characters make it a marvelous read...This book is perfect for readers who want their nightmares in a literary package."--VOYA

"This has all the elements of the best Victorian mystery and horror...Readers who like their horror truly horrible and yet archly distant and peppered with ecstatic Victorian-scented comments on the woes of the human condition will jump right in and not emerge until the last relieved gasp."--The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

And a grandma says . . . "I'll probably have nightmares for a long time over this, with the cold mist of the fog over cobblestone streets and unthinkable things that go bump in the night." (amazon.com)

*Also, do try the Alfred Kropp series, which mingles modern day life with Arthurian legends and super spy stories.