SPIRIT SERVICE

Mourning the recent loss of her grandmother, an Indian Canadian tween and her friends become responsible for helping spirits find peace.

Twelve-year-old Raveena, along with her friends Aiko (who’s Japanese Canadian), Blair (who has Greek and Italian ancestry), and Lillian (who’s cued Black), are zapped by a rotary phone that Raveena’s mother purchased from an antique shop. The phone then immediately rings with a call from a spirit, their friend Marisol’s grandmother, whom the girls help to move on. Inside the base of the phone, they find a tiny old book labeled “Guidebook for Guardians”—and after consulting with local psychic Tía Paola, Raveena and friends learn that they can serve as Guardians. The kids create a business, Spirit Service, to help people contact the deceased. They’re hoping to win their school’s business competition and earn enough to help fund the arts program, which has become a victim of budget cuts. Then Grandmama calls Raveena and asks her to retrieve an item hidden somewhere in their town of Hollows’ Peak—an item that would have a tremendous impact—but the relationship between Raveena and her friends becomes strained while a greater threat grows. The evenly paced narrative artfully reveals the phone’s complicated history with its supernatural ties to the town, its founder, and a pivotal historic event. The authors deftly touch upon issues of grief and friendship before closing with some intriguing twists.

An entertainingly spooky series opener with appealing camaraderie among its characters.