The Death of Yorik Mortwell by Stephen Messer

Yorik starts his story with an unfortunate end for him; he falls from a tree and breaks his neck...

Random House Kids sent me a copy of this book for review (thank you).  It has been published, so check with your local bookstore for a copy.

If you like Lemony Snicket books, you'll like this one.  Gris Grimly's morbid illustrations fit the storyline perfectly.

He's the gamekeeper's son but his father has died.  The son of the master likes to bully him.  His last bullying session kills Yorik.  What Yorik never expected was to have more of a life after death than he did before.

Yorik meets a Princess, who straightens out his broken bones and makes him more mobile.  She has an odd companion and is banned to the woods.  She wants him to haunt the mansion.  He's not sure about that, but he does want to check on what has happened to his little sister.  She's not old enough to survive on her own.

What he finds while searching for her turns out to be a bigger concern than he was prepared for.  Can he save the world, not just his sister?

I enjoyed this read.  It's a bit morbid, but it's a good story.  There are demon-hounds, inky blobs, and more.  Yorik even has a happy ending, if you can believe that.  Read it, you'll enjoy it.

Happy reading.