The Dollhouse Murders

Imagine finding a beautiful dollhouse where its occupants reenact the night of a murder from decades ago…creepy, right? Betty Ren Wright’s The Dollhouse Murders is a unique ghost story where the ghosts communicate their tragic tale through miniature doll versions of themselves.

Its mystery and old family secrets make this book one of my all-time favorites. 

I don’t want to blame Ms. Wright for my aversion to freaky dolls, but yeah, she didn’t help. When I read the book as a kid, it just affirmed my theory that all dolls come alive at night and do twisted things.

It’s extremely well-written and appropriately spooky. Not only that, but I met this author. She came to my elementary school and spoke to us. Much to my surprise, she was a sweet, normal, real-life person. I figured if she could give my classmates nightmares, surely, I could too.

In this book the dollhouse is in the attic. The main character, Amy, is terrified by the scratching noises and flashing lights coming from the dollhouse. And the dollhouse dolls are never where Amy left them. This haunting novel combines complicated family secrets with a spine-tingling mystery. I love that the dollhouse is connected to secrets in Amy’s own family—and a murder long from long ago.