Otto Normal and his mom have moved to Monsterton, but there’s one problem—they’re not monsters. In this hauntingly delightful, highly illustrated series opener, eleven-year-old Otto and his mom are newcomers to Monsterton, an island on the border of the Belcarra forest and a mysterious place called The Dark. Monsterton is picturesque and beautiful; it's an idyllic place for monsters to be themselves. There's Hamish and his brother Ben, who have been created and sewn together by their pirate father; the royal vampires, Red and Rose, who are followed around by their dutiful guards; Remi, a ghost girl who can appear and disappear at will; Darby, a quiet girl made entirely of slime; and Luck, a zombie who always she thinks she's right. There's only one teeny, tiny problem. Otto and his mom aren't monsters. As a human, Otto feels that he has to prove himself. After all, as Remi reminds him, he's so fragile. Along with Otto's new friends Hamish, Darby, and Luck, they set out to find the legendary White Pine Beach—a beach so mysterious, it's rumored to jump locations, never staying in the same place for too long. But what this ragtag team discovers is far more mysterious than a location-jumping beach. And when one of their number doesn't return home with them ... rumors swirl. 

Danielle McKechnie