Happy Tuesday, friends! Has your TBR recovered from Part 1 yet? Well, get ready for Part 2, because I’ve got so much more spookiness for you today! Since there are so many new releases this month, I’ve decided just to do a weekly post so that I can keep up with everything. Here’s a peek at what’s coming out today in the world of spooky kidlit!

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September 8

Embassy of the Dead by Will Mabbitt and Taryn Knight; cover by Taryn Knight

When Jake Green opens a mysterious box containing a severed finger, he accidentally summons a grim reaper intent on dragging him to the Eternal Void (yes, it’s as fatal as it sounds). Now Jake is running for his life. Luckily, he has a knack for talking to ghosts, which just might help him survive long enough to reach the Embassy of the Dead and plead his case. With the help of a prankster poltergeist and a dead undertaker, Jake dodges fearsome undead creatures, discovers his own ghostly abilities, and gets excused from the school field trip due to a terrible (and made-up) bout of diarrhea. But the Embassy has its own problems, and Jake must be very careful where he places his trust—in both the living and the dead.

Revenge of the Living Ted by Barry Hutchison and Lee Cosgrove; cover by Lee Cosgrove

The bears are back for revenge in the sequel to Night of the Living Ted…and they’re far from cute and cuddly!

Just when Lisa Marie and Vernon think they’ve seen the last of the evil teddy bear Grizz, he’s back…for revenge! He has a new army of stuffed friends and a plan for world domination…

Can Lisa Marie and Vernon save the world again…and before bedtime?

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The Haunted Lake by P. J. Lynch; cover by P. J. Lynch

Jacob and his father are the only people who fish Lake Spetzia, which was formed when the river was dammed and their town was flooded. The villagers say the lake is haunted, but Jacob and his father don’t want to leave, because Jacob’s mother is buried in the cemetery below the water. As Jacob grows up, a village girl named Ellen falls in love with him, and he with her. But before they are married, Jacob disappears—lured underwater by the ghosts who inhabit the sunken village. Years go by, with Jacob held captive by the watery spirits and Ellen never giving up hope that she will find him, until a fateful night when Jacob sees the light of Ellen’s boat floating above. Can he break free and reach the surface?

The Language of Ghosts by Heather Fawcett; cover credit pending

Forced into exile on an enchanted, moving island, ex-princess Noa Marchena has two missions: reclaim her family’s stolen throne and ensure that the dark powers her older brother, Julian, possesses don’t go to his head in the process. But between babysitting her annoying little sister, Mite, and keeping an eye on the cake-loving sea monster that guards the moving island, Noa has her hands full.

When the siblings learn that their enemies are searching for a weapon capable of defeating Julian—whose legendary spell weaving is feared throughout the kingdom—once and for all, they vow to get to it first. To everyone’s surprise, the key to victory turns out to be a long-lost magical language—and only Noa can speak it. But what if by helping her brother, Noa ends up losing him?

Pumpkin Baby! by Elias Barks and Meg Hunt; cover by Meg Hunt

Open the flaps to follow Pumpkin Baby over the course of a not-so-spooky evening on Pumpkin Baby’s favorite night of the year: Halloween!

Classical Halloween iconography abounds in a magical imagining of an early 20th century New England town. Young readers and pre-readers will discover the details of this non-threatening Halloween world alongside their Pumpkin Baby avatar, as every spread features a flap revealing a fun, unexpected character or Halloween surprise.

The durable, interactive flaps make this an ideal multisensory experience for hours of fun at schools, libraries, homeschool or stay-at-home activities.

Zombie, or Not to Be by Kyle Sullivan and Derek Sullivan; cover by Derek Sullivan

Something is rotten in the state of Deadmark, but of course there is: it’s filled with zombies.

This brainy middle-grade adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet follows a young science-minded zombie named Edda as she deals with a series of death-altering problems including a climate crisis caused by the anti-science humans in Ignorway, the disappearance of her mom, and the greedy scheming of her villainous Aunt Agonista.

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Meme by Aaron Starmer; cover design by Anna Booth

Cole Weston—former friend, former boyfriend—has become dangerous and erratic. Something needs to be done. Getting rid of Cole is practically a public service. So high school seniors Holly Morse, Grayson Hobbs, Logan Bailey, and Meeka Miller devise a plan. Kill Cole. Bury him in the woods behind Meeka’s house. Bury him deep, deep in the ground along with four old cell phones, wiped except for their video confession as insurance that no one will ever betray the group. Everything is perfect, until the meme appears. It’s a screenshot from their confession…a confession that’s supposed to be entombed in the cold Vermont dirt with Cole.

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Phew! I told you September was packed with spooky new releases, didn’t I? I’ll have some reviews up this week, and then I’ll be back next Tuesday to let you know about even more spooky goodness coming out this month. Let me know in the comments which titles you’re most excited about!